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Author Topic: Where Was Bob Blakey On 11/12/22?  (Read 863 times)
Bob_Blakey
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« on: December 13, 2022, 12:15:50 »

 Two different, but geographically fairly close, places:

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johnneyw
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« Reply #1 on: December 13, 2022, 12:30:46 »

I reckoned that 'Chemins de Fer du Midi' won't be carved on any wall of a UK (United Kingdom) station and my rudimentary abilities to speak in foreign tell me that we're looking at likely France or possibly southern Belgium, Switzerland even.
Resorting to Wikipedia, I gather that this particular railway company operated in SW France, so I'll stick my neck out without any further pictorial comparisons and say.... Bordeaux.
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Worcester_Passenger
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« Reply #2 on: December 13, 2022, 12:37:34 »

Toulouse Matabiau?
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stuving
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« Reply #3 on: December 13, 2022, 15:27:02 »

Is that first one Castres?
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Bob_Blakey
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« Reply #4 on: December 13, 2022, 16:28:57 »

1 - 1 Score Draw

Worcester_Passenger has correctly identified part of Toulouse Matabiau station while Stuving wins by ?guessing Castres (I'm not sure if a check of the EPCR Champions Cup fixture list had anything to do with this).

Matabiau is currently undergoing a major refurbishment of some kind and the image is one of the few parts of the station exterior that are not shrouded in scaffolding, polythene sheeting or wooden hoarding.

Castres station was being refurbished when I last visited in October 2018 and this has been completed but only the building exterior and surrounding parking / bus stands area - the station concourse & platform areas don't look like they have been touched. For an industrial & commercial town with a population of around 42,000 I think the rail service is not great - roughly every 2 hours from/to Toulouse with a couple of commuter extras in the morning. Noticeable that the three hybrid units parked up in the yard don't look as if they have been used for a while.
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stuving
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« Reply #5 on: December 13, 2022, 19:47:17 »

I'm not sure if a check of the EPCR Champions Cup fixture list had anything to do with this.

Well, no - it was more that I could not think of any French through station with a roof. So it came down to where is there a small terminus near Toulouse.
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stuving
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« Reply #6 on: December 13, 2022, 20:04:53 »

For an industrial & commercial town with a population of around 42,000 I think the rail service is not great - roughly every 2 hours from/to Toulouse with a couple of commuter extras in the morning. Noticeable that the three hybrid units parked up in the yard don't look as if they have been used for a while.

Most French provincial cities don't have much in the way of suburban railway networks, and when they do it's often just a few peak-hour trains. Very unlike all the metros and tramways the cities run. The high subsidy levels from the regions should give much better regional networks than in Britain, but often the result is not that impressive.

So when Macron announced a couple of months ago a new programme of "RER métropolitains" It was seen as filling a gap. it turns out not to be a new idea at all, but might now get somewhere with a sprinkling of état. Note that none of the plans I've seen involves any new tunnels, since in general those cities have a railway going through a central station.

Strasbourg has its "REME" that's just started, but in a small way: I don't think it has any new or joined routes,  and mostly two tph. So the name is being applied to a wider range of small improvements across the metropole, and includes longer-distance buses as well. Bordeaux also has plans for three lines, this time linked ones through the centre.

Toulouse had a sketchy plan already, but some in the city - notably the mayor - are sceptical. Of course they have the city transport to worry about (metro, trams, buses) and expect the region to take care of the TER (which is what would turn into an RER). He was quoted as saying he had no objections to a plan that didn't exist, but more specifically that he didn't want a centime of his funds going towards it.
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stuving
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« Reply #7 on: February 01, 2023, 12:30:22 »

Strasbourg has its "REME" that's just started, but in a small way: I don't think it has any new or joined routes,  and mostly two tph. So the name is being applied to a wider range of small improvements across the metropole, and includes longer-distance buses as well. Bordeaux also has plans for three lines, this time linked ones through the centre.

So, six weeks on, how did that launch go? Very badly, that's how. The plan was really to reorganise existing trains to run through Strasbourg and at a more regular 2 tph (mostly). However, to do that they took out stops at a lot of smaller stations, so there were always going to be losers. Of course those are users of the existing trains - so there may only be one or two trains for going to work, but they suit the people who do use them (and the ones that don't aren't statistics).

On top of that, just operating the timetable has proved very difficult, with lots of delays and cancellations. And there have not been enough staff or trains. So far only half the extra trains planned have been running. But the transport minister is insisting it's not a fiasco, and will get better ... soon ...
« Last Edit: February 01, 2023, 12:43:22 by stuving » Logged
GBM
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« Reply #8 on: February 01, 2023, 13:02:27 »


On top of that, just operating the timetable has proved very difficult, with lots of delays and cancellations. And there have not been enough staff or trains. So far only half the extra trains planned have been running. But the transport minister is insisting it's not a fiasco, and will get better ... soon ...
That latter statement sounds like the Melksham service!
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