I agree with Marlburian - I think it will generate more traffic to provide better links to the north-east (restoring the XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) Newcastle trains which give direct services to Derby, Sheffield, Doncaster, York and Durham too, and a single change of train to central Scotland without having to hack across the Underground in London, and providing some services from or via Reading on the East West link for Milton Keynes, Bedford, Cambridge, Norwich and Ipswich when it opens would be good, together opening or re-opening many more destinations for convenient rail travel).

There's already hourly trains to Gatwick, and the coach to Heathrow (or one change of train to the latter). If there was any south-easterly service I'd like to see as a priority it would be direct continental services from the Thames Valley and beyond - Bristol, South Wales or the West Midlands - but something to Ashford International, and some Eurostars stopping there to connect would be nice in the meantime!

While it's not quick, you can do Portsmouth with one change at Southampton or Guildford, or Brighton changing at Redhill. I expect that serves most of the likely demand.

Just seen on the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) local news - an artist has just repainted the underpass at Pangbourne to resemble the interior of a bee hive - and very bright and cheerful it looks too!

Presumably it will be replayed in the local news slot after the 10 o'clock news this evening

I guess someone in the "newsroom" googled "Trains - Wales - images"!

Froome is closer geographically, Bradshaw to the characteristic of the site, but still "no" and "no"!

Correct Grahame!

Sorry, no

No, but I can see how you got there!

I have spent part of my first week of retirement taking a short break with some of my old birding friends, somewhere in England.

This morning we were at this rail-related site  - where is it?

As the meerkats would say - "simples"

Change first part from-

"Cancellations to services between Castle Cary and Weymouth

Due to animals on the railway between Castle Cary and Weymouth all lines are blocked.

Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled or terminated at and started back from Yeovil Pen Mill. Disruption is expected until 12:00 02/05."

to

"Cancellations to services between Castle Cary and Weymouth

Following a train hitting several cows near Yetminster yesterday, a clean up operation is in place. Until this is complete, and we can ensure the line is not damaged, trains will be amended.

Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled or terminated at and started back from Yeovil Pen Mill. Disruption is expected until 12:00 02/05."

Then the key information is the first thing people will read, and understand it's not just another cow on the line, that they will pass at walking pace with a farmer holding securely on a halter after a 15 minute delay, and why the line is closed without having to spool down.

While I applaud the general idea of the scheme - why limit it to do smartphone app sales only? I would imagine there will be quite a few elderly German citizens who might be put off leaving their cars at home and using such a ticket because of this. What happened to inclusiveness?

Well,  after today I will be able to follow this thread with a bit more equanimity.  I am on my last ever commute home from work!

I'm with Marlburian on this one. What's more, as an amateur naturalist I am dismayed at the thought of a large scale protest at a time when the wildlife is vulnerable - breeding season for birds, crucial season for many wild flowers and the habitats of other wildlife too. Recreational pressure is a major problem for many sensitive species and habitats near urban areas.

Being alongside the Thames Path and near the Ridgeway, I do see plenty of "POC" walking them too. I expect like most users, these are predominantly from the middle classes, who get out into the countryside more (will that comment get a response?) for (I would imagine) a combination of reasons, including having the disposable income to spend travelling out of town to do so. I have not though carried out any counts mind to see if the proportion matches the national proportion of our various identifiable ethnic groups.

If you are going to encourage a greater diversity of visitors to the countryside, perhaps we should start in schools. If you don't come from the proverbial "nice middle class" background and have no family history of visiting and appreciating the outdoors, my guess would be that this would be the best way of encouraging it. And it might help with the diversity of the next generation of volunteers who will follow Marlburian into the field volunteering for environmental projects.

For heaven's sake please do not encourage this kind of irresponsible behaviour - how on earth are you going to encourage a welcome if you are going to trash the countryside with a protest like this? It will only engender hostility towards the protesters.

If it was a short (day or two) trip, perhaps not, but if you are going for longer, why not? All that wonderful countryside to see on various stretches of all of the routes, none of the ordeal of getting to the airport (parking and courtesy bus, or expense of taxi and probably an inconvenient choice of public transport alternatives), and getting from an airport at varying distances from your destination city. And if you are not going to one of the major cities it could be quite a long and slow journey to your final destination (think Oban, Spey Valley for example).

Then there's the cramped seating in aircraft (and people complain about Voyagers), the time spent checking in, waiting to be called forward to board, waiting for your luggage at your destination, a limited view out even if you have a window seat, the battle to find a space for your cabin baggage and then to fit it in that space, waiting to disembark - there's an enormous number of reasons why a leisure traveller would let the train take the strain.

Presumably this has replaced that old standby that seems to have been retired  - "Operating Difficulties"

Possibly the reason is that we have all been worn down by modern hypocrisy.  If it was something that in theory disadvantages those with any "protected characteristic", however small a proportion of society they comprise, there would be someone out there shouting about the iniquity of it from the housetops, and SWR^» (South Western Railway - about)'s corporate anti discrimination policies would be on the lookout to prevent it happening.

If however you are merely elderly,  poor  or simply resent an assumption that if you want to do many things totally unrelated to contacting people by phone and browsing the Internet you have to suck it up and get a phone or  be positively discriminated against, then tough. And my guess is that there are probably many more in this sector of society than in any group with a protected characteristic. They also include many (most) of those who are at most disadvantage in today's world.