This week Bristol is expected to get hotter than ever before, in a sign of things to come
The city needs to adapt to heatwaves becoming more common(Image: PA)
I haven’t got on board yet with Bristol’s new trend for saunas but on Sunday I did get the bus from St Anne’s into town. I left the house fresh out of the shower, walked for two minutes to the bus stop, and got off at the Haymarket 25 minutes later, feeling like a horrible sweaty mess.
The new green electric buses have air conditioning but we don’t have those on the Number 5 route yet. We still have the old diesel buses which are like sitting inside an oven. I don’t get the bus that often but I would hate the thought of having to do a sweltering daily commute in one.
My brain was so frazzled by the heat that I forgot to get off at Cabot Circus and had to walk back along the Horsefair. There are no trees and the vast tarmac and concrete canyon traps the hot air. And then air conditioning units in the shops along the road pump even more hot air outside.
According to the Met Office, Bristol could reach a new record of 39 degrees on Thursday, and extreme heatwaves will become more common because burning fossil fuels is warming the climate. But the city is badly prepared — and in some cases is actively making things worse.
One thing that would help is large water fountains in the city centre. Evaporating water absorbs heat from the air, making surrounding temperatures cooler. Moving water also creates a little localised breeze. Last year Bristol City Council removed fountains from the Centre and replaced them with black tarmac, and then a painting that has since mostly worn away. This didn’t help.
(Image: Bristol Live)
Another thing that would help is being able to take a dip in the river. Unless you’re lucky enough to have a membership at the Henleaze Swimming Club or can afford Clifton Lido, heading to Conham River Park is the only option for swimming outdoors without leaving Bristol. However swimming is technically banned here and the river is sometimes polluted with raw sewage.
By the time I got into town I was parched. Needless to say you should drink plenty of water during a heatwave. But what about when your water bottle is empty? There are vanishingly few drinking water fountains in the city centre. Instead, thirsty shoppers are encouraged to venture into local businesses signed up to the UK Refill Scheme, where in theory you can get free water.
There is an app showing a map of participating businesses in Bristol. Although I’m not sure I would be brave enough to saunter past a queue of customers paying for drinks in a Costa or Greggs and brazenly ask a member of staff to fill my water bottle up for free. I bought a plastic water bottle in Sainsbury’s instead. In Europe, public drinking water fountains are more common.
Still, I’m grateful for living in a house with a garden and a space for a paddling pool. People living in council high rises like in Barton Hill and Lawrence Hill will be feeling the heat much more. Soon we will buy shutters to install outside our windows, like you see in Spain. Council tenants meanwhile could be left enduring hotter homes with no similar protection from the sun.
The parts of Bristol which will be most affected by rising temperatures(Image: Bristol City Council)
Five parts of Bristol were flagged in 2023 as the most at risk from extreme heat, with Lawrence Hill topping the list. This is due to the blocks of flats, deprivation, a lack of green spaces, and because the area is in the east of the city and not on a hill. Easton, St George, central Bristol and Hillfields also made the list of where will be the hottest in the far warmer years to come.
This formed part of the Keeping Bristol Cool policy, which sets out how the council plans to adapt the city to deal with hotter weather. These include planting many more trees, making sure care homes, council housing and offices stay cool, and creating more shaded walkways and river paths. Although in reality, so far the ambitions have faced a few setbacks.
The obstacle blocking many more trees along streets in Bristol is the vast tangled network of underground pipes and cables, carrying the city’s water, gas, electricity and internet. Parts of this network aren’t even mapped properly, and relocating sections to make way for tree roots is expensive. But the lack of shade leaves busy areas, like East Street in Bedminster, baking hot.
And on one waterside walk, near the Cottage pub, several large trees were chopped down last year to make way for a new housing development. Goram Homes, the council-owned developer, is planning to build flats on the old Caravan Club on Spike Island. It’s unclear where replacement trees will be planted, but the air will certainly feel hotter along that part of the Harbourside.
Bristol has made serious progress in slashing its greenhouse gas emissions. The city’s emissions have halved since 2008, but unfortunately global emissions are still rising. Last year leading councillors admitted their focus will increasingly include thinking how Bristol can best adapt to the changing climate. Air conditioning on buses and fountains would be a good start.