As built, the BPRP was isolated from the rest of the national railway network, having not been intended for anything more than local traffic distribution - a docks railway. However, due to the position of Clifton station and the large amount of developed land in the Hotwells area, an extension towards the city's main station at , would have been prohibitively expensive. Instead, a link was proposed from the BPRP at Sneyd Park, running under Clifton Down and through the suburbs to connect to the main lines of the Midland Railway and the Bristol and South Wales Union Railway.