Are any of the stations request stops? Some of the villages they serve like St Columb Road are particularly small. (Although I have no experience of this area-yet!)

I think saturday 'seaside trips' to Newquay using the train are a very good idea. It could drum up a big sense of community spirit with discounted tickets on sale in village post offices, for example, with gearing towards groups of people and families from all the intermediate villages. Along with the adopt a station ideas, this could also encourage better general use of the stations and perhaps even long-distance trips from them.

Now that is a pleasant surprise- made even more so by the First Great Western calls!

I'm guessing that the First Great Western trains will originate from Westbury or Bristol Temple Meads- although, is there any hope they may originate from Swindon?

It's surprising South West Trains decide to surpass the expectations by the DFT^▸ (Department for Transport), where as FGW^▸ (First Great Western)  (sometimes- not always) barely meet theirs.

I'm not too sure what to make of this. On one side Gloucester does badly need improved services, and a P&R^▸ (Park and Ride) station would be of massive benefit to traffic, etc. But then again, it is likely Cheltenham Spa would see severe cuts in services or be closed and Gloucester's main station could also be closed, the former of which could spark massive protests. If it wasn't for Cheltenham Spa and its frequency of services, I wouldn't have gone to University there.
What I still think is a better idea is a hourly fast service to Bristol & the south from Gloucester's current station, as well as the local service, or at the very least one or two more VXC^▸ (Virgin Cross Country - former franchise) stops.

I took the train to Clifton down today, and when on the train the conductor was giving ^1 tickets to everyone who joined from Lawrence Hill onwards...I hadn't heard a thing about it, no posters at Temple Meads, or from the ticket office at Oldfield Park. The people who were buying the tickets seemed pleasantly surprised - like a family on the way back with a youngster who loved trains. "That's not bad at all, is it?" But if I'd known I could have saved some money first. Wish I'd have checked here!

And it should be valid on Saturdays, I see no reason why not. I'd go this weekend with the family if it was...

I passed Oldfield Park today, and right next to the entrance to the walkway of Platform 1 was a big, ominous, yellow and black sign:

WARNING!
^20 FINE

I mean it's all well and good doing this, but I feel it's scare tactics gone mad and will drive many people away. Couldn't they just have put friendlier looking signs on the platform?

This is the kind of thing that makes me angry with FGW^▸ (First Great Western). You've got the uncaring conductor, and the uncaring company, painting a dreadful picture of FGW as a whole. I've seen this 'not our problem' attitude from FGW ever since they took over the franchise, and I don't think I've ever seen it from Wessex before when they were in charge.

I personally feel the 'Permit to travel' system is much fairer than ladelling the 'Don't have a ticket? YOU'LL PAY A FINE, YOU CRIMINAL!!' system on, which FGW^▸ (First Great Western) is doing. While I agree it will lower fare evasion quite a bit, I personally, as a fare paying passenger find it intimidating and will be vary wary to get on the train should the ticket machine not be working. I personally would have kept the old system, and made sure the conductors on the train were vigilant in collecting fares when the office is shut.

Hi everyone, I'm Graham, better known as Graz or simply 'G' to my friends! A long time traveller from Oldfield Park to Cheltenham Spa, I witnessed the many highs and very few lows of the final years of Wessex trains, and the first part of the disaster that happened when First Great Western took over. I travelled 'local' most of the time, especially on the journeys back, taking the local Wessex services from Cheltenham to Bristol as they were much less crowded in the evenings, and the direct trains (Worcester Shrub Hill - Frome) were of a huge benefit- but they were all axed by FGW^▸ (First Great Western), of course. I unfourtunately don't use the train at current except for a few leisure journeys a month, as my office (Beckington) is quite far away from the nearest station which is Frome, but later in the year I will start travelling to Dilton Marsh, and cycling to work from there.

I'll be campaigning for Melksham (of course!) as I loved our Christmas journey up to Swindon and back, and feel that this station and line is given a timetable I would deem even less than inadequate- a service that doesn't do the line any justice at all, and what could be a potential major asset to the West as a whole should it be given a decent service.

I'm also campaigning for a hourly service at Avoncliff, Freshford, Oldfield Park (Where I live!) and Keynsham, and better peak trains to these stations, more trains on the Bristol-Waterloo service, more trains to Frome/Yeovil, better summer trains to Weston-super-Mare, and better all round services to Gloucester/Cheltenham Spa. I've also travelled on the Severn Beach line many times so will be looking closely at it.

I'll be posting here (and at Save the Train) quite regularly, more often if I didn't have to slave all day at the office(!) and look forward to seeing the improvements we'll bring.