Tributes paid as train named after popular man who died in a car crash



Friday 2 Sep 2016
Wales & West
Tributes paid as train named after popular man who died in a car crash: Gavin's partner Meg Williamson touches the plaque as Network Rail's chief executive Mark Carne watches on



A popular Network Rail employee who tragically lost his life in a road collision in June has been commemorated by colleagues as a specialist train he worked on has been named after him.

Gavin Roberts, who was 28, moved to Swindon from Dapto, New South Wales, Australia, earlier this year. His positive impact on those around him continued after his death as he was a registered donor which meant his organs helped save the lives of seven people.

He was a construction manager for Network Rail and worked on the High Output Plant system (HOPs) train that is used on the Great Western electrification programme that will see electric trains introduced on the Great Western main line.

Possessing an abundance of energy and zeal, he had a positive impact on those around him and his colleagues, left devastated by his passing, arranged for the HOPs train to be named after him with a ceremony taking place on Wednesday (31 August).

The ceremony was held at Network Rail’s High Output Operations Base in Swindon where the HOPs trains are kept and was attended by Gavin’s partner, friends and colleagues. A moment of reflection was led by The Railway Chaplin, Alan Thorpe, before Network Rail’s chief executive Mark Carne addressed the audience before unveiling the Gavin Roberts plaque.

Chief executive for Network Rail, Mark Carne, said: “It is clear from the reaction of family, friends and colleagues just how special Gavin was to many people. It seems that he touched the lives of all that met him and it seems right to commemorate him by naming the very train he worked on.

“I hope that the Gavin Roberts train will help further keep the memory of him alive and it recognises the work and impact he had on everyone connected with Network Rail.”

Gavin’s line manager, Jim Rollo, said: “Gavin was a larger than life character and made friends wherever his travels took him.

“He took some of the newer members of the team under his wing and not only shared with them his extensive overhead line equipment knowledge; he also helped them grow in confidence within their role.

“Gavin’s family and partner Meg remember him as ‘the Gavin that keeps on giving’. Gavin was only with us for five months but was loved by all and he will always be part of our team.”

Gavin’s girlfriend Meg Williamson and his closest friends Yuga Balakrishna and David Brockie were presented with a replica nameplate to mark the occasion as prayers and some of Gavin’s favourite songs were played.

The Gavin Roberts HOPs train is only the second to be named, the other was named Brunel, after the great engineer, at a ceremony in June 2014, by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.

The ceremony was filmed by Network Rail and a video of the proceedings will be sent to Gavin’s family who live in Australia and were unable to attend.

The event takes place on Sunday September 11th 2016 and No 7027 will be displayed on a short section of track within our bus depot in Winterstoke Road. The loco, as yet unrestored, was purchased recently by JJP Holdings South West (Crosville's parent company) and will initially share space with our bus fleet before moving to Tyesley Locomotive Works where most of the restoration work will take place.

A free shuttle service, operated by heritage buses, will connect the main Rally site at the Helicopter Museum with our depot where visitors can view Thornbury Castle along with many of the buses and coaches from our modern fleet.

No 7027 Thornbury Castle was withdrawn from mainline service in 1963 and was bought from Woodham Bros scrapyard in Barry, South Wales in 1972. The loco’s future was secured and she was stabled as part of the steam locomotive collection at Birmingham Railway Museum, Tyseley. 7027 later moved to the Waterman Railway Heritage Trust from which she has now been acquired for full restoration to mainline standard. Visitors can find out more about these ambitious plans at the Rally.

Crosville's 2016 Bus & Steam Rally, now at a brilliant new venue, promises to be bigger and better than before. Since our last rally in 2014 we have added steam-powered vehicles to our heritage collection and these, together with other visiting steam vehicles, will add another dimension to our already popular event.

Here's a summary of what you can expect:
•Open 10:00 - 16:30
•Free heritage bus rides
•Static display of heritage buses and coaches from the Crosville Heritage Fleet and the Bristol Omnibus Vehicle Collection
•Visiting vehicles on display and in service
•GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) steam loco No 7027 'Thornbury Castle' on display
•Guided tours of Crosville depot
•Free heritage bus service connecting seafront, railway station and depot with rally site
•Heritage buses on some Crosville timetabled services
•Society and trade stalls
•Free on-site parking
•Rally programmes (£1.00), including timetables, available at The Helicopter Museum as you arrive

To celebrate Heritage Open Days 2016 and Swindon175 the Mechanics' Trust will be opening the Railway Cottage Museum on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th September for the first time since it was transferred to us in July 2016. The Cottage is a unique example of what life was like living in Swindon's Railway Village in the early 1900s.

 This is a special chance to see the Cottage, which has been closed to the public for many years, before it is refurbished ahead of its official re-opening some time next year.

 Opening times: 10:30am - 3:00pm. FREE ENTRY.

 We will also be giving guided tours of the Railway Village at 11:30am and 2:00pm on Saturday and Sunday.

 For more information please contact us - T: 07516 477479
 E: railwaycottage@mechanics-trust.org.uk

Visitors to Minehead, in the heart of Exmoor, will now be able to travel on the West Somerset Railway, the largest heritage railway in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom), with an all-in-one ticket as GWR trains complete a new ticket initiative.

The initiative sees the launch of a ‘one ticket’ solution enabling passengers to explore Britain’s longest heritage railway, the West Somerset Railway, with GWR rail and a local bus service fare included. The one ticket solution will include train travel from mainline stations and a connecting bus service (at present) from Taunton to Bishops Lydeard.

Visitors travelling from outside of Somerset could see significant savings with the removal of a peak time ticket restriction on a service from London.

Paul Conibeare, West Somerset Railway General Manager, has said; “We are delighted with this news. There has been months of planning and engagement between West Somerset Railway, the Visit Somerset team and the GWR team.  This will be a huge boost for the WSR and the local economy”.

John Turner, Visit Somerset’s Chief Executive and member of the executive board for Exmoor Tourism said; “We have studied a previous example of this kind of development in East Grinstead on the Blue Bell Railway.  Although it was a cross platform link we still believe that we can derive connections between the two schemes due to West Somerset Railway as an attraction being far larger. The Blue Bell team saw 60,000 more visitors and an increase of over a million pounds. With some extensive marketing for West Somerset Railway we will hope that we can see this type of increase over a five-year period”.