| Archived Save the Train forum articles - 2005 to 2010. See below
Update letter (email) to all posting members, 29th March 2009 - 7986/12928 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Sunday, 29th March 2009 [color=Purple]The following text / update has been emailed to all registered members who have posted on this forum.[/color] It is highly unusual for us to send out such a 'round robin' email - I think this is the first for a year to our membership - but the case for our campaign is now at a point where a general update was sensible. To: Posting members of the "Save the Train" Forum At: http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/forum This year we have a golden opportunity for the return of an appropriate train service on the "TransWilts" line - enhancing the current two trains a day (pre-dawn and evening) that link the five major population centres of Wiltshire by adding peak hour and daytime services. With the proposed service, commuting from Frome, Warminster, Westbury, Trowbridge and Melksham to Swindon by public transport would become practical, and journey times like Chippenham to Trowbridge and to Salisbury would be slashed. Two weeks ago, we opened a pledge campaign, asking for people to sign on to our web site and say "yes, that is a good idea". And in two weeks, over 200 people have done so. You can add your name (please have a look at the case again, and if you agree with it add your name): http://www.transwilts.org.uk/index.html (details) http://www.transwilts.org.uk/pledge.html (sign up) With Unitary Council elections for Wiltshire in June, now is an excellent time for us to remind our local politicians that the case has been made. The practicality and price of the service, the availability of train and crew, the economic case have all been looked at, and we at "Save the Train", and other local groups are talking at the highest level with the County Council, First Great Western and the Department for Transport - we all have a common view that we want to get this sorted. And there is movement: * The Department for Transport have a new policy whereby they take over the funding of the service after an initial trial period, rather than leaving it as a locally funded risk. * First Great Western confirm that they will run the service if told to, and indeed they put a lot of work in last year to having the detail in place. * And reports commissioned by the County Council (and published after we launched our pledge campaign) confirm to them the need tofacilitate an appropriate service. I have included the URL of this report, and extracts, at the end of this email. Please do visit the web site and pledge your support - things are moving fast and YOU could make a real difference. If you have already signed - THANK YOU. I am writing this email to all posting members of the forum, and there may be a little duplication if you have come across the new pledge elsewhere; if that is the case, sorry to trouble you again. Do let me know (reply to this email) if you would like your account closed, or if you have any questions. Graham Graham Ellis on behalf of http://www.savethetrain.org.uk 404, The Spa, Melksham, Wilts, SN12 6QL http://www.wellho.net - http://www.wellhousemanor.co.uk 01225 708225 (phone) email - graham@wellho.net --------- Quote from George Bright ---------------------- http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/wilts-assembly-150309-impact-of-credit-crunch.pdf An important issue about sustainable and accessible transport was made by a number of businesses and their representatives. The basic point was made by a very successful engineering business: 'On a second transport point, rail transport does provide regeneration and growth. Can we put the north south Wiltshire rail link on the agenda? At the moment stations such as Melksham are poorly served. Cannot RDA and others combine to seek proposals for an enhanced service?' There is a campaign group seeking to achieve much better rail services through the 'TransWilts' rail corridor linking Swindon, Chippenham, the West Wiltshire towns and Salisbury. Their case has been strengthened by recent work published by the Department for Transport on 11th March 2009 'Delivering a Sustainable Transport System: City and Regional Networks Data Book' which provides a range of strategic assessments that support the case. The level of out-commuting in Wiltshire has been referred to in the economic analysis. The pressures on the A350 and A303 main road routes are well known. The case for better more sustainable transport for Wiltshire’s businesses and people is a good one and should continue to be pressed upon First Great Western and other relevant parties. 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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