Category: Global warming
Battery powered trains
Battery powered trains could allow electrification on some parts of the network where overhead 25kV power is hard to achieve. GWR and Network Rail are testing this technology on a branch line near London. They invited us to see the results. The problem Much of GWR’s network is served by old diesel trains which will…
Low carbon alternatives for Severn Beach Line
What can be done to decarbonise the Severn Beach line quickly? FoSBR supporter Shabs Hussain looks at some low carbon alternatives.
Portishead Railway: Just do it!
Councillors, residents and campaigners came to a FoSBR event to push home the message: Portishead Railway – Just do it!
Net zero by 2030: Can local rail help?
We need to act rapidly if we are to avoid the worst effects of the climate emergency. There can be no doubt that unless we change the way we do things, and change quickly, the consequences for life on Earth will be dire. The current UK government target is to achieve ‘net zero’ by 2050.…
£30 million to ‘improve’ A4174: A good investment?
South Gloucestershire Council plan to spend £30 to ‘improve’ a 7km stretch of the A4174. Is this a good investment?
TfGB submits plans to speed up zero carbon transition
Transport for Greater Bristol (TfGB), an alliance of transport, environmental and community groups, has written to Transport Minister Grant Shapps with comprehensive proposals to speed up the transition to zero carbon emissions in the West of England. Their proposals include a rapid transit plan for Bristol and Bath, parking and traffic management plans for Bristol,…
Decarbonisation
Network Rail have published their Interim Programme Business Case for the Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy (TDNS). The title may appear dull, but the implications are anything but: Although rail contributes less than 1% of the total UK annual greenhouse gas emissions it is in the unique position of currently being the only transport mode capable…
Greta Thunberg in Bristol
Greta Thunberg spoke at the Bristol Youth Strike for Climate gathering on 28th February 2020. Graham Ellis, FoSBR member and administrator of the Great Western Coffee Shop Forum, gives his impressions of the day: They came in tens, hundreds and thousands to what has been described as the largest protest ever in Bristol. And that’s…
Decarbonising rail in Bristol
In 2016 the electrification of the Great Western Mail Line (GWML) from Bath to Bristol and from Bristol Parkway to Bristol Temple Meads was deferred due to cost over-runs. But government policy calls for the decarbonising of rail. What does this mean for us in Bristol? In January the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) released…
ZeroWest Winter Conference
FoSBR is a member of ZeroWest, an alliance of local organisations working towards a zero carbon West of England. Transport is a key policy area that needs to be addressed to meet this goal. On 16th January Carol and Tina from FoSBR attended the ZeroWest Winter Conference and ran our stall. Climate emergency The keynote speech…