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Transport Minister says Bristol's public transport system 'absolutely fantastic'

Ms Ghani said she was impressed with the live times provided

Transport Minister Nusrat Ghani described the public transport system in Bristol as 'absolutely fantastic' while on a visit to the city today (February 16).

The MP travelled on the MetroBus from Long Ashton to the Unversity of West England campus in Frenchay via the centre centre today.

It came a day after the Government published its Investing in the South West document, highlighting schemes it was backing in the region.

Getting off the MetroBus at UWE, Ms Ghani said: "It is a fantastic scheme, I jumped on the bus from Bristol and we are here in South Gloucestershire.

"I don't need to tell you that its doing well, the figures are showing it.

"We have passenger numbers really high in this region, it is because they have really thought about the type of journeys people want to take and how easy it can be."

Ms Ghani said she was impressed with the live times provided on a phone app and the methods of paying.

And she said the buses were at the forefront of efforts to introduce to clean air zones.

She said: "The biggest issue we face with constituents is looking at clean air zones and buses deliver that.

"They emit lower emissions and they take dozens and dozens of cars off the road."

Before taking a ride on the MetroBus, Ms Ghani visited Bristol Port for a tour of the Royal Portbury Docks and Avonmouth.

I don't live in Bristol (neither does Ms Ghani).  Would those of you who do agree with her assessment?

These sort of statements can really rile those who actually live in Bristol and have to deal with the daily realities of our "transport system" rather than just go on a prearranged/staged publicity tour bearing no comparison to the travails of the usual commuter.

If our transport system is as good Ms Ghani claims, how does she resolve this with Bristol's long recognized congestion problems?
Britain's relatively high bus usage figures are easily explained by the paucity of rail based alternatives and where they do exist the take up and growth has been far more than Metrobust.
Which brings me to Me Ghani's claims for Metrobust. Most services I've seen have been far from full. No actual figures where given and no definition was offered of what "high" passenger numbers actually meant. Anyone can claim high passenger uptake if you set your expectations low enough.