Cullompton (and Wellington, Norton, etc) & Bath / Bristol potential bottleneck

[whole diary]

[swrural]

Have you seen this ludicrous Catch 22 situation?

http://www.thisisdevon.co.uk/story-18653199-detail/story.html?#axzz2PwwmW5GC

I must admit I do think there may be a problem on main line pleas for reopenings, where the fast services are so much more frequent than previously.  Also, in the old days, most of these stations between Taunton and Exeter were equipped with fast through roads where overtaking could take place.

I see this as a big problem on the Mainline where Bath Council wants to reopen Saltford (and there is St Annes as well of course).  Is there a theoretical timetable for a frequent stopping service that would not hold up the fast services?

Perhaps I have put two topics in one posting, apols to mods.

[TonyK]

Much as I would like the idea, I can't Cullompton being reopened for a number of reasons. One is Tiverton Parkway, which is closer to Cullompton than it is to Tivvy. In the normal scale of distances in rural Devon, at 6 miles, it is practically next door. I see what the council mean about the lack of a stopping service, but I think that's a bit of a red herring, given that between Taunton and Exeter, there is only one station. As TVP gets 3 or 4 trains in each direction per hour, all of which staop at Exeter and Taunton, one could argue that it has a better stopping service already than any comparable non-major station in the Bristol area.

The bid for funds looks a bit amateurish, to say the least. Asking after the closing date is a real howler, and even I knew that schemes had to be "shovel-ready" to qualify. The Portway Park and Ride scheme in Avonmouth has asked for money towards the ^700,000 cost of the proposed railway platform there, and stands a chance because it has been under active planning for more years than should have been.

[DavidBrown]

The problem with having more stations and services along that stretch of the mainline is that one won't happen without the other. Stations won't built without trains to serve them, but then trains won't stop at stations that don't exist. It's a catch 22 situation, and one that would only probably be solved with major government funding - something that's not going to happen for some time...

As an aside, I noticed that the Highways Agency have announced improvements to M5 J27, including widening the sliproads and adding traffic signals in an effort to improve access to the A361 and Tiverton Parkway. Work due in 2014.