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544
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Journey by Journey / Swindon to Gloucester / Cheltenham / Re: Swindon to Kemble re-doubling - ongoing discussion and updates
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on: November 25, 2014, 16:09:58
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More services demanded but no increase in parking - article from the Wilts & Glos Standard. http://www.wiltsglosstandard.co.uk/news/11624219.Residents_frustration_over_Kemble_station_car_park_chaos/Car parking chaos at Kemble railway station is causing misery for residents and commuters.
As there are not enough spaces in the car park, commuters using train services early in the morning have been forced to park their cars on grass verges and in narrow streets around the village, causing congestion.
Bob Williams, who lives near the station, said that cars were being parked all along the Station Road and Windmill Road sides of the car park.
They are also being parked near the junction of Station Road and Windmill Drive, making it a blind corner and very dangerous, Mr Williams said.
He added: ^I am sure that in the last year or so it has become much more of a problem. I am not sure why.
^You can see cars parked there all week.^
Mr Williams is concerned that if train services are increased as expected in the next few years, the car parking problem at the station will only get worse.
He said: ^With the railway redoubling that has happened that means that more trains could be going through and more commuters - the traffic will only increase.^
Cotswold MP▸ Geoffrey Clifton-Brown has campaigned for a solution and in 2011, First Great Western (FGW▸ ), which is responsible for the car park, agreed to spend ^145,000 creating 65 new spaces.
But those plans were scuppered when FGWfailed to get planning approval for the upgrades.
James Davis, a spokesman for FGW, said he understood that there was a need for a solution to car parking at the station and that the company was investigating how to do this.
He said: ^I think car parking is in demand and there is a demand to park. We are looking into car parking works and providing car parking spaces.^
But Mr Davis said he was unable to give any more details on the car parking plans at this time.
However, Nick Spindler, clerk to Kemble Parish Council, was able to give more clarity on the work FGW was doing to improve car parking.
He explained that Bathurst Estate is in ongoing discussions with letting land it owns in Station Road to FGW so the company can create more parking spaces.
He said: ^We are in discussions with both parties. Our position is we definitely support it and we are pursuing all options. We are addressing the issue.We want the car parking upgrades done.^
Jeremy Lilley, parliamentary assistant to Mr Clifton-Brown, said that for the past few years rail infrastructure operator Network Rail and FGW have been shifting responsibility for upgrading the car park between each other.
He claimed FGW had told Mr Clifton-Brown that it was unable to commit to investing in the car park as it was unsure if it would be given a new franchise period with the government after its current one ends in 2016.
Mr Lilley explained that Claire Perry, who works for the Department ForTransport and is responsible for railway issues, has said to him she would be working with FGW to address the parking problem at Kemble.
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545
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All across the Great Western territory / Looking forward - after Coronavirus to 2045 / Re: Network Rail's Western Route Study published for consultation - September 2015
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on: October 14, 2014, 11:41:11
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Mention of electrification to Kemble and Charlbury, both of which surprised me...
Something I picked up recently from one of the local landowners on the Swindon- Kemble section raised an eyebrow: he had been informed by NR» that the line will be closed again at Christmas 2014 to allow one of the overbridges to be replaced (I've no idea why it wasn't done during one of the recent possessions). The NR person who told him (possibly a contractor rather than a NR employee) said that the bridge deck would be raised to allow for future electrification. So it would seem that forward planning is happening. It's surprising as the bridge in question is for pedestrian and farm traffic only and is used very infrequently. |
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547
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Journey by Journey / Swindon to Gloucester / Cheltenham / Re: Swindon to Kemble re-doubling - ongoing discussion and updates
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on: September 23, 2014, 09:28:27
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It seems there are still issues with the crossing phones on the newly-signalled section. When the work was carried out over the bank holiday weekend, some (all?) of the new phones at the farm crossings between Swindon and Kemble were ringing continuously. This resulted in the phones being disconnected and some of the farm crossings being locked out of use. It now seems that Network Rail are manning some of these crossings during hours of operation which seems very resource-hungry (although, of course, safe) given the very minimal use the crossings get. At one point there were signs on one of the crossings giving the direct dial number for the signaller at TVSC» but these now seem to have gone.
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549
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Journey by Journey / Swindon to Gloucester / Cheltenham / Re: Swindon to Kemble re-doubling - ongoing discussion and updates
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on: August 25, 2014, 17:26:11
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Done!  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-28925722Work to increase rail capacity between Swindon and Kemble has been completed and trains are running on the two-track route.
The redoubling of the track means trains can now head simultaneously to and from Kemble in Gloucestershire into north Wiltshire.
The line was reduced to a single track in the 1960s as a cost-saving measure by British Rail.
Rail operator First Great Western said the ^45m work was vital.
The project to add an extra track to the 12.5 mile (20km) stretch was approved in 2011 and began in January.
It is needed before the electrification of the Great Western Main Line (GWML▸ ).
Dan Panes, from First Great Western said: "This prepares the way to run those services more quickly and more frequently should we need to."
First Great Western said there would be no extra trains on the route until a new service franchise agreement in 2017.
A Network Rail spokesman said: "In the long-term it will increase the capacity to four trains an hour in each direction on the route." There still seem to be speed restrictions in place, particularly on the new down line. |
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550
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All across the Great Western territory / Across the West / Re: Reading Station improvements
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on: August 21, 2014, 07:49:38
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Eddie and the Hotrods! That must have been 1977? Fantastic. One of my jobs at Reading for several years was to look after the DJ console between the two stages from which Peel and others linked the various acts. I recall one Saturday afternoon when he announced the football results: Liverpool (his team) had beaten someone like Man U and he gleefully announced the fact, taking the opportunity to rubbish the Man U fans. This was the cue for a stream of mud and plastic bottles full of lukewarm urine to rain down on us. "Was that wise John?," I asked him as we hid under the desk. "Probably not," came the reply, "But f*** 'em." Happy times  |
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554
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Journey by Journey / Swindon to Gloucester / Cheltenham / Re: Swindon to Kemble re-doubling - ongoing discussion and updates
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on: August 15, 2014, 13:35:04
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I am surprised to see a significant build up of materials near Purton where, I understand, further work is needed on the up line where the track needs to be significantly lowered. Why was this not dealt with when the line was closed for relaying this time last year. No doubt there is a good reason and someone will be able to explain why?
Possibly that the extra work incurred after the derailment damage caused an overrun? (See earlier in the thread). |
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555
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All across the Great Western territory / Across the West / Re: Hot trains
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on: July 23, 2014, 09:43:13
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Last night's 20:45 PAD» - BRI» suffered some issues. Only one power car was running and coach E seemed to have no air-con. Guess where I was sitting? Full marks, however, to the Train Manager: she apologized and, after the departure of the hordes at RDG‡, announced where cooler seats were available. After that she came through with bottled water and further personal apologies. Great service under challenging conditions.
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