An inquest into the deaths of four people killed by drivers with failing eyesight has found enforcement of visual legal standards for motorists is "ineffective and unsafe".

HM Senior Coroner for Lancashire Dr James Adeley has sent a report to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander to say action should be taken to prevent future deaths. He labelled the licensing system as the "laxest in Europe" as he pointed out the UK was one of only three countries to rely upon self-reporting of visual conditions affecting the ability to drive.

A source close to the transport secretary said the government accepted the rules "need to be reassessed". They added: "We are not ruling anything out regarding changes to eyesight requirements for driving. This will be considered along with wider efforts to improve safety as part of the government's road safety strategy."

It is thought the strategy could be published by the end of the year, after which ministers would consult on any proposed changes.

Dr Adeley said it was concerning that the UK was the only European country to issue licences without any visual checks for a continuous period up to the age of 70. He made the remarks at the inquests of Marie Cunningham, 79, Grace Foulds, 85, Peter Westwell, 80, and Anne Ferguson, 75, held earlier at Preston Coroner's Court.

Friends Mrs Cunningham and Mrs Foulds were struck by Glyn Jones, 68, in his Audi A3 as they crossed the road in Southport, Merseyside, on 30 November 2021. Jones was aware for some years before the collision that his sight was insufficient to meet the minimum requirement to drive a car but failed to declare it to the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). When he was jailed for seven years and four months, his sentencing hearing was told he could not even see his steering wheel clearly.

Mr Westwell was hit by Neil Pemberton, 81, as he crossed the road in Langho, near Blackburn, on 17 March 2022. Pemberton, who was jailed for 32 months, had a long history of eye disease and was informed on several occasions by different clinicians that he should not drive, the inquest heard. He also repeatedly failed to declare his sight deficit on multiple licence applications to the DVLA.

Mrs Ferguson died when she was struck by a van driven by Vernon Law, 72, in Whitworth, Rochdale, on 11 July 2023. A month before Law was told he had cataracts in both eyes but he lied to an optometrist that he did not drive. Law, who was jailed for four years, knew he had problems with his eyes for years before the collision but his sight loss could easily have been corrected. Law also failed to declare his sight issues on multiple licence applications to the DVLA, the inquest at County Hall heard.

Following the inquests, the family of Mrs Cunningham said: "Our mum, and her friend, were killed by the selfish, reckless actions of Glyn Jones. His decision to put his own convenience before the law, before ethics, before human lives, cost our family everything. This tragedy was not inevitable. It was entirely avoidable. And we are left grappling with the painful truth that if this man had acted responsibly our mum would still be with us."

Terry Wilcox, of Hudgell Solicitors, representing the families of Mrs Cunningham, Mrs Foulds and Mr Westwell, said loop holes that are available for drivers who want to evade reporting on their eyesight are "jaw-dropping". He said: "People ignore what they are told when it doesn't suit their lifestyle, and in reality there is nothing in place to stop selfish people putting others at risk by getting back behind the wheel. We presently have a system under which the DVLA relies upon drivers to self-report, hand over their licence and stop driving when they've been told by a qualified healthcare professional that their eyesight is not to the required standard. This inquest has shown that simply doesn't happen."

Dr Adeley said: "The four fatalities shared the same feature that the driver's sight was well below the standard required to drive a car. The current system for 'ensuring' drivers meet the visual legal standards is ineffective, unsafe and unfit to meet the needs of society as evidenced by the deaths of Marie Cunningham, Grace Foulds, Anne Ferguson and Peter Westwell where the DVLA continued to provide licences to drivers who had failed to meet the legal sight requirements."

The Department for Transport said it would consider the coroner's report once received. A spokesperson added: "The NHS recommends adults should have their eyes tested every two years and drivers are legally required to inform the DVLA if they have a condition which affects their eyesight. We are committed to improving road safety and continue to explore ways to achieve this."

Rob Heard, chairman of the Older Drivers' Forum, warned that more people would die if changes were not made soon. He called for it to be made compulsory for opticians and GPs to check a person's eyesight once they turn 70, and inform the DVLA via an online system without the "worry of breaching patient confidentiality". "A car is a lethal weapon and we need to be fully in control and safe on the roads to be able to control it," he said.

Mr Wilcox said there is currently no infrastructure for IT which would allow a sight test to be uploaded to the DVLA. "You can be told the car is unsafe but a driver is never told they are unsafe and the DVLA aren't informed - the driver is unsafe," he said. "Drivers are the solution and yet we don't appear to have anything in place to solve the problem."

A lifeboat station is marking its 10-year anniversary – and hundreds of successful operations.

Volunteers at the Royal National Lifeboat Institution station in Portishead, North Somerset, have been called out 396 times since it opened in 2015. They have so far assisted 347 people, saving 14 lives and rescuing 17 dogs.

The station serves the Bristol Channel, which has the second highest tidal range in the world, making conditions hazardous for volunteers. Tom Mansell, regional operations lead, said: "I am extremely grateful for the dedication and professionalism they show on a daily basis."

The RNLI station was preceded by the Portishead Lifeboat Trust, which operated from Sugar Loaf Beach as an independent rescue service for nearly 20 years.

The trust's station was an old shipping container, with basic facilities, which belonged to the Portishead Yacht and Sailing Club.



In 2012, it was agreed that a new location would be secured and the RNLI would then take over operations. The new station was declared operational on 24 April 2015.



Ian Lazenby, a volunteer helm, said witnessing the transition was "really exciting". He said the former facility was "damp and mouldy" but the new station was much improved, with toilets, kettles, seats and central heating.

The RNLI takeover also resulted in additional funding for the station, better equipment and more efficient operations.

A celebration to mark the 10-year anniversary will be held on 18 May to coincide with an open day at the station. The day will include demonstrations and a boat launch, with other local emergency services joining in.

"You get a lot from the teamwork, you get a lot from the training, but genuinely for me – in the 20 years I've been doing it – it's the satisfaction of knowing if somebody's in trouble, we'll go and help them," Mr Lazenby said.  "Anything you do when you're helping others is hugely satisfying; to be able to do that is a real privilege."

OK, if no-one else has done it - I'll nominate no. 6 as the Melksham one - and let someone else pick the Taunton one (if it's there!).

Inspector wrong to say baby wasn't child - mayor

The mayor of Greater Manchester has apologised to a mother who was threatened with a fine over a family tram ticket because her baby and toddler were considered "too young" to be classed as children.

Cassie from Droylsden in Tameside said she was shocked when a ticket inspector said her £7.10 off-peak family day travel card was invalid because under-fives travel for free, and did not count as children.

Andy Burnham told BBC Radio Manchester the mother-of-two had "done everything right", adding he was "sorry this was your experience".  He said Transport for Greater Manchester (TFGM) had since clarified the inspector had wrongly interpreted the rules.

Family tram tickets can be used by a group of one to three children accompanied by one or two adults travelling together, and there is no minimum age requirement for the children.

Cassie had been travelling with her husband and two children, both under five, to a church service in Manchester city centre on the Metrolink tram service.

The inspector told the couple they should have each purchased a £4.30 adult day ticket instead.

TFGM previously said that all inspectors have been made aware that there is no minimum age for children travelling on a family ticket.

Burnham said he was sure the transport operator would be "making things right" for Cassie.  He said: "To be fair to our inspectors out there, I've thrown a lot of change at our system in a short space of time, and you know there will be bits and bobs of things that need to be fixed. And the point of having control of the Bee Network is when people do raise things we'll look at them honestly and fix them as quick as we can."

In 1985 there were embryonic plans for a platform on the WR lines near where they crossed. The walk from there passed the signal box along live lines meant it progressed no further. I wrote an article mentioning it in Modern Railways for March 1988.
If such a link were to go ahead now I believe that it would use the S to W curve, earthworks for which can still be seen. Part of the Clifton Maybank extension they were never used. Use could be also made of the N to W curve of the 1860s broad gauge goods link which led to the transfer shed, now the Yeovil Railway Centre. The old down platform might serve this but alternative arrangements will be need for the heritage centre.

... and then Donald Trump barges his way into the arena ... 

0. Diverted XC service passing through Bath due to a points issue between Bridgwater and Taunton on Tuesday.

7. Heading for Kingswear from Bridge Halt (now removed?).
Paignton to Kingswear.
Dartmouth used to have a ticket and luggage office, but no trains of course.
Used to alight from Churston school at Bridge Halt many years ago.

11 Thornford (Bridge Halt), that and Chetnole used the old platform from Cattistock Halt, replacing the timber one originally used.

3.  Truro.

I wonder if the residents of the former station house and it's surrounding land are granting access for Network Rail to carry out the work. If not then there's little NR and BTP can do.

Except try to arrest the landowners for trespassing on their own property again!

It's a long running saga of claim and counter-claim with Network Rail consistently calling BTP out as their "personal security force".

https://youtube.com/@altnabreac

Trains have once again been calling at the request stop after the station was closed for the last 18 months.

One of the country’s remotest train stations that takes passengers to the heart of a world heritage site has reopened.

Altnabreac is located in the Flow Country, a vast expanse of blanket bog and peatlands stretching across Caithness and Sutherland in the north Highlands.

The 'QR code style ticket could be programmed to work, but the magstrip tickets have only 8 bytes of data storage on them & writing used dates isn't possible in that space