There used to be "passenger panels" for various parts of the system - I used to commute with one of the members for (if I recall correctly) either the North Downs line or London & Thames Valley area. I think they lapsed with Covid, possibly earlier.

I tried to find something on line about this, all I found was this from one of the most useful websites for such matters-

https://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=29176.0

I'll leave CfA to consolidate these threads...!

 

Leap years are regular ...

We've had "Meet the Manager" session on the Coffee Shop over the years, as recent as October 2024.  With technology moving on, perhaps we are not the best forum for those these days, but something *is* needed.

We anticipate their being a senior GWR manager at the TWSW general meeting on 6th March, and there should be a chance to network engage.  You will see I have use woolly words "anticipate" and "should" in there, and TWSW is not a forum for all - rather for reps of user groups.  There is a degree of flexibility there for independent transport advocates to attend - needs to be agreed / booked ahead.

 
Ah. Image not available to guests  Cue my own ongoing grievance about the misuse of 'regular v frequent'.

'Regular' could be, for example, 'once every 100 years'.

'Frequent' could be, again for example (and in railway terminology), 'once every three months'.

CfN.

 

"Regular" doing some extraordinarily heavy lifting there.

 
Still on their web site, but no dates, mind.

Mark

https://www.gwr.com/about-gwr/what-you-can-expect/meet-the-manager

 
............I can remember a time when GWR managers used to spend time meeting their customers at stations and listening to their concerns in person...........I believe that forum was called "Meet the Manager" - seems to have fallen into abeyance now though.

 


The definition of Stakeholder has been an interesting one, with a strong slant towards players other than passengers / passenger groups.  Much more a business to business and government affair.


Good advise,  and I / we for WWRUG appreciate those engagements as far as they go.  But yet at the same time, this route won't necessarily get you beyond an official answer  (and perhaps to a different question than the one you asked) and may not get the problem itself addressed.  But then a passenger rep forum (the topic of this thread) gives passengers a chance to make inputs, with no assurance of any answers. At such meetings GWR can, will and should give you a customer update, and those updates tend to be marketing lead rather than addressing passenger feedback.

 
Their management has a stakeholder conference where one can engage with any & all varieties of management once a year - yet to hear whether a 2026 version will be taking place.

Meantime, their management will & do engage with many user groups throughout the year at station manager & above. If you ever have a problem, drop a line to their Head of PR, Thomas Lydon. He will either deal, or find a more suitable manager.

If however, it relates to changes to train operation at stations, it's the local Network Rail manager you need - they have a public contact number that will provide suitable contact details when you explain the problem.

 
Does GWR still have a forum that they use to gather feedback from their passengers? The way that the railway has settled into managing the trains & platforms at various stations (thinking Gloucester and particularly Bristol), it's irksome, and it's something that everyone has grown to accept. It also discourages travel by people with a mobility issue that's significant but not significant enough to result in them requiring a wheelchair.

Mark