Save the Melksham Train
Archived Save the Train forum articles - 2005 to 2010. See below
View from Romsey - 1061/2973
Written by camerar on Saturday, 13th January 2007

Further down the line in Romsey, the discontent is covered in the current edition of the local paper.

http://www.romseyadvertiser.co.uk/display.var.1120350.0.winter_of_discontent_for_rail_passengers.php


Winter of discontent for rail passengers

COMMUTERS can expect further disruption and misery on trains around Romsey.

It follows weeks of cancellations and late-running trains operated by First Great Western. But the company's regional manager, Andrew Griffiths, said FGW hoped to get its services back on track soon.

Mr Griffiths said problems started when the new timetable was introduced last month.

"On the same day, we also took in-house the maintenance of the local train fleet, the standards of the previous contractor not being up to scratch," he said.

Mr Griffiths explained that a new

Re: View from Romsey - 1061/3021
Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Sunday, 14th January 2007

Many thanks for posting that .... the tales of woe continue.  There are different issues in different parts of the area; is there an overcrowding problem (as from Trowbridge right through to Bristol) or a problem of no trains scheduled AT ALL as we have at Melksham, or is the main misery relating to unreliable running (cancellarions, delays, etc?)

Re: View from Romsey - 1061/3521
Written by camerar on Friday, 26th January 2007

Another article has appeared this week, words from the local MP.

http://www.romseyadvertiser.co.uk/display.var.1149961.0.fgw_not_fit_to_run_a_train_set_says_mp.php

FGW 'not fit to run a train set' says MP

ROMSEY'S MP has slammed services provided by troubled train operator First Great Western and says the company should have its franchise taken away.

An angry Mrs Gidley said: "It's quite obvious that First Great Western is just not fit for purpose and should not even be responsible for a train set, let alone a whole network. If First Great Western could not afford the premium payments for the franchise without slashing services to a bare minimum, while at the same time increasing prices so steeply they should not have been awarded the contract in the first place.

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Save the Train was the campaign to bring an approriate train service back to and through Melksham.

Most big contributors are still around writing at the Coffee shop forum where new members are very welcome.

The train has been saved - sort of - we have stepped back up from an unusable service to a poorish one but it's doing very well. We did that through setting up the TransWilts Community Rail Partnership. That fulfilled its early objectives; it has been taken over by local and regional government types who are now doing medium and long term work. The team from this forun can also be found at the Melksham Rail User Group (which was the Melksham Rail Development Group at the time these articles were written and we had no users.

We mustn't loose sight, though, that the train service remains poor and needs our community support in marketing and campaigning to keep it going in a positive direction ... and all the more so when we're expecting to find a different normallity once we get out of the Coronavirus Pandemic and head for zero carbon via the climate crisis. Yes, it's saved ... it's now a key community facility ... the need for enhancement and the strong and near-universal local support remain, and the rail industry and goverment remain slow to move and provide the enhancements even to level us up with other towns. Please support the Melksham Rail User Group - now very much in partnership rather than protest with the rail industry and local government, including GWR, TransWilts and unitary and town councils. And please use the trains and buses, and cycle and walk when you can.

-- Graham Ellis, (webmaster), February 2021


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