West Somerset Railway General Discussion

What strikes me as surprising though is that the PLC is steaming ahead with moves to implement the new structure, without publication of the full report.

We dont know what the full report says, BUT clearly it may well be critical of the PLC and its behaviour, in which case there may well be questions over who as an organisation or individuals should take the lead on the new structure.

 

An oddly restricted view of the reasons people travel for recreation. I'm sure the current customer base of the WSR is not restricted to the residents of Taunton and holiday-makers at Butlins !
Both the SDR and the DSR are delightful but people like a change occasionally. Also, the Dartmoor Railway operating from Exeter may have gone out of action. Has any work been done to establish where the existing trade comes from ? I have no idea what advertising is done where, but targeting the South Devon area and its holiday trade would have to be a winner.

 

No, sorry. That reads to me as simply referring to a transfer of shareholdings. It may not be what they meant but that is what it looks like.
I have a horrible suspicion the Plc is either going to ignore the requirement for a new company or it will automatically assume that the existing Plc will just change roles with all existing personnel remaining in place. We shall just have to wait and see.

 

I found that bit curiously at odds with Bailey's views of charities elsewhere in the report, where he seems to take a quite a narrow view of what they can and cannot do, seemingly very cautious about charitable law. Yet here he recommends that the "PLC’s financial needs must take priority". What, over and above charitable law? Along with the suggestion that the railway should be overseen by an overarching charity, I can't help but feel that this report presents a rather inconsistent view on what charities roles ought to be and what they can and cannot do on a heritage railway. Unfortunately, these views often seem to change at the convenience of whatever the Plc's position is.

 

I do rather get that impression from their response. It seems to be a case of "we'll adapt, the rest of you can do as you see fit". After all, turkeys don't vote for Xmas, do they ?

 

Believe it or not, I was trying to be kind about the scenery!

 

Had a read of the report before it vanished. I think the idea behind the structure is fine, but ironically this was closer to being achieved when the Ex 6 were bidding for the freehold.

Creating yet another new charity does pose questions for the purpose of the WSRA and WSST. The ideal structure would be along the lines of this in my view

- charity which owns the freehold

- operating subsidy

- rolling stock charity. All locos and carriages in this entity. Yes that means all the stock presently owned by the Plc being transferred in my view.

I woukd suggest the rolling stock charity is more likely to attract legacies from members while the property owning charity can seek grants for developments.

the other advantage of a rolling stock charity is it’s a ready made supply of locos and carriages. Will the fare box be enough to allow for overhauls? Possibly not on the present figures.

If there must be three charities then how about using Williton as a destination station and creating an engine house type attraction in the Swindon Shed. Would create a real purpose for a shorter trip. Yes, you could even have the SDRT displays there. The remit of the third charity could be to develop this attraction.

that would mean moving the engineering side of things elsewhere, perhaps BL would be suitable and then could be a mainline base as well.

regards

Matt

 

On past form - is the plc going to wipe out existing shareholdings and then recreate the company in its own image?

 

I agree within easy reach of myself there's the Nene Valley, Mid and North Norfolk as well as the East Anglia Rly Museum and Mangapps Railway Museum.
But there's always literature in our supermarket and Tourist info for the Great Central, I did think it was a bit strange but then time wise it's probably about the same for a trip to Sheringham as a trip to Loughborough (either by car or public transport)

 

I was thinking today what others might think. Et voila!

https://www.4160ltd.com/

Patrick

 

To be Replaced by Whom?

 

I don't think that would worry the S & D actually!

 

It gets worse ....in the current issue of Steam Railway p23 the plc repeat former allegations of safety issues at Washford and claim that ROGS applies to Washford yard whilst the ORR have already advised they never received any such complaints and that ROGS does not apply to Washford site as it is not a running line. So, whose word do we trust ?

 

Not the plc's! Haven't they heard the maxim - 'when in a hole, stop digging'?

 

But with the exception of the Gloucester Warwicks non of those listed can offer the potential of the WSR!

Please note the use of the word Potential, there are spades of it available to the WSR, as yet unrealised

 

Ask Robin, it is her baby

 

I wonder how many shareholding have 'lapsed' as the holders are no longer with us. I, sadly, can think of many and wonder what that means in the reality of things?

 

They are a Success because they have kept their disagreements behind closed doors in the better interest of their railway, the WSR has been riddled with argument since day 1 and it shows no sign of changing as this thread proves.

I hold the aspiration that someone will take charge and bring this to an end by Clear and Inspirational Leadership but sadly it looks like a forlorn hope

Where is the white knight? - or lady knight?

 

Strictly speaking a shareholding can't "lapse" - it passes along as part of the estate, unless the company refuses to register the share transfer.*

Of course whether the executors of a hypothetical small shareholder with say 50 or 100 shares will discover the existence of the shareholding and register the transfer with the company is another matter.

* I don't know if the WSR's articles allow the company to prevent people they don't like becoming shareholders, but it's possible.

 

Well, the 4160 case isnt out of the woods yet and presumably any persons having dealings with the company need to be aware of this.

The latest news was that the holders of the disputed shares were to hold negotiations with the WSRA, this happened just before the case was to go to court when presumably they could have been held liable for costs