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Bristol Rail Campaign
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Bristol Rail Campaign
Bristol Rail Campaign (formerly FoSBR, Friends of Bristol Suburban Railways) is a Bristol-based campaign group, calling for better rail transport in the Bristol area.
Bristol Rail Campaign was formed in 1995 as Friends of Severn Beach Railway, to protest against the potential demise of the Severn Beach Line, a single-track branch line in Bristol. Services at the time had been reduced along the line from Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach, with many services replaced by buses. The first FoSBR action was on 25 September 1995, when a group of protestors met at Avonmouth railway station with buggies and bicycles, to show that buses were not a suitable replacement for trains. The group later changed its name to Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways, allowing it to keep the FoSBR acronym.
FoSBR changed its campaign name to Bristol Rail Campaign in 2023, stating: "We have found that people find it confusing, don’t get it right and don’t remember it. We need a simple name that says clearly what we are. That name is Bristol Rail Campaign.".
Bristol Rail Campaign is centred on its Plan for Rail. This sets out to deliver the backbone of a sustainable transport system based on the region’s underused suburban rail network.
FoSBR's first campaign was for a better service on the Severn Beach Line, an important Bristol commuter line connecting Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach and Avonmouth via Clifton. The line had few services, no service at all on Sundays, and very few trains travelled the entire length of the line to Severn Beach. Following action by FoSBR and a string of protests, Bristol City Council agreed to subsidise a service of at least one train every 45mins in each direction along the line. This continued until 2007 when a 1-hour minimum service was written into the Greater Western passenger franchise. In 2007, the Council unanimously agreed to pay £450,000 per year to fund extra services from May 2008 for three years, which resulted in a 60% increase in passenger numbers along the line, and a 25% year-on-year increase between June 2009 and June 2010. Passenger numbers on the line increased by 90% over the period 2008–11, and 25% in the period 2010–11. The Council cut the subsidy paid by half, saying the extra passengers were allowing the line to support itself, which prompted criticism by FoSBR, saying the money should be used to provide evening trains and through services to Bedminster and Parson Street. FoSBR's ambition was realised in 2021, when daily through trains were introduced between Severn Beach and Weston-super-Mare
Services along the line run approximately half-hourly between Avonmouth and Bristol Temple Meads, with alternate trains extending to Severn Beach.
Bristol Rail Campaign supported the opening of a station to serve the A4 Portway Park & Ride scheme in Shirehampton. They argued that buses often have to deal with heavy traffic on the A4 Portway to reach the city centre, and that a rail link would be quicker and greener. Portway Park & Ride Station was officially opened on 31 July 2023, with passenger services starting the next day.
Bristol Rail Campaign has also suggested the Severn Beach Line be electrified as part of the electrification of the Great Western Main Line. They were supported in this by Stephen Williams, the former MP for Bristol West.
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Bristol Rail Campaign
Bristol Rail Campaign (formerly FoSBR, Friends of Bristol Suburban Railways) is a Bristol-based campaign group, calling for better rail transport in the Bristol area.
Bristol Rail Campaign was formed in 1995 as Friends of Severn Beach Railway, to protest against the potential demise of the Severn Beach Line, a single-track branch line in Bristol. Services at the time had been reduced along the line from Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach, with many services replaced by buses. The first FoSBR action was on 25 September 1995, when a group of protestors met at Avonmouth railway station with buggies and bicycles, to show that buses were not a suitable replacement for trains. The group later changed its name to Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways, allowing it to keep the FoSBR acronym.
FoSBR changed its campaign name to Bristol Rail Campaign in 2023, stating: "We have found that people find it confusing, don’t get it right and don’t remember it. We need a simple name that says clearly what we are. That name is Bristol Rail Campaign.".
Bristol Rail Campaign is centred on its Plan for Rail. This sets out to deliver the backbone of a sustainable transport system based on the region’s underused suburban rail network.
FoSBR's first campaign was for a better service on the Severn Beach Line, an important Bristol commuter line connecting Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach and Avonmouth via Clifton. The line had few services, no service at all on Sundays, and very few trains travelled the entire length of the line to Severn Beach. Following action by FoSBR and a string of protests, Bristol City Council agreed to subsidise a service of at least one train every 45mins in each direction along the line. This continued until 2007 when a 1-hour minimum service was written into the Greater Western passenger franchise. In 2007, the Council unanimously agreed to pay £450,000 per year to fund extra services from May 2008 for three years, which resulted in a 60% increase in passenger numbers along the line, and a 25% year-on-year increase between June 2009 and June 2010. Passenger numbers on the line increased by 90% over the period 2008–11, and 25% in the period 2010–11. The Council cut the subsidy paid by half, saying the extra passengers were allowing the line to support itself, which prompted criticism by FoSBR, saying the money should be used to provide evening trains and through services to Bedminster and Parson Street. FoSBR's ambition was realised in 2021, when daily through trains were introduced between Severn Beach and Weston-super-Mare
Services along the line run approximately half-hourly between Avonmouth and Bristol Temple Meads, with alternate trains extending to Severn Beach.
Bristol Rail Campaign supported the opening of a station to serve the A4 Portway Park & Ride scheme in Shirehampton. They argued that buses often have to deal with heavy traffic on the A4 Portway to reach the city centre, and that a rail link would be quicker and greener. Portway Park & Ride Station was officially opened on 31 July 2023, with passenger services starting the next day.
Bristol Rail Campaign has also suggested the Severn Beach Line be electrified as part of the electrification of the Great Western Main Line. They were supported in this by Stephen Williams, the former MP for Bristol West.