Spades in the ground for delivery of new two-platformed stations

Spades are in the ground to deliver a new, two-platformed station in Bristol.

Metro Mayor Dan Norris will be track-side to get a first look at the platforms being installed on the site of the previous Ashley Hill Station which closed in 1964.

Funded by the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, Ashley Down Station will give residents in the north of the city their own station once again after nearly 60 years.

The bulk of the work to build the station – with platforms on either side of the Bristol to Gloucester line, and which aims to unlock opportunities for both business and pleasure for residents between Ashley Down and Temple Meads, Filton and Henbury – is taking place this month.

Norris said: “It’s brilliant to see this brand-new station for Ashley Down residents beginning to take shape. The last time there was a station here, Elvis and The Beatles were topping the charts. I’m proud of this sizeable investment from my West of England Mayoral Combined Authority to give the West’s residents railway stations they can be proud of – all part of our radical ‘reverse Beeching’ programme. Because I’m determined to improve public transport in the West of England – vital to getting locals from A to B, and all the more vital if we are going to reach our ambitious but essential local net-zero targets.”

Dan Parkes, senior programme manager for Network Rail said: “It’s incredibly exciting to be in the midst of delivering this new station for the local community in Ashley Down. Work is progressing very well on site and it’s wonderful to see years of planning and great collaboration between all of our partners coming to fruition. Though we’re making huge headway there’s still lots of work to do after this blockade is over and I’d like to than residents for their patience as we continue to build their new station over the coming months.”

Works to install the two platforms will take place until the early hours of Monday 19 June. Local train services are affected between Filton Abbey Wood and Stapleton Road until Sunday 18 June.

The new station is part of the multi-million-pound MetroWest programme – a wider package of rail improvements from the Mayoral Combined Authority, Network Rail and other partners including the opening of brand-new stations – including in Ashley Down, but also in North Filton next to the new arena, and at Henbury – over the next five years.