Cars to be banned from street near Temple Meads Station as bus interchange planned

Councillors approved the latest plans as part of upgrading the train station(Image: Getty Images)

Bus stops outside Temple Meads will be relocated to a nearby street north of the train station where cars will be banned.

The Friary is a quiet road running round the back of Temple Meads, and will become a bus interchange with services stopping here instead of on Station Approach.

Station Approach, the ramp up to the main entrance to the station, will get more public space and improved security measures.

All sorts of upgrades are planned for Temple Meads, including two new entrances to the south and the east.

The new “Northern Gateway” will upgrade the current northern entrance to the station, and Bristol City Council is working with Network Rail and the Temple Quarter regeneration programme to carry out the works. The Friary will get new bus shelters and bus stops.

The plan for the Friary(Image: Bristol City Council)

The full business case for the Friary was approved by councillors on the transport policy committee on Thursday, May 15. This will now be sent to the West of England Combined Authority for a final check, before the money is made available and the works begin.

Adam Crowther, head of city transport, said: “Buses can come in, turn back around, stop, and then come back out. That enables relocation of buses from the ramp to the Friary, and then the ramp can be an enhanced public realm.”

The money is from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement, a giant pot of government cash that can’t be spent on day-to-day services. This money has to be spent by March 2027, sparking wider concerns about roadworks on “everything, everywhere, all at once”, due to the strict deadline imposed by the Department for Transport.

The wider project includes upgrading the Midland Shed, a historic building that is currently used for car parking. This will be used for new passenger toilets, ticket facilities, food and drink, and shops.

A large outdoor car park will be relocated to south of the station, at a new entrance where an old Kwik Fit garage is on the Bath Road. Station Approach, the forecourt outside the main entrance, will be transformed from a congested area full of taxis and buses to a spacious pedestrianised square.

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