GWSR Broadway Developments

The last paragraph is absolutely spot on. I don't think there is wide appreciation on just how much paperwork and understanding is necessary to manage an extension project. What is impressive about Broadway is that the date given will in all probability be met, the high standards of trackwork on a "do it once, do it right" basis and that the project is funded. All plaudits to the guys on the ground who have done a magnificent job but can anyone seriously say that the management deserve NO credit for any of this?

Regards

Matt

 

Another update on the Boardroom Blog, which has reassuringly said that the decision isn't as imminent as perhaps implied, so plenty of time for reasonable discussion.

 

I believe the "Greenacres" operation is being "mothballed" until the main Leicester Railway Museum building opens uin a few years time, which will increase the numbers straying from the immediate station area.

 

Wychavon is a very "commercially" minded council. They certainly will not spend money on providing a car park unless they are confident that it will provide a good return. A car park near Broadway Station is too far from the village for the non-railway visitor, so it would depend on the railway's passengers for usage which would obviously be highly seasonal. I think the demand for car parking by railway passengers may be rather less than some on here imagine. Toddington - with its large free car park - is much more accessible from the M5 than Broadway.

 

Coming from the London direction, for Toddington I've always done A40->Burford->A424->Stow-on-the-Wold->B4077. For Broadway you could just sit on the A44 and come off at the roundabout near the station. Some people may prefer the simpler option, others may prefer a nicer drive than a busy single-carriageway A-road. Feels like swings and roundabouts to me.

Nothing irritates me more than arriving at a preserved railway at 0930 on a Saturday morning after a long drive only to find the refreshment room doesn't open until after the first train leaves (cough Buckfastleigh cough). If the car park issue is sorted out and the railway expects people to start their journey at Broadway then a coffee machine in the shop won't cut it.

 

This from the Boardroom Blog 7 November 2016:
"Colin Fewell our Commercial Director raised the issue of car parking capacity. On many mid week (and other days) now, the car park at Toddington is full, and there is no-where else to park. This may be exacerbated when we open to Broadway. There is no immediate solution, save to try and make better use of the space we have. The field behind P2 is only available to us for a very limited number of days each year."
Has this problem gone away?

 

I think though that "arriving at a preserved railway at 0930 on a Saturday morning after a long drive" does not make you a typical heritage railway passenger.

 

I've often noted that the car park at Toddington is much busier than the trains. I've seen large groups of walkers arrive (in different cars), park there and set off on their walk. I think too that a lot of families with young children go there to use the play area behind the cafe but do not travel on the trains - I've no idea if they spend anything on the site.

Free parking is a boon - but there are downsides.

 

Probably quite a few volunteers too, especially on a Wednesday or Saturday where there's lots of loco working parties and potentially P'way along with operational staff. In fact I think a couple of times during the winter relay at Toddington the car park was completely full on a non-operating day.

There will be a car park at Broadway, just not quite yet, so it will be an issue for a while, but hopefully not too long. It's not as if we don't think we need one.

 

This just in from the comments section of the Extension Blog.

According to Mike Rose an activist shareholder campaigning for the cafe, Richard Johnson has refused to meet with him despite him claiming to have important information from Wychavon Council and being in touch with a number of shareholders who have put will legacies on hold because of this controversy.

David Corke has posted that the Board are holding an Emergency meeting presumably ahead of the planned Monday one.

 

I'm pretty sure David is referring to the Monday meeting, which is not an emergency meeting but has been planned at least since before cafegate erupted. It's a routine board meeting where it will be discussed, handy that it's only a week away.

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Have to say I never quite understand people who take this stance. If you want to support a project then do so. If you don't, dont. Making it known that you might not if XYZ doesn't or does happen always strikes me as rather ungentlemanly at the very least...

Regards

Matt

 

Not at all. You support a project that you like. If you learn that some significant part of what you thought you were supporting isn't going to happen, you may well look around for some other project to support instead.

In the present instance, where it is (we hope temporarily) unclear just what facilities the new station building will eventually include, putting things on hold seems the most appopriate action, for those actively working on the project and for those providing cash now or in their wills.

 

Preserved Railways invoke deep passion with associated deep feelings. Wills are written with feelings and care and if People do not think Boards are acting correctly then they will respond accordingly. PLCs cannot not change unless they are at least told this - I do not consider this is ungentlemanly just individual choice. The Bluebell and WSR PLCs have lost my bequests due to their attitudes for example although I have been a member and shareholder of both for decades.

Brian

 

See post #1276, (page 64) for information on Broadway parking. Regarding Toddington, I don't know if there are further developments.

 

This question has been raised several times but always seems to be brushed aside. Although it is becoming more difficult with the track now being laid, it still seems simple enough to fix, involving no more than the excavation of new footings, two pours of concrete plus rebar and fixing bolts, crane hire to move the bridge back, and make-good on the old site. I'd be surprised if that much exceeded 1000pds, and certainly not 2000, and we know the project is not that short of money, so is there some other reason that the bridge cannot be moved, or that moving it will not solve the problem ?

 

Thanks for that reference, Bill, I was starting to get confused by all the remarks about lack of parking.
AIUI the railway owns all the strip of land on the west of the line between Station Road and Childswickham Road, so there is in fact plenty of space for parking. It is just a matter of who develops it for parking, and how much of it to use up initially. Obviously there are advantages in doing some sort of a deal with the Council, but this need not be essential. If a small part, say the area currently used for the ballast stock and already cleared and basically graded, were set up as a car-park initially, the rest could be developed as time and money allowed.
Mike

 

As I understand it that is more or less what the board wanted to do, but planning permission was rejected as the council specifically didn't want us to do it piecemeal, but do it all at once, which we couldn't afford to do. I may have got the wrong end of the stick, but that was my understanding at any rate.

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Why is the field behind P2 only available on a very limited number of days?

 

On the subject of planning permission Mike Rose who was seeking a meeting with Richard Johnson has elaborated on his claim to have important information regarding the station building from Wychavon Council. It is worth quoting in full.

"Wychavon District Council Planning Authority confirm that the plans have the appropriate station rooms designated for use as a Waiting Room/Café and Kitchen. If a shop and store are installed this in breach of planning and an enforcement officer will visit. If a change of use application and fee is received any objections can be lodged and will be dealt with accordingly."

Now if true, the question is, if as stated on the Boardroom Blog, the Board decided in 2015 to have a Shop instead why did the Project Manager not subsequently apply for change of use as he was legally obliged to do?