Public transport Planned new M32 bus lanes could give city network a boost
ANEW bus lane planned along the M32 would “turbo charge” the bus network according to a Bristol transport boss. Major repairs to the motorway bridge near Ikea and Tesco will likely be the catalyst for reallocating more space to buses, with bus stops along the road planned too.
National Highways is planning repairs to the Eastville Viaduct, which runs over Junction 2 of the M32, beginning in 2026 or 2027. The repairs are expected to cost £200 million and will see the bridge lifted up by half a centimetre, with narrower lanes and some off ramps temporarily closed.
Labour councillor Don Alexander, cabinet member for transport, said that amount of money held “many possibilities”, including giving more space on the road to buses instead of cars.
During a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, he said: “For us as a region it’s very important that that £200 million isn’t spent just recreating what’s basically a 1960s piece of transport infrastructure, because there’s so many more possibilities for using that space and that amount of money. One thing I would like to highlight today is buses. If we could reassign some of that space – and this is a project that’s been rumbling on for about 20 years now – if we could reassign some of that space to buses that is currently given to cars, then the amount of patronage would turbo charge our bus network. Not just here in Bristol but in South Gloucestershire too. We’ve done the calculations on that.
“It’s important for Bristol but it’s critical for South Gloucestershire, when many of their buses are requiring ongoing subsidy. As a region and as a unitary authority, we want that project to move at pace. We don’t want it to be kicked down the road. It’s a very challenging project, we recognise that, but the benefits of it potentially are absolutely enormous.”
The long-term plans include reclassifying the M32 as an A-road and building bus lanes along the whole length. The first phase will likely see bus lanes inbound from Junction 1 into the city centre, and outbound from Junction 2 to Junction 1. Transport planners hope that making public transport more reliable and quicker will cut congestion, as some drivers will decide to get the bus instead.
Another key part of the plan is building a new park and ride, near Junction 1 at the northern end of the M32, although this has been discussed for at least two decades, so might not happen soon.
Marvin Rees, the Labour mayor of Bristol, warned of “misery for commuters” without one.
He said: “National Highways want to come and do work on the viaduct near Tesco. When they do that work and start closing off ramps, reducing road width and reducing traffic, if we don’t have a public transport offering in place, it’s going to bring misery to morning commuters coming into Bristol from South Gloucestershire, and displacement down to Gloucester Road.
“It would be made all the worse if some of the opposition have their way and try to build an overground mass transit system that closes Gloucester Road.
“We’ve got to have this park and ride in place. It will bring life to that route that is currently just a commuter challenge along the M32.”
It’s very important that £200m isn’t spent just recreating what’s basically a 1960s piece of transport infrastructure Cllr Don Alexander