I remember seeing them - nearly twenty years ago! 

 
So ... The Melksham Carnival was a jolly evening for us to dress up, walk around the streets of Melksham, and remind people of the public transport services they have in our town.  Enjoyed and it felt good - but was it effective in reaching people and helping get more bums on seats?   How does one measure such things?

Certainly, as I observe public transport around "here", I see it busier than I can recall in the past. 

In the middle of the day yesterday, I had a little outing from home to Westbury Leigh, walk through the Melksham Town Centre, train to Dilton Marsh. 

The 272 that passed me as I walked to the station wan't quite full and standing but it wasn't far off.  The 69 as I returned though the town a couple of hours later had a sprinkling of people on board and for that service, that's good.  The Town Bus, and also the 47 that passed us under the bridge at Dilton Marsh Station, looked to be carrying fresh air (and on infrequent very local buses the can be a problem.

The 11:31 from Melksham to Westbury picked up 13 people and dropped off 6, leaving with 50 on board - [56/19] in the old measuring system of [[journeys to/from/through][journeys with Melksham end point]]. The return train that called at 14:34 carried 36 into Melksham, dropped off 10, picked up 7 - [43/17].  Neither of those is what I would expect to be busy trains, and in both cases the connector on to/from Dilton Marsh was quieter.

But ... I have no evidence there as to whether or not the carnival walk brought any of those particular passengers - all goes into the melting pot, and the best we can do is work with a feeling that every little bit helps.  Certainly a long way from the days I could go down to the station and watch the bunny rabbits hopping around.

 
Profound words, beautifully put with great insight!

"We've got to really understand what's gone wrong here, because clearly something has and we've got to make sure we investigate that thoroughly to understand why things haven't restored as we would have expected," said Chris Wright, Route Director NW at Network Rail.

 

I changed trains at both of those on Tuesday.  Some 80+ years later it's kinda hard to work out the relative age of all the bits and pieces.  Pictures are from earlier visits - both changes the other day were "pass though"s with no thought to photograph / rather to get me and Lisa onto the ongoing train/RRB

 
A few years ago I had great sympathy for the young people of areas like Cornwall and Devon and I still have.

Being unable to buy homes in the small hamlets and towns where they grew up.
As far as I am concerned the blame lies with their parents and grand parents who took the big bucks from those in more affluent areas of the country.
Who just visit  Devon and Cornwall for a few week ends a year   

 

Lulu and Lightning ... not necessarily in that order - it was a pleasure.  We didn't actually find the 'spare' one: there was a loose greyhound out on the roads in Melksham, apparently. 

 
I was born in Devonport (Alexandra Maternity Home - good luck finding that one these days! ) and grew up in Plymstock, a suburb of Plymouth.

There, I attended Plymstock School, then a 'Comprehensive', but which was still run along the lines of it having been, I seem to remember, a Grammar School.  There were some 2,000 pupils at that time.

I have many fond memories of that school, and don't recall any impression that I was being offered an 'inferior' education. Indeed, I still recall my geography teacher, Keith Stoyle, who inspired me with my continuing love of Ordnance Survey maps, and Mr Rogerson, who inspired me with my love of woodwork - just for example.

Chris from Plymstock. 

 
Having used OS grid references since I was a 10 year old Cub I've mostly regraded w3w as a solution looking for a problem. It's unnecessarily precise for most purposes and can't be adjusted; my front door and garden gate don't need different references to find my house, with another again if you're on the road instead of the pavement! OS can do 1km squares for a rough area, or 100m for greater accuracy by which stage you should generally be able to find the thing you're looking for.  Then there's Google Maps.  Both can be generated by phones just as easily as w3w and don't end up giving you words that you have to spell out.
w3w is perhaps the Trainline of mapping.  Not actually bad, but got where it has by good marketing and so coming to the attention of people who hadn't realised there was any other way of doing it.

 
Please accept my apologies for introducing an element of levity to this topic.

 
Cancellations to services between Didcot Parkway and London Paddington

Due to a safety inspection of the track between Didcot Parkway and London Paddington fewer trains are able to run on some lines towards London Paddington.

Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

 

Didn't 115 cause chaos yesterday?

The 175s are supposedly being let loose on Okehampton/Barnstaple at the end of August. It is an ideal train but only if they can get it to work. Improved services required 19 trains, the number of 769s, GWR have 16 175s now with another 10 due.

 

As an amateur historian:

During World War Two, Allied strategic bombing and ground combat heavily targeted and destroyed major German railway hubs, marshalling yards, and terminal stations. Iconic casualties included Berlin's opulent Anhalter Bahnhof and Lehrter Bahnhof, as well as severely battered city infrastructure across Frankfurt, Cologne, and Hamburg.

Major Destroyed or Damaged Stations:

Berlin Anhalter Bahnhof: Once a grand terminus and gateway to the south, it was ruined in the final months of the war and later partially demolished in 1960, leaving only a famous portico ruin.

Berlin Lehrter Bahnhof: Heavily hit by Allied air raids, the ruin was eventually demolished in the 1950s; the modern Berlin Hauptbahnhof now occupies the site.

Cologne Central Station (Köln Hbf): Situated next to the Cologne Cathedral, the station and surrounding tracks suffered catastrophic damage from thousands of tons of allied bombs before being rebuilt in the post-war era.

Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof: The grand train shed and passenger halls suffered severe structural damage from strategic air attacks in 1944 before undergoing extensive reconstruction.

Impact on the Rail Network Systemic Targeting:

The Royal Air Force and U.S. Army Air Forces systematically attacked rail yards to choke off Nazi military logistics and fuel supplies.

Post-War Realities:

Many heavily damaged terminal stations in divided post-war Germany were never rebuilt because traffic patterns shifted or partition rendered them obsolete.

I am sure Coffee Shop member stuving will be able to offer more detail here.

CfN. 

 
Top BBC News story; live updates: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn5nlvdxpwpo

 

Louise Haigh's in charge but apparently she's not answering her phone 

 
But he’s not in Manchester, he’s on holiday “overseas”.   

 
So much for Andy Burnham having the power to run the whole country from Manchester.

Sorry for my sarcastic, personal opinion only, post.

CfN.

 
Power failure, and as one would expect with it being the railway, back up generators failed.

Hence total chaos.

Good luck to anyone caught up in it.

 

Trusted on the main line though?

Five Devon/Cornwall diagrams being worked by 175s today, specifically:  175009, 175011, 175101, 175111, 175112.  Plus a sixth, 175002, running up and down on test/training runs.

 
I can only speak for girls/women I know. My next doors neighbours two girls, both in their mid twenties now, went to Churston Grammar mixed school which is about a mile from where I am. One went to Cambridge to study medicine and worked and trained at Addenbrooks and is now a doctor at Weston Super-mare Hospital. The other girl went to Bristol and is an engineer.  I know another women in her mid twenties went to Cambridge and is working in a care home which she has reservations about but has been there over 18 months.

Torbay has two grammar schools, separate boys and girls, that are really sort after with pupils commuting to them by train to Torre. Up to 200 get off the 0820 arrival.

There is also a combined CofE/Roman Catholic secondary school.

Those four schools are real assets to Torbay.

Some of the primary schools have 600/700 pupils which was unheard of in my day.

 
Festivals are worse than flying/cruises....

Those tow-along box trucks anyone? yup......or plenty of sack trucks laid flat being used like the old porters used to use - those!

 
You can't store railcards in it either, needing to input it each time you want to buy!

 
Fair point, ChrisB - I have done exactly that.  CfN. 

 

As someone who was brought up in both Cornwall and Devon, I can confirm that it twas ever thus in the "real" Southwest

Away from the glamour of certain parts of Cornwall (thank you Rick Stein and others), there is real poverty amongst the locals, which does to some extent explain the hostility to "incomers", although a lot of that is simply moronic dogwhistling

 



From Northern in an email -

 

Good grief.

Followed this thread, are they just a collection of rusting wrecks?

 
Can this please be moved back to GWR main line please - it affects far more services than simply TransWilts!

 
Don't know how long that's been around but I only found out about it last week, by accident when I sent an "I'm here" text to my wife and my phone asked if I wanted to send a live location link. Nice feature.

 
After a 2 night restful stay in a 5* hotel in Budapest - but venturing out in the heat for basic sightseeing.The second leg of this lengthy trip was from Budapest to Arad (Northern Romania) on a daytime service and onward to Bucharest by sleeper.

I walked down the side bay platform at Budapest Keleti at the appointed hour past some tired looking Hungarian coaches seemingly with no a/c. My seat was in the front coach and the train was all second class as advertised. The front coach was very respectable with comfy open plan seating and working a/c. The journey was about 5 hours and I got taken by surprise with the hour time change at the Romanian border with a cursory passport check. So we apparently arrive an hour earlier than I expected!

I had around 2.5 hours before the sleeper service and had scoped out places to eat in the town. However, it seemed to be too hot and too far to contemplate. There is also a huge shopping centre adjacent to the quite modern Arad Station which has food court on the upper floor. A wide choice of various fast foods although the only "western" brand is KFC. There is also a branch of Lidl across the road where one can stock up on travel rations in many familiar brands.

I was back at the station with plenty of time to spare. Changed out my Hungarian funds for Romanian.  I used bureaux de change through this trip since only small amounts of cash were needed and it seems many banks now charge heavily for using ATMs with a foreign card, noted especially in Hungary. Cards widely accepted everywhere even on public transport which I will describe later.

The sleeper service was provided by one of several "open access" operators in Romania, Astra Trans Carpatic . Unsure if this service would be included in Interrail but I had elected to fully pay for the later stages of this trip. This is because internet ticket purchase (and reservation) is easily available, whereas it appears "reservation only" can only be obtained locally or by booking well in advance through Interrail and waiting for paper documents. The full cost for this leg was £82 and single occupancy. Note that there are several daytime and overnight train options between Budapest and Bucharest but the sleepers probably have an "allocation" for Interrail tickets.

This service is nominally a luxury sleeper service although comparable to the standard UK version. I believe the stock was ex-Danish but may well have been modified internally. The coach was tidy, painted well internally and all very clean. Each pair of compartments has a bathroom pod between. One side has just a basin, the other side a shower, toilet and basin. There is also an adjoining door for family groups. I guess this bathroom pod is the modification and leaves very little floor space to manouvre. The top bunk was also locked down which did not help for space either. I got the basin only side so clearly had not paid for real luxury. No other frills apart from a cup of coffee in the morning and a 1 hour late arrival. This was fine since my hotel was not promising a room early. I walked to the hotel for about 30 minutes which is always a bit bold in a strange city on a hot summer morning. Mr Google helps.

I got to the hotel and there was no room available yet. The manager suggested I come back at 12 and there is a fantastic park just next door here I relaxed and plotted to go on a Communist Era walking tour later in the afternoon. When I did return I was allocated a 3 room suite and just for one night. The original deal was that I might get a room after 10am for EUR30 extra. Instead just good service! The walking tour was great and very informative and I would recommend these tours booked through "Get Your Guide." I was very sceptical about this service since some middle person is clearly making big money but the guides were excellent and the trip reasonably priced. I also had a great dinner with a fantastic English lady also on the walking tour! Bucharest city centre now fully modern and "Western" just like any European City. Chapter 3 later.   

 
Cancelled. 'twas only the second attempt.

They have not been trusted at Newquay this week.

 

Anecdote not data, this was the up platform at Exeter Central in November 2022, at twenty five past five in the afternoon - I was surprised at how busy the station was at that time of day. A similar number on the down platform were waiting for a service from Exmouth but I think the people in the photo were waiting for a train heading for Waterloo - perhaps their position on the platform gives a clue. I should have taken a photo of the departure board.

With large parts of the rail network in the south west not having the trains to provide a service at a scale that would meet the demand, from the point of view of the provision of trains, the region seems to be in the position of "Well, to get where you're going, I wouldn't start from here".

Mark