| Archived Save the Train forum articles - 2005 to 2010. See below
December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1859 Written by Lee on Wednesday, 8th November 2006 First Great Western Customer Services : "I regret that I am unable to provide specific information regarding the December timetable as this is currently being finalised. We expect this to be available to view or download from our website from Friday 10 November." Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1860 Written by Nick Field on Wednesday, 8th November 2006 [quote author=Lee link=topic=616.msg1859#msg1859 date=1162989521] First Great Western Customer Services : "I regret that I am unable to provide specific information regarding the December timetable as this is currently being finalised. We expect this to be available to view or download from our website from Friday 10 November." [/quote] Any idea what exactly is currently being finalised? Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1885 Written by rogerco on Thursday, 9th November 2006 Since the timetable has been available to advance bookings for the last 8 weeks or so I am at a loss to know what is currently being finalised. I thought it had been published. Julian Crow was flashing reams of final version printouts at various meetings in Plymouth and St.Germans a month or more ago. RogerCO Saltash Rail Users Group www.srug.org.uk Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1889 Written by Lee on Friday, 10th November 2006 [quote author=rogerco link=topic=616.msg1885#msg1885 date=1163103840]Since the timetable has been available to advance bookings for the last 8 weeks or so I am at a loss to know what is currently being finalised. I thought it had been published. Julian Crow was flashing reams of final version printouts at various meetings in Plymouth and St.Germans a month or more ago.[/quote] I know what you mean , Roger. Originally , we thought that the "final" December 2006 timetable had been published in July (link below.) http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=357.msg1078#msg1078 Good luck with the Saltash meeting. Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1891 Written by Lee on Friday, 10th November 2006 The December 2006 Timetable is now up on the First Great Western Website (link below.) http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=378 Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1893 Written by Graz on Friday, 10th November 2006 That's not all of them, is it? Either FGW have laid them out extremely poorly, or they aren't up yet, but I couldn't find any Melksham or Oldfield Park timetables... ??? Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1894 Written by Lee on Friday, 10th November 2006 I noticed that , Graz. Hopefully , they are being posted as we write. Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1896 Written by Lee on Friday, 10th November 2006 The Swindon - Westbury service has been removed from the main timetable , and now has its own little section tucked away at the back of the book (link below.) http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Documents/Custom/Timetables/December%202006/Book%20E%20REVISED%20(Bristol%20Area,%20Birmingham%20to%20Exeter,%20Cardiff%20to%20Portsmouth).pdf Monday - Friday changes - 0644 to Westbury , 1842 from Swindon. Timetable still does not comply with SLC2. London connections are shown , but the timetable only notes continuations to / from the Stroud Valley line , and not individual timings. Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1899 Written by Graz on Friday, 10th November 2006 After a quick look at the new timetable I must post an opinion on it: Pros: Compliments the South West trains services better, with fast SWT semi-fast services now running before the slower FGW-local ones. This means we can expect an increase in ridership on SWT trains from Waterloo-Bristol around Westbury, Trowbridge and especially Bradford-on-Avon. More services to/from Frome at peak which is a good thing. I've always thought trains should be terminating at this station instead of Westbury more often as there is a lot of untapped demand. Better services to Cam & Dursley and extensions to Great Malvern which were not in the original timetable. Westbury-BTM trains are better timed. They now connect with the xx:28 northbound Virgin services, a large benefit. Cons: The 2-hour gap is still there at Keynsham, Oldfield Park, Freshford and Avoncliff so users of these stations were also (as well as Melksham users) effectively LIED to by the Government/FGW who PROMISED this would not happen. There is also a long gap of over an hour in the morning: 08:49-10:06 at Oldfield Park. Some questionable gaps in services. For example, there are services in the morning from BTM to Gloucester arriving at 06:38, 07:02, and 07:22. The next service to Gloucester does then not arrive until 08:37 leaving a gap of over 1 hour at PEAK. Not good, FGW. Also, the same can be said for Keynsham/Oldfield Park. 16:38, 17:04, 17:48 and 18:04, then not until 19:04. Of course I must comment on the awful times FGW dreamed up for Melksham. It's not compliant with SLC2 and should definitely be changed. Pilning is almost wiped off the map completely, but there seems to be some instances in which Westbury-Cardiff trains wait a long time at Bristol TM. Why not make them call additionally at Pilning, leaving 2 minutes earlier? Finally, there is one service in particular I must comment on. It starts from Westbury 17:55 and calls only at Bath Spa, Oldfield Park, Keynsham and Bristol TM. Just what is the point of this one? If I can be honest, this would be put to better use serving Melksham departing slightly earlier for a sensible and SLC2-compliant Melksham evening peak service. Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1907 Written by Lee on Saturday, 11th November 2006 [quote author=Graz link=topic=616.msg1899#msg1899 date=1163170605]Finally, there is one service in particular I must comment on. It starts from Westbury 17:55 and calls only at Bath Spa, Oldfield Park, Keynsham and Bristol TM. Just what is the point of this one? If I can be honest, this would be put to better use serving Melksham departing slightly earlier for a sensible and SLC2-compliant Melksham evening peak service. [/quote] I am assuming that you mean the 1655 from Westbury - Bristol , Graz. The service does what it does in order to form the "key commuter" 1748 Bristol - Weymouth service. Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1914 Written by Graz on Sunday, 12th November 2006 Oops! Yeah, the 1655, my mistake! After a closer look, it seems as if this service is formed from the 16:04 BTM-Westbury, arriving there at 16:50 which leaves a 5 minute turnaround. Still, I don't know why it doesn't call at Trowbridge and Bradford on Avon as there surely is ample time to call at these stations for a slightly later arrival into BTM. I quite like the little sections at the back for Melksham, Severn Beach and Weymouth. It's a lot clearer than trying to cram them in with everything else. It does emphasise, however, how bare and empty the Melksham timetable is compared to everything else. If only there was a service in every one of those columns... Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1915 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Sunday, 12th November 2006 [quote author=Graz link=topic=616.msg1914#msg1914 date=1163331444] I quite like the little sections at the back for Melksham, Severn Beach and Weymouth. It's a lot clearer than trying to cram them in with everything else. It does emphasise, however, how bare and empty the Melksham timetable is compared to everything else. If only there was a service in every one of those columns... [/quote] I took a deep breath when I saw those tables separated out. BUT ... For the purpose of more local travellers, it's a good idea, and for the longer distance traveller that makes up a high proportion of TransWilts traffic, perhaps it's a good idea gone too far. It's always struck me as rather odd that you had to look up "Portsmouth to Cardiff" and skip over many stations and trains if you wanted to travel from (say) Trowbridge to Chippenham, or Melksham to Swindon. Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1916 Written by Lee on Sunday, 12th November 2006 [quote author=Lee link=topic=616.msg1889#msg1889 date=1163153437] [quote author=rogerco link=topic=616.msg1885#msg1885 date=1163103840]Since the timetable has been available to advance bookings for the last 8 weeks or so I am at a loss to know what is currently being finalised. I thought it had been published. Julian Crow was flashing reams of final version printouts at various meetings in Plymouth and St.Germans a month or more ago.[/quote] I know what you mean , Roger. Originally , we thought that the "final" December 2006 timetable had been published in July (link below.) http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=357.msg1078#msg1078 Good luck with the Saltash meeting.[/quote] By the way , Roger , how is your campaign to get First to introduce a carnet (or book of undated tickets) scheme going? (link below.) http://www.srug.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=28&Itemid=2 I remember when they were introduced on the Exeter - Barnstaple line (link below.) http://cache.zoominfo.com/cachedpage/?archive_id=0&page_id=1267080716&page_url=%2f%2fwww.wessextrains.co.uk%2fnews%2fnews_archived3.php%3fcat%3d%26article%3d522%26subnavID%3d97&page_last_updated=2%2f3%2f2006+8%3a16%3a20+PM&firstName=Andrew&lastName=Griffiths Re: December 2006 Timetable To Be Published On Friday 10 November 2006 - 616/1925 Written by Lee on Monday, 13th November 2006 Here is a link to FGW's first comments on the new timetable. http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/NewsItem.aspx?id=406 link to index of articles |
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Save the Train was the campaign to bring an approriate train service back to and through Melksham. Most big contributors are still around writing at the Coffee shop forum where new members are very welcome. The train has been saved - sort of - we have stepped back up from an unusable service to a poorish one but it's doing very well. We did that through setting up the TransWilts Community Rail Partnership. That fulfilled its early objectives; it has been taken over by local and regional government types who are now doing medium and long term work. The team from this forun can also be found at the Melksham Rail User Group (which was the Melksham Rail Development Group at the time these articles were written and we had no users. We mustn't loose sight, though, that the train service remains poor and needs our community support in marketing and campaigning to keep it going in a positive direction ... and all the more so when we're expecting to find a different normallity once we get out of the Coronavirus Pandemic and head for zero carbon via the climate crisis. Yes, it's saved ... it's now a key community facility ... the need for enhancement and the strong and near-universal local support remain, and the rail industry and goverment remain slow to move and provide the enhancements even to level us up with other towns. Please support the Melksham Rail User Group - now very much in partnership rather than protest with the rail industry and local government, including GWR, TransWilts and unitary and town councils. And please use the trains and buses, and cycle and walk when you can. -- Graham Ellis, (webmaster), February 2021 | |||
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