HOPES that Bristol will have a fully functioning Metro rail system have taken a massive step forward.
Bristol North West Tory MP Charlotte Leslie, who led a cross-party delegation of city and regional MPs to meet transport minister Simon Burns last week, has now been given official confirmation that the Government has been convinced that it needs to look at the case for the so-called Henbury Loop Line – a rail link from a reopened Henbury station to the Severn Beach line.
Under current plans presented by the West of England Partnership, there would only be a reopened 'spur' to Henbury station which would mean that passenger trains could only stop there and return the way they came.
It would also mean that anyone travelling by train from Shirehampton to Henbury would need to go all the way into Bristol and out via Filton to reach their destination.
Ms Leslie has argued forcefully that a spur instead of a loop would represent a significant disappointment and leave the city's Metro system as a "massive missed opportunity".
Ms Leslie said: "Plans for mass housing development risk unacceptable congestion on north Bristol's roads, unless a loop line is in place.
"The loop would also mean people in north Bristol would have easy access to workplaces in and around Avonmouth, which has recently been designated an enterprise area."
Now, however, the possibility of a loop has been given considerable weight by Mr Burns.
And Ms Leslie is looking forward to working together on the project with Mayor George Ferguson who spoke in favour many times during his election campaign.
Ms Leslie, right, said: "The plans for the Metro, as they stand, fall short of ideal. While they are a massive step forward, I believe that without the Henbury Loop, it will be the missed opportunity of a generation.
"In short, as the plans stand, the line would 'stop' at Henbury, not link up to the Severn Beach Line ... meaning passengers travelling from Redland or Clifton Down looking for a connection to Cribbs Causeway would have to go all the way into Bristol and out again via Filton.
"The ironic thing is that the track is there for freight now – we just need the green light for passenger services along with a reopened Henbury station."
In his letter to Ms Leslie, Mr Burns said: "I was very interested to learn about the Bristol Metro Phase 2 and to hear your view that it should include services on a full loop line through Henbury and Avonmouth rather than for trains to turn back at Henbury as currently envisaged in the work commissioned by the West of England Partnership. As a result of the case you put forward, I agree with you that this merits further investigation, given the future plans for housing and commercial development in the area."
Department for Transport officials will be happy to work with the partnership on this task. I will confirm this to them, strongly suggesting that any work to assess the scheme should include looking at the feasibility of introducing services on the whole Henbury Loop."
Ms Leslie has now launched a petition and campaigns on websites Facebook and Twitter to ensure that as many voices are heard to bring pressure on the partnership.
This can be found at www.henburyloop. bristolpetitions.com. There is a Facebook page at www.facebook.com/henburyloop and Twitter users can follow Ms Leslie at @CLeslieMP then #henburyloop
She said: "This scheme is vital to the future of Bristol and I will be fighting until it happens.
"I hope the campaign for a Henbury Loop brings businesses, charities, and residents together to fight to get Bristol on track.
"And to get things done in Bristol, political parties need to stop bickering and pull in the same direction.
"I have already involved Mayor Ferguson in these initial discussions and I look forward to working with him further."
Earlier this year, Ms Leslie brought together the region's MPs who signed a joint submission to the Department for Transport to fight as one for the region's best transport interests.
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