Skip to main content

Funding announced for next stage of Bristol rapid bus network

A pioneering bus scheme in Bristol will be more than doubled thanks to a huge US$41 million grant from the government, UK Transport Minister Baroness Kramer has announced. The MetroBus network uses dedicated busways to provide new express bus services into the city. The infrastructure will also boost existing bus services, which can use the busways to beat congestion. The new money will support the second phase of the Bristol MetroBus scheme and see the construction of another 3.1 miles of busways in th
January 21, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
A pioneering bus scheme in Bristol will be more than doubled thanks to a huge US$41 million grant from the government, UK Transport Minister Baroness Kramer has announced.
The MetroBus network uses dedicated busways to provide new express bus services into the city. The infrastructure will also boost existing bus services, which can use the busways to beat congestion.

The new money will support the second phase of the Bristol MetroBus scheme and see the construction of another 3.1 miles of busways in the south of the city.

The new South Bristol Link will connect to the Ashton Vale to Temple Meads MetroBus section already under construction. The rapid bus services will help encourage people to use public transport and cut congestion, while cycling and walking will be helped by the inclusion of safe, dedicated paths running alongside the routes.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: “Our support for Bristol’s MetroBus scheme shows this government is working to deliver a world-class transport network. This US$41 million will create faster bus services for people who rely on this service every day and will be welcomed by commuters and tourists alike. It is part of the government’s long term economic plan to improve the lives of people up and down the country, by investing in transport, creating jobs and driving economic growth.

Transport Minister Baroness Kramer said: “This US$41 million will help transform travel around Bristol. The South Bristol Link will help get traffic off the roads, spark economic growth and link people to jobs. Our investment continues our commitment to help build stronger local economies, give our cities first-rate transport systems and benefit the UK as a whole.”

The work is scheduled to be completed by November 2016.

Related Content

  • New York to pilot cordon-based congestion charging
    March 16, 2012
    From 2009, if all goes to plan, New York will run a three-year cordon-based congestion charging pilot - the first in the US. Upon accession, US Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters signalled her intention to continue her predecessor Norman Mineta's initiative to specifically target road congestion. And, with initiatives such as the US Department of Transportation's (USDOT's) Urban Partnership Program actively promoting tolling as a part of a compound solution to the problem, the way was opened for the co
  • US pledges £250m aid to transit jobs
    June 23, 2021
    Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg is allocating funds to projects in 31 US states
  • Obama to propose oil tax to fund transportation projects
    February 8, 2016
    President Obama is to propose a US$10 a barrel tax on crude oil to fund the overhaul of the US transportation infrastructure. White House officials say the president’s 21st Century Clean Transportation System, funded by a new fee paid by oil companies would increase American investments in clean transportation infrastructure by roughly 50 per cent while reforming the investments already made to help reduce carbon pollution, cut oil consumption and create new jobs. They say the new fee on oil will also en
  • Personal Rapid Transit, clear benefits for European cities
    July 26, 2012
    David Crawford watches the race to get the world's first PRT system up and running. To paraphrase the old joke about buses bunching, you seem to have to wait several decades for a Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system, and then half a dozen come along together. Currently, in fact, there are well over that number of schemes for driverless electric passenger-carrying 'pod' networks at various stages of planning, design and implementation around the world. Locations range from a straight-off-the-drawing board ne