Great Western Coffee Shop

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Somerset_Railway

Amazing - a Minehead thread that hasn't got a flood of follow ups.  Perhaps we have discussed it "out" already - these are in public:

http://www.passenger.chat/2688 - 384 posts to 7th Dec 2021
West Somerset Railway - heritage line, Bishops Lydeard to Minehead - merged topic

http://www.passenger.chat/17237 - 181 posts to 21st Jan 2022
Minehead Rail Link Group

http://www.passenger.chat/5368 - 46 posts to 9 Nov 2009
Junction for the West Somerset Railway

http://www.passenger.chat/366 - 35 posts to 20 Jan 2009
Minehead reconnected to National Rail network with a new regular service

http://www.passenger.chat/20305 - 68 posts to 17 Nov 2020
Potential new services GWR could start?

http://www.passenger.chat/25642 - 19 posts to 9 Nov 2021
Heritage lines as public transport

For members who want to be involved in the techical detail, also:

http://www.passenger.chat/24153 - 8 posts to 25 Oct 2020
Trains to Minehead - Transport Scholars

(ask me if you are a member and with to be added to "Transport Scholars")

And I know I could find "Frequent Poster" and moderator discussion too.

I'll jump in with a reply, then!

There was a lot of politicking surrounding the sale of the line by BR to Somerset County Council.  The (then) WSR Co Ltd very nearly purchased the whole lot, but that fell through and the council purchased, with the agreement to lease-back the operational parts.  The eventual lease turned-out to be quite a tricky thing; really only granting the WSR the use of a very narrow strip of land, excluding much of the former branch railway that would have been useful.

For example, we found, late in 1975 (although the company's lawyers must have been aware at an earlier stage) that the land on the trackbed at Minehead beyond the BR sited bufferstops of the main platform was excluded.  The bufferstops had been moved some way from their original position towards Taunton, "shortening the main platform by two or three coach lengths.  We needed this operationally.  I'm not really sure if the council has since noticed that what was excluded got track laid on it in 1976.  Track which is still there as we head towards WSR50


This picture shows where the track ended in later BR days.  They'd helpfully swiped the bufferstops by the time this picture had been taken in October, 1972

And here we are, 52 years later, with rails still in situ all the way from Minehead to the national network, but only the occasional through special service - and I think those are very much fewer in the current decade than they were in the last.

The West Somerset Railway has been a huge success, carrying what must be millions of passengers over the years, but in my view the real prize would be to have / add services back on a regular basis to connect into the main network from Minehead and its hinterland.  It's been done at Ebbw Vale, at Tweedbank, and at Okehampton.  We have shared heritage and national rail operation to Mallaig and to Whitby.  Come on, West Somerset.  Don't tell us why it can't be done - tell us how you ARE going to overcome the obstacles and do it!

After decades of proposals, plans, inquiries, assessments, and studies, the time has come to actually do this.
And provide a daily year round service between Minehead and Taunton.

Beyond Taunton would be good, but reopening to Taunton should not be delayed whilst deciding what more distant places could be served in the future.

Hopefully a Summer time heritage operation could co-exist with a year round service, but reopening to Taunton should not be delayed by endless talking about heritage operations.

In the medium term battery powered trains would be greener, but in the near term use whatever is available. Do not delay through running by endless talk about choice of rolling stock.

The original intention was that there should be a year-round public transport railway service.  Local people lined up in their hundreds to buy shares in the new company, as soon as they became available.  But the money supply never matched what was needed.

The feasability study done for the project in the years between closure and the granting of the Light Railway Order did show how an ally-year "commuter" service, supported by the summer revenue from tourist steam trains could be viable (just about).  But then BR decided it was all too awkward and would have upset the unions (who had blacked the project anyway) so the idea faded over time.

We used to meet, to lay plans and discuss developments, in an upstairs room at the Black Horse on Station Road in Taunton.  The one with the worryingly saggy, creaky floor, warmed by a smoky paraffin heater.  Its a wonder we weren't snuffed out before the whole thing had even started

I seem to remember that there was a problem in that the Taunton to Minehead bus service was Western National and their drivers were members of the NUR, hence the black listing.

Yes, when BR closed the Minehead branch rail workers were made redundant. Some found employment with the bus company providing the rail replacement bus service.
The NUR therefore opposed reopening of the branch by non union workers as the rail replacement buses would then no longer be needed and trade union members put out of work.

Unlikely to be a problem these days as the bus service would still be needed.

Rail campaigning is a long term thing.  We still await the year-round commuter service.

Oh.  Please don't.  My heart was broken when I realised that the work many of us had put-in from 1974 onwards was going to come to nothing, as a result of BR not wanting to take-on the unions and the same organisation's Bristol Divisional management not being able to see beyond the end of their noses