Transport in the West of England - Hustings for the next West of England Combined Authority Mayor

The West of England Mayor is the person with the most decision-making power on the future of transport in our region. Should our buses be brought into public control? Should we invest more in cycle infrastructure? Will we ever get trams? When will our pavements be fully accessible with dropped kerbs everywhere there should be? Should there be a single ticket you can use across trains and buses?

A new Mayor will be elected on the 1st May 2025 - come and find out what they have to say about transport before you vote!

Come and ask these questions and more at the Watershed or online on Wednesday 2nd April. To register for the online event click here.

Candidates confirmed so far:

Helen Godwin - Labour Party
Oli Henman - Liberal Democrat Party
Mary Page - Green Party
Steve Smith - Conservative Party

Also invited:

Ian Scott- Independent
Arron Banks - Reform

Other candidates will be invited if and when they are announced.

Chaired by: Martin Booth, Editor, Bristol 24/7

With welcome from My World My Home Group, City of Bristol College.

Agenda:

6.30pm - arrival

7pm to 8.30pm - Hustings

8.30pm - Watershed bar open

We will invite you to submit your questions for the candidates when you register to attend. There will also be some time for questions from the floor on the day.

Accessibility information:

The Watershed is centrally located and close to main bus routes from many parts of the West of England. There are two Blue Badge parking spaces to the rear of Watershed on Canons Road.

The venue is on the 1st floor which is accessible via the lift from the main entrance and has level access to all areas. There are two accessible toilets in the venue, and the event space has a hearing induction loop. Full accessibility information for the venue is available here: https://www.watershed.co.uk/visit/access

We will have BSL interpreters at the event, if you would like to reserve a seat with a view of the interpreter you can do so when you register. This is a relaxed event, which means you are free to come and go as you need.

You will have the option to tell us about any additional access needs when you register.

If getting there in person is tricky for you, we are holding this as a hybrid event - there is a separate eventbrite for the online version here.

Voting information:

Election Day: 1st May 2025
Register by: 11th April 2025

This event is organised by a coalition of transport related groups:

Bath Trams
Bristol Cycling Campaign
Bristol Rail Campaign
Bristol Sustainable Transport Network
Bristol Walking Alliance
Bristol Business Improvement Districts
Bristol Climate & Nature Partnership (Community Climate Action, Climate & Disability)
Reclaim our Buses West of England
Sustrans
Walk Ride Bath
West of England Friends of the Earth
West of England Shared Transport and Active Travel
West of England Transport Association
Winterbourne and Frome Valley Environmental Group

Transport in the West of England - Hustings for the next WECA Mayor