Tuesday Variety

Mr Rees, Bristol’s mighty mega-Mayor, Marvin of that ilk, is on a magnificent mission to clean up Bristol. As well as his proposed Underground train network, he is trying to improve air quality, encourage public transport and make car driving easier in the city centre.

Some cynics may spot some inconsistencies in these policies as well wll as a bit of careful voter conservation. Well, it isn’t working! His latest plans, after a “successful” trial period, involve making it simpler for cars to gain access to the city centre by making it more difficult.

In essence you can only take s car into the central area (inside the inner ring road) turn about face and come back out the same way. You can no longer drive through the central area, namely the area inside the ring.

There have been many complaints and many who have said that they will never drive into central Bristol again. Bristol’s loss is Cribbs Causeway’s gain!

Here is a plan of thr centre of bristol dating from the 1930s.

And here is today’s plan of exactly the same area.

Spot the differences. Over the years the city had developed an inner ring road which we can impose on today’s maap …

… and, even more dramatically, the same plan can be imposed on the 1930s map.

In 1938 the Redcliffe Bascule Bridge was built (ORANGE) …

… made “lifting” to allow larger cargo vessels access to riverside warehouses.

This effectively created the southern and western segments of the loop.  As part of this motorist-friendly plan, the magnificent Queen Square …

… had its corner properties summarily demolished to make way for the ring road blasted through the middle.

This desecration has since been reversed …

… and the square is very much back to its architects’ intended magnificence. 

(Map repeated to save scrolling)

The north and east segments (Bond Street and Temple Way respectively BLUE) owe their existence to a combination of post WW2 rebuilding and the arrival of M32 traffic on Newfoundland Way (MAGENTA).

Easton Way (GREEN) is a link from the end of the M32 to the Bath Road. and is much more recent.

For the record the YELLOW “bit” …

… represents Bristol Bridge …

… which was once the only way into the old city.

As well as closing the Bristol Bridge, marvellous Marv has turned the bottom left hand corner of the loop into a buses only toad (RED).

So the inner ring road is no longer a ring for non-bus traffic.

Closing this bit is a good plan because it was (and still is) the narrowest part of the “ring”.

But with the current buses only restriction, there would be no problem in getting trams both ways along The Grove …

… and Princes Street,

As for the rest of the “ring”, that would depend on the will of politicians, the cooperation of the voting public and a significant contribution from the public purse.

A final run round the “ring” will appear tomorrow.

Newmarket Road Park and Ride is in Cambridge and operated by Stagecoach.

… the most wishy washy livery of a bad three was the teal and white for “special services” e.g. Park and Ride.

Has Stagecoach in Cambridge seen the error of its pallid and weak livery scheme; ot has Cambridge City (doubtless the bill payer for the Park and Ride) insisted on something better?

Perhaps they haven’t started the repaint schedule yet?

The so-called “beaver tail” observation coaches were a bit of a non event.

They were stylish, indeed, but the view out of the back was heavily restricted by the low windows.

Whilst one has been lovingly restored to its original condition, the other coach is as rebuilt to give that better view. It is far less stylish and offers a tail that any self-respecting beaver would be ashamed of.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Picture showed it running on the Strathspey Railway. It is still posh inside!

This bus is operating the Stagecoach “EdgeLink” service. So where does it operate?

Here is its launch.

And a clue? Well now, Edge Hill is a suburb of Liverpool, famous for its railway cutting and tunnel. The latter is sometimes called Wapping Tunnel.

The Bristol tentative tram observations will conclude (inconclusively!) tomorrow.

 Next Metrobus to Tram Pipedream blog : Weds 19th July