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West Somerset Railway General Discussion

Discussion in 'Heritage Railways & Centres in the UK' started by gwr4090, Nov 15, 2007.

  1. Ron Sidewater

    Ron Sidewater New Member

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    Hooray! As a former TTI the electric lifts on Lorna Doone were a real pain - even when they worked loading a wheelchair using them took about three times as long as pushing it up the ramp!
     
  2. johnofwessex

    johnofwessex Resident of Nat Pres

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    Its a pity of course that the DMU is not in good condition unlike say the 108 on the SVR

    I might add that I did the round trip on Braunton, leaving BL at 11.15 (11.30?) ish again a less patronized service but what about somesort of catering 'offer' - say a hamper from The Farm Shop at BL?

    Obviously needs pre booking but with reserved seats in a smart TSO & crockery/hot drinks/tablecloth??
     
  3. Ian Monkton

    Ian Monkton Member

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    The electric lift was installed to enable wheelchair access to ground level in case of the need to evacuate the train away from a platform in an emergency. In my 15 years of working on the trains, it was never called on for that purpose, and, as Ron mentions previously, it got in the way when loading wheelchairs from the platform using the standard ramp.
     
  4. Re access to ground level via the e-lift, I didn't know that was possible, @Ian Thanks for that! I guess when restored 'Lorna Doone' will adopt standard evacuation procedures laid down for the WSR's other wheelchair accessible vehicles, which may not be as comfortable :( but (depending on the situation) clearly better than being left onboard :)

    Steve
     
  5. granmaree

    granmaree Member

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    Not many of the staff had been adequately trained for safe handling of the lift either?
     
  6. nick813

    nick813 Well-Known Member Loco Owner

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    Mmmmm, May be time to read Andy Norman's recent post. ' One Railway' is a long long way off. Does the public care what kind of steam locomotive is pulling the train? Does the WSR need another Castle?
     
  7. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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    I have to agree with you on all of your points. The only problem that I can see is the suggested 10:30 arrival time at Minehead for the first service train. As most passengers begin their journey at Bishops Lydeard that would require a departure time at approx. 09:15. Most folk prefer to arrive 30 mins early to park their cars, walk to the station, buy tickets and use the loo. That would require arriving at BL at 08:45 before including the journey to the railway. If I take the family on a steam train to Minehead they look forward to a leisurely day out. I'm not so sure that setting off from home at 07:30 would fit the bill.

    Just a thought. <BJ>
     
    Last edited: Feb 12, 2019
  8. Well, it is not as if the WSR hasn't tried an early arrival into Minehead before ;) So it has the best possible knowledge of how worthy is the idea. In any case, we can all come along this summer and find out cos there's a 9.25am departure from Bishops Lydeard on the yellow timetable with a 10.40am arrival in Minehead. Local shoppers with a local resident's card will find the fares reasonable and those with an Annual Pass might find it a real bargain. Everyone is welcome to join the train (or any other train) and prove the theory.

    Steve
     
  9. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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    That would still be an early start for most families Steve …..and can you imagine their weary faces when a DMU / diesel pulls into the platform. :eek: <BJ>​
     
  10. Indeed a bit early, but not as early as the 7.30am Minehead to Williton and the 8.05am from Williton, arrive Minehead 8.35am. I did guard duty on a few of those :(

    As for 2019, I guess, though, that if they know there is a 9.25am departure they'll know it not a steamer ;)

    Steve
     
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  11. The Man of Kent

    The Man of Kent New Member

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    From what you say it is quite obvious that you are not part of the target market. If you are looking for a leisurely trip on a steam railway starting once the streets have been aired then the railway already caters for you.
    If you wanted a family day out at the seaside that included a pleasant trip on a railway with great scenery that delivered you right on to the esplanade - and you were not fussed about the traction this could be for you.
    Chances are those who would use such a service are not reading this forum.
     
  12. Bean-counter

    Bean-counter Part of the furniture

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    All sounds logical - but how far from likely starting points for passengers is BL?

    The first Pickering to Whitby train has been 09:25 since the second platform opened some years ago. Before that, it was 09:00 (from memory) and started as a DMU connecting service leaving Pickering at 08:45.

    If people want a decent day in their destination and chance to break their journey at somewhere nice (say Watchet?) on the way back, then they seem to accept and early start - and/or late finish (last train back into Pickering at after 19:30 on the peak, earlier other times).

    Pre-Whitby, the first train was 10:30 and then later 10:00.

    Steven
     
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  13. michaelh

    michaelh Part of the furniture

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    If I wanted a day at the seaside with the family I would just go the whole way in the car
     
  14. LC2

    LC2 Member

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    Sounds ideal :) When I'm on hols this year I'll be able to jump on at Doniford at 10, get to Starbucks in Minehead, abuse their free wifi to upload the convention pictures I'll be editing, and get back to Doniford just gone lunchtime.

    The family week ticket seems to have gone up a bit this year? Still can't complain, they need the money.
     
  15. The Man of Kent

    The Man of Kent New Member

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    Starbucks?
     
  16. oldmrheath

    oldmrheath Well-Known Member

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    Surely one of the biggest factors to consider when lengthening the operating day on a heritage line is how to staff it? If you have huge pool of volunteers then fine, otherwise it can make for a very long day for volunteers in all departments, with the loadings unlikely to justify using paid staff.

    Jon
     
  17. Captain Fantastic

    Captain Fantastic Member

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    Has the cost of a annual ticket gone up? It really did seem too cheap to make sense last year
     
  18. Bean-counter

    Bean-counter Part of the furniture

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    And I am sure a majority of people do - but my experience is that, in the case of Whitby, significant numbers decide to combine their day trip to the coast with a ride on a steam railway. There may be factors which mean this wouldn't be the case in West Somerset, but these may include lack of suitably timed trains to do so.

    It is interesting that of the preserved railways, most have the coast at one end. The SVR is an obvious exception.

    Steven
     
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  19. Wenlock

    Wenlock Well-Known Member Friend

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    I can think of a few others which are land-locked, such as Bluebell, Spa Valley, Kent & East Sussex, Keighley & Worth Valley, Llangollen, I am sure there are others.
     
  20. LC2

    LC2 Member

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    You're right, it's Costa isn't it.
    Still free wifi though :)
     
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