It's always invideous to compare two towns / two sets of public transport links as everywhere is a special case for some reason or another. But a weekend visit to the National Rail conference in Ely - population 16000 according to the 2001 census - lead to some natural comparisons; Melksham was hovering around the 20k mark at that time, and is now just shy of 24000.

What did I notice in Ely that contrasts to Melksham?  I noticed a major pedestrianised area, free parking, a riverside with boats that was made into a real feature and an asset to the town.  And I noticed a thriving public transport system with a railway station served not by four trains a day, but by more than four trains an hour.

Could Melksham aspire to some of these characteristics, or is it all "special cases"?  For sure, Ely is a tourist destination - a City with a catherdral, and a railway junction too where the traffic isn't limited to the locals. And yet it was thriving this Sunday morning as Lisa and I awaited the 10:56 through train to Paddington ... WITHOUT their being any incoming connections, and WITHOUT there being any noticable tourist traffic around.  And befor you tell me that Melksham station isn't in the centre of town .... neither is the station at Ely!