News / railways
Portishead railway line gets go-ahead from secretary of state
After more than 20 years of campaigning, the Portishead to Bristol railway line is now the closest yet to becoming a reality again, after the secretary of state for transport gave the green light for works to get underway.
Planning permission and the necessary environmental consents have been granted by the approval of a Development Consent Order.
Campaigners from Portishead Railway Group (PRG) said that the announcement “is cause for great celebration. It has been a long and arduous journey to get to this most welcome point in the saga of reopening the railway to passenger traffic.”
The line would once again connect Portishead and Pill to Bristol by rail, with PRG saying that “urgent action is now required to push forward with construction so as to help solve the existing road congestion and resulting pollution problems, as soon as possible”.
PRG’s Dave Chillistone said: “This is a very welcome announcement. The Portishead line has always had a very strong business case and we are pleased that this was recognised by the secretary of state.
“We now look forward to seeing the business case and full design so that the contracts can finally be put in place for construction of the line to start.”
The Development Consent Order decision follows a recent agreement between the West of England Combined Authority, North Somerset Council and the Department for Transport to collectively pledge £35.5m in additional funding to the project.
Metro mayor Dan Norris said that the last time you could catch a train along this line “was before a man walked on the moon and the Beatles were taking America by storm”.
He added: “So I’m pleased to have passed another important milestone. This is a project long in the making and undoubted there will be more bumps in the road.
“However, this important thumbs up keeps us firmly on the right track, and means the hard work of physically bringing this rail line back to life can begin.
“This is a really important project that will see communities in south Bristol and across our city reconnected to Portishead and help in our vital quest for net-zero.”
Main photo: Portishead Railway Group
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- Work starts to build Bristol’s first railway station in almost a century
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