Lockdown - from 5th November 2020 - travel rules and advice

[whole diary]

[southwest]

Unfortunately in Cornwall we only have one main hospital, and this is beginning to slowly fill with C-19 cases.
Once this reaches a certain level, then routine operations and investigations will cease.

It's a beautiful County but only has one main hospital, and that must be protected.

Cases are now beginning to climb, even amongst remote villages, and this is concerning.

Unfortunately we're also seeing the knock-on effects in schools as staff isolate for tests.

Very true, I never got why Cornwall only has Treliske as it's only hospital there should be another one in Bodmin. However if you look at the worst areas of the country the Tier system was working.

[GBM]

Other parts of the Country (especially those in the Tier'd areas) all have more/several main hospitals to soak up the increased numbers.
Treliske has to segregate areas between C-19 & non C-19 areas, thus reducing bed space.
All the local hospitals (now mostly minor injury units) have been downgraded over the years, some closed.
Chickens now coming home to roost...........

[bobm]

I was at Treliske yesterday and there seemed to be an awful lot of building work going on.  I wonder if that is also having a temporary effect on capacity and the ability to ensure people moving around the site can keep their distance.

[Robin Summerhill]

I suspect my views are similar to most, I am very angry about this if the government had done their job properly we would have never needed to do this. The South West has the lowest cases in the country yet is still being locked down

I will comply with it but I believe the tide is turning, Boris is running limited time and will be ousted sometimes next year.

There are quite a few points to pick up on here!

Firstly, whilst it is beyond doubt that the government has not handled this particularly well, neither have almost all other governments in the world, and certainly in Europe and the Americas. They were all faced with a situation they have never experienced before, and there was bound to be an element of stumbling around in the dark. That is not to excuse it, but to put it in context.

I see that you are angry, and that of course is your prerogative, but I don?t know about your suggestion (I think ? the wording of your sentence makes it ambiguous to me) that most people are angry. Some will be; some will be resigned to it; others may be stoical about it, and I suspect many support it. I notice in the news yesterday that our national loudmouth Farage has decided to rebrand his Brexit Party as the Reform Party, pledged to oppose restrictions on freedom. My hunch is that he has backed a loser this time, but only time will tell. Whilst we don?t normally discuss politics on the forum I would be interested in the views of others on that topic.

I am a little surprised on a forum such as this to read, in essence, that Cornwall (or any other area to which it applies) shouldn?t be locked down because they have a low case rate in the area. The general public may not have worked out, but transport enthusiasts ought to have, that we have trains criss-crossing the country moving from high risk areas to low risk areas and back again umpteen times a day, and we also have a comprehensive road network on which people do the same thing on a daily basis.

To paraphrase an old objection to railway building in the 19th century, every damn virus in Manchester can be in Truro in half a day

[GBM]

The bulk of the building work is (unfortunately) for the new maternity unit.
I believe Cornwall was promised a new hospital, but I think it's just that.

Treliske had started to ramp up 'outpatient appointments/surgery' after a very slow start.
Suspect all those will all be placed on hold again.

It was one day last week that most of Cornwall's ambulances were queued waiting to transfer patients to A&E.
In normal times, A&E use the corridor as an overflow but that doesn't permit C-19 safe movement, so is not available.

[grahame]

We have ranged wide ...

... I never got why Cornwall only has Treliske as it's only hospital there should be another one in Bodmin ...

I suspect my views are similar to most, I am very angry about this if the government had done their job properly we would have never needed to do this.

Firstly, whilst it is beyond doubt that the government has not handled this particularly well, neither have almost all other governments in the world, and certainly in Europe and the Americas. They were all faced with a situation they have never experienced before, and there was bound to be an element of stumbling around in the dark. That is not to excuse it, but to put it in context.

I see that you are angry, and that of course is your prerogative, but I don?t know about your suggestion (I think ? the wording of your sentence makes it ambiguous to me) that most people are angry. Some will be; some will be resigned to it; others may be stoical about it, and I suspect many support it. I notice in the news yesterday that our national loudmouth Farage has decided to rebrand his Brexit Party as the Reform Party, pledged to oppose restrictions on freedom. My hunch is that he has backed a loser this time, but only time will tell. Whilst we don?t normally discuss politics on the forum I would be interested in the views of others on that topic.

.... and I may split this off into "Across the West" which has a subtitle "The West, but not The West's trains".

We live in a complex world of specialities - and it's all too easy for us to sit in our armchairs and criticise those who actually know far more than we do and have been deeply involved in the decisions.  At the same time, the complex world offers opportunities for those who are at the heart of things to balance things for their own interests.

As one of the admin team (an indeed as webmaster), I'm concerned to enable views to be explored rather than to use my position to press my own view for more than it's worth.

One of the ways to look at what and how people do things is to look at questions like "who influences him/her and how", "what motivates him/her" and "how does effect his/her pocket", also "does it help give and maintain his/her power" ... those in addition to "what is best for people".  For respected statesmen, "what is best for people" takes the upper hand, but they are far fewer between than's ideal and the way the job has developed, it's more likely that showmen than statesmen will be in the top roles.  Having said which, I do not envy anyone some of the decision and responsibilities that need to be shouldered at the moment. Sadly taking a wider look, there are a number amongst those with the responsibilities who when it comes down to it may be able to shrug off poor decisions that kill people, industries or the planet.

_{Edit: statement -> statesmen - RS}

[Marlburian]

Reference my dilemma about travelling to Torquay for a funeral (see above). This has been solved by the widower saying that I should not attend (his concern being for me, rather than others), though he did mention that two other friends in their seventies might be coming from Farnham - at least they can share the driving.

He is minded to have a get-together of friends in Torquay in the Spring, which does appeal to me. I suspect that train travel will still be unattractive then, but I don't mind a leisurely drive there and back in daylight, perhaps with a nap and refreshments on the way home.

[Jamsdad]

I recognise this thread is in danger of turning into a "Members in Cornwall" debate, may I add a couple of points?

i) The people of Cornwall have THREE  major hospitals, Treliske, for people in the mid and west, Derriford (Plymouth) for us in the East, and Barnstaple for the folks of Bude and North Cornwall.

ii) Long distance rail travel is not going to happen over the next month. You can travel, but only for work and access to exercise, so I don't think there will be many people travelling down here from Liverpool just for the hell of it. And if they choose to get here they cant stay with friends, in hotels or in their second homes.

iii) If the rest of the country had the same Covid stats as Cornwall tjere would be no question of a lockdown.

For my part I shall be on the Looe branch next week to get some fish from Mrs Pengelly ( a permitted journey from Liskeard) and might well do a short trip down to St Keyne to walk back for my exercise!

[GBM]

I recognise this thread is in danger of turning into a "Members in Cornwall" debate, may I add a couple of points?

i) The people of Cornwall have THREE  major hospitals, Treliske, for people in the mid and west, Derriford (Plymouth) for us in the East, and Barnstaple for the folks of Bude and North Cornwall.

I believe Barnstaple and Derriford are in Devon, as is Torbay Hospital and the Royal Devon and Exeter; they are not readily available for Cornish folk!

[Bmblbzzz]

I recognise this thread is in danger of turning into a "Members in Cornwall" debate, may I add a couple of points?

i) The people of Cornwall have THREE  major hospitals, Treliske, for people in the mid and west, Derriford (Plymouth) for us in the East, and Barnstaple for the folks of Bude and North Cornwall.

I believe Barnstaple and Derriford are in Devon, as is Torbay Hospital and the Royal Devon and Exeter; they are not readily available for Cornish folk!

Is there a dispute over which goes on first, bandage or dressing?

[grahame]

For my part I shall be on the Looe branch next week to get some fish from Mrs Pengelly ( a permitted journey from Liskeard) and might well do a short trip down to St Keyne to walk back for my exercise!

Note the four day closure - from Cornwall Live

Work on the Looe Valley line is due to start this Saturday, November 7, finishing on  Tuesday, November 10. Buses will replace trains between Liskeard and Looe, but there will be no service on Sunday, November 8. GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) say buses will leave at different times to the normal train times.

 

[Robin Summerhill]

ii) Long distance rail travel is not going to happen over the next month. You can travel, but only for work and access to exercise, so I don't think there will be many people travelling down here from Liverpool just for the hell of it. And if they choose to get here they cant stay with friends, in hotels or in their second homes.

You miss part of my point, not helped perhaps by my choice of Manchetsre and Bodmin as examples!

Whether or not people travel in or out of Cornwall, the trains themselvs will.

RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) tells me that today, as an example, Cornwall will see 10 through trains from Paddington, four from Bristol and an XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) service that started off at Newcastle at 1139 this morning. I dont know the turms of duty that the staff work but they would have gone to and from at least Plymouth and possibly beyond. Who knows who they may unknowingly have been in contact with?

Furthermore if somebody withoui symptons just happened to use those trains from, say, London to Reading, or Bristol to Yatton, or Leeds to Wakefield, what unwanted little visitors might arrive on the seats or the toilet door handles and the like?

I accept that these things could happen whether there is a lockdown or not, but it does emohasise the point that no  area of the country can isolate itself from the rest of it without substanially more precautions that are not currently being considered

[grahame]

From GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway):

We're continuing to run our trains, so you can still travel in England and Wales in line with the latest Government advice relevant to your area
 
If you need to travel, our enhanced cleaning regimes and social distancing measures mean you can continue to travel by train with confidence.

[Robin Summerhill]

Whilst most of those guidelines above will minimise the risk, they do not and cannot guarantee that every train will remain virus free during its journey, or that viruses will not cadge lifts from GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) or XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) and all the rest.

That is why additional cleaning is being carried out

[Jamsdad]

Contact transmission is negligable if you wash your hands and dont touch your face.