Save the Melksham Train
Archived Save the Train forum articles - 2005 to 2010. See below
1743 Swindon-Southampton , 7 November Delay - 630/1902
Written by Lee on Friday, 10th November 2006

Just in case you were on it , here is the reason given for the above from FGW :

"The 1743 Swindon-Southampton on 7 November was, according to our information system, delayed at Thingley Junction for 14 minutes because a freight train had been allowed onto the other end of the single line at Bradford Junction (a signalling decision that we have disputed)."

Re: 1743 Swindon-Southampton , 7 November Delay - 630/1905
Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Saturday, 11th November 2006

I was waiting to join that train at Melksham, and at the time it was due another train (non passenger) went through heading from Chippenham (Thingley Junction) towards Trowbridge (Bradford Junction). So I think FGW have it a little wrong as their service wan't waiting for a train to come up from Trowbridge.

With the lack of any layby / loops between Swindon and Thingley junction, and with the lack of any intermediate signals between Thingley and Bradford, it's difficult to know what could have been done by the signalman to avoid the delay once the train that caused the delay was headed out from Swindon.

 
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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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