[hawkinspeter]

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/through-traffic-banned-parts-bristol-8295492

This should be introduced towards the end of this year as an experimental trial – I wish it could happen sooner as it covers where I live. We had questionnaires about it during lockdown, though I think that was just about making Beaufort Rd (by the cemetery) one way to motorised traffic.

Topic

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Bus gates to go or move.

Bus gates to go or move.

https://www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/controversial-bus-gates-moved-removed-ebln-changes/

(and extra routes for the famous giant camper van)

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Data on traffic counts etc

Data on traffic counts etc before and after scheme.

https://www.bristol247.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/EBLN-Monitoring-Report-December-2025.pdf

Some odd items, e.g vehicle movements on Beaufart Rd down from thousands to tens, because the counters are at the ends rather the in middle of each zone. 

Counts down a bit on Church Rd!

Sadly no counts on the North (non-EBLN) side mainly Whitehall road, which is popularly believed to have been much worse than before. 

Counts on Crews Hole Road -> Blackswarth Rd up by a bit (2700 -> 2800), which is surpising to me as it looked more (and everyone complains about it). Easy to be misled by queues, I guess.

N02 increased ~10%  on roads (including  residential streets) monitored near the scheme, down ~20% within the scheme.

Ambulances *faster*.  Not much affected at Cat 1 (most urgent, with response time ~ 5mins vs standard of 7 mins) or 3 , 4 minutes quicker at Cat 2. 40 mins slower for Cat 4 but these are only a few calls (versus hundreds for Cat 2)

Fire service *slower* by around 1 minute in 5 (or same) in all streets

Buses on Church road (by far the most frequent) ~ minutes faster at peak times.

Footfall increased next to Avonvale/Marsh Lane shops. mixed change on Church Road 

Oh, and a bit more cycling 🙂

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Also the engagement report.

Also the engagement report.

https://www.bristol247.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/EBLN-Engagement-Report-December-2025.pdf 

 

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chrisonabike wrote:

[quote=chrisonabike]”Bollards to be removed” – shurely “cars to be removed? ” As you note – without that little will change. Bollards can be made so the likes of fire engines can run over them in emergencies like “can’t find the key” (see Ranty Highwayman on this). Motor vehicles are a tougher obstacle. https://therantyhighwayman.blogspot.com/2016/12/filtered-permeability-vs-necessary.html%5B/quote%5D I don’t think this is about anything more than the local overton window. The scheme is unpopular, or at least appears that way. Local labour (including the MP) are speaking against it (despite planning it in the first place). The greens I guess are hoping to make it a smaller issue by the time of the next local election (couple of years to go) and perhaps to prevent one local defection. It is possible – but no-one has asked this question – that the new delays (bollards in the way) are not worse than the old ones (vehicles in the way). Difficult to sell such a quantitative story even if true, though.

[hawkinspeter]

chrisonabike wrote:

[quote=chrisonabike]”Bollards to be removed” – shurely “cars to be removed? ” As you note – without that little will change. Bollards can be made so the likes of fire engines can run over them in emergencies like “can’t find the key” (see Ranty Highwayman on this). Motor vehicles are a tougher obstacle. https://therantyhighwayman.blogspot.com/2016/12/filtered-permeability-vs-necessary.html%5B/quote%5D

Motor vehicles don’t have to be a tough obstacle if you’re driving a fire engine like this one:

https://www.odditycentral.com/auto/big-wind-probably-the-most-powerful-firetruck-ever-built.html

[chrisonabike]

“Bollards to be removed” –
“Bollards to be removed” – shurely “cars to be removed? ” As you note – without that little will change. Bollards can be made so the likes of fire engines can run over them in emergencies like “can’t find the key” (see Ranty Highwayman on this). Motor vehicles are a tougher obstacle.

https://therantyhighwayman.blogspot.com/2016/12/filtered-permeability-vs-necessary.html

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hawkinspeter wrote:

Bollards to be removed in liveable neighbourhood after fire service delays

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bollards-removed-liveable-neighbourhood-after-10699916

Bristol Post wrote:

Another issue affecting fire engines is “inappropriate and illegal” parking, … The council is planning to ramp up parking enforcement to discourage this.

Remember the last time they said this? I reckon that the one improvment was made when some enterprising soul started to place cones on the pavement opposite junctions, including on the roofs of illegally parked vehicles. 

[hawkinspeter]

Bollards to be removed in

Bollards to be removed in liveable neighbourhood after fire service delays

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bollards-removed-liveable-neighbourhood-after-10699916

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Sounds more like local Labour

Sounds more like local Labour trying to work out how to regain votes from the Greens and (not so much in Barton Hill, but not nothing) Reform. 

[chrisonabike]

Sounds like another “but
Sounds like another “but someone walked into a lamppost (that was there already) so this lethal scheme must go”…

[hawkinspeter]

Labour say negatives of East

Labour say negatives of East Bristol Liveable Neighbourhood outweigh positives: https://www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/labour-say-negatives-east-bristol-liveable-neighbourhood-outweigh-positives/

They’re calling for the following measures:

• the bus gates on Avonvale Road and Marsh Lane to be turned off immediately
• compensation provided to businesses affected by the scheme
• the removal of the measures on Ducie Road bridge
• the replacement of planters on Cobden Street, Ducie Road and Lincoln Street with resident access only gates
• urgent improvements and redesign of the Blackswarth Road and Church Road junction
• expanding the monitoring of roads surrounding the EBLN to see how steeply traffic is increasing.

I’m not so sure about immediately changing the implementation as that will invalidate the trial (has it been going for 6 months yet?). Certainly, the Blackswarth Road/Church Road junction is abysmal and has needed a complete redesign since forever – that’s little to do with the EBLN and everything to do with it being a bad design. The number of times that drivers turn left from Blackswarth Road when there’s no left turn and of course that brings them into direct confrontation with the peds using the pedestrian crossing on Church Road. The junction also requires competence from drivers that are turning as they can easily block other drivers.

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hawkinspeter wrote:

hawkinspeter wrote:

Seems like there’s some fuss about the flats at the top of Victoria Avenue not getting their waste collected for a while.

This was initially blamed on the EBLN not allowing the collection trucks through: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/residents-cant-open-windows-because-10397839

However, it’s now being blamed on poor parking: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/drivers-bristols-liveable-neighbourhood-blamed-10400670

A quick skim of the articles and comments suggest that Cllr Plowden (the councillor most associated with the LN) blames the parking but everyone else blames the LN. I kind of agree with Cllr Plowden – imagine how different things would be without the cars parked on the pavements, bends, junctions, pinch points – but reckon he will be lucky to change anyone’s mind.

That end of Victoria Rd is quite strange. Originally it was signed one way from the modal filter down to the first turn, so that drivers obeying the signs would never enter the area, including the ground floor car park of the flats in the article. I assume the plan is to remove the one way / no entry signs. Maybe that already happened, but poor PR for the scheme.

[hawkinspeter]

Seems like there’s some fuss

Seems like there’s some fuss about the flats at the top of Victoria Avenue not getting their waste collected for a while.

This was initially blamed on the EBLN not allowing the collection trucks through: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/residents-cant-open-windows-because-10397839

However, it’s now being blamed on poor parking: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/drivers-bristols-liveable-neighbourhood-blamed-10400670

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chrisonabike wrote:

If I was living there and regularly needed to travel similar distances to those I do in Edinburgh (not particularly long) I’d seriously consider getting an EAPC.  Certainly in weather like last week…

EAPCs are certainly popular in the bike racks around the university. These serve two purposes. They allow me to dispute frequent claims that Bristol is too hilly for cycling (pointing out the  people cycling everywhere seems churlish). They also seem to be of more interest to bike thieves than my bike.

chrisonabike wrote:

OTOH perhaps locals can work out routes with more forgiving gradients? 

I am very proud of my route between the LTN and the university. It both begins and ends with descending. Admittedly it covers about 25 km and 200m ascent compared to the 5km/50m of the direct route, but that seems like a win too.   

chrisonabike wrote:

Plus I didn’t try the bike share bikes or scooters there.  Maybe they make things more relaxed (being powered / power assisted)?

Good if you catching a train and don’t want to leave your bike in the donation racks. I prefer the EAPCs but the scooters are super-popular and give impatient drivers an alternate focus for their ire.

[hawkinspeter]

chrisonabike wrote:

If I was living there and regularly needed to travel similar distances to those I do in Edinburgh (not particularly long) I’d seriously consider getting an EAPC.  Certainly in weather like last week…

OTOH perhaps locals can work out routes with more forgiving gradients?  Plus I didn’t try the bike share bikes or scooters there.  Maybe they make things more relaxed (being powered / power assisted)?

It’s perfectly flat in-between the hills though

[Author]

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