Council bosses have admitted they have no plan to solve the “challenging issue” of where coaches coming into Bristol city centre can park. Many intercity coaches stop along Bond Street, a busy road behind Broadmead, with few if any facilities for waiting passengers.
Major changes are planned for traffic in the city centre, including new bus lanes, bike lanes, and pedestrianising the Horsefair and Penn Street. Coaches will benefit from new bus lanes along Bond Street and Newfoundland Circus, but the existing stops will stay the same.
Many people rely on catching a coach to get to other cities, with fares often much cheaper than trains. Bristol City Council bosses were urged to explore how to improve the situation for coaches arriving into the city, during a meeting of the transport policy committee on October 24.
David Redgewell, a transport campaigner, said: “We’ve always struggled with coach facilities in Bristol. What work is actually being carried out? As a result of the redevelopment of Broadmead, there won’t be space for those coaches.”
Some coach services have begun using the bus station on Marlborough Street, such as those run by FlixBus. But many others park along the side of Bond Street, with few spaces for passengers to sit down.
Adam Crowther, head of city transport, said: “It’s an ongoing issue as to where we can find enough space for coach parking at coach stops. We’re looking at it on a continuous basis, and we could consider it as part of the city centre project, where we could find additional spaces.
“It’s an ongoing challenge. I can’t give an answer as to what the solution is to it. It’s not easy to find places for coaches. There aren’t big open spaces in the city centre that people want to turn into coach parks and not other things. So it’s quite a challenging issue to resolve.”