Filton and Brentry Transport Improvements Consultation

South Gloucestershire Council and Bristol City Council are consulting on proposals to improve walking and cycling routes in Filton and Brentry as well as proposals for relocating two existing bus stops on the A38 to improve traffic flows.

These areas are expected to see significant development in the coming years including:

• The opening of the Brabazon Arena in 2024, delivering a music and entertainment venue
• The Cribbs Patchway New Neighbourhood (CPNN), which will see a major new mixed use community including the re-development of the Filton Airfield site.

South Gloucestershire Council and Bristol City Council are proposing a traffic management system to keep the transport network running smoothly as well as improved walking and cycling routes in the following areas:

• Charlton Road, between Pen Park Road and Charlton Mead Drive.
• The A38, between the new CPNN access and the Filton roundabout.
• Filton Avenue, between the A38 and the A4174 Avon Ring Road.
• A4174 Avon Ring Road, between Filton Avenue and Concorde Way.

Both Bristol City and South Gloucestershire Councils have also declared Climate Emergencies, and have made commitments to Net Zero by 2030. This means investment is needed to make walking, cycling and using public transport easier to encourage people to leave the car at home.

In the survey below you will be asked how often you use these transport routes and the extent to which you agree or disagree with the proposals.

Traffic Management System Package

The roads in Filton and Brentry and the surrounding areas are an important, but congested, part of our transport network. We need to invest to ensure traffic flows smoothly, now and in the future.

The proposed Traffic Management System is designed to improve how our network operates, in terms of safety, efficiency and ability to react to changes and incidents. The proposals include co-ordinated traffic signals, electronic signage, and a communications network to ensure everything works together.

The proposal to relocate the southernmost bus stop would allow us to provide a cycle crossing, which means northbound cyclists would be able to access the shared pedestrian /cycle route on the east side of the A38 more easily, guiding them towards a controlled crossing of the Ring Road.

Please see an illustration of the proposed plans here and here

Walking and Cycling Package

We are proposing to improve walking and cycling facilities in Filton and Brentry including the journey to and from the former Filton Airfield /arena development. These routes are shown in the map below

Please see an illustration of the proposed plans here

The routes include:

• Charlton Road, between Pen Park Road and Charlton Mead Drive  
• The A38, between the new Cribbs Patchway New Neighbourhood access and the Filton roundabout
• Filton Avenue, between A38 and the A4174 Avon ring road
• A4174 Avon ring road, between Filton Avenue and Concorde Way

Each proposed transport improvement is described in more detail below.

High quality walking and cycling routes will also be delivered through the former Filton Airfield development.

Charlton Road

This route links Southmead with the bus/walk/cycle access to the Arena and former Filton Airfield sites. We want to make cycling easy for everyone, and to provide off-carriageway facilities where most users feel safe to cycle.

Summary of proposed improvements:

• An off-road cycle facility provided on the east side for the full route, travelling both north and south.
• Segregation between pedestrians and cyclists between Pen Park Road and Charlton Mead Drive.
• The pavement to the north of Charlton Mead Drive would become shared between pedestrians and cyclists. The space would be shared due to the limited highway boundary space and the need to retain road width for buses as well as additional cycling space. This ties into an existing shared-use path into the Airfield Site.
• Raised tables and footway/cycleway cross overs at side roads to provide continuous priority for pedestrians and cyclists. [Raised tables are where the road is raised to the same height as the footway/cycleway]
• Priority for pedestrians over cyclists at bus stops.
• Improved pedestrian /cycle crossing at the junction with Pen Park Road, and opportunity for cyclists to transition between on and off road routes.

Please see an illustration of the proposed plans here

A38

The A38 carries high levels of traffic at high speeds, with a large number of buses and Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs). Off-road facilities are needed to enable people to feel safe cycling on this part of the network. There are some existing sections of the A38 where space is shared between pedestrians and cyclists, and some sections of “light segregation”, where pedestrians and cyclists are separated by a painted line.

Summary of proposed improvements:

• No change to on-road cycle facilities.
• Retain enough road space to carry traffic and HGVs.
• Segregation between pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles is aimed for throughout. A 2.5m cycleway, 0.5m buffer from traffic and 1.8m footway is the minimum proposed for segregation.
• Where it is not possible to segregate pedestrians and cyclists, a shared-use facility would be applied.
• Priority for pedestrians over cyclists at bus stops.
• Potential crowding of pedestrians at crossing points on exit from the Arena would be addressed by signal timing giving more crossing time and shorter waits for pedestrians.
• Enhancement to existing signal crossings.

Please see an illustration of the proposed plans here

Filton Avenue

Pedestrians and cyclists can currently cross the A38 to access Filton Avenue at the Filton Avenue/A38 junction, and the A38/Cleve Road junction. College Road, which links Cleve Road and Filton Avenue carries low volumes of traffic and is proposed to be signed as a cycle route. We want to make cycling easy for everyone, and to provide off-carriageway facilities where most users feel safe to cycle.

Summary of proposed improvements:

• Segregated cycle route on west of Filton Avenue.
• Multiple entry and exit points to the cycle route.
• Raised tables and footway/cycleway crossovers at side roads. [Raised tables are where the road is raised to the same height as the footway/cycleway].
• New, safe pedestrian/cycle crossing at the southern end near the Ring Road, to link with onward route on the north side of the Ring Road.
• Pedestrian crossing extending over the cycle route at crossing points, giving pedestrian priority.
• TOUCAN Crossing and widened footway at A38/Cleve Road.
• Revisions to localised parking arrangements, to facilitate the scheme without a net loss of parking spaces.

 Please see an illustration of the proposed plans here

A4174 Avon Ring Road

On-road cycling is not desirable on the A4174 Ring Road as it is a high-speed dual carriageway, carrying large volumes of traffic. The rail bridge presents a constraint to provide segregated off-road pedestrian and cycle routes.

Summary of improvements:

• East of the rail bridge, cyclists currently use the New Road alongside the Ring Road. This route carries low levels of traffic and to improve awareness of cyclists, cycle lane markings and changes to priority are proposed.
• We propose to improve tactile paving and dropped kerbs for pedestrians.

Please see an illustration of the proposed plans here

Find out more and have your say

• You can complete our online survey here
• Download a PDF of the survey to print, fill out and post to us.
• Email: transportservices@southglos.gov.uk
• Telephone: 01454 868009

Write to:

• FREEPOST SGC
  South Gloucestershire Council
  Corporate Consultation Team
  Council Offices
  Badminton Road
  Yate
  BRISTOL
  BS37 5AF

We are also hosting two public drop-in sessions where people can learn more about the proposals, meet the project team and ask questions.  These events are being held:

• Monday 25 April 2pm to 5pm at Filton Library
• Wednesday 27 April 12pm to 3pm at Southmead Library

You do not need to book to attend these events – just drop in.

Background information and FAQs

Download the background information and FAQ document here

This consultation has now closed and we are analysing the results, which will be published here in due course.