Save the Melksham Train
Archived Save the Train forum articles - 2005 to 2010. See below
Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/6177
Written by Lee on Monday, 9th July 2007

Chiltern Railways could be auctioned as soon as late August by fund manager Henderson with bids expected to exceed 80 million pounds , industry sources said (link below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2007/07/chiltern_railways_sale_could_t.html#more

One of the sources said bids could approach 100 million pounds , adding , "It should happen in early autumn -- around late August or early September."

You may recall the link below.
http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1228.msg5571#msg5571

Re: Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/6393
Written by Lee on Friday, 20th July 2007

Here is an update on this (link below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2007/07/chiltern_trains_put_up_for_sal.html#more

National Express , the bus and train operator which has recently missed out in several major franchise bids , is expected to look at the business. Stagecoach Group , another large bus and train operator , is known previously to have considered buying Laing Rail but rejected the idea.

Re: Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/7673
Written by Lee on Tuesday, 18th September 2007

Chiltern Railways is being evaluated by around 15 potential bidders (link below.)
http://www.railchat.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=12170&start=0&st=0&sk=t&sd=a

Quote :

"The sale is for all of Laing's rail assets, so also includes a number of joint ventures like the London Overground and the Wrexham, Shropshire and Marylebone Railway."

Re: Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/8947
Written by Lee on Friday, 7th December 2007

Deutsche Bahn is reported by Financial Times Deutschland to be interested (link below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2007/12/deutsche_bahn_aims_to_buy_chil.html#more

With 60 multiple unit trains , the company is seen as a 'gem' , the paper added , citing industry sources.



Re: Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/8987
Written by Lee on Monday, 10th December 2007

Deutsche Bahn and NedRail , its Dutch equivalent , are the sole remaining bidders (link below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2007/12/rail_rivals_line_up_chiltern.html#more

In a separate move , the German group has applied to run services through the Channel tunnel , raising the prospect of it operating high-speed trains into Europe in competition with Eurostar.



Re: Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/9011
Written by courgettelawn on Wednesday, 12th December 2007

This is when you see (hopefully) the potential for good that a privatised railway can provide.  Something to compete with Eurostar is very tantalizing!

Re: Chiltern Railways To Be Sold Off - 2900/9574
Written by Lee on Monday, 21st January 2008

German national rail operator Deutsche Bahn plans to spend up to 170 million euros ($249.2 million) acquiring Britain's Laing Rail, the owner of Chiltern Railways, a German newspaper said on Sunday (links below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2008/01/deutsche_bahn_to_acquire_uks_l.html#more

http://oxfordmail.net/display.var.1981146.0.chiltern_railways_taken_over_by_germans.php

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7200275.stm

Citing sources involved in the negotiations, the Financial Times Deutschland (FTD) said Deutsche Bahn would announce the takeover of Laing on Monday, according to the advance copy of an article due to appear in the paper's Monday edition.



 
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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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