Direct Oxford to Swindon rail service set to begin after 23 years

A direct rail service from Oxford to Swindon is expected to set off for the first time in more than 20 years.

The first daily direct service will begin on Monday from 07:00 BST, travelling from Oxford to Bristol Temple Meads, after Network Rail and Great Western Railway (GWR) gave the final sign-off on Friday. The new service, which comes back into operation after 23 years, cuts more than 10 minutes off the current fastest weekday journey time to under 30 minutes.

Marcus Jones, Network Rail western route director, said the service would "open up new opportunities for work, education and leisure".

Currently, there are no direct services between Swindon and Oxford, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service. Passengers have to change at Didcot Parkway or Reading to travel between the two stations.

It comes after the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) approved a bid on 13 May from GWR to run a two-hourly service between Bristol, Swindon and Oxford on weekdays and Saturdays from 17 May.

The new service will run Monday to Saturday, between Bristol Temple Meads, Bath Spa, Chippenham, Swindon and Oxford. The first service leaves Oxford at 07:00 on Monday, arriving into Swindon at 07:30 and Bristol Temple Meads at 08:20. From Bristol, the first train will leave at 07:14, arriving into Swindon at 07:59 and Oxford at 08:32. Fastest direct journey times from Oxford will be one hour and eight minutes, and from Bristol one hour and 11 minutes.

Jones said: "These links will make it easier for people to travel between key economic centres, opening up new opportunities for work, education and leisure, while we continue to deliver further improvements across the route in the months ahead."

Transport Secretary and Swindon South MP Heidi Alexander said the service would "provide a fast, convenient alternative to being stuck in a traffic jam on the A420".

Mark Hopwood, GWR managing director, said: "We are confident that these new services demonstrate the value of rail in driving economic growth, environmental benefits, and creating education and employment opportunities."

Flypast celebrates Lancaster bomber sculpture


The steel sculpture, which is nearly 100ft wide, is tilted to appear as though the Lancaster is in flight - Image © BBC/Joe Bilton

An aircraft from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF) has taken to the skies over Lincolnshire to celebrate the inauguration of a full-sized sculpture of a Lancaster Bomber.

The flypast by Hurricane PZ865 on Friday was part of a series of events to mark the completion of the steel structure, known as On Freedom's Wings, which took eight years to create from scratch.

A thousand people have been invited to the celebrations, but the site is yet to open to the public.

Speaking ahead of the flypast, Charlie White, from the Bomber County Gateway Trust, said: "I think it will give people a bit of a shock when they come up now and see [the sculpture] and realise exactly what we've achieved."



The steel sculpture, which is nearly 100ft (29m) wide and perched in a field next to the A46 in Norton Disney, near the Nottinghamshire border, is tilted to appear as though the Lancaster is in flight. It is intended to honour the RAF crews of World War Two.

White said the site was not fully open to the public because of planning permission issues with the car park.

A dedication service was held at the site on Friday by the Bishop of Lincoln. It marked the start of the weekend celebrations, which include a charity ball on Friday night, afternoon tea on Saturday and a bar on Sunday.

White said another BBMF flypast was expected over the weekend. The site had been open to visitors at times during the installation process because of the huge amount of public interest it had attracted, he added.

"Since we opened it up, we've realised everybody wants to come and walk underneath and see it," he said. "I'm sort of struck every day by just seeing it and walking out and being able to share it sort of with the county of Lincolnshire. I feel ecstatic about the whole project."

Lack of stock for those journeys I reckon


Strewth. Not even an hour.

British firm vying to build next Red Arrows jets goes into administration


The Hawk T1 jet, as used by the Red Arrows, will go out of service in 2030

A British aerospace company that was developing a replacement for the famous Red Arrows fighter jet has gone into administration, resulting in the loss of about 30 jobs.

Aeralis had pitched itself as the only British firm able to supply a new advanced jet trainer that would be designed and built in the UK. The firm was hoping the UK government would award it a contract to replace the Hawk jets currently flown by the RAF's Red Arrows before they are due to be retired in 2030.

The administrators said the company had faced "a sustained period of pressure" on its cashflow after "continued delays to the UK Defence Investment Plan, combined with geopolitical factors affecting sources of funding".

A Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesperson said: "The fast jet trainer programme is ongoing and no final procurement decisions have been made. More broadly, this government is backing British jobs, British industry, and British innovators - since July 2024, we have signed 1,200 major contracts, with 93% of the spend going to UK-based companies."

The BBC has been told the company's main investor Barzan Holdings, the strategic investment and procurement arm of Qatar's Ministry of Defence, withdrew its funding amid the US-Israeli war with Iran. A potential agreement Aeralis was exploring to make jets for the French government also failed to materialise. The company filed for administration on Friday.

In a statement, Joanne Milner from administrators Buchler Phillips, said: "Aeralis has developed a highly differentiated proposition within the aerospace and defence sector. We hope that the administration process will provide an opportunity to explore routes to preserve and develop that value for stakeholders."

Aeralis chairman Robin Southwell said the decision to go into administration had been taken after "careful consideration of the company's position and the funding challenges it has faced over recent months. We will continue to support the joint administrators as they explore viable, sustainable options for the future of the business and engage with interested parties."

In an interview prior to Aeralis going into administration, Southwell told the BBC the delay in the investment plan was making life "very difficult for companies such as ours and others". He urged the UK government to give "clarity and direction" to the MoD to "allow companies like ours to start generating the jobs, opportunities, ambitions and exports that this country clearly needs".

Last year, the UK government's Strategic Defence Review recommended the Hawks should be replaced by a "cost-effective, advanced trainer jet". The review suggests that MoD procurement should prioritise British businesses to benefit the UK economy.

The MoD is considering options to replace the Hawk jets. Aircraft offered by BAE Systems, Leonardo and several other companies are also considered to be contenders to replace the Hawk but no decisions have been made.

The long-awaited investment plan to deliver the review's recommendations has been delayed significantly and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is facing growing pressure to publish it. This week, Sir Keir told MPs the defence investment plan was being "finalised" as he outlined his government's legislative programme in the King's Speech.

Last month Lord Robertson, the former Labour defence secretary who wrote the Strategic Defence Review, accused Sir Keir's government of showing "corrosive complacency" on defence.

Southwell said Aeralis had been talking to the French government about the possibility of building its jet in the country. But Aeralis's preference was to design and manufacture parts of its advanced trainer jet at the company's sites across the UK, before assembling the aircraft at Prestwick International Airport in Ayrshire, Scotland.

The company estimates that its programme could have created 4,000 new jobs in the UK and generate £600m in annual exports. But the aircraft has only been designed digitally at this stage, with the company saying it needed government backing to start production.

Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow at the RUSI think tank, said the Aeralis option was "purely theoretical, and its only attraction is the promise of UK jobs at some point".

"Its downsides include high programme and development risks, and long realistic timeframes until any serviceable aircraft might be delivered, compared to alternatives that already exist," Bronk said.

He added: "A strong fast jet training pipeline is fundamental to all other UK combat air capabilities, so risk should not be taken with ensuring it is modernised rapidly and with high levels of assurance."

Bronk said jet trainers developed by Leonardo, or Boeing/Saab in partnership with BAE Systems, were "low-risk, high-quality" options that "could be delivered from the late 2020s".

BAE Systems is working with US manufacturer Boeing and Sweden's Saab to develop the T-7 jet into a replacement for the Hawk, and has committed to assembling the aircraft in the UK.

"Our joint approach brings together three leading global defence primes at the heart of UK combat air capability, offering the UK a next-generation, cost‑effective, capable and reliable solution," a BAE Systems spokesperson said.

Leonardo, an Italian company with operations in the UK, told the BBC its M-346 jet was "being assessed as an option for a number of emerging requirements".

"We will work with UK industrial partners to provide a compelling, UK low risk solution to the RAF advanced jet training requirement based on our proven and highly successful International Flying Training System," a Leonardo spokesperson said.

Well, the stock do have train managers aboard.

Presumably they're IETs as the National Rail site lists 1st class fares against them.

For Bath to Oxford:

Anytime standard day return £77.20

Bristol, Weston and Bath's free kids' holiday bus travel extended for three years

Children will be able to travel for free on buses across the West of England during school holidays for the next three years, it has been confirmed.

Helen Godwin, mayor for the West of England Combined Authority (Weca), introduced the scheme for under 16s shortly after being elected a year ago. It has now been extended to cover the summer, Easter and Christmas holidays until 2029.

It comes as research suggests the offer is having the biggest impact on young people in most deprived areas of the region.

Samira Musse, a mum from Barton Hill, said: "Every child was just excited to ride the bus. It gives them that freedom, that confidence to go somewhere by themselves with their friends."

About 1.4 million free journeys took place in the first trial year of the scheme, costing Weca £1.4m.

Research from the University of Bristol suggests the scheme was used more in the most deprived parts of the region. Average bus use increased by 32% during the scheme, this compares to a 56% rise in Lawrence Hill, and Hartcliffe saw a 130% spike, researchers found.

Musse, who is also a director of Barton Hill activity club, said she had heard stories of families using the scheme to visit new places. "Someone was telling us they went four times in one summer to Weston, they've never been before because they can't afford it," she added. "It's amazing - that opportunity for people to explore the city they live in with less cost."

The researchers recommended extending eligibility up to 18-year-olds, and extending it beyond the school holidays.

Neither of these ideas are currently being implemented because of the potential cost, though Godwin has previously indicated she would be in favour. "It gets people out and about," said Godwin, arguing that areas such as Radstock, Midsomer Norton and Yate had all seen increased footfall when the scheme was in place.

Funding for the scheme over the next three years will come from a £42m bus grant, which has been given to the combined authority by government for the mayor to distribute how she likes. The money will also be spent on discounts such as capping kids' fares at £1, free travel for care leavers, the Diamond pass for older and disabled bus users and to support bus services which are not commercially viable.

Taking train to wedding made it special, says bride


Bethan Seddon was given a special train ticket to mark the day - Image © Transport for Wales

A bride who travelled to her wedding ceremony by train said it made the day even more memorable.

Bethan Seddon, a regular user of the Coryton line in Cardiff, got to the altar on time by taking a South Wales Metro train to Penarth Pier Pavilion. She and her now-husband Chris had used the line throughout their relationship and wanted to make it part of their big day. "I know our guests were surprised when they heard the plan but Transport for Wales really made it special," Seddon said.


Fellow passengers and TfW staff congratulated her on the journey - Image © Transport for Wales

The bridal party boarded at Birchgrove and were surrounded by congratulatory passengers. Transport for Wales (TfW) staff - or as the groom dubbed them, "Transport for Veils" - were also on hand to celebrate. "The bridal party had the best time - and it got me to the ceremony right on time," Seddon added.

Marie Daly, from TfW, congratulated the couple and said the team was "delighted" to have played a part in their journey. "We're really pleased Bethan and Chris chose to make the South Wales Metro part of their wedding day," she added.

Given GWR's days are numbered is it worth the bother?

A good example of a service planned and implemented for a different market also having positive benefits elsewhere.

There have been whispers of exactly that happening!  Can’t see it myself, not for a few years at least, but you never know.

Yes - those are *very* pleasing ... and it is also pleasing to see practical commutes from Westbury, Trowbridge, Melkshan (and Chippenham and Swindon) to Oxford too.

Can they be persuaded to continue the service on to Milton Keynes? I understand that there is an unmet need for such a service and a nice newly rebuilt line available...

15:52 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 18:26 has been cancelled.
This is due to a fault on this train.

17:05 Didcot Parkway to Evesham due 18:24 will be cancelled.
This is due to a broken down train.

18:51 Evesham to Oxford due 19:50 will be cancelled.
This is due to a broken down train.

19:02 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 21:28 will be cancelled.
This is due to a fault on this train.

I can confirm it has been reinforced to staff yesterday via staff notice.

Personally I like someone sitting in those seats to have a yap to. On these coaches the driver is quite isolated away from the passengers, and it gets quite lonely! They also have audio cctv recording in the cab area, so the company will know exactly how the conversation went between driver and passenger.

Brilliant! For my Melksham-Bristol commute:

• it's now practical to catch the 07:21 from Melksham instead of the 06:29 (because if I miss the unofficial 07:33 connection at Chippenham (likely) there's the new 07:47, don't have to wait for the 08:09)
  
• what was going to be a >30 min wait at Chippenham (due to the 18:00 CPM-MKM moving to 18:09) is reduced to ~20 mins thanks to the new 17:15 from Bristol, which I'll catch instead of the 17:00.
  

GWR have to object.  It’s under the terms of the contract with the DfT.

Indeed, all good for a launch on Monday as originally hoped.  Services now in RealTimeTrains and the journey planners:

I'm wondering how the Coffeeshop forum's disruption map will render this service. (Obviously, also hoping it will not need to render it at all.)

Mark

Can they be persuaded to continue the service on to Milton Keynes? I understand that there is an unmet need for such a service and a nice newly rebuilt line available...

I’m hearing the start might not be delayed now!