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July 2025:

8 July: The Dept for Transport announced the green light for over 50 road and rail upgrades including the Portishead line. Initial work should start in Autumn 2025 with main construction starting in Spring 2026. See DfT announcement and North Somerset Council news.

June 2025:

11 June: Chancellor’s Spending Review announcement: The Portishead line is a comparatively small project so was not mentioned perhaps for that reason. The project has been waiting since last summer for the Chancellor’s spending review to complete. The Dept. for Transport capital expenditure budget has been increased by 3.9%, so PRG’s view is that there is now no reason why the DfT can’t sign off the funding for Portishead. We should have clarity very soon and confirmation that the funding is all now released and construction can start.

4 June: The Government announcement on 4 June of £750m investment in transport for the West of England does not relate to the reopening of the Portishead line. The new funding is part of a five-year funding allocation from 2027/28 to 2031/32.

May 2025:

2 May 2025: Helen Godwin is elected Mayor of the West of England Combined Authority in the 2025 Combined Authority Mayoral Election replacing Dan Norris.

March 2025:

14 March: The West of England Combined Authority Committee approved the allocation of the £27m funding to enable the project to go ahead.  (WECA news item has been deleted).

February 2025:

10 Feb: West of England Combined Authority Mayor Dan Norris announced today that a landmark agreement with the Government on plans for the railway has been reached. The Mayor led crunch talks in London with Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy last week and now the minister has written to him with confirmation of the deal for a go-ahead. (WECA news item has been deleted) See North Somerset Council News.

This paves the way for construction to begin this summer.

January 2025:

Restoring the rail line between Bristol to Portishead could be "fast-tracked", with construction beginning this year and the first trains running by 2027. North Somerset Council leaders have approved measures to start construction – if the government agrees to fund the project. See  BBC report 22 Jan 2025.

December 2024:

The Treasury spending review, of which the Portishead & Pill line reopening is one small part, is still under way and will continue until March or April next year.

For News from previous years see Archive news >>