Bristol bus lanes plan to be looked at again by mayor Marvin Rees

The scheme is planned for Passage Road between Crow Lane and Charlton Road

A "fresh look" is being made at plans for 24-hour bus lanes on a main road in north Bristol.

The city council refreshed permission for the A4018 Passage Road scheme last month.

But responding to a question about the plans, mayor Marvin Rees appeared to accept they might not be ideal and agreed to "discuss them further".

Councillor Mark Weston said the lanes are not needed because no 24-hour services actually use the route.

"This isn't a stretch of road that buses get delayed on," Mr Weston, who represents the local Henbury and Brentry ward, said.

Mr Rees has now offered to work with ward councillors on finding a possible alternative, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service. 

The scheme is planned for between Crow Lane and Charlton Road and also includes cycle lanes and pedestrian crossings, following previous approval in 2019.

'Massive congestion'

But during a recent meeting, Mr Weston said that without the current capacity of two lanes, cars would back up and delay northbound buses.

"We have seen this previously when the bus lane was first installed by the White Tree roundabout," Mr Weston said.

"It was too long and caused massive congestion."

Mr Weston asked the mayor to "look again" at the plans and "preferably abandon this part of the scheme".

In a written reply, on 8 November, Mr Rees said: "I appreciate your concerns.

"Can I suggest we discuss them further and take a fresh look at the proposals."

The mayor said that if the council took no action to improve public transport on the A4018, then congestion would get worse because of the Cribbs Patchway New Neighbourhood.

The cabinet's latest decision in October means work on the project will start in January and will take 18 months.

Costs for the major roadworks have gone up from £3.8m to £5.1m since the funding was first approved, due to inflation.