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West Somerset Railway General Discussion

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

  1. Forestpines

    Forestpines Well-Known Member

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    One hopes they will at the very least be able to run a skeleton service of Halloween specials
     
  2. RailWest

    RailWest Part of the furniture

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    At least then there would be no need to worry about social distancing :)
     
  3. pgbffest

    pgbffest New Member

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    How much compartment stock does the WSR have out of interest. Certainly the SVR, NYMR and NNR are running with Compartment Stock - is this something that the WSR have in sufficient numbers to provide a service? The former railways can therefore run a service without having any cost to make an attempt at being COVID safe (there's a term that Visit Britain use, but I can't remember what it is!). If you use a standard open, then your options are very limited - you either have to put a fair number of screens in, or your 64 seat SO becomes more of a 15 seater and it isn't worth it.

    It may be a good idea to wait for a few weeks to see the Trip Advisor reviews from other places to see what people are expecting and then you can think about it? In that period whilst any vehicles are being set up, then you can use other stock to retrain staff etc. So choosing not to trade may be done with good reasoning because they cannot (at a reasonable cost) get to a point where they can.
     
  4. flying scotsman123

    flying scotsman123 Resident of Nat Pres

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    I think it's been said that they only have 2 or 3 serviceable, one of which is a BSK so not full coach worth of compartments.
     
  5. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Just so, as with other heritage railways especially those like The Bluebell where there are individual historical vehicles that merit specific support.

    However, the single thing that has been the focus for everyone of late is the impact of the shutdown of the railways for which, as far as I can see, each railway has a single entry point from their main site that carries all the operating stuff and visitor news and a single donation focus. The WSR has one entry point and three foci - i.e. three groups. And unlike the other railways where the home page of the main web site takes you there, in Somerset it is off the WSRA site - i.e. not where you look for trains. :rolleyes:

    Life is never straightforward is it?
     
  6. Ian Monkton

    Ian Monkton Member

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    There are 3 SKs, one of which I believe is withdrawn pending overhaul, a BSK and a BCK. There is also the WSSRT's BCK which should have returned to service at the Spring Gala.
     
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  7. nanstallon

    nanstallon Part of the furniture

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    Nice one - a sense of humour is no bad thing these days.
     
  8. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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  9. Michael, I disagree.

    The stakeholder review presentation held on 2nd March 2017 discussed revised head lease and sub-lease arrangements in detail. The explanations given then did not deviate from John Irven's written words in the business plan. The meaning is clear and unambiguous, as I came to expect from that particular plc chairman.

    I have masses of plc/SCC FOI material dating back to Roger Savill's March 2011 approach to SCC's Paul Hickson when lease purchase was proposed by WSR plc. There is nothing to contradict JI's statements that I can find within that virtual paper mountain, and certainly nothing in the public domain. Happy to be disproved, as ever.
     
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  10. flying scotsman123

    flying scotsman123 Resident of Nat Pres

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    I'm shocked that there was absolutely no reference to the Bailey report in the PDG meeting, neither the half related to the S&DRT nor the half on new organisational structure. It had been "out" for a month by the time of that meeting. There don't appear to be any redactions either which might at least account for a lack of discussion on the S&DRT matter. September is simply too far away in the future for a resolution in my view.

    I thought @aldfort 's idea about a BL-NFW-WN service was a good one, and was dismissed too quickly if platform size was the best "excuse" that could be come up with. I refuse to accept that a platform the size of Minehead is necessary to keep passengers safe. Bear in mind that it is I think the largest platform on a heritage railway in the country, other railways are managing fine with considerably less! Running some trains to NFW would have the added attraction of some "rare track" which might be an additional attraction (it would be for me - I have never got round to that bit despite 2 gala visits). Given everyone is doing pre-booking, controlling platform access really oughtn't be too hard. If there are other reasons it won't work then so be it, but these phoney excuses make it a lot harder to work out if something is feasible or not. That is a general frustration of mine, not just aimed at the WSR by the way! :)

    It was also a shame that the Plc representative left just before the discussion on PR and comms... :rolleyes:
     
  11. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    On that point - I'm a contributor / member to two loco groups at the Bluebell, the Maunsell Loco Soc and the Atlantic Group. Both have been very explicit that the priority at the moment is to support the railway's main appeal.

    For example, in the latest BluebellNews, the MLS wrote (my emphasis):

    I am pleased to confirm that the Maunsell Locomotive Society is in a financially healthy position and we intend continuing with the overhaul of Stowe as soon as it is safe and practical to do so. Unfortunately the closure of the railway has left the railway with ongoing costs and little income. Therefore we urge all of our usual supporters to contribute to the Bluebell Railway’s emergency appeal – to help tide it over this crisis.​

    while in the latest issue of Atlantic News stresses the point even more forcefully. I'm sure the other fundraising groups based on the railway are saying the same. The bottom line is that most such groups are raising money for projects that will deliver in the medium to long term; but there will be no medium to long term if the short term is not secured - so that has to be the priority. For those groups to have a reduced level of income for six or twelve months is a price worth paying to ensure that as things return to normality, there will still be a railway on which to operate. Anything else would be a bit of a Pyrrhic victory.

    Tom
     
    Last edited: Jul 4, 2020
  12. Robin Moira White

    Robin Moira White Resident of Nat Pres

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    I was struck by the oddness of that comment. Twice in recent years we have used a marquee in Bishops Lydeard lower car park to manage passenger flows, holding back one load while the other disembarks. Most recently we did this last Christmas. This is a time when solutions are needed, not reasons for not doing things.

    Robin
     
  13. Let's hope neither the Terms of Reference nor the Governance Framework are specifically worded to exclude discussion of Bailey. It wouldn't surprise me.
     
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  14. Mel Hillman

    Mel Hillman New Member

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    Here we go........I have no official authority to say this but Bailey was not on the agenda because neither the S & D Trust nor the Plc asked for it. It is up to individual groups to submit agenda items and this is how PDG has operated since inception. There is nothing to preclude it from future discussion and the Governance framework clearly states that an earlier meeting can be called if circumstances demand. That was made clear in the original briefing paper. From what I read on this platform and information I receive as a Plc shareholder, talks around Bailey are ongoing and things might develop soon. I don't have that crystal ball to know when.
     
  15. Thanks for that helpful clarification Mel. It was the structure review element of Bailey that I was hoping would be on PDG's agenda, if only to decide whether JB's offer to facilitate initial discussion was to be taken up. The S&DRT negotiations, we understand, are rightly taking place in private between those relevant parties.

    Barrie
     
  16. RailWest

    RailWest Part of the furniture

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    Other than being the longest platform on the WSR, the key difference about MD is that most of it is an island platform, so therefore about twice the width of a normal platform such as that at BL. The extra width is just as crucial for social distancing as the length. Having said that, as others have commented already, my immediate reaction to reading the dismissal of the idea for BL was 'Why'?. Surely there are other ways to manage the number of passengers other than just the size of the platform?

    Another difference between BL and MD could be the nature of the access to non-travel facilities. At MD you could barrier off the platform just past Reader's Halt and only let pass it anyone wanting to board a train; they could still have unrestricted access to the shop, toilets, cafe etc. At BL however, other than the toilets being by the car-park, you need to access the platform in order to reach the cafe and shop (mind you, you won't be able to get many people IN the cafe and sitting outside to eat/drink will mess up any attempt to restrict passengers numbers on the platform). Access to the Gauge Museum might need access from the Down side, or just by going over the bridge only rather by along the Up platform.

    On the other hand, if we are not going to be running long trains, then why not just run short-ish trains to/from the Down platform only, leaving the Up platform as viewing/circulating space?
     
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  17. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    ....and why would they if there are ongoing mediated discussions between the S&DRT and PLC over the eviction notice, the outcome of which is not yet known, as are other elements of the Bailey Report.
     
  18. I think I might just have answered my own question. Both the plc and Steam Trust responses to Bailey were published AFTER the PDG meeting took place, so only the Association document might/would have been available. As Bailey was confidential to just four parties at the time, there would have been nothing to discuss, even within the WSR family. Now though, it's a different matter and I would therefore urge one or all of the PDG members to request another meeting PDQ!
     
  19. Sidmouth

    Sidmouth Resident of Nat Pres Staff Member Moderator

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    My copy of the SVR news arrived yesterday . in it the new GM Helen Smith outlines the plans for restarting the railway .What struck me was such a positive message , well thought out and clearly expecting that a staycation bounce to help sustain the summer
     
  20. Andy Norman

    Andy Norman Member

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    Pictures from the BBC web-site today of Taunton Deane Services and M5 near Exter, the M5 was by all accounts busier than a Bank Holiday weekend. Additionally caravan parks and camping sites around the area are already fully booked. Surely a reason to get the WSR open as soon as possible and not just for a shunting weekend with a Pannier in 4 weeks time !!
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-53292495

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