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West Somerset Railway General Discussion

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

  1. D1039

    D1039 Guest

    That may be a tad unrepresentative? WSR is outside the top 4 but is still around the others in the top ten. Not all railways publish numbers, numbers are from different dates and different appeals are at different points on the curve so not an exact picture:

    Severn Valley Railway £745,000
    Bluebell Railway £310,097
    Glos Warks (embankment) £255,000
    Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway £250,000
    Swanage Railway £165,142
    South Devon Railway £152,059
    West Somerset Railway £130,778*
    Keighley & Worth Valley Railway £130,000
    East Lancs Railway £103,929
    Talyllyn Railway £85,000

    *includes £42k stations, excludes track appeal

    Patrick
     
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  2. nanstallon

    nanstallon Part of the furniture

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  3. 007

    007 Member

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    Swanage just tipped over £185k
     
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  4. johnofwessex

    johnofwessex Resident of Nat Pres

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    Given that the Mid Hants say that they need £75000 pcm to keep going, its interesting to see that based on that figure the SVR can carry on for 10 months but the WSR for only two
     
  5. Greenway

    Greenway Part of the furniture

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    The petition to the three is now over half way to 500 now.
     
  6. Andy Norman

    Andy Norman Member

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    Joint Press Statement by the PLC, WSRA & WSSRT just released on Steve Edges’s site: http://www.wsr.org.uk/news.htm#2058

    It’s of course as always open to personal interpretation & opinion but as somebody close to the action, this to me says: ‘Nothing has changed, all three of the Boards are still doing the same and the structure will remain unaltered because nothing is wrong and its all working well’. And ‘We made a great profit and have done a great job yet still need your money and the S&D situation has not changed because we won’t back down and just remove the eviction notice to give us all some time to save the WSR together’.

    For me the bit about the WSR Family all working together to save the WSR and welcoming Volunteers with open arms is the part I struggle with. The Volunteers run out of town for voicing opinions and the S&D who are still being evicted are all a part of the family surely? These people are not feeling the warmth of the family fire currently.

    It does however seem that the three Boards are huddled together keeping each other company trying to convince each other that if they just keep doing the same thing it will be all OK.
     
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  7. martin1656

    martin1656 Nat Pres stalwart Friend

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    You can not be part of the solution, if your part of the problem, clearly the only hope for any future will be once the present structures and personalities have been swept away , Clearly those at the top do not include the S&D as being part of the railway, and it would serve them right if the legal case does topple the entire railway, and because of it, the WSR , and those so called supporting groups cease to be, and that a new group, of more open minded people can build something from the ashes.
     
  8. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Well, that's a view but the statement doesn't say that they will 'just keep doing the same thing'. They are saying 'we all see this in the same way and have agreed a common plan and goal'.

    Now if that isn't true then perhaps one of the three groups should break cover and say it in the way that it really is.

    If not, then perhaps everyone should 'put up or shut up'. Now there's a novel idea.

    Of course, those who believe that the current structure is the problem and not the solution will not be satisfied with any joint statement so around the houses you all go again.
     
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  9. nanstallon

    nanstallon Part of the furniture

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    Although the plc deserves to be toppled, it would take a very long time (maybe not even then) to 'build something from the ashes'. It looks very grim, when you have the plc, WSRA and the Trust all set on a path of destruction.
     
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  10. baldbof

    baldbof Well-Known Member Friend

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    Martin, did you read the statement?

    Is it significant that the statement actually mentions that the S&DRT is part of the 'West Somerset Family'? (it's mentioned in the footnote).
     
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  11. 6960 Raveningham Hall

    6960 Raveningham Hall Member Friend

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    So prepare for many more pages of repetitive nonsense.
     
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  12. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    The actual press release linked from that news item stresses throughout the phrase "WSR family", and in a footnote, clarifies what that means thus (my emphasis):

    The West Somerset ‘family’ is made up of the Diesel Electric Preservation Group, Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust, West Somerset Railway Association, West Somerset Railway Plc, West Somerset Steam Railway Trust and the Friends of the Stations groups
    So it does read a little oddly to note that on the one hand there has been great co-operation across the WSR family, while in the same document noting that there is an ongoing dispute subject to resolution with one of those family members!

    Talk of the £311k plc profit still jars with me: I think the real situation would be much better conveyed if they had used a phrase such as "£311k contribution to the company's financial reserves, which will be greatly needed in this period of reduced income". That would be a better way to acknowledge the financial performance while making clear that the money was still desperately needed.

    Tom
     
  13. D1039

    D1039 Guest

    The subsequent statement targets "£500,000 we need to keep the railway going and finish works off" [my emphasis, so includes the track appeal fund in the £170k raised], presumably until a resumption in March 2021. In round terms that's £50k a month.

    (This isn't intended as nit picking, I infer a lesser sum will be spent than 2021's dose of the £500,000 a year required on track works?)

    Patrick
     
  14. ghost

    ghost Part of the furniture

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    Is the reformation of the PDG, simply 'going through the motions' to make another attempt to buy the freehold? After the last 2 attempts by the PLC going solo, the council told the PLC that the PDG was the only way they would deal with them.

    Keith
     
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  15. 60044

    60044 Member

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    I wonder if anyone tried telling Nelson Mandela that!
     
  16. Forestpines

    Forestpines Well-Known Member

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    It's a worrying sign for the WSR's health that it doesn't seem to be planning to resume operating until a full six months after some other lines' target dates
     
  17. Forestpines

    Forestpines Well-Known Member

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    It's a fair point to note that Mandela fought bravely and consistently his whole life for the cause of right - but at the same time, it did take a change of generations and personalities on the other side for his cause to be successful
     
  18. gwilialan

    gwilialan Well-Known Member

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    Some things I find a bit strange there. Yet again there are ambiguous comments and bland, meaningless statements that raise more questions than they answer.
    " 1 The West Somerset ‘family’ is made up of the Diesel Electric Preservation Group, Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust, West Somerset Railway Association, West Somerset Railway Plc, West Somerset Steam Railway Trust and the Friends of the Stations groups."
    Do they consider the S&DRT to be part of the family? So why evict them? Or art they only 'Part of the family' when it suits them?

    "During this period, the leasehold issue between the Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust and the West Somerset Plc.... an independent review has been completed by the Heritage Railway Association... This has not been a matter for the WSRA & WSSRT to determine, but all parties have been involved and assisted in the review."
    A review of what? I doubt the HRA are in a position to make a decision on the legality of the eviction. So it's nothing to do with anyone else except the Plc and S&DRT ... so why have " ...all parties..." been involved? And, of course, nothing about publicising the result of the review...

    "We have also agreed that the WSR ‘Partnership Development Group’ will restart soon too, and which had been under discussion internally for some time."
    Oh really? it's strange the Plc has never mentioned this before, while most other groups have. It's strange the Plc is now saying this after being told in no uncertain terms that SCC will only deal with the PDG regarding the freehold.

    And from the Chairman:-

    "We’re a third of the way there now towards raising £500,000 we need to keep the railway going and finish works off"
    What does this mean? Which works? Not so long ago it was £500k a year to catch up on the maintenance backlog. It seems like this £500k figure is being bandied about all the time now, irrespective of what's actually needed.

    "In the end, we all care deeply about the West Somerset Railway and wish to protect it from harm. Covid -19 is a serious threat to that ambition, but one we are determined to overcome."
    Judging by previous WSR family fallings out, perhaps we should also include ignorance, complacency, and hidden personal agendas to that list of threats?

    So again, odd snippets of partial information raising more questions and no real answers. Nothing new there to make me more likely to put my hand in my pocket for the Plc and now knowing that the WSRA and WSSRT are supporting the Plc makes it very unlikely that they are going to get anything either.
     
  19. Piggy

    Piggy Member

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    i think you'll find the SCC have already rejected that concept 'unless all members of the PDG are in accord', or words to that effect.
     
  20. nanstallon

    nanstallon Part of the furniture

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    Every family has a black sheep - I suspect that is how the S&DRT are regarded by the plc, WSRA and Trust. The Washford notice to quit needs to be withdrawn.
     

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