January 2017
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by Journal editor Stephen Horton
2016: Bradley Stoke’s annus horribilis
I
n keeping with the traditions of the season, I have been looking back at the stories we have carried in the Journal over the last 12 months and there are two topics that have dominated the headlines: roadworks and buses. Without putting too blunt a point on it, living in Bradley Stoke during 2016 has been pretty miserable – unless, that is, you never needed to drive a motor vehicle or use public transport. When Alun Griffiths Ltd commenced construction of the MetroBus route through Bradley Stoke, they pledged that it would be “all over by Christmas [2016]”. But thanks, we are told, to the discovery of numerous “uncharted” gas and water mains, the work has been delayed, and delayed again, and we must now endure a further seven months of “MetroBus misery” (see page 19). The impact of the MetroBus roadworks in north Bradley Stoke has been immense, with the prolonged closure of the Bradley Stoke Way (BSW) / Woodlands Lane junction forcing huge volumes of traffic down Pear Tree Road and Bowsland Way, resulting in gridlock at peak times. More recently, the closure of one of three lanes of BSW on its final approach to the Aztec West Roundabout, along with lane closures on the BSW approaches to Patchway Brook Roundabout, have predictably worsened the situation, resulting in all-day congestion.
With residents and workers reporting delays of up to an hour in getting out of Bradley Stoke, the economic cost of these roadworks must be enormous, not to mention the emotional stress suffered by everyone caught up in them. Car drivers have certainly had it bad, but those who rely on our local bus services have suffered even more. As if the delays and diversions caused by the MetroBus roadworks weren’t enough, bus passengers have seen the X74 route axed and had to put up with appalling unreliability on the town’s key X73 commuter service since the timetable was changed last September. At a time when we most needed local representatives to stand up for us, our councillors and MP have been, in the words of one Journal reader, “about as much use as a chocolate teapot”. South Gloucestershire Council, which has ultimate responsibility for the MetroBus route being constructed through Bradley Stoke, has ridden roughshod over the residents of our town, showing scant regard for the massive disruption it has caused. A widely held belief is that the council has allowed work to proceed on too many fronts at the same time, and that insufficient mitigation measures have been put in place. But will it all be worth it in the end (whenever that might turn out to be)? Well, let’s face it, MetroBus is never going to be
as good as the tram system that was promised all those years ago. When first proposed, the alternative of a ‘bus rapid transit’ system with dedicated lanes along its entire length looked like a reasonable solution, but then the government swung its costcutting axe and we are now left with a patchwork of discontinuous bus lanes. And, disappointingly, it won’t even provide a direct service between Bradley Stoke and Parkway Station. There is little doubt that journeys to key destinations like the city centre and Cribbs Causeway will be quicker and more reliable with MetroBus, but with most people needing to walk further to get to a MetroBus stop (to some extent negating the faster journey times) and the continued lure of free car parking at The Mall, it remains to be
seen whether it will become the transformational success that our local councils have banked on as the foundation stone of their strategic planning. But at least we are getting the Stoke Gifford By-Pass out of it, after a wait of twenty years! This will bring much needed relief to the residents of Stoke Gifford “village” and allow for much quicker journeys between Bradley Stoke and the M32. But there are also fears that the bypass could be a doubled-edged sword, creating a handy short-cut for long-distance commuters between the Almondsbury Interchange and major employment sites like UWE and MoD Abbeywood, particularly when there is an incident on the M4 or at the top of the M32. ● “What actually is MetroBus?” Answers on page 33.
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