Great Western Coffee Shop

2020 has been a year quite unlike any other. In the world, in the UK, in public transport, on GWR travel, at the Coffee Shop and in the individual lives of personal members. Norms have been broken, predominantly in a negative direction but here and there there are silver linings to the clouds.  And one of those silver linings - for me - has been the care and comradeship shown through adversity by coffee shop members, and by so many others with whom we surround ourselves too.

We're a forum with a substantial senior membership and colleagues in other rail community groups, and in any year we have to mourn the passing and celebrate the life of people no longer with us as the year turns.  With coronavirus sweeping the country, twice, this year, the number of obituaries I've had to (but been honoured to) write has grown, but has still been mercifully slim due to common sense and caution shown through the UK. We celebrate the lives of Martin John Gosney who was our member Martyjon, Chris Dale, chair of TravelWatch NorthWest and Roger Newman, Chair of the West Wilts Rail User Group.

In 2020, passenger journeys by train plummeted to just 5% of their normal run rate in the spring, before a rise to around half their normal level over the summer months and a drop back to "nearly empty trains" again in recent weeks.  People have been discouraged from using trains, capacity has been reduced, it's been less comfortable (though probably no less safe) to use trains ... and in any case most people travel by train to do something at the far end, and there has been so little to go and do with offices, hospitality and attractions closed for the most part.  In the face of that decimation of the forum's main topic, it's truly remarkable just how active we have remained; more stats over coming days, perhaps, when I can compare year on year, but this December has been very similar in volume to last December (2019).

Forum focus has re-biased, perhaps. We have seen a reduction in day to day reports and issues (heck, few people travelling!) and an increase in rail based broadcast, heritage, history and enthusiast topics, quizzes, etc.  We have not neglected trying to look ahead - after all, a time of change is a time of both great risk, and of great opportunity - that's something to come back to in a New Year post with some positive views of what might be, as well as how we can mitigate the risks.

I want to pick out various groups of members here too.  To those who work, or who have worked in the transport industry, and who give us there time to answer questions, explain things and help our members. Your contributions are utterly appreciated and you bring so much value to the forum - THANK YOU.

To members who through coronavirus or other health issues of all sorts who have not been able to contribute as much as they used to, or at all, the forum remains here for you to read.  Thank you for sticking with us. We really like to hear from you occasionally (and I'm personally honoured to have heard from a number of you, even though not public posted). Those who have posted - perhaps in one of our more private boards - thank you for the courage to do so. We are all friends here; quite remarkable for an online forum.

To members who have diverted from the Coffee Shop to doing volunteer / support / extra work which has mopped up much of the time you would have been here - GOOD ON YOU, and thank you for supporting others. We hope that 2021 will find you some time for yourself and your hobbies, but I'm not going to discourage you from continuing what you've been doing if it's fulfilling and satisfying for you.

To admins (Bob and Tim especially active) and moderators for all their help during the year - a THANK YOU too.  This is an easy forum to moderate; we've had a few incidents and issues, but they pale into insignificance when compared to what I see elsewhere, and it's really useful to have strong guidelines and an excellent backup team that is not intervention crazy - you reap what you cast, and perhaps as a result of the attitude we take, there is little need to intervene.

A work to thank rail industry friends too - GWR and wider rail bodies - for keeping the railway running though a tumultuous year, sometimes at personal cost, and also for keeping us in the loop and working positively with us.  There have been hard decisions to take, and on occasions members may have been critical or frustrated, but we are fully aware that everyone is on new territory and doing there very best, without the benefit of hindsight, infinite impractical resources, or an armchair to plan from.  So - THANK YOU, one and all.  From being the interim MD of GWR, we wish Matthew Golton well in his new role at First HQ as we move from franchises to a new system - he is ideal for then roll, and I'm sure he won't forget us, the passengers.  And a welcome back to Mark Hopwood, who has been on secondment with SWR; awarded a CBE today, that has received universal acclaim even from our maverick members - a remarkable man. Congratulations, Mark, and looking forward.

The UK economy has turned on its head this year, and with it the personal lives of many of our members. I chose to complete my retirement from IT training in the Spring, and with it the dedicated server that the Coffee Shop shared. A much reduced legacy web site for "Well House Consultants", and the Coffee Shop, are now running on a much cheaper and more modern setup.  Much software updating has been done though work remains.  Significant security issues have been dealt with and (in my view) the new system is now running fare better than the old one did. It's been a challenge, but fun.  My very last Well House IT support and programming contract is being passed over to a new team - a lot of resource from me to help them write the next generation of specialist software, with a real feeling of fulfilment as I support a team of counsellors who have had their work cut out supporting people emotionally through difficult times in Wales and Scotland. Close to home, family support as my stepson's dad, my wife's ex, passed away a few days before Christmas. Sadly, the situation was such that there was little mourning in our house, but rather the dread of potential issues to be sorted between parties left behind, which were confirmed to exist within days. I doubt whether more than a handful of our members have had an unchanged year in 2020 ... to them, I offer you a celebration of weathering the storm.  To everyone else - I know perhaps a little of how you feel, and hope you've found the forum a useful place to come to occasionally and, thank you, for being here and supporting others too. So much of it has come down to personal relationships and friendships, and the forum keeps reminding me of the good in people and how it has shone in 2020.

Have a good new year - I hope you are able to do so quietly at home (but I admire you if you have key overnight work to do) and look forward to seeing you virtually over coming days and weeks, and in real life over coming months and years.  I really appreciate your friendships, and support for the forum

-- GrahamE, Melksham, Wiltshire, 31st December 2020, Tier 3.
-- E&OE ("typos and omissions excepted" - you folks knows my typing!)

Thank you for all your hard work running the coffee shop.

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Just been pointed to the open paragraph of Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities.  Rather sums things up.