Bristol Parkway railway station - Definition

This new building greatly improved the facilities at Bristol Parkway

Bristol Parkway is a railway station on the northern edge of Bristol, at Stoke Gifford in South Gloucestershire. It is part of the British railway system owned by Network Rail.

It was built in the 1970s to give Bristol a station on the railway running from London to South Wales, which passes just north of the city. There were two reasons for this: the trains to London were quicker than on the longer route from Temple Meads via Bath and Chippenham, and a larger car park could be provided than at Temple Meads. The name "Parkway" has since been applied to other out-of-town stations.

The station opened on May 1, 1972 with temporary buildings. When a permanent station was built, it was architecturally unimpressive: a single low building with footbridge access over the "goods loop" tracks to the two long through platforms. On July 1, 2001 a new building and footbridge opened, with lifts for disabled access to the platform and a larger refreshment and waiting area on an upper level.

The station has also been identified as a possible northern terminus for a light rail system in the Bristol area.