Great Western Coffee Shop

http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=2128

So does it call on the down to eliminate the need for another stopper (Turbo)?

Thanks again for giving me some possible answers!  :)

So, plenty of room for the hordes of rail replacement buses when track circuit failures stop the job then?  :D

 ??? 

I hear that Didders will also be the next station to get a gateline.

New ticket barriers at Didcot Parkway could deter visitors from calling in at Didcot Railway Centre, it is feared.

Rail operator First Great Western is planning to introduce ticket barriers at the station by November next year.

If the barriers are brought in at the ticket office at the front of the station it would block off the entrance to the railway centre, which is entered from the subway beneath the platforms.

Staff at the popular steam railway attraction are talking to station managers at First Great Western to find a solution.

First Great Western spokesman John Ratchford said: ^As with any major station improvement, we will work closely with our customers and stakeholders to minimise disruption ^ which in this case also means ensuring any changes to the station won^t adversely affect access to the excellent Didcot Railway Centre.^

Railway Centre manager Roger Orchard said: ^The ticket barriers have been on the cards for a long time and we want to make sure they are set up in such a way that they are not a deterrent for our customers.

^The barriers will come in during the latter part of 2012 so we want to make sure that a system is in place that is acceptable to us.^

Police are cracking down on drivers using the long-stay car park at Didcot Parkway railway station to race their cars.

A new CCTV system has been installed at the Foxhall car park, which may end what police say is a longstanding problem.

They have also increased their patrols at the car park.

Pc Bob Burrowes, of British Transport Police^s Oxford unit, said: ^It appears to be young people and we are aware that there are few places for young drivers to go. But the car park is for rail users only. It has been a historic issue and you hear reports periodically of people using the car park in an inappropriate manner. Hopefully the new CCTV system will allow us to solve this.^

The system, which was paid for by rail firm First Great Western, allows the police to view images quickly, instead of having to wait 28 days as they would with the old equipment.

Officers are investigating a report of vehicles being driven ^erratically^ around the car park last Saturday evening, at about 6.30pm.

The three vehicles involved were a black Toyota Corolla, a green Renault Clio and a blue Renault Clio.

Anyone with any information about this incident should call BTP on 0800 405040.

The main building at Oxford railway station could be knocked down to make way for new platforms under plans being considered by transport bosses.

The major redevelopment would see four through platforms ^ with no dead ends ^ built to solve what officials see as a major regional bottleneck.

County councillor Rodney Rose, responsible for Oxfordshire^s transport infrastructure, said the project was the only long-term solution to create enough capacity on Oxfordshire^s Rail network.

The proposal is put forward in a new county council rail strategy covering the next 22 years, which lists a station revamp by 2018 as the ^top priority^.

Under the proposal, the existing station would be demolished with trains pulling up either side of two island platforms, boosting the flow of trains.

The council^s draft Rail Strategy and Delivery Plan, to be discussed by Cabinet today, calls for a new project board to oversee the station^s re-design and link it with scheduled work to electrify the track and update signalling.

The strategy says: ^Oxford station has been identified by Network Rail as being a significant constraint on the network and is our top priority for improvement.

^Once the ^850m redevelopment of Reading station is complete, this will become the biggest single capacity bottleneck in the Thames Valley and a major barrier to rail and economic growth.^

It goes on: ^It is predicted that the number of peak services using the station is close to the maximum that can be accommodated, before any additional passenger or freight growth.^

In 2010, less ambitious plans to add an extra platform on the long stay car park were axed when County Hall lost millions of pounds of Government funding.

Network Rail is still committed to the project, and has asked for funding between 2014 and 2019.

But Mr Rose said in the longer term, the complete redesign of the station was needed.

He said: ^I still think this is something we should push for.

^Oxford is going to be the major bottleneck, and if East-West Rail goes through it will make it even worse.^

Network Rail spokesman Sam Kelly said a complete rebuild was not part of its current plans, but it would ^gladly discuss it^ with the council.

She added: ^In terms of the station itself, we will be working with First Great Western, Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council to review passenger flow through the station to provide better facilities in the future.

^With regards to the railway itself, our plans over the coming years will provide the capacity need for the future.^

First Great Western would not comment on the plans, but said stakeholders and rail users should ^make their aspirations known^ ahead of its attempt to regain the franchise to run trains to London from April 2013.

Chiltern Railways has its own separate plans to build two new platforms on the old parcels platform and part of the short stay car park to serve its new Evergreen 3 link to London via Bicester.

The council^s new rail strategy includes other ambitious projects.

It says ^the time is right to look at again at the potential of a Grove & Wantage station^ and that a train service could be offered by firms competing to win the Great Western franchise in 2013.

And it commits the council to investigate reinstatement of the rail link between Oxford, Witney and Carterton, to improve connections with the west Oxfordshire towns and RAF Brize Norton.

The public will be able to have their say on the proposals in a consultation process due to start next month.

RAIL STRATEGY PRIORITIES

- Major projects already set to go ahead include electrification, the creation of the Evergreen 3 link from Oxford to Bicester, the East-West rail link, and ^5.6m redevelopment of Didcot Parkway forecourt

- A new masterplan for Oxford railway station, the re-development of Frideswide Square and integration of the station into the West End redevelopment

- More parking and bus facilities proposed for Bicester Town station, with a link to Bicester North. There is potential for rail freight facility at Graven Hill, using the Bicester Military Railway network.

- Opening a railway station near Grove and Wantage to serve Science Vale UK

- Redesign of Banbury station forecourt

- Improve buses from Witney to Hanborough station, and investigate long-term reinstatement of a rail link from Oxford to Witney and Carterton

- Improve parking and public transport links to stations in the Cotswolds

From the Oxford Mail (http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/yourtown/witney/9474725.Vision_for_Oxford_railway_station_overhaul_unveiled/):
....

- Opening a railway station near Grove and Wantage to serve Science Vale UK

From the Oxford Mail (http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/yourtown/witney/9474725.Vision_for_Oxford_railway_station_overhaul_unveiled/):

From the Oxford Mail (http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/yourtown/witney/9474725.Vision_for_Oxford_railway_station_overhaul_unveiled/):

Yes, that would be a half-way house scheme they could consider.  After all, the panel box would no longer be in the way once its area of control transfers to Didcot.


They could save a little money by not bothering to progress that idea though.  13 miles of new track to serve two places with a combined population of only just over 30000?  Not a chance of it ever being financially viable with (the usual problem) of housing and business parks and other general clutter now encroaching on the original formation.

British Transport Police (BTP) is appealing for information after seven cars were vandalised at Didcot Parkway rail station.

The incident occurred sometime between 3pm on Tuesday, 14 February and 8.30am on Wednesday, 15 February when a member of the public noticed the cars had been vandalised and contacted police.

Sergeant Adrian Naylor, officer in charge of BTP's dedicated team at Oxford, said: ^All seven cars had been left in the car park and when their owners returned to them they discovered windows had been smashed or damaged, some doors had been forced open and in at least one case the cars had had valuables removed from them.^

The cars were all in Foxhall car park, and officers believe the people responsible may have used ballast to damage the vehicles.

Sgt Naylor added: ^We^ve followed a number of leads so far, including viewing CCTV which appears to show someone entering the vicinity on a bicycle around 10.30pm, but our enquiries have so far proved fruitless.

^We are still in the process of speaking with the owners of the cars involved and I am now appealing to anyone who may have been in the area that night and noticed any suspicious activity to contact police ^ your information could be vital to the investigation.^

Anyone with information is asked to contact British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference B11/LNA of 20/02/2012. Or call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

CCTV released: Police appeal after cycles stolen from Didcot Parkway station

British Transport Police (BTP) is appealing for information after two cycles were stolen from Didcot Parkway station.

Officers are also releasing CCTV images of a group of men they would like to identify in connection with the incidents which took place on Tuesday, 17 January 2012.

PC Bob Burrowes, the officer investigating both incidents, said: ^The bikes were securely locked to the cycle rack at Didcot Parkway rail station by two local passengers early in the morning. When they returned to the station in the afternoon, they discovered the locks had been cut and their bikes had been stolen.^

Police have so far followed a number of leads including circulating the CCTV images on police intelligence sources, but to no avail so far.

PC Burrowes added: ^I am now appealing for the public^s help to identify these men. If you were at Didcot Parkway station or in the vicinity on the day and saw anything suspicious, I would urge you to get in touch.

^Unfortunately cycles are a popular target for thieves but there are several steps people can take to ensure their bikes are adequately marked and secured to help reduce the risk of becoming a victim of bike theft. The best thing to remember is to register your bike and also to ensure a solid lock is used to secure it. If a bike is adequately marked, it makes it much easier to identify and therefore reduces its desirability to thieves.^

BTP officers regularly conduct cycle crime awareness surgeries at stations to offer crime prevention advice and identify the top locations for bike theft each fortnight, targeting them through covert and overt policing operations to try and catch would-be offenders in the act.

Anyone who can name the men in the CCTV images should contact British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference B9/LNA of 21/02/2012. Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Forecourt work is back on track

(http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/resources/images/1974137/?type=articleLandscape)

A ^6.7m project to revamp the forecourt at Didcot Parkway railway station is back on track after a year of delays.

Improvement work, first outlined in 2001, was originally due to start in March last year, but was postponed following safety assessments carried out by landowners Network Rail. In October 2011 another start date was postponed.

Demolition work finally started last week at the site off Station Road and the project is due to be completed late next year, in advance of the ^125m extension of the Orchard Shopping Centre.

The transport hub is being reorganised to make it easier and safer for cars, buses, cyclists, taxis and pedestrians to use. Disused buildings in the west car park are being demolished to create a temporary car park, paving the way for construction work to begin in the autumn.

Town council leader Margaret Davies said: ^This is excellent news and when people saw the work starting last week it caused quite a buzz. Hopefully the work will be finished before phase two of the shopping centre is completed. The scheme will also mean an end to the flooding of the station subway as work is being carried out to pump the water away under Cow Lane bridge.^

Oxfordshire County Council is providing the bulk of the funding.

Didcot county councillor Bill Service said: ^This is a significant investment and once it is completed it will be a major improvement. A lot of people living on the Ladygrove estate commute and every day you see the march from Cow Lane bridge to the station.^

The new temporary car park should be ready in the summer and will be in use for 18 months. During the first phase of work, there will be temporary traffic lights in Station Road from 9.30am to 4pm.

First Great Western spokesman John Ratchford said: ^We^re delighted the work is under way, and pleased we can work in partnership with Oxfordshire County Council and South Oxfordshire District Council.^

Didcot Chamber of Commerce president Julia Williams said: ^This is excellent news for the local economy. The forecourt needed tidying up to make it less confusing in terms of where pedestrians and other users are directed, and this is a good opportunity to create new signs showing the way to the town centre.^

TIMELINE...

2001: Plans for a new transport hub put forward in feasibility study.

2009: Oxfordshire County Council announces ^5.4m plan to revamp forecourt.

2010: Contract for ^5.7m scheme goes out to tender.

2011: ^5.7m scheme scheduled to start in February gets delayed six months and then postponed again.

2012: Work starts on ^6.7m scheme, due to finish at end of 2013.

A new station manager and a new future for Didcot Parkway

First Great Western is delighted to announce ^2 million improvements works to Didcot Parkway Station have now started.

This includes upgrading the ticket office and station concourse and the installation of ticket gates. In addition to the ^2 million improvements to the booking hall, Oxfordshire County Council will be creating a new modern forecourt, which will be safer and easier to use.

The improvements will mean a smarter, more welcoming environment in keeping with Didcot^s status as a key station on the Great Western main line.

Dave Martin, the new Station Manager at Didcot Parkway, said: ^Let me first say hello, and how delighted I am to be taking over as Station Manager.

^At First Great Western we recognise our role in the communities we serve. These improvement works will ensure that Didcot Parkway continues to provide the services and environment our customers require.

^Every effort will be made to reduce inconvenience caused by the work, but if you have any queries or comments please speak to me or a member of our staff.^

The improvements works began on Friday 31 August, with the ticket office upgrade due to be completed in 12 weeks. Work on the forecourt will start in September with the closure of the lower level East car park.

A temporary ticket office has been set up while we make the improvements. There will be no change to opening hours, and the office will be fully staffed. Ticket Vending Machines will also be moved but will remain available for use.

Customers wishing to seek more information can do so either by speaking with a member of staff or by telephoning 08457 000 125.

Barriers were in place this evening, but not operational yet. (In fact, they might have been installed much earlier, as this evening was my first visit to the station since last Friday).

FGW staff raffle ^1,000 of prizes for Children in Need

First Great Western staff at Didcot Parkway station are to give away over ^1,000 in prizes as the team raise money for Children in Need.

Dressed in full costume, the station team aims to raise funds for Pudsey and friends from Friday 15 through to Sunday 17 November.

From an iPad Mini to Chelsea football tickets, over ^1,000 of raffle prizes will be given away, while cup cakes will be on sale for ravished passengers. Tickets will be drawn out of a hat on Monday 18 November and winners notified.

CCTV released: Appeal continues after violent disorder at Didcot Parkway station

British Transport Police (BTP) detectives are appealing for information after violent disorder at Didcot Parkway station left a man with cuts to his head.

Investigators have released images of six people they would like to speak to in connection with the incident, which took place on Tuesday, 22 October.

(http://www.btp.presscentre.com/imagelibrary/displaymedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=12220&SizeID=2) (http://www.btp.presscentre.com/imagelibrary/displaymedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=12221&SizeID=2) (http://www.btp.presscentre.com/imagelibrary/displaymedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=12222&SizeID=2) (http://www.btp.presscentre.com/imagelibrary/displaymedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=12223&SizeID=2) (http://www.btp.presscentre.com/imagelibrary/displaymedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=12224&SizeID=2) (http://www.btp.presscentre.com/imagelibrary/displaymedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=12225&SizeID=2)

Detective Constable Chris Church, the investigating officer, said: ^Around 11pm, an altercation began between a group of men and women that had been travelling on a train between Reading and Didcot Parkway. As the train arrived at Didcot Parkway station, words were exchanged between the two groups and a fight took place on the platform. During the assault, a 19-year-old man was hit over the head with a bottle causing a cut to his head.^

BTP officers were alerted and spoke to several witnesses at the scene. An investigation was launched and detectives have today released CCTV images of six people they would like to speak to.

DC Church added: ^This was violent disorder between two groups of people and we are appealing for information from witnesses to help build a picture of exactly what took place. We believe there were people who were waiting at Didcot Parkway station when the train arrived, and who were also involved in the altercation. If you recognise the people pictured, or have key information which you think could assist officers, I^d urge you to come forward.^

Anyone with information is asked to contact British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 quoting background reference LNA/B2 of 19/11/2013. Information can also be passed to the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

The Growth Deal money for Oxfordshire announced today includes provision to increase car parking at Foxhall Road by building a 'deck access car park'.

The remaining aspirations for Didcot as I recall were to have pedestrian access from the north of the railway, and to open a platform on the 'avoiding' line. The first may be funded out of some development 'pot' but the latter would need to come from the railway in some form, and I can't see that happening soon.

First Great Western welcomes ^9.5m Growth Fund allocation for Didcot Parkway car park upgrade

Train operator First Great Western has welcomed the allocation of ^9.5 million towards a new multi-storey car park and covered walkway at Didcot Parkway station, as part of funding from the Government^s Local Growth Fund.

The funding will help realise the first stages of a 10-year masterplan for improvements to the station that has been drawn up between First Great Western, OxLEP, Oxfordshire County Council and South Oxfordshire District Council. The plan details the expansion and improvement of the station, as a key gateway to Science Vale and Enterprise Zone, to better meet the needs of passengers and the communities it serves.

First Great Western Managing Director, Mark Hopwood said: ^We have been working with the local authorities and LEP for some time to draw together our ten-year vision for the station, and today^s announcement is a key stage in the realisation of that vision. The Great Western rail network is seeing more than ^7.5 billion of investment over the coming years, and it is great to see local communities seizing this as an opportunity to help harness further funding that will directly benefit the local economy.

^FGW has recently delivered a 710-space multi-storey car park at Bristol Parkway on time and on budget for the Department for Transport. We look forward to working with our partners to secure the balance of funding needed and finalise arrangements for the creation of a similar facility at Didcot.^

^Rail station revamp offers a better welcome to Didcot^

(http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/resources/images/3225827/?htype=0)
Taking shape: The revamp of Didcot Parkway railway station as work nears an end

Completion of an ^8m scheme to redevelop the forecourt at Didcot Parkway rail station is set to be completed in the next fortnight.

The transport hub, the county^s busiest station after Oxford, has been reorganised to make it safer for cars, buses, cyclists, taxis and pedestrians to use.

Town councillor Margaret Davies said: ^People in Didcot have been very patient. When they started work in 2012 the estimated finishing date was September 2013, but with such a major project you can expect some delay.^

Work on the new interchange will be completed in the next fortnight, according to Didcot West county councillor Nick Hards.

A new sign has just gone up to welcome commuters and other visitors to the station^s transport interchange and Mr Hards said contractor Birse was now putting the finishing touches to the scheme.

He added: ^I expect the forecourt to be complete in the next fortnight. It^s all looking very impressive and it will be a much better welcome to Didcot. There will be some resurfacing work on Station Road in October but that should be everything. I would like to see some maps go up showing visitors where everything is in Didcot, including the Cornerstone Arts Centre. There are plans for a new hotel on the Didcot island site opposite the station and that would be another big improvement.^

Demolition work started on the forecourt in April 2012 and the scheme is nearing completion despite the discovery in June of buried asbestos, which increased the total cost of the scheme by ^1.3m.

Dave Pryor, of Pryors Taxis in Didcot, said: ^It has been quite chaotic over the past couple of years but we are due to have a completed station any day now ^ they are just finishing it off. Buses will move into the central section ^ it^s imminent and will be a big improvement. A new taxi rank with a bigger capacity has been running since April.^

The station is owned by Network Rail and run by First Great Western (FGW) but Oxfordshire County Council has provided most of the funding as the highways authority. Work inside the station, including the renovation of the ticket office, has been completed by First Great Western and Network Rail.

FGW spokesman James Davis added that a scheme to deck parking areas in the Foxhall Road car park behind the station, backed by City Deal funding from central government, was due to be carried out at a date to be fixed.

A scheme to redesign the forecourt at Didcot Parkway was first mooted in 2001. It was not until 2011 that Oxfordshire County Council was ready to go ahead with the current scheme, but the start date was put back twice while First Great Western and Network Rail made sure all the correct paperwork was in place.

Some 2.8m passengers used the station in 2012/2013.

The scheme had an extra ^1.3m added to its budget, bringing it to ^8m, after asbestos was found.

Work started in September 2012, and was expected to be finished within a year, but various delays put back the construction by a year, including unexpected problems with ground conditions.

From the Oxford Mail (http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/11435679.___Rail_station_revamp_offers_a_better_welcome_to_Didcot___/):

This means that buses are now completely separated from buses and private cars, which always used to be a problem (most evenings were bad, Fridays particularly so),

I guess you mean Taxis & cars?

Some people in cars haven't got used to not being able to drop people off directly in front of the station as they used to and are therefore driving into the now bus only area. Hopefully the habit will be broken before too long.

Reminds me of when they redid the Chippenham station forecourt/parking/whatever you want to call it - made it a bus and taxi only one way loop up to the front doors where people used to be able to drive up pretty much however they pleased. Saw lots of cars not knowing/not reading to begin with but now 8 years on(ish? About 2006 I think it happened) I rarely see one. I think it dropped off fairly rapidly if I recall correctly.