Transport: Ashley Down railway station due to open next month

A NEW railway station is due to open in Bristol next month but two others have been hit by fresh delays. Ashley Down station is scheduled to open either at “the end of August or early September”, giving people living in the area a new option to travel by train.

Meanwhile North Filton and Henbury have been delayed due to changes to the design and concerns about an access ramp. The

North Filton station will serve the new Brabazon Arena and housing estate, and Henbury will be the last stop along the newly reopened line.

But YTL Developments, which is building the arena and housing estate, recently changed its plans for increased capacity and more homes. This means the plans for North Filton station have needed to be redesigned, although planning permission has already been granted.

Henbury station doesn’t have planning permission yet, and there are concerns about a ramp accessing the site. The opening date has been pushed back yet again from 2026 to early 2027, according to Malcolm Parsons, interim delivery director for transport infrastructure at the West of England Combined Authority. North Filton still appears due to open in 2026.

An update on the new train stations was given to the overview and scrutiny committee yesterday.

Mr Parsons said: “We don’t have

planning consent for Henbury yet. We’re reapplying for planning because of a condition on an access ramp. We’re proposing that we press forward with an application in the next few weeks, which will allow us to deliver that project by the end of 2026 or early 2027.

“The scope and requirements of Filton have been amended, following the application for densification of the site and the arena, which has changed the design. We have agreed with the rail industry partners what that revised set of requirements will be.”