Construction on some of the ambitious projects is due to start next year
How the revamped Haymarket could look(Image: Bristol City Council )
A major step forward will be taken this week for controversial changes to several roads in the city centre.
Over the next few years, roadworks will completely revamp Bond Street, Union Street, Broadmead, the Horsefair, the Haymarket, and the Redcliffe roundabout.
The changes include installing new bus lanes and bike lanes in a bid to cut congestion and air pollution.
Transport bosses at Bristol City Council are hoping to encourage fewer people to drive and more to get the bus, walk or cycle instead — but that first requires upgrading infrastructure.
Councillors on the transport policy committee are expected to sign off the latest stage of the works on Thursday, May 15, although some are already unhappy with the proposed plans. Ahead of the committee meeting, new images and details of the changes have been revealed.
Green Councillor Ed Plowden, chair of the transport committee, said: “It’s exciting to see these transformative projects take shape. The plans for the Broadmead area are about more than improving transport routes and mark the beginning of a huge regeneration of the area that will see new homes and retail and leisure facilities developed.
“In preparation, we need to improve bus routes and create pedestrian-friendly spaces that make it easier and more pleasant to travel actively.
“Adapting transport routes to meet these future needs is vital, especially as many more people who move into the area will rely on walking, wheeling, cycling, and public transport.
“This is a significant shift for the area, but it paves the way for our vision of a well-connected city with clean air and plenty of sustainable transport options.
“We have also increased the amount of disabled parking overall, with new bays planned closer to the pedestrianised area, and we will be maintaining the current numbers throughout this ambitious construction programme.”
The changes planned for Bond Street (Image: Bristol City Council )
New bus lanes will be installed on Bond Street, which runs along the back of Cabot Circus between the Bearpit and the bottom of the M32.
These aim to reduce the amount of time buses get held up in traffic, but could increase journey times for people driving cars. A new cycle route will also be created running parallel with Bond Street, through quiet streets in St Pauls.
Opposing the changes on Bond Street is Liberal Democrat Cllr Nicholas Coombes, who says they will lead to more queues of traffic due to there being less space for cars on the roads.
A professional infrastructure planner, he has a decade of experience developing highway schemes. One metric, the “benefit-cost ratio”, gave the plans a score of negative 35.9.
Cllr Coombes said: “This is the worst BCR score I have ever seen. There would be minimal benefits to public transport journey times in this location, balanced against delays to other road users which are valued 35 times worse. It is unrealistic to say that car drivers are going to switch to the bus before we even have plans for a park and ride.
“Even ignoring the delay costs to car drivers, the pollution costs caused by the queuing traffic still outweigh the public transport benefits four to one. The proposals for Bond Street and a new cycle route seem reasonable, but I can’t support a package that knowingly causes 35 times more harm than good.”
However, the benefit-cost ratio is “out of date”, according to a council report. The council has to follow guidance from the Department for Transport that “prioritises motorised traffic making journeys as quickly as possible”. This metric also just looks at the changes in isolation, not taking into account the new bus lanes elsewhere in the city centre, which also speed up buses.
Having consulted the public about the changes last summer, the council is now planning to submit a full business case for the project to the West of England Combined Authority for approval. If approved, roadworks are due to start next year, costing £4.52 million.
Bus lanes and bike lanes are also planned for Redcliffe roundabout, with a full business case now drawn up too. Construction is expected to start next year, costing £6.25 million. This will almost complete an anti-clockwise loop of bus priority measures around the city centre.
The changes planned for Redcliffe roundabout(Image: Bristol City Council )
Two bus gates will be introduced, on the roundabout and on Redcliffe Street. A two-way segregated bike lane will be introduced on all arms of the roundabout and along Redcliffe Way. Pedestrians will no longer have to share the footpath along Portwall Lane with cyclists.
Major changes are also planned for the Broadmead and Union Street area. The committee will likely approve plans to submit an outline business case to the combined authority, and to approve the contracting of the works while the full business case is finalised. This would secure £3.5 million for the full business case and £20.8 million for the construction works.
These plans include pedestrianising the Horsefair and Penn Street, giving buses more priority on some roads, and building one kilometre of segregated cycle routes. Part of the reason behind the plans is an upcoming regeneration of the area, with thousands of new homes.
How the Horsefair could look after the changes (Image: Bristol City Council)
How Union Street could look after the changes (Image: Bristol City Council)
Changes to the roads include removing most traffic from High Street, Wine Street, Union Street and Newgate and making the Pithay taxi only. Plans also include adding more disabled parking spaces and new taxi ranks. Construction is expected to start in 2027.
After the public consultation last summer, the council has changed the plans by adding more disabled parking closer to the Horsefair. The changes include a pedestrian crossing on the eastern arm of the Bearpit roundabout, keeping the right turn out of the bus station from Lower Maudlin Street, and adding loading bays on the Horsefair and a loading bay on Bond Street.
Elsewhere, the M2 metrobus service could be extended to the UWE campus in Frenchay. Its frequency would be increased from every 15 minutes to every 10 to 12 minutes. The service would use the new bus priority route through the city centre along Redcliffe Street, the High Street, Wine Street and Union Street.
These projects will be paid for through a giant pot of cash called the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement, which the government gave to the West of England Combined Authority. This money can’t be spent on day-to-day council services such as collecting bins.