What about towards Avonmouth - from FAW, Patchway or Parkway - thinking of the mooted Henbury Loop and possible electric freight to the docks?

Does anyone know what this actually means - or will mean - in practice?

Does it mean that by 2020 there will be no paper tickets, or that paper tickets will start to 'be phased out' from that date?
What will replace paper tickets? What, if anything, will a passenger receive to show they have paid for travel?
Will you still be able to buy a 'ticket' (whatever form that takes, whether printed card or phone app or whatever) at point of travel - or will you have to purchase it in advance?
Will there be any provision for people without some 'mobile device' to travel (eg kids taking the train to school)?
Will there be 'tickets' in the form of eg SMS, email etc, or will there be a smart card system like the Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services) card?
If a smart card, will it be a national scheme valid for all services and all TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company), or will different franchises have their own cards?
Is this perhaps not a scheme to 'make efficiencies' by moving to an online or machine only system, making ticket window staff redundant?
Can an announcement about a long-term scheme made so close to a general election be considered to have any validity a t all?

Does even the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) know any of these things yet?

And is there any connection with eg this: http://www.railtechnologymagazine.com/Fares-rail-policy-and-DfT-news/dft-invests-in-smart-ticketing-in-the-west-midlands
...which would suggest it's about payment methods, rather than tickets per se?

Intrigued!

Do you know anything about what this smart ticketing scheme might look like in practice? Something like Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services) cards, maybe? And is it to be restricted to the Severn Beach line or will it be compatible with other smart ticketing/smart card systems on other lines? For instance, I recently read this:
http://www.railtechnologymagazine.com/Fares-rail-policy-and-DfT-news/dft-invests-in-smart-ticketing-in-the-west-midlands

It seems this is a good thread on which to say hello to everyone who's already here, so that's how I'll use it. Hello!

Now, why do I travel by train? I've always enjoyed train travel. I think in large part this goes back to when I was a child and train was always our transport for going on holiday - so just turning up at the station meant fun and excitement! At the same time though, trains were something ordinary - we lived by the railway line (not the station!) so seeing passing trains, of all sorts, was a normal event. I could never understand the attraction of train spotting. Beyond that, there are practical reasons. Train travel is usually relatively fast and stress-free, as well as comfortable for various distances.

And what journeys do I typically make by train? From Bristol (Temple Meads or Parkway, sometimes one is more convenient, sometimes the other) to Didcot or Reading, occasionally London; Bristol to Gloucester, Ashchurch or Malvern; to Chepstow and Cardiff; as well as occasional Severn Beach line trips. Oh, and in a couple of weeks I'll be travelling from Pewsey via Westbury, but that's very much a one-off!