Yesterday I visited Andover (parking my car several miles away and walking in) and popped into Andover Station. To my slight surprise the three sidings for, presumably military traffic,looked freshly ballasted, though with wooden sleepers. See this photo of two years ago.

I thought that the last time I'd been at the station was in mid-January 1963 when snowfall deterred my father from driving me from Sidmouth to Marlborough, so I took the train from Honiton and spent more than an hour in the waiting room for a connection to Marlborough. But  I see that the line and station had been closed by then, so I guess it must have been in 1961, which also had a bad January weather-wise.

After closure Marlborough College specials did run to and from Paddington for a couple of years at the beginnings and ends of terms. Account here.

 
Standing a couple of times recently at Bath Spa station, I am struck by the uneven distribution of people waiting on the platform and the narrow waistline of the stair cases and lifts.  They lead to longer station dwell times than neded due to clumping - espcially to join London trains - and congestion at the top of the stairs / queues for lifts to get off the platform.  Here are two pictures taken a minute apart last Saturday - and the train approaching in the second picture fills the full length of that platform.





At that quieter London end - of the westbound platform - there is already a slope with a wide access gate.  In many ways it seems to be well kept secret; certainly not obvious.  On the eastbound side though there is no obvious easy way to get extra access with the station towering above an embankment and buildings, and the remains of a bay platform.

The Bristol end of the platforms is very interesting.  One has been extended over the river (to 10 carriages) but the other has not.    Once over the river, there are half a dozen arches blocked off and onto waste ground - room for an extrance /exit building with escalators and a staircase on both sides?  And with entrances to that building that lead straight to the wide footbridge already there over the river into the "far" end of the bus station. For local traffic / "commuter" flows would this not relieve pressure on the historic bottleneck? There would be a need for shelter on the more exposed platform ends to merge in current and new accessss, something that has been done (IMHO) very poorly at places like Newport.

 

Think it was a joint proposal by the LMS / GWR in their dying days.

 

I was put off, but happy to take the less stressful 08:02 option

 

In summary ... the 06:32 call didn't happen at Melksham and a taxi at 06:35 from Chippenham was added at some point.  Useful for those headed towards Southampton though it would have arrived at Trowbridge / Westbury well after the diverted train had passed there, so passengers for Salisbury who joined at Melksham and normally carry on at 06:55 would drop back to the 07:40 as far as Salisbury, or the 08:01 if headed for Southampton (yes, there is a commuter flow)

Personally I was trying my luck with a sub-5-minute change at Westbury onto the Weymouth train which runs every 2 hours and of course that would have failed.  With the taxi added, I would have left Westbury 2 hours after plan, and without the taxi (on the 09:10 from Melksham) 4 hours late. For a day trip, a 4 hours delay kills the day and I didn't try it once the cancellation came up (decision made before the taxi got added).  Had I been required to travel, I could have caught a bus to Frome and picked up the train there 2 hours after my plan.

For Bristol, the 06:32 connects into Bristol with an arrival at 07:28.   That would have failed this morning as taxis are slower.  Arrivals into Bristol at 07:48 or (more likely) 08:11 depending on how long the taxi too.

The 07:21/07:23 did call in the end, and the quick connection into Bristol that sometimes worked appears to have done so ... not sure how many people got put off and looked at other alternatives such as the bus or waiting (with fingers crossed) for the 08:02.

There are some slight but noticeable improvements in how issues are handled, but the rail industry seems to be intensely unreliable, with shortages of crew, trains breaking down, signalling failures. Short term cancellation rates are 5% at present and that's 3 times what "Which?" described as "dreadful" for an airline - it means that if you commute from Melksham Station for a fortnight, 5 days a week, you can expect one journey to be cancelled.  For passengers on the 07:21 to Chippenham or Swindon, that's "just" a 40 minute delay - with almost all other trains, especially with connections, it's far worse.   With a proper (every 30 minutes or better) service, a 5% cancellation rate could perhaps be shrugged off, but with a 120 minute frequency, every one hurts and damages the public confidence.

There IS a "thank you" due to the people who fixed the line, to the people who arranged the taxis.  But [they/you] should not be put into a position of having to do that so often, and they should have tools to give better feedback to the customers.  To some extent, they are victims of a skimping on maintenance and a reduction of available staff below sensible limits, just as the passengers are.  Here's looking to you - management and controllers ...

 
The Salisbury-Worcester service now showing as running (on National Rail app), due Melksham 07:23 

(started from Westbury I think)

 
Cancellations to services between Trowbridge and Chippenham
Due to a fault with the signalling system between Trowbridge and Chippenham the line towards Melksham is closed.
Train services running through these stations may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until 08:00 08/05.
Customer Advice
Taxis have been sourced as below:

Bath Taxis - 06.35 Chippenham calling Melksham, Trowbridge and Westbury. Please wait for the taxis at the rail replacement bus tops.
Bath Taxis- 07.11 Trowbridge calling at Melksham and Chippenham. Please wait for the taxis at the rail replacement bus tops. Passengers can use any London Paddington train from Chippenham to Swindon.

We're sorry for the delay to your journey.

 
Cancellations to services between Trowbridge and Chippenham

Due to a fault with the signalling system between Trowbridge and Chippenham the line towards Melksham is closed.
Train services running through these stations may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until 08:00 08/05.

 

To confirm to anyone who might be reading this in GWR - these are not just "7 minute delay"s - they are cancellations as far as Melksham (population 25,000) is concerned

 

Yeah and the 06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street, which I would have caught at Melksham at 07:21 instead, is also showing as cancelled due to a signalling problem. Will wait for the 07:45 Westbury - Swindon (Melksham 08:02) and hope they've fixed things by then - I'm not buying a ticket, yet...

 


AGAIN ;-)??

That aborts my day out then ...  07:45 walk start from Chetnole is out ... GWR booking engine now suggests 11:45 which is about the time I would be completing my 8 hour walk!

 
Will they have Sunday as part of their working week too?

 
05:11 Gloucester to Southampton Central due 08:09
05:11 Gloucester to Southampton Central due 08:09 will be diverted between Chippenham and Trowbridge.

It will no longer call at Melksham.
It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 7 minutes late.
This is due to a fault with the signalling system

06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47
06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47 will be started from Westbury and diverted between Trowbridge and Chippenham.

It will no longer call at Salisbury, Warminster and Melksham.

It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 10 minutes late.
This is due to a fault with the signalling system.

 

 

 
Yonks ago, and not helpful for your walk, with a friend who was on an educational placement in the area, we were exploring on bikes rather than by train. About a couple of miles east of Chetnole and just south of the village of Leigh, we visited Miz Maze, of which there was not much trace even then and possibly rather less now - perhaps ground resistance measurements would reveal it - but the day was lovely and later on we saw a purple emperor butterly.

Mark

 

Having researched further, there is an easier route from Chetnole to Maiden Newton which I may tackle tomorrow (8th May) ... and which I can do at my own pace. And if I can't keep up with myself I know there will be should be another train 2 hours later.

 
Well it flippin should be for £425
https://saphostrains.com/journey/the-golden-arrow-07-05-2025/

"The day starts as you settle into your seat with a glass of chilled bucks’ fizz..." - before 7am...

 
Golden Arrow - diesel (47) from Bristol to West London (Hanwell)  then Brittania London to Canterbury. 

 
Also reported on the BBC at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2w2prj470o

 
Yes - there was an announcement that a charter service was due at 0653, and I wondered whether it might be worth leaving the waiting room if it was going to be steam powered. I didn't, and it wasn't - a diesel of some sort, obviously old and 'special', but not a Deltic. It stopped to pick up a lucky few - looked like they were in for a very nice breakfast

 

Oh blimey, we were there only last week!

 
And all complete - full answers

1 Starcross - PhilWakely
2 Weymouth - paul7575
3 Kidderminster - RobT
4 Yetminster - WSW Frome
5 Kingswear - johnneyw
6 Bodmin Parkway - The Tall Controller
7 Exmouth - lymptone_commuter
8 Bradford-on-Avon - Western Pathfinder
9 Bristol Temple Meads - Kempis
10 Bathampton Junction - Timmer
11 Bath Spa - Merthyr Imp
12 Worcester Foregate Street - ChrisB
13 Liskeard - TonyN
14 Bere Alston - eightonedee
15 Bristol Temple Meads - Red Squirrel
16 Taunton - JayMac
17 Chepstow (Bridge) - TonyN
18 Okehampton - stuving
19 Newquay - Chris from Nailsea
20 Totnes - AMLAG
21 Penryn - bradshaw
22 Westbury - RobT
23 Severn Beach - Oxonhutch
24 Cardiff Bay - bradshaw

 
Wednesday May 7

A points failure:

2E80 0700 Worcester Shrub Hill to Didcot was held at Shrub Hill (+34), arrived Oxford +31 and was cancelled thereafter.

Held at Shrub Hill (+16), arrived -1.

 
Some starter questions with 2025 comments ...

Who would use it?  Would it hurt other transport (abstract?)
Would the trains be busy enough to make it worthwhile?
What trains would call there? 
Would services be reliable and not impact reliability of expresses?
Will there be line, station and train capacity?
Where would the station be located?
How would people get to and from the station?
How would it fit with future developments in the area and services?

I would guestimate passenger numbers could reach those of the similar sized town of Bradford-on-Avon with a similar population, and with a similar frequency of service to where people really want to travel to.  That's a substantive traffic though not enough to justify such a frequent service as BoA has without other stations offering traffic too. So the case for adding local service is bolstered by proposals for Grove and for Corsham - also into the future there is comment about Gablecross, Christian Malford (for new community), Box and Saltford, also for expanded communities at Lacock and Holt.

Major flows
- to Swindon, but so local that it would abstract from the bus and / or people would still prefer the bus due to frequency and ability to get on and off closer to their starting and ending goal points
- to Bath and Bristol
- to major county towns of Wiltshire - Chippenham, Trowbridge, Salisbury
- to Oxford (and I note that Oxford University owns a lot of the land)
- any inbound flows?

Minimum initial service to attract people - half hourly, comprising
Hourly - Oxford to Bristol
Hourly - Swindon to beyond Westbury (Salisbury / Southampton or Yeovil / Weymouth)
As rail use continues to grow, there are extra service options that include but not exclusive to RWB

Electrification and robust timetabling is key.  Having trains that start under electric power will cut the journey time impact for each station and electrification along the entire routes described should be considered as well as at RWB.  Measures to add extra capacity to help run a robust service rather than one that's at the limit of what can be squeeze in, and can run it clockface, is encourgagre.  That includes loop platform at Chippenham, redouble or similar from Chippenham to Trowbridge, extra platform face at Westbury.

Where would the station be placed?  Ideas suggested have been on the Bath line to the West of the junction, and on the combined line on the eastern edge of the town. In railway operating terms, the latter has the advantage of being able to offer services to South Wales and perhaps a new Hullavington station in future mists, but the disadvantage that it would hit capacity and likely require loops.  To the east of the town would be a green field site suitable for a substantial station and where house are being built, to the west of the town it would be accessed from the main road on the outskirts of the town towards Lyneham, closer in but a rather more constrained site.

 

No obvious reason - it seems to have left Chippenham on time and then been stuck for 5 minutes at Thingley - however that was NOT waiting for something else to clear the single line.

Next train from Trowbridge was only a 19 minute wait ... next train from Chippenham when the unofficial connection fails is a 34 minute wait (it did connect this morning). Because it's official you can claim delay / repay for an 07:28 expected arrival to an 07:48 actual arrival into Bristol whereas you have no claim via Chippenham.  Only negatives about the Trowbridge change are the earlier start and the need to cross the footbridge which if you have heavy luggage or are in a wheelchair is not clever.

Looks like a special train went though Trowbridge while you were waiting?

 
The 06:32 service from Melksham to Southampton was uncharacteristically late this morning - departed at 06:38, which meant I just missed the (official) connection with the 06:46 Bristol service at Trowbridge. Don't know what caused the delay to the Melksham train - it left Chippenham on time, and was just described as 'running late'. Not a disaster though - caught the 07:05 Cardiff train.

First time there's been any sort of problem taking this route to Bristol for quite a few weeks. It's so much more reliable than the alternative via Chippenham, and is worth the very early start.

 
There was significant damage all the 25kV cables in the area of the fire.  This will take time to replace, joint and test the damaged sections of the cables, these cable joints are although based on COTS (commercial off the shelf) products, the 25kV are a special variant, HV cable joints are not a item your average electrical wholesaler hold.

The cable jointing is a specialist skill, there is not an acute shortage of jointers but there are only so many you can practically set to work in an area

 
A very good idea although I think that new train drivers will not be allowed to drive trains on their own till they have passed all the exams.

Not sure how long it takes to teach a driver to drive trains,but I presume the training course(including route knowledge)

 will last until the new drivers  are approaching their 19th Birthday?

  https://www.gov.uk/government/news/full-steam-ahead-young-people-take-the-drivers-seat-to-improve-train-services-and-unlock-jobs

Good luck to any young guns reading this forum in your quest to become a train driver,maybe the Grand Parents Parents and Guardians  on this forum
can advise any of their young guns of this new scheme