I would have to agree that it's tending that way.

What have these places in common?
- Uckfield
- Maidenhead
- Orpington
- Weybridge
- Epsom

Two answers:
a) They are the House of Commons seats of Department for Transport Ministers and the bosses at the Treasury and in Downing Street who are their Lords and Masters
b) The are all in London and the affluent South East - the stockbroker belt of London and outside London with relatively high population densities in towns and urban areas that are close together, large in size, and have massive commuter flows.

I used to live in Orpington.  We had no car regularly available until pretty close to the time I left home and we didn't need one.   Trains and buses were good,  frequent, ran as late as we needed them.   And whilst things and routes have changed (I looked it up) that same setup and style would still be possible.   So for Jo Johnson's voters, in Orpington, the slippery slope of a public transport service that only starts at school time,  finishes after the children are taken home to a large degree, and is such a thin web that doglegs are often needed doesn't apply - and in Orpington the senior bus pass, even with an 09:30 start, remains useful.


Alas, Melksham and Frome are not Orpington and Epsom.

But yet ... the feeling in 'these parts' that you're a bit weird to use the train, and really down on your luck if you have to rely on the bus, has been somewhat changing.  Contrary to the general trend, both Frome and Melksham have had significant bus improvements into Bath this year and elements of the local community are working really hard to make them work.   The commercial strength of a nice juicy route between two bigger places with a natural link (e.g. Frome and Bath) versus a route between two places not collectively as large or linked does mean that the bigger arteries grow while the capillaries falter in the lack of local or central government support.

I haven't really answered "what is the point of a bus pass".   A bit of everything suggested, I think. 

With every man and his dog taking last Sunday off and partying until they burned a hole in their pockets, perhaps there will be a rebound this weekend where every man wants to work to help top up his pay-packet to his normal monthly average.

Will potential passengers who feel that due and proper process has not been followed by able to take such suggestions of poor behaviour to the Rail Industry Ombudsman?   

Came across a video too.



There are many canal tunnels open for general public use in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) too - wonderful experiences all that I have done.   I do look forward to doing Standedge and the full length of Dudley should an opportunity arise.   Others such as Blisworth illustrate the hard work - and in some cases massive expense that's kept them open. No two alike ... I contrast Netherton and Froghall.

About 30 years ago, there were no trains at all leaving Trowbridge between 08:00 and 09:00 for Bath and Bristol. After the 08:30, nothing left Chippenham for London until 09:45.  And Sunday day trip trains from Westbury to Weymouth left at 08:32, 10:02, 10:45 and 12:40.

About 20 years ago, trains at 08:02 and 08:25 would take you from Trowbridge to Bath in that morning period, Chippenham to London was running hourly (08:38, 09:38, 10:38 ..) and Sunday trains from Westbury to Weymouth left at 08:20, 09:36 and 10:00.

About 10 years ago, a train at 08:23 ran from Trowbridge to Bath amd Bristol during that hour, Chippenham to London was every half hour, but no Sunday services ran from Westbury to Weymouth until the afternoon, even in high summer.

Today, trains run at 08:00, 08:24 and 08:51 from Trowbridge to Bath and Bristol, and trains run every half hour from Chippenham to London. Just two Sunday morning services run from Westbury to Weymouth - at 09:12 and 10:10, then there's a four hour gap.

A picture of change. And you'll find pictures of change right across Wiltshire if you take other examples - look at how services at Melksham, Pewsey, Avoncliff have changed.  Most changes in the past three decades have been for the best - service improvements - but there have been losses too.  Turn up at Bristol Temple Meads at 23:15 on a Friday night and you'll find that the last service to Chippenham and Swindon left at 22:35 (there used to be a 23:20).  No longer is there a direct train from Stockport to Warminster. Want to leave Melksham early for Swindon and the 05:56 I remember from my early involvement is gone - first train as late as 07:19.

So we have been in a world of changing train service patterns and journeys.  And there's everything to suggest that there will be more changes to come over the next decades too.  Journey numbers up or down by 10% in a single year may not be a basis for significant changes, but journey numbers going up and down by 10% year after year, and the increasing urbanisation of Wiltshire, point to an onward and upward pressure on efficient transport to help us get around.

There is no shortage of ideas. Some are in the process of being implemented. Others are in late planning stages or in serious scoping studies. Others are at earlier stages - concept papers, seeds of ideas - and of those some are feasible and may happen, some are good but may get overtaken or replaced by other ideas, some will fail to make te grade as studied in more depth, and others are just plain wacky.   But - so many of these ideas interact!   Where will we be in 10 or 20 years from today?

I'm going to take you to Westbury, in the year 202x.   Ten trains are calling there in each clockface hour.

05: A train arrives from Portsmouth Harbour and continues on via Bath and Bristol to Cardiff Central. It's a regional express, calling at major stations along the way - very little changed in that pattern from its form today in 2018, apart from an extra stops at Wilton Parkway and Aztec West. But it's 5 carriages long, corridor throughout, and runs on third rail electric traction from Portsmouth to Salisbury, diesel from there to Bathampton, and then on overhead electric for the rest of its journey.

10: The Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour service calls - the reverse working of the train already described.

15: The London to Exeter semi-fast calls.  London, Reading, Newbury, and all stations to Taunton, Tiverton Parkway and Exeter St David's. Alternate trains carry on to Paignton and to Plymouth, with infill local serices there in the extra hour.  New statios on this service are Devizes Parkway and Langport. Wellington and Cullompton will be served by Bristol to Exeter (and beyond) services.

20: The Exeter to London semi-fast calls. (full desription - other direction).

25: The Frome to Newport train calls. An all stations service - including Staverton, Bathampton, Saltford, Horfield, Aztec West and Westgate. Services extend from Newport to Ebbw Vale under an agreement with the Welsh train operating division.

30: to 40: The Oxford to Fawley train calls (full description - other direction)

35: The Severn Beach to Weymouth train calls (full description - see other direction)

45: The Weymouth to Severn Beach service calls - an all stations service which includes new stations not open as I write at Grimstone, and Queen's Camel and Sparkford. New stations served north of Westbury are at Staverton, Bathampton Park and Ride, Saltford, and Portway Parkway.

40: to 50: The Fawley to Oxford train calls. This service runs from Fawley and Hythe, via Southampton Central and Airport and Eastleigh to Salisbury and Westbury, then on via Melksham to Swindon and on to Oxford. It's an all stations service; in addition to stations open in 2018, it calls at stations on the Fawley branch, Petersfinger Park and Ride, Staverton Junction, Royal Wootton Basett and Grove Road and Wantage. Under an operating agreement with another train operating division, these trains carry on beyond Oxford via Bicester and Bletchley.

55: The Newport to Frome train calls (full description - see other direction)

This is purely a possible vision; infrastructure enahnacements undoubtedly needed in places. I have not included anything that's not a usable rail route at present, tempting though it was to speculate about Radstock, and a south to west curve at Yeovil.  New stations can to some extent be asyncronous with service development.

Wiltshire services not calling at Westbury (but stopping elsewhere in the county) will include the two trains an hour from London via Reading, Swindon, Chippenham and Bath Spa to Bristol, with an extra electric service making additonal stops at places such as Bathampton, Corsham, Royal Wootton Bassett, Grove Road and Wantage and Didcot, and running in to London via Heathrow.  In the south of the county, the 30 minute frequency Salisbury to London service will run all the way on 3rd rail electric, with extra calls at Porton and Wilton, extended hourly (at least) via Tisbury headed towards Exeter.

Away from Wiltshire, many of the trains above will dovetail in with other services to provide the full local service in that area. For example, the Frome to Newport train will dovetail with the Weston (or Portishead) to Parkway service, extended to Cardiff, to provide a more frequent stopper from Bristol into South Wales

History sources - old National Rail timetables from 1989, 1998 and 2007.

An old article at The Poke

I was surprised and delighted that the Bath scheme was able to overcome all these concerns.   A very useful precedent too - to show it can be done - although local conditions may differ. 

It seems there is a difference of opinion between the campaigners and Highways England who are the tunnel's custodians - see https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-44901081

I can understand the campaigners being enthusiastic and wanting to cast the most positive possible light and budget on the project to reopen the tunnel to cyclists and walkers, and in contrast Highways England wanting to be shot of the darned thing so casting it as negative as possible and looking for a final solution.   I wonder where the balanced truth lies!

It had, but as I understand it the RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) have withdrawn the agreement after some sort of incident (I don't know details) involving the responsible person who was not a train manager in the second set.

From The Morning Star


Not so sure at the "National Emergency" level for Wiltshire, but even here customer facing staff are feeling the extreme unhappiness of the railway's customers.  Demotivational in the extreme for staff.

This thread is NOT a complete log ... attachments show "Recent Times Trains" captures I did yesterday, looking back on Mondays to Fridays between Salisbury and Brighton.

It's an attachment to the post, which means you don't see it on things like "Recent Posts". It is also not visible to guests.    Log in (if you're not logged in), visit the thread itself, and it's offered on the base of BNM's post.

Done

Some information points at unstaffed stations (those circular things with buttons "Information" and "Emergency") has screens on them displaying upcoming train departures and others do not. 

Where they operate off mains electricity, it is now practical for screens to be retrofitted to those that were installed without - but those that are solar panel powered don't have enough power available.   And of douse the cost of adding a power supply at a station is several orders of magnitude more than you would pay in a home!

I think I heard comment (need to be valeted) that one platform but not the other will get a screen at Parson Street. I've got confirmation that neither can be done (both solar powered) at Dilton Marsh.   Please follow up with others.