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Author Topic: Weather disruption caused in 2014, and how to prevent it happening again - ongoing discussion  (Read 413653 times)
JayMac
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« Reply #960 on: February 18, 2018, 20:54:43 »

Even if they get the go ahead after all that there’ll probably have been a UN veto arranged...

Paul

That's if they haven't already blamed Brexit.
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"Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for the rest of the day. Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life."

- Sir Terry Pratchett.
ChrisB
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« Reply #961 on: February 20, 2018, 15:15:04 »

I think the subject line of this thread is seriously out of date!
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Chris from Nailsea
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« Reply #962 on: February 20, 2018, 22:28:29 »

Fair comment, ChrisB:  I've therefore updated this topic's heading to reflect more accurately where we are now.  Wink Cheesy Grin

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William Huskisson MP (Member of Parliament) was the first person to be killed by a train while crossing the tracks, in 1830.  Many more have died in the same way since then.  Don't take a chance: stop, look, listen.

"Level crossings are safe, unless they are used in an unsafe manner."  Discuss.
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« Reply #963 on: March 01, 2018, 10:32:00 »

UK (United Kingdom) Government Statement of yesterday - (link here)

Quote
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling commits to delivering a modern railway in the south-west resilient to extreme weather

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has today (28 February 2018) committed to delivering a modern railway in the south-west that is resilient to extreme weather, in the government’s response to a report by the Peninsula Rail Task Force.

Improving the resilience of the South West Peninsula is part of the biggest overhaul of the Great Western route since Brunel started work on the line more than 175 years ago, with £5.7 billion being invested in modernising the line and improving journeys for passengers. Central to this vision are upgrades to stretches of railway that run close to the sea through Teignmouth and Dawlish, safeguarding their future against damage as when storms washed away part of the line at Dawlish in 2014.

The government has already provided £15 million for Network Rail to design a long-lasting solution to this problem, in addition to the £40 million spent by Network Rail to repair the damage caused in the 2014 storm.
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ChrisB
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« Reply #964 on: March 01, 2018, 12:08:55 »

Nothing on avoiding route except telling GWR (Great Western Railway) to look at services as far as Okehampton.
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paul7575
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« Reply #965 on: March 01, 2018, 12:23:54 »

Nothing on avoiding route except telling GWR (Great Western Railway) to look at services as far as Okehampton.
Which is repeating what is already underway as part of normal franchising for Devon Metro etc...
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Timmer
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« Reply #966 on: March 01, 2018, 12:45:52 »

Nothing on avoiding route except telling GWR (Great Western Railway) to look at services as far as Okehampton.
Not going to help those travelling to Plymouth or Cornwall though.
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TonyK
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« Reply #967 on: March 01, 2018, 13:01:25 »

Nothing on avoiding route except telling GWR (Great Western Railway) to look at services as far as Okehampton.
Which is repeating what is already underway as part of normal franchising for Devon Metro etc...

At least it hasn't been scrapped. (Yet).
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paul7575
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« Reply #968 on: March 01, 2018, 13:14:57 »

Despite all the debate, I always believed the only likely end result was upgrading the coastal stretch. 
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grahame
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« Reply #969 on: March 03, 2018, 07:54:46 »

Government comment (requoting from earlier this week) and opposition comment (published yesterday afternoon).

Four years after the "once in a lifetime" events at Dawlish, and written when the line was closed against within the last few days due to its vulnerability to sea storms - though it seems far less damaged this time (may be re-opened already?) ... wouldn't it be lovely to establish a concensus and know when and how we're going to move on from discussions of options, rhetoric, arguments and reports.

UK (United Kingdom) Government Statement of yesterday - (link here)

Quote
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling commits to delivering a modern railway in the south-west resilient to extreme weather

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has today (28 February 2018) committed to delivering a modern railway in the south-west that is resilient to extreme weather, in the government’s response to a report by the Peninsula Rail Task Force.

Improving the resilience of the South West Peninsula is part of the biggest overhaul of the Great Western route since Brunel started work on the line more than 175 years ago, with £5.7 billion being invested in modernising the line and improving journeys for passengers. Central to this vision are upgrades to stretches of railway that run close to the sea through Teignmouth and Dawlish, safeguarding their future against damage as when storms washed away part of the line at Dawlish in 2014.

The government has already provided £15 million for Network Rail to design a long-lasting solution to this problem, in addition to the £40 million spent by Network Rail to repair the damage caused in the 2014 storm.

From Labour List:

Quote
Yesterday, as Storm Emma covered the country in snow, I was on a delayed and diverted train from London back to Plymouth, wondering yet again “will I make it past Dawlish?”. The stretch of Devon railway famously washed away by storms in 2014, leaving the tracks dangling like a rope bridge, is today closed with debris from the sea wall blocking the way. Devon and Cornwall are cut off, yet again.

Snow is a rare occurrence, but disruption in and out of the South West is not. That’s why Labour made addressing this problem a key part of last year’s general election campaign in the region.

The South West gets a poor deal from government. Decades of under-investment means regional railways are slower, more precarious and prone to disruption, than they should be.

Jeremy Corbyn committed Labour to £2.5bn on rail upgrades in the South West, funding the next ten years of essential upgrades for our only train line in and out of the region. The Conservatives choose not to match our pledge.

The Tory strategy on South West rail is to make promises and issue press releases to hide inaction and underfunding. Grand soundbites are deployed, including the latest by the transport secretary declaring Dawlish his “number one national rail priority”. Really? It’s a laughable claim as billions are spent on HS2 (The next High Speed line(s)), new tubes for London, tunnels under Stonehenge and the Heathrow expansion. Where are the billions for the South West?

The spin, bluster and PR (Public Relations) have worked to date and Conservative MPs (Member of Parliament) in the far south west have dutifully played their part in this charade. They welcome soundbites while going easy on pressure that would deliver real improvements. Instead of focussing their fire on ministers who do nothing, they mock and attack those calling for action. That needs to change.

Continuing their theme of unimpressive announcements, the government this week published their South West rail strategy. The sham of a document contained no new money, no vision and no strategy. Still, one by one, south west Conservatives lined up to praise this “gradual action”. It is time our region’s MPs stopped accepting this poor deal and found the grit of colleagues who joined forces with Labour MPs to stand up to ministers over the Southern Rail shambles. Party loyalty trumps the needs of our region for many local Tories and they remain wed to parroting soundbites and “making the best of a bad situation”, as one privately remarked to me.

Labour has two MPs in the far South West – myself in Plymouth and Ben Bradshaw holding Labour’s fortress of Exeter. After the next general election, there should be five Labour MPs, perhaps more. Plymouth is Labour’s top target outside the capital in May. If we are to defeat Theresa May, it will come in places like the West Country. That’s why transport and fairness in funding matters.

The storms in 2014 cost the region £1bn in economic output. Every pound is money that should have been spent in our economy. The South West needs better transport and only Labour has pledged to fund investment in our railway. If you could lay government press releases and spin down as rails, we’d have a railway as sparkly as could be imagined. But spin and bluster doesn’t build tracks – funding and actions do. That’s what we are missing.

In May’s local elections, voters across the country have a choice about what kind of Britain they want to see. In the West Country, that choice is stark: a party that invests in our region, or one that says it does while it shuffles funding elsewhere.

As a Labour MP, it may seem odd, but I want Conservatives to copy our policy. I want them to match our commitment. I’m in politics to enact change and while we have the Conservatives in Government, I want them to do the right thing and fund our region properly. If they won’t, it’s time for them to step aside and let Labour take the helm. Remember, £2.5bn of railway upgrades with Labour or bluster and promises of jam tomorrow with the Tories. The choice, on 3rd May, is there for voters.
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« Reply #970 on: March 03, 2018, 14:45:26 »

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Jeremy Corbyn committed Labour to £2.5bn on rail upgrades in the South West

....and that will be paid for how and by who??
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« Reply #971 on: March 03, 2018, 16:21:11 »

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Jeremy Corbyn committed Labour to £2.5bn on rail upgrades in the South West

....and that will be paid for how and by who??

................a few leaves that have fallen off Jeremy's magic money tree no doubt  Roll Eyes
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« Reply #972 on: March 03, 2018, 23:06:37 »

It's where those few leaves land that worry me !..
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TonyK
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« Reply #973 on: March 04, 2018, 21:55:16 »

Quite simple really. All Mr C needs to do is halt all investment in railways pending a full independent review of infrastructure with terms of reference to make railways more inclusive and to address travel poverty. It will be chaired by the bearded Austrian in a frock who won the Eurovision song contest, directed by Len McCluskey, with Diane Abbott handling the accounts. Any subsequent spending can be funded from a a tax on any multinational companies still left in Britain - probably just KFC by then.

But seriously, something needs doing rather than just kicking the can down the line again. There's a long queue, though.
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TaplowGreen
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« Reply #974 on: March 04, 2018, 22:20:10 »

For the benefit of those with Twitter, this seems a pretty good way of clearing snow.....

Check out @GreaterAngliaPR’s Tweet: https://twitter.com/GreaterAngliaPR/status/970305018934054912?s=09
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