Bath & North East Somerset Council is helping to keep people moving during the forthcoming improvement works at Bath Spa railway station.
From 8th to 24th April Network Rail will be carrying out work to modernise Bath Spa station so that new, longer trains can be accommodated. The work will include making the platforms wider and will also reduce the stepping distance to and from trains.
During this time there will be periods when buses replace trains to and from the station. To help these replacement buses keep to time and maintain rail connections, a city-bound bus lane will be temporarily installed on the A4 London Road between the A46 roundabout and its junction with Lambridge Street. This work is being funded by Great Western Railway (GWR).
As the work is taking place during the school Easter holiday, it’s anticipated that the volume of traffic in the city of Bath will remain the same as a normal busy day. Bath & North East Somerset Council will also put in place a series of measures to help traffic flow:
Advance message signs:
- Advanced messaging warning drivers of potential disruption will be displayed on Bath & North East Somerset Council’s roadside Vehicle Management Systems
Traffic management:
- Non-emergency roadworks will be embargoed along roads in Bath and North East Somerset that are to be used for the rail replacement bus services, including the A4. This will also be the case on a number of surrounding roads that have been identified as alternate routes in the event of an emergency on the designated route.
- Liaising with coach operators regarding the works
- Monitoring traffic flows through Cleveland Place, Dorchester Street and the Gloucester Road junction
- Avon & Somerset Constabulary Road Policing Unit has been asked to enforce the box junctions at Hicks Gate, particularly during peak times.
- There will be strict parking and bus lane enforcement along the A4.
- A CCTV link will be provided to Bath Spa station to help monitor traffic flows
- Monitoring traffic flows through Saltford
- Creation of a temporary inbound bus lane on London Road West
Engaging the community:
- Drop in sessions have been held in Bath, Oldfield Park and Keynsham
- Information has been given to passengers at Bath Spa and other effected stations, in face to face engagement sessions on platforms
- Letters have been sent to local residents and businesses, supported by door-to-door visits
- Information is on display on trains and in stations, and also during the online ticket booking process
Cllr Anthony Clarke (Conservative, Lansdown), Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “We are working closely with Network Rail and GWR to try to minimise disruption to travellers during the improvement works at Bath Spa station. The modernised station will open up extra capacity for more rail commuters coming to Bath Spa, which links in with the other development work going on in the city and the Council’s long term vision for Bath – with transport improvements and economic growth supporting plans for around 7,000 new homes and 11,000 new jobs by 2035.”
Feedback from bus operators running local services along London Road has suggested that the temporary extension of the city-bound bus lane could make a significant improvement to punctuality and journey times. Therefore, the Council will run an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order to help identify and quantify these benefits, and establish whether the bus lane should become permanent. Data will be gathered on the journey times of buses and all other traffic in order to fully understand the impact. The data will be assessed during this time alongside public consultation feedback and recommendations will be made on the bus lane’s future.
For more information on rail services during the Bath Spa improvement works visit www.gwr.com/travel-updates/planned-engineering/bath2017
