Campaigners celebrate on the platform at Ashton Down. Photo courtesy of Bristol Rail Campaign.
Bristol celebrated a new station at the end of September. This is the result of a long and determined campaign, which has further improvements in its sights.
On 28 September the first train for 64 years served passengers at Ashton Down. The new station, costing £12 million, is the second one opened under the MetroWest programme. The Bristol Rail Campaign (formerly Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways) has played a significant part in this achievement.
This campaign was launched by a group of people who believed that the city’s railways were underused and in danger of being lost. They see integrated, accessible and affordable transport as important for everyone who lives and works there. Bristol’s road traffic is notoriously bad.
It has been an uphill fight at times, but the campaign continues on other fronts. One target is to reconnect northern parts of the city to the rail network. Another is to secure integration with buses and resolve fare structuring issues that will help to realise the passenger potential of the station.
And above all, these lines need electrification to secure their future. But as one of the campaigners said, “There’s so much still to do. But this was a good day!”