Here is a link to the RPA itself.
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/strategyfinance/strategy/rpa/pdfswrpaI am still studying this , but here are some quotes that have already caught my eye :
Pages 43 & 44.
"All the major cities and larger towns in the region have an extensive network of local bus services. Consequently, rail is less competitive on overall journey time for short distance journeys (typically up to 5 miles); particularly where the ultimate origin or destination of the journey is some distance from the railway station and the bus service is frequent. This is particularly true in Bristol where many local railway stations have a significantly more frequent bus service nearby. For example, Lawrence Hill station has two peak rail services per hour to Bristol Temple Meads but twelve buses per hour to the city centre."
"Bus also competes with rail on shorter distance inter-urban journeys. Table 3.10 shows that on some routes bus services generally offer a high frequency of service. Although bus journey times may appear longer, the overall journey time can be shorter depending on whether the actual origin and destination of the journey is close to a railway station."
Page 97.
"On the Severn Beach branch demand is forecast to exceed capacity from Clifton Down station into Bristol Temple Meads. As demand at stations on the Severn Beach line between Bristol Temple Meads as far as Clifton Down is far greater than at the stations beyond Clifton Down, an alternative to train lengthening would be the introduction of a two trains per hour service to Clifton Down. This would have the added benefit of improving connectivity along a densely populated corridor within the city, although it would be dependent upon infrastructure enhancements to ensure that such a timetable could be introduced reliably."
I am also reminded of the link below.
http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=280.msg712#msg712
