First Great Western declined a contractual option to continue the Greater Western passenger franchise beyond 2013, citing a desire for a longer-term contract due to the impending upgrade to the Great Western Main Line.
The franchise was put out to tender, but the process was halted and later scrapped due to the fallout from the collapse of the InterCity West Coast franchise competition.
A two-year franchise extension until September 2015 was agreed in October 2013, and subsequently extended until March 2019.

The line through Lawrence Hill was due to have been electrified by 2017 as part of the Great Western Main Line electrification project, however this has been postponed indefinitely.
The Severn Beach Line was not set to be electrified, so services at Lawrence Hill would still have been provided by diesel trains; however "Sprinter" units are expected to be replaced by Class 165 and 166 "Turbo" units.
The group Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways supports the electrification continuing beyond the main lines, as does MP for Weston-super-Mare John Penrose.
The electrification scheme also includes the four-tracking of Filton Bank, including the reinstatement of the disused trackbed at Lawrence Hill, to allow more services between Parkway and Bristol Temple Meads and separate fast inter-city services from local stopping services.
Enhancement works to allow disabled access to both platforms will be carried out at the same time.

Lawrence Hill is on the Weston-super-Mare/Yate corridor, one of the main axes of the Greater Bristol Metro, a rail transport plan which aims to enhance transport capacity in the Bristol area, including half-hourly services along the Severn Beach Line.
The scheme could see the reopening of the Henbury Loop Line to passengers, with the possibility of services from Bristol Temple Meads to Bristol Parkway via Clifton Down and Henbury.
Plans for a loop were rejected by the West of England Joint Transport Board, however Bristol City Councillors voted to send the decision back to the board for further discussion.

The station's lack of step-free access to the southbound platform has come under criticism from Bristol West MP Thangam Debbonaire, who noted that due to the time taken to get a train to Stapleton Road and then back to Temple Meads, what should be a five-minute journey could take an hour.
Debbonaire stated that step-free access had been promised for some time.
First Great Western declined a contractual option to continue the Greater Western passenger franchise beyond 2013, citing a desire for a longer-term contract due to the impending upgrade to the Great Western Main Line. The franchise was put out to tender, but the process was halted and later scrapped due to the fallout from the collapse of the InterCity West Coast franchise competition. A two-year franchise extension until September 2015 was agreed in October 2013, and subsequently extended until March 2019.
The line through Lawrence Hill was due to have been electrified by 2017 as part of the Great Western Main Line electrification project, however this has been postponed indefinitely. The Severn Beach Line was not set to be electrified, so services at Lawrence Hill would still have been provided by diesel trains; however "Sprinter" units are expected to be replaced by Class 165 and 166 "Turbo" units. The group Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways supports the electrification continuing beyond the main lines, as does MP for Weston-super-Mare John Penrose. The electrification scheme also includes the four-tracking of Filton Bank, including the reinstatement of the disused trackbed at Lawrence Hill, to allow more services between Parkway and Bristol Temple Meads and separate fast inter-city services from local stopping services. Enhancement works to allow disabled access to both platforms will be carried out at the same time.
Lawrence Hill is on the Weston-super-Mare/Yate corridor, one of the main axes of the Greater Bristol Metro, a rail transport plan which aims to enhance transport capacity in the Bristol area, including half-hourly services along the Severn Beach Line. The scheme could see the reopening of the Henbury Loop Line to passengers, with the possibility of services from Bristol Temple Meads to Bristol Parkway via Clifton Down and Henbury. Plans for a loop were rejected by the West of England Joint Transport Board, however Bristol City Councillors voted to send the decision back to the board for further discussion.
The station's lack of step-free access to the southbound platform has come under criticism from Bristol West MP Thangam Debbonaire, who noted that due to the time taken to get a train to Stapleton Road and then back to Temple Meads, what should be a five-minute journey could take an hour. Debbonaire stated that step-free access had been promised for some time.
Lawrence Hill railway station