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SVR General Discussion

Discussion in 'Heritage Railways & Centres in the UK' started by threelinkdave, Aug 20, 2014.

  1. Kje7812

    Kje7812 Part of the furniture

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    Extracting some details from the October Branchlines, the 2022 season will start in April with the Spring Steam Gala being 21st-24th April.
    This is due to the combined effects of NR bridge replacement at KR and the roof replacement at Bridgnorth and the disruption to C&W and the loco works respectively.
     
  2. Southernman99

    Southernman99 Member Friend

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    The gala being in April has nothing to do with the roof replacement at Bridgnorth. The decision was made a few years ago to bring the gala into April due to multiple years of terrible weather.

    The season actually starts on the 2nd of April.
     
  3. Southernman99

    Southernman99 Member Friend

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    The gala being in April has nothing to do with the roof replacement at Bridgnorth. The decision was made a few years ago to bring the gala into April due to multiple years of terrible weather.

    The season actually starts on the 2nd of April.
     
  4. Robin

    Robin Well-Known Member Friend

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    The 2017, 2018 and 2019 galas were all in the third week in March as normal. 2020 was moved to April because Falling Sands wasn't completed until then. Obviously 2021 couldn't take place in March because of Covid restrictions. The article in Branch Lines is clear that the 2022 date is due to the line not reopening until April because of Bridgnorth and Kidderminster. I don't recall reading anything in SVR News or Branch Lines to say that the change to April is permanent. Do you have a source to confirm that it is?
     
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  5. Southernman99

    Southernman99 Member Friend

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    Conversations with members of the gala commitee. I am not willing to out anyone on here.

    Moving the gala away from March has added benefits with infastructure work. It gives us more time to complete the work. We are sacrificing 6 weeks of running next year and I would not be surprised if happens more often, not every year but if there are major works taking place. Not having those 6 weeks allows alot more to be achieved.
     
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  6. D1039

    D1039 Guest

    I've heard nothing, but wouldn't necessarily expect to have.

    Last century, galas were in April. It wouldn't be a huge surprise to hear they'd moved back and as @Southernman99 says, there's benefits in doing so.

    On later starts, you might look silly in the years with a warm and sunny March followed by a foul April, but that's a temperate climate for you.

    Patrick
     
  7. Robin

    Robin Well-Known Member Friend

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    Thanks - no need to name names. I guess we'll have to see what happens over the next year or two.
     
  8. NathanP

    NathanP Member

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    Great day on the SVR today. I enjoyed 2 round trips (64 miles) behind the Flying Pig. The 2 speed restrictions either side of Hampton Loade are still there due to subsidence, hopefully SVR can get it sorted. On my final trip back to Kidderminster we passed 9466's train at Arley, but it was coupled to the back and Class 50 Ark Royal was hauling the train instead, so I assume 9466 failed and was hitching a lift back to the yard at Bridgnorth.
     
  9. D1039

    D1039 Guest

    9466 vacuum fault, I gather, with 50035 all crewed and ready to go for an ECS it was able to thunderbird 9466 and take the train to Kidderminster. The 4.10 departure to Bridgnorth was delayed by only 12 minutes, and yes 9466 was on the back.

    The two slips at Sterns and Alveley are being monitored. Both have had some drainage work. That at Sterns may benefit from a project with Birmingham University described in June's Branch Lines ('Exciting developments at Sterns' https://www.svrlive.com/bljun21). I think the plan was to move it ahead in the Autumn, but there was a delay. It's on my mental list to ask the infrastructure manger for an update for a future edition. Easy, quick and cheap are words that will be missing from any update, unless preceded by the word 'not'!

    Glad you had a good day

    Patrick
     
  10. Southernman99

    Southernman99 Member Friend

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    The slip/s in the woods are more than a bit of drainage work. Idle conversation with the Pway over time sounds like a deeper formation issue.
    Culverts blocked up causing water to run along and under the formation.
    There are 2 slips in the woods. The northern most one is the most recent and has the movement detectors. There is a slip further south towards Country Park halt which was a collapsed culvert a few years ago but that has left a distinct rollercoaster of a depression in the formation.
     
  11. D1039

    D1039 Guest

    Correct. The slip at Sterns is fundamentally geological as Chris Bond mentioned in the Branch Lines link above. The drainage to which I referred is the £120k of ameliorating/remedial work to date, but a geological solution is hoped for.

    If people are interested there's more in the Branch Lines archive in issues April and June to September 2020, and in January, April and June 2021 https://www.svrlive.com/blarchive

    Patrick
     
  12. KristianGWR

    KristianGWR Member

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    A selection of action from last Saturday, with 9466, 40106 and 50035. I hope you enjoy it :)
     
  13. Dead Sheep

    Dead Sheep Member

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    Have any shareholders here received a response about the withdrawal of benefits? I have e-mailed three times, posted twice (once using recorded delivery) and still not had the courtesy of a response.

    I now regret purchasing the shares in the first place.
     
  14. D1039

    D1039 Guest

    Some have posted they have, others have posted that they haven’t.

    More generally, the Chair’s going to be writing to all shareholders and a shareholders’ consultation group is to be set up (see latest branch lines e-newsletter). There was due to be a board meeting this week, I don’t know of course what was planned to be on the agenda but I guess now the letter will follow.

    Patrick


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
  15. gwralatea

    gwralatea Member

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  16. alastair

    alastair Well-Known Member

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    Yes, I have. I used the "contact us" function on the website, and a couple of weeks later received a lengthy response from the GM, I would guess a standard reply to all who had complained.

    I live a long way from the SVR and can visit very rarely. I was not complaining about the revision of travel benefits in itself, rather the extraordinarily crass way they were they were communicated with the assertion that shareholders using their benefits were somehow "costing" the railway, and that the railway had "given away" over £200k worth of travel to shareholders. Obviously this assertion rests on the highly questionable assumption that shareholders would, if they had not used their benefits, have purchased a full fare ticket. The GM's response to me totally ignored this point!

    As others have posted, all shareholders will apparently receive a letter re. the benefits issue shortly.
     
  17. WesternRegionHampshireman

    WesternRegionHampshireman Well-Known Member

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    Interesting.
     
  18. alts1985

    alts1985 Well-Known Member

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    Visited Saturday as had accommodation near-by booked for the GWSR gala that later got moved and we couldn't re-arrange as it was no longer in half term. Rather felt like a mini-gala with two steam and two diesel trains including the goods refreshers. Didn't travel but had lunch in the engine house and my son boosted his toy train collection by spending £35 in the Erlestoke Manor coach at Bewdley! Video from Highley and Bewdley featuring all five locos running 75069, 43106, 50035, 1501 & 40106. Really enjoy my visits to the Severn Valley, will be back in April for the Spring Gala!

     
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  19. kieranhardy

    kieranhardy Well-Known Member

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    43106 catches the last of the Autumn sun yesterday afternoon.....
    IMG_4347_lzn copya.jpg
     
  20. Johnb

    Johnb Nat Pres stalwart

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    Last edited: Nov 3, 2021

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