Better Transport

• Ms Pip Sheard send them a message
• The Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance website

The Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance is an alliance of 25 local environmental, transport and community groups in the Greater Bristol area.

We have published a green transport manifesto for the city and the Greater Bristol area. To view our manifesto go to our website.

Our main current aims are to persuade councillors in the four West of England councils to vote for an Integrated Transport Authority (ITA) for the Greater Bristol area and get them to support a list of public transport projects we would like the ITA to undertake (mainly local rail and bus projects). We oppose major new road building and airport expansion.

We have regular contact with councillors of all parties on Bristol City Council.

We meet every six weeks, usually on a Wednesday night at 5:45pm at a central Bristol pub. All of our meetings are open to the public: contact us for more details.

Latest News :

February 2010: Read our submission to the West of England Partnership for an alternative transport vision for South Bristol (pdf 79kb)

June 2009: Write to the Minister Bristol Friends of the Earth and Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance are working with groups across the South West region to oppose the high targets for new housing proposed for the region (half a million) half of which will be built in the countryside in large new urban extensions the size of small towns. The targets were increased last year by the Government despite opposition by local councils, MPs and communities and are contained in the South West Regional Spatial Strategy. There are seven urban extensions proposed for the countryside surrounding Bristol. You can see them on a  map. The first proposed extension is 10,500 homes to be built between Long Ashton and Dundry and the company involved in developing it plans to apply for outline planning permission for all the homes this year following the publication of the Regional Spatial Strategy expected on June 29th.

All the groups opposed to development in the countryside across the South West have now joined forces in an alliance known as Save our Green Spaces.

We want the housing numbers reduced and the development of brownfield land first and a proper system of funding affordable housing. The scale of the development will also be a transport disaster for our area because we do not have an Integrated Transport Authority to plan public transport in conjunction with new housing and the result will be low density, car based developments so beloved by developers which will increase traffic all across the West of England.

Our alliance has a target of sending 40,000 postcards, emails and letters by 29th June to the new Secretary of State John Denham. We believe a new Minister is a new opportunity and it transpires that John Denham worked for both FOE and development organisations in the past. Please help us reach our target by sending an email to John Denham.

March 2009: Demo against Green Belt development. Join us at 1:30pm on Saturday 7 March, outside the Architecture Centre, next to the Youth Hostel and Pero's bridge on Bristol's Harbourside. We are campaiging against the construction of half a dozen large urban extensions to the city (and the new roads that will go with them) which would wipe out countryside to the south west and east of the city. Please turn up in support and bring banners and placards if you like. Contact us for more information.

23 February 2009: In a press release (PDF, 22K), Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance and Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways have expressed anger at the decision by the South West Regional Assembly members to fund rural road schemes ahead of new public transport schemes in the towns and cities.

January 2009: Your help is needed to make sure regional decision-makers choose to spend Government funding on public transport, rather than roads. Meet at 8am On Thursday 29 January in the forecourt of Bristol Temple Meads station for a photocall with local press at 8.15am.

If you can, come to lobby decision-makers before the South West Regional Assembly meeting in Taunton as well (8.44 train from Bristol Temple Meads, meeting starts at 10.30).

December 2008: The Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance has responded to the consultation (PDF, 75K) on the bus rapid transit system proposed for Bristol.

October 2008: Please sign our petition in support of a tram for Bristol. We want the money allocated for the new South Bristol Ring Road and a bus rapid transit system to be spent on an ultra light rail tram system instead.