Residents are being invited to have their say on a raft of transport schemes aimed at slashing journey times between the M5 and Bristol Airport. Somerset Council and North Somerset Council have been working together for nearly four years to design improvements to the A38, stretching from the Edithmead roundabout in Highbridge to the South Bristol Link, also known as Colliters Way. Bristol Live readers have been weighing up the options in our comments section.
The councils are now finalising business cases for each scheme, after securing funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) in late-2024. As part of this process, locals and businesses are being asked to give feedback on the current designs, allowing them to influence the final plans for each project.
Of the ten road improvements included in the ‘major road network’ (MRN) proposals, initially put forward by North Somerset Council and Somerset County Council, four fall within the remit of Somerset Council. Many of the selected stretches or junctions are operating near their maximum capacity, leading to slower journey times, poor conditions for pedestrians and cyclists, congestion during peak hours and various road safety issues.
The details for each of the proposed schemes can be found here.
Commenter Trivialpursuer thinks: “This is all predicated on people wanting to go to Bristol Airport and, furthermore, wanting to drive there. Therefore this scheme can be filed under W for Waste of Money.”
Grockel1 replies: “With limited/no other means to get to Bristol then the car is the only option – including taxi/UBER. Other airports have decent infrastructure (Rail/road) like Exeter, Birmingham, Gatwick, Stansted and Glasgow but Lulsgate Bottom, Like Rhoose, remain second world airports.”
Tris01 says: “When they were looking for sites to put an Airport in the Bristol area they had the perfect place to do so in Filton. It had one of the longest runways in this country and was right next to the M4 & M5 with a train station nearby. Instead they built it where transport links were limited and now want to spend money they probably don’t have to solve an issue that could and probably could have been avoided!”
MartH agrees: “The airport should have been at Filton, better commuter links, longer runway, and less susceptible to weather as it’s not on top of a hill. That said it now appears we are going to spend a lot of tax payers money, and inconvenience a lot of tax payers, in order for the Airport to make more profit for non UK owners, unbelievable.”
Wrightflyer believes: “This country has always suffered from lack of investment in infrastructure, it is about time the A38 was upgraded and it is not all about journeys to and from the Airport. It will benefit everyone that uses the road.”
Draintheharbour suggests: “Option one, spend £10’s millions tinkering, mainly to the south of the airport which is not the dominant direction people arrive from, and achieve little. Option two, draw a straight line to Junction 20 and build a dual carriageway.”
Hartley47 asks: “Given the huge increases in prices from Bristol airport’s major airline (now dearer than going via Heathrow). Will the demand justify these investments?”
Eezergoood states: “Here’s a radical thought. Remove the Cumberland Basin area from the CAZ Zone. This will make it possible to drive from the M5 to the airport almost directly.”
Do you think Bristol Airport needs road improvements? Will it be worth the cost and upheaval? Have your say in our comments section.