Recent Public Posts - [guest]
| Re: Up to 40,000 homes to be built on disused railway land In "Railway History and related topics" [363820/30512/55] Posted by Marlburian at 11:25, 2nd August 2025 |      |
Talking of Tilehurst, was it 30 years ago that the station-master's house at the station was demolished and flats built on the site and adjoining land? The goods sidings became the car-park.
(The garage site just up Oxford Road is for sale, and housing there would be preferable to continuing industrial use.)
| Re: Okehampton In "Shorter journeys in Devon - Central, North and South" [363819/18334/24] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 11:12, 2nd August 2025 | |
I have found that grahame can make anything visible, if necessary: he is a wizard (Albus Dumbledore please note).
| Re: 2025 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury In "TransWilts line" [363818/29726/18] Posted by bobm at 10:57, 2nd August 2025 | |
Driver reported a rough ride near Lavington viaduct on the London bound line.
| Re: 2025 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury In "TransWilts line" [363817/29726/18] Posted by Timmer at 10:28, 2nd August 2025 | |
Well whatever the issue with the track was, it isn’t a problem now:
Trains now running normally at Westbury
Following a safety inspection of the track at Westbury some lines are now open.
Train services running through this station are now running normally.
Following a safety inspection of the track at Westbury some lines are now open.
Train services running through this station are now running normally.
| Re: 2025 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury In "TransWilts line" [363816/29726/18] Posted by grahame at 09:53, 2nd August 2025 | |
Cancellations to services at Westbury
Due to a safety inspection of the track at Westbury some lines are blocked.
Train services running through this station may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
09:52 Westbury to Swindon due 10:36
09:52 Westbury to Swindon due 10:36 will be cancelled.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
11:05 Swindon to Westbury due 11:48
11:05 Swindon to Westbury due 11:48 will be cancelled.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
Due to a safety inspection of the track at Westbury some lines are blocked.
Train services running through this station may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
09:52 Westbury to Swindon due 10:36
09:52 Westbury to Swindon due 10:36 will be cancelled.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
11:05 Swindon to Westbury due 11:48
11:05 Swindon to Westbury due 11:48 will be cancelled.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
Thanks for flagging those up.
Reading carefully, it would appear that the problem is not on the line through Melksham - but rather on the Westbury to Pewsey and Newbury segment - so long distance trains are being diverted along the line through Melksham which is single track and has inadequate capacity, and the local service which is all we have at Melksham Station is being culled/ sacrificed once again.
Due to a safety inspection of the track at Westbury some lines are blocked.
Train services running through this station may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Customer Advice
Due to a safety inspection of the track near Westbury, services maybe diverted between Bristol Temple Meads - Melksham, cancelled or altered.
-
We're sorry for the delay to your journey.
-
We will update this message with more information when we have it.
Further Information
Customers are requested to check the stations Onward Travel Information poster and wait for replacement road transport at the designated stop. Customers are advised that the replacement road transport may run later than the advertised train times owing to the additional time taken by road between stations and the time required for loading and unloading at each stop.
-
Rail replacement has been ordered to operate from Westbury, calling at Pewsey, Hungerford and Reading. No ETA for arrival.
-
If you require further information please speak to our staff at the station or on the train, use the Customer Help Point, message us on X @GWRHelp or call National Rail Enquiries on 03457 484 950.
If you arrive at your destination 15 or more minutes late because your GWR train was delayed or cancelled, you can claim Delay Repay compensation. Please keep your ticket and visit GWR.com/DelayRepay
Train services running through this station may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Customer Advice
Due to a safety inspection of the track near Westbury, services maybe diverted between Bristol Temple Meads - Melksham, cancelled or altered.
-
We're sorry for the delay to your journey.
-
We will update this message with more information when we have it.
Further Information
Customers are requested to check the stations Onward Travel Information poster and wait for replacement road transport at the designated stop. Customers are advised that the replacement road transport may run later than the advertised train times owing to the additional time taken by road between stations and the time required for loading and unloading at each stop.
-
Rail replacement has been ordered to operate from Westbury, calling at Pewsey, Hungerford and Reading. No ETA for arrival.
-
If you require further information please speak to our staff at the station or on the train, use the Customer Help Point, message us on X @GWRHelp or call National Rail Enquiries on 03457 484 950.
If you arrive at your destination 15 or more minutes late because your GWR train was delayed or cancelled, you can claim Delay Repay compensation. Please keep your ticket and visit GWR.com/DelayRepay
I note that no alternative bus service is reported here for Westbury to Swindon or part thereof. I live in hope that with stop boards now in place at Melksham, the semi-fasts from Exeter and Taunton, Castle Cary and Westbury will also be calling at Trowbridge, Melksham and Chippenham.
| Re: 2025 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury In "TransWilts line" [363815/29726/18] Posted by TaplowGreen at 09:41, 2nd August 2025 | |
Cancellations to services at Westbury
Due to a safety inspection of the track at Westbury some lines are blocked.
Train services running through this station may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
09:52 Westbury to Swindon due 10:36
09:52 Westbury to Swindon due 10:36 will be cancelled.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
11:05 Swindon to Westbury due 11:48
11:05 Swindon to Westbury due 11:48 will be cancelled.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
| Re: Okehampton In "Shorter journeys in Devon - Central, North and South" [363814/18334/24] Posted by grahame at 08:54, 2nd August 2025 Already liked by Chris from Nailsea | |
[/url]View of station. by Robert, on Flickr[/img]This is Okehampton Interchange if someone can make it visible.
How does this look?
| Calling for an election - Melksham Town (South Ward) In "Introductions and chat" [363813/30527/1] Posted by grahame at 08:52, 2nd August 2025 Already liked by Timmer | |
A hundred members are at the Coffee Shop logged in every day, and many, many more guests visit. You are from all over the segment of England and Wales covered by GWR and some from further.
This post is here to reach just the handful of members who live in the same council ward as I do - that's Melksham (South) and to request you to write in over this weekend to the returning officer at Wiltshire Council asking her to hold a by-election in the ward.
None of our four Town Councillors from May was elected in a public vote (not enough candidates) and one of them has now left the council. At a co-option process after the May election, no fewer than seven people offered themselves to fill the three vacancies across the whole council, and only two of them were deemed suitable by the largely self-appointed group we now have. I believe an election to fill the gap would be for the greater good of the town. So if you are one of the minority here who live in the ward - please write in for the sake and strength of community and voice in Melksham. If you know someone else who does, please ask THEM to write in
The details of who to write to, and a sample letter, are on my blog which includes a map of the South Ward
https://grahamellis.uk/blog1665.html
I have been asked if I would consider standing again. Yes, and indeed I am considering it - but that is a very, very different story to jumping in and actually doing it. I don't have an answer and I want and need to go through this very thoroughly with family when I get back to the UK. There's a further piece on that at
https://grahamellis.uk/blog1673.html
It is good to see Melksham Town Council starting to engage with transport issues such as the Bath and Wiltshire Metro proposals and I would love to be able to vote for a candidate who would have consideration for such matters. I celebrate that the engagements seen are going on in my absence and that bodes well for the future as I slacken off.
| Re: Okehampton In "Shorter journeys in Devon - Central, North and South" [363812/18334/24] Posted by REVUpminster at 08:39, 2nd August 2025 | |
[/url]View of station. by Robert, on Flickr[/img]This is Okehampton Interchange if someone can make it visible.
| Re: Up to 40,000 homes to be built on disused railway land In "Railway History and related topics" [363811/30512/55] Posted by PrestburyRoad at 08:30, 2nd August 2025 Already liked by Chris from Nailsea, Mark A, GBM, johnneyw | |
Some years ago I enjoyed a holiday on the Thames cruising between Lechlade and Runnymede. It felt very rural - there were so few buildings near the river. I compared that with previous holidays on canals, where there are many buildings next to the canals. Thinking about it, I realised there is a simple reason for the difference: the Thames has a wide floodplain, so people had learnt from experience not to build there.
"Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it" - planners and politicians beware - be careful where you build.
| Re: More than 12,000 back Cornwall as fifth nation In "The West - but NOT trains in the West" [363810/30521/31] Posted by TaplowGreen at 07:32, 2nd August 2025 | |
.........although the impact of Brexit on them may well have made them wiser in the interim.
True......... shows them that the "blob" will always get its way over those pesky plebian voters !
Mebyon (Kernow) rather than plebeian in this case
| Re: Solo travel (more significant journeys than to work!) In "Introductions and chat" [363809/30488/1] Posted by grahame at 07:18, 2nd August 2025 | |
I am astonished at the robustness of our membership (which I appreciate is a self-selecting and unbalanced group). Four out of five of you are unquestionably happy with longer distance solo travel. I voted as a minority "with reservations" ... I find eating chosing and eating alone when away to be a bit of a hurdle at times. Having said which, these days taking a laptop and being online ... having something to do - used to be reading a book - helps. Some catering outlets are good at looking after the solitary eater, others shove you in the pokey little corner or make you feel you are seat-blocking and tables for 2 or 4 people.
I have not cruised solitary but there the seating arrangements for "freedom" dining allow people to chose to mix, and indeed there may be tables and times for singles specifically to mix with others also cruising alone. And in buffet areas it can be that a degree of sharing is almost forced at busier times. But cruising is a niche(ish) choice and you know you are going to meet others with a similar metric.
| Re: Trains not calling at Crewkerne from 28 Jul 25 In "South Western services" [363805/30480/42] Posted by bradshaw at 22:12, 1st August 2025 | |
It may have spare units but the extended timings, up to 30 minutes to Yeovil and another 30 to Exeter may mean that there are not the paths available, especially if the new timetable has to be resilient.
The times should be available on Monday
| Re: Trains not calling at Crewkerne from 28 Jul 25 In "South Western services" [363804/30480/42] Posted by Timmer at 21:47, 1st August 2025 | |
This is just another in an ever increasing list of problems to hit the Salisbury to Exeter line. It appears to be very fragile in a number of places. How much longer can Network Rail keep throwing money at it to keep it going?
| Re: More than 12,000 back Cornwall as fifth nation In "The West - but NOT trains in the West" [363801/30521/31] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 21:10, 1st August 2025 | |
There were 20,000 of us, back in the day: see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ere9fNgSGe8
| Re: More than 12,000 back Cornwall as fifth nation In "The West - but NOT trains in the West" [363800/30521/31] Posted by Clan Line at 20:31, 1st August 2025 | |
.........although the impact of Brexit on them may well have made them wiser in the interim.
True......... shows them that the "blob" will always get its way over those pesky plebian voters !
| Re: Weather updates, from across our area - merged posts In "Across the West" [363797/29177/26] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 20:15, 1st August 2025 | |
From the BBC:
Storm Floris to bring 'unseasonably disruptive' rain and wind to UK
Storm Floris has been named by the Met Office and will hit the UK on Monday, bringing strong winds and heavy rain.
It is the sixth named storm this season and the first since January.
Current forecasts show the centre of Floris travelling across the northern half of the UK, with the strongest and most disruptive winds on the southern and western edge of the area of low pressure.
Some forecasts show the potential for wind gusts of between 60 and 70mph in places, particularly for coasts and hills in the north during the day on Monday. Exposed coastal areas of Scotland could see gusts of up to 85mph.
Across the warning area, many inland areas are likely to see gusts of 40-50mph.
Even for areas in the south there could be gusts of 40-45mph.
The area of cloud and rain that may bring some of us the stormier spell was still only a band of heavy showers near the Great Lakes in the US on Thursday morning.
As this heads out into the Atlantic it will get picked up by an active jet stream and will develop into a storm with a huge drop in pressure as it nears our shores.
It is worth noting that Monday is still a number of days away and the exact track of the low pressure system will be crucial to which areas may be worst affected and so it is worth staying across the BBC Weather forecast over the coming days to keep across the latest.
If the winds do reach their forecast strength then they are likely to have an impact on travel.
At this time of year trees are in full leaf and are more likely to be toppled with branches broken off than during the winter when the wind can whistle through them unimpeded.
Many temporary summer structures including tents could be damaged.
Power disruption and some damage could also be possible while heavy rain and flooding could be an additional hazard in places.
(BBC article continues)
Storm Floris has been named by the Met Office and will hit the UK on Monday, bringing strong winds and heavy rain.
It is the sixth named storm this season and the first since January.
Current forecasts show the centre of Floris travelling across the northern half of the UK, with the strongest and most disruptive winds on the southern and western edge of the area of low pressure.
Some forecasts show the potential for wind gusts of between 60 and 70mph in places, particularly for coasts and hills in the north during the day on Monday. Exposed coastal areas of Scotland could see gusts of up to 85mph.
Across the warning area, many inland areas are likely to see gusts of 40-50mph.
Even for areas in the south there could be gusts of 40-45mph.
The area of cloud and rain that may bring some of us the stormier spell was still only a band of heavy showers near the Great Lakes in the US on Thursday morning.
As this heads out into the Atlantic it will get picked up by an active jet stream and will develop into a storm with a huge drop in pressure as it nears our shores.
It is worth noting that Monday is still a number of days away and the exact track of the low pressure system will be crucial to which areas may be worst affected and so it is worth staying across the BBC Weather forecast over the coming days to keep across the latest.
If the winds do reach their forecast strength then they are likely to have an impact on travel.
At this time of year trees are in full leaf and are more likely to be toppled with branches broken off than during the winter when the wind can whistle through them unimpeded.
Many temporary summer structures including tents could be damaged.
Power disruption and some damage could also be possible while heavy rain and flooding could be an additional hazard in places.
(BBC article continues)
| Re: 2025 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury In "TransWilts line" [363795/29726/18] Posted by grahame at 19:54, 1st August 2025 | |
Real Time Trains shows the 17:50 running - as 5O09 (empty coaching stock). Are we sure that's a track safety inspection as nothing else seems to be disrupted, or is its really a shortage of train managers?
And it now suggests
This service was cancelled between Gloucester and Westbury due to late arrival of crew from an inbound service (YJ).
| Re: Trains not calling at Crewkerne from 28 Jul 25 In "South Western services" [363794/30480/42] Posted by JayMac at 19:11, 1st August 2025 Already liked by PhilWakely, Timmer, trainbuff, Mark A, GBM | |
And this isn't the first time we've had a timetable reduction due to dry weather shrinking the ground. Similar issues back in 2022.
https://www.southwesternrailway.com/other/news-and-media/news/2022/september/temporary-reduced-timetable-for-west-of-england-line
Not to worry. Rain forecast for next week. So expect Honiton tunnel to flood.
| Re: 2025 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury In "TransWilts line" [363791/29726/18] Posted by grahame at 18:27, 1st August 2025 | |
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06 will be started from Westbury.
It will no longer call at Gloucester, Stonehouse, Stroud, Kemble, Swindon, Chippenham, Melksham and Trowbridge.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06 will be started from Westbury.
It will no longer call at Gloucester, Stonehouse, Stroud, Kemble, Swindon, Chippenham, Melksham and Trowbridge.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track.
Or put another way - cancelled throughout with the 18:10 Gloucester to Westbury extended to Salisbury? (EDIT - looking at RTT it does look the 5O09 becomes 2O09 at Westbuty)
Real Time Trains shows the 17:50 running - as 5O09 (empty coaching stock). Are we sure that's a track safety inspection as nothing else seems to be disrupted, or is its really a shortage of train managers?
| Re: Trains not calling at Crewkerne from 28 Jul 25 In "South Western services" [363790/30480/42] Posted by PhilWakely at 18:26, 1st August 2025 Already liked by Mark A | |
I suspect the timetable will be the same or similar to that implemented during Covid. The idea of an Exeter to Axminster shuttle covering the alternative hours was put to SWR, but they are claiming insufficient rolling stock - that is despite having two or three spare units whilst operating a proper full timetable!
So, yet again, the towns west of Yeovil suffer!
