Bristol Rail Campaign

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.

This sets out to deliver the backbone of a sustainable transport system based on the region’s underused suburban rail network.

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.

The Council cut the subsidy paid by half, saying the extra passengers were allowing the line to support itself,[5][6] which prompted criticism by FoSBR, saying the money should be used to provide evening trains and through services to Bedminster and Parson Street.

[9] Bristol Rail Campaign supported the opening of a station to serve the A4 Portway Park & Ride scheme in Shirehampton.

[10] 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.

[20][21][22][23] However, FoSBR are concerned that since the new electric Intercity Express Programme (IEP) trains will not be able to operate beyond Bristol,[24] direct services between London and Weston-super-Mare will be discontinued.

FoSBR released a joint statement with Daniel Casey of the Green Party and Dave Wood of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers, saying that the residents' concerns were unfounded, noting several methods of noise/light/water pollution prevention that would be used, and also mentioning that the nearby motorways, Filton Airfield and night-time freight trains on the South Wales Main Line would all produce more background noise than the depot would.

[28] The scheme proposes an hourly train service from Portishead, calling at a new station at Pill and then Parson Street, Bedminster and Bristol Temple Meads.