Another yellow card to TG for encouraging the learned member for Minehead. 

 
Also, 'other mines are available'.

Look at an aerial photo of the present day quarry and locate at about ten o'clock relative to the deep excavation, the 'Island' of greenery atop unexcavated ground and connected by vegetation to the quarry lip. That's 'Garth Shaft' or 'Little Garth' "Worked since medieval times. Reopened and extensively modified for ammunition storage 1939-1945" The current quarriers not keen to approach it it seems.

Mark

https://buddlepit.co.uk/mine-explorer/Database/MineDetails.html?id=uaX1J5QJ6Kxt9PL6m3dw0g==

 
The Garth Iron Mine at Pentyrch certainly looking as though it could have been a contributor to this. This photo from Flickr show large underground spaces, and there's a useful description in the accompanying text.

Mark

https://www.flickr.com/photos/thereggy/404621391

 

The maximum length of an IET is 12 vehicle, a fundamental limit set in the requirement whatever the unit lengths might have been.

As I understand it, this is roughly how the allocation feature in RTT works. RTT gets train formation data from TOCs by agreement, not via any "official" NR data feed. The TOCs must get the information off their own train planning systems. If a train contains two units then two allocation data items are sent. If an extra unit is coupled to lengthen a train already notified then a second allocation item is sent.

If one unit replaces another there ought to be an allocation deletion item as well as a new allocation item. But if the deletion item is missing, RTT has no way of knowing this is not two units being coupled. No doubt a check against the coupled length limits could be added, but it hasn't been (yet).

 
It was opened today prior to first services tomorrow. Plenty of photos on GWR X account

 
I hope GWR have a successful launch of Okehampton Interchange tomorrow and also without service disruptions in the coming weeks and months so it beds in before winter. I also hope that there's not too much of an impact on Okehampton itself putting the cafe at risk etc.

 



Err ... is this what they are talking about?


Surely not  ...
* This is disruption well after 19:45
* Westbury to Swindon is not "in the Gloucester area"
* The problem is reported to be causing delays, not short runnings /part cancellations.

 



All buses on services 271/2/3 will be running Shaw Hill and Folly Lane - that's a diversion for all buses on routes 271 and 273.  Bus route 272 normally runs Shaw Hill and Folly lane anyway, except for the first Monday to Friday service from Bath which diverges from the norm when it can, and goes through Whitley at around 08:15.

 

Platform 5 at Paddington, from where it started, won't accommodate more than 10 carriages? 

 

 
Report in Wales Online here:

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/devastating-scenes-welsh-village-people-34379389

Thankfully not impacting on today's rail network as the line there is on the other side of the River Taff.

A blast in the quarry there was followed by the unexpected appearance beyond its perimeter of a volume of water, mud and debris, flowing rapidly and impacting around 15 houses among other things. I'm wondering if the source was the long out of use ironstone mine adit shown on the map below. The village itself is built on made ground on the site of what was the Pentyrch iron works so there are opportunities for other sources for this mischief - for starters, the natural watercourse that drains the valley above is culverted beneath the entire site.

https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16.5&lat=51.53903&lon=-3.27392&layers=257&b=LIDAR_DTM_1m&o=100

The road below the site of the level and leading downhill to the affected settlement has this structure looming above it, over the last few years its had a bit of vegetation removed from it. (Google Streetview)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/g12tX2eovmDkCZce7

This event as it was looks to have been very much on a scale that posed a risk to life - I'm surprised it's not higher profile in the news. Given slightly different geography, this would have resulted in collapsed buildings full of mine debris, something that has terrible resonances in the South Wales valleys.

Mark

** the quarry is singular in that its excavation has severed a substantial tunnel on a disused railway line - the Barry Railway's route tunnelled through the hill, before crossing the valley on a (mostly demolished) viaduct and the quarry has removed a section of the tunnel.

 
I was looking at RTT to see which trains sped through Chippenham yesterday evening while I was waiting for my Melksham service, and spotted this:
https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:W34637/2026-07-30

Do 14 coach IETs really exist? I didn't notice that it was any longer than usual, but it was motoring.

 

Brockley Combe the place of nightmares. A38 closed, so I took a Falcon (49ft long, rear steering) up the a370 and in through Brockley Combe. Met a tractor and trailer rather awkwardly.

 
The Corsham Road in Whitley/Shaw is closed here today and for the next 6 weeks:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/iXtjN6H5c25bdueN9

That means that any of the 27x Devizes/Melksham/Bath buses that would have turned off the Bath Road and passed through the village before rejoining the Bath Road in Atworth are now staying on the Bath Road. Similarly in the opposite direction of course.

The 69 Corsham/Melksham/Bradford-on-Avon/Trowbridge that also passes through Whitley is unaffected as it misses out the closed section of the Corsham Road.

So those Whitley residents reliant on the 27x to (say) get to Bath and who are unable to cover the up to 3/4 of a mile to a Bath Road 27x stop might be able to use the 69 for the initial leg of a 2 bus trip. But it's inconvenient at best. And the village does have a relatively high proportion of elderly residents. Not good.

 

A few weeks back I travelled from Charlbury to Hereford, and with an advance First being cheaper than Standard, I went first class for perhaps the first time in 20 years. Happily accepted the seat it picked for me, only to find on boarding the train that it had no windows at all. Cattle class with no windows I get, though I agree they should be replaced with luggage racks. But First...?

Fortunately (for some value of "fortunately") the train wasn't too busy so I could find another seat, but since it ended up being 1hr+ late it was effectively free. Perhaps just as well given the aircon had packed up and it was one of those 30°C+ days...

 
A thought provoking post!

Firstly, I had to get my measuring tape to me favourite "main" travel bag/case (it's a soft bodied one, and I'm never sure if it's a bag or case!) as I'm hopeless at estimating dimensions and it was comfortably less, as was my old backpack that it largely superseded when I realised that I had reached the age when having wheels on a bag/case had become a welcome facility rather than a sign of decadence.

Having re-assured myself on this, I recalled that in the days when Turbos were not a fleet of tired old trains scattered throughout the GWR network filling gaps not covered by other equally old stock, the North Downs line used the two types (165s, simple high-density stock with minimal comforts, and 166s, with "air-con", some seats in the centre coach in groups of four around tables, and 3 tip-up seats at one end of this coach creating a small-but-useful luggage space) sensibly. The 165s were used on the all-stops services from Reading to Redhill or Shalford, the 166s on the alternative semi-fasts limited stop services going all the way to Gatwick.

In due course this arrangement seems to have broken down, and by the time my daily North Downs commute came to an end with Covid in 2020, the line was (it seemed) almost entirely run using 165s, and even before many Turbos were cascaded following electrification to Didcot it seemed to have become random as to which type was used on which service.

It really did make a difference. A peak (or shoulder) hours Gatwick train during the busy holiday period using a 165 really struggled. It doesn't take too many large airline cases in vestibules or taking up seats to have quite a material adverse impact on the comfort and convenience of all passengers.

So yes please, more luggage space. I'd suggest that those wretched seats on IETs with no windows be removed to provide them!  

  

 

 
It's an interesting one.

I often see customers getting on/off trains at Reading staggering under the size and weight of luggage that if carried by air would probably involve remortgaging the house to pay for.

It is rather inconsiderate especially on busy trains where there is nowhere near sufficient storage, it takes up space, can be dangerous and is often placed on seats.

Maybe an excess luggage fee could be charged - certainly if someone decides that their suitcase needs a seat they should be charged the full price for a ticket.

I guess in the old days the Guard's van came in handy in these circumstances?

 
Daily Mash: https://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/passengers-to-pay-less-for-trains-that-dont-turn-up-2-20260731268290

 
Real time trains showing a fabulous - half hourly - service on a sample date - 17th December.   All class 5 trains which as I recall means they're not available to the public.

 
Unfortunately we aren't going to see the class 800 replaced by Pendolinos.

But there was a Pendolino at Paddington today to and I quote Philip Haigh "It’s here to bring down the curtain on Railway 200 with GWR 800012 named alongside to commemorate last year’s Greatest Gathering at Derby."
https://x.com/philatrail/status/2083156644544811154?s=20

It was apparently renumbered from 3900016 to 390200 for the day.

 
According to the latest Oxford Clarion we may have a solution to the problem of 'guards' on trains:
"Chiltern is now advertising for Customer Service Inspectors to work from its Bletchley depot, the base for East West Rail services. The inspectors will perform guard-like duties such as “provide a high level of customer care on trains”, “take part in revenue protection activities on trains”, “perform on-train announcing”, and “take action to rectify or report faults”.

The train doors will still be operated by drivers, not guards, so services could run without a second staff member in exceptional circumstances – as is common south of London. An internal Government document says that issues at Winslow station will not obstruct entry to service, and that the trains have been upgraded to support ‘Superpower mode’, which improves acceleration, to meet the tight timetable. With Chiltern due to be nationalised on 20 September, a December start date for the Oxford–Milton Keynes service is now widely expected."

https://oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-weekend-31-july-2026/

I don't know whether this is a coincidence but I have noticed more class 196 trains at Oxford in recent weeks.

 
Not sure why it's Network Rail who have chosen to stick its head above the parapet on this as they've hardly been the ones that have contributed to the issue. If we take GWR's restriction of 'No item of accompanied luggage with any dimension greater than 90cm' that's my ordinary travel rucksack out of the window as well as the otherwise very portable unnamed musical instrument of choice. This also brings to mind past rail travel with a 5' 5" paddle boat hook, the coracle, a 12 foot pair of oars (though not all at the one time) but that's me rather than the more general population.

GWR's current bête noire must be the accompanied flight suitcases that make their way through their rail network like antelope corpses through an anaconda. The DfT having happily specc'd a train interior intended for the morning commuter run inbound from Reading - conveniently overlooking that the trains would also serve everywhere from Penzance to Pembroke, the result is a situation of frequent low level (and not so low level) conflict.

One solution would be dedicated luggage space, which brings the shackles of additional staff resources needed, extended (booked and in the timetable) station stops for the resultant admin. Links below are NR's Bluesky post and their linked media release. But perhaps a slightly more flexible interior space would have greatly helped with this and also provided space for children to travel in their wheeled containers rather than everyone facing the disruption arising from their forced removal from said containers when they're taken aboard a train.

(It goes without saying that the people responsible for the cycle space on the IEPs will be looking forward to a very interesting conversation at the pearly gates...)

Mark

https://bsky.app/profile/networkrail.bsky.social/post/3mrub5x7yej2d

https://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/news/plan-ahead-and-pack-smart-as-millions-take-to-the-rails-this-summer

 
From the BBC:

 

I have added that ... branch line to Fowey Docks ...

 
From news at Hastings Diesels

 

Even more direct - a new line from Nailsea & Backwell, up Brockley Combe. 

CfN. 

 
For assistance in understanding, for any of our readers without local knowledge of Bristol, I can explain here that any references to 'the Bearpit' actually relate to the St James Barton Roundabout: see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bearpit,_Bristol

CfN. 

 

I'd wager that the complete? removal or buses from Union Street and Horsefair is mainly to ease the redevelopment of Broadmead and The Galleries - particularly the old Debenhams building.

As for trams, extrapolating from the WECA strategy document, they are thinking of a three line tram system - Airport to TM, TM to Cribbs/Brabazon/Parkway and TM to Keynsham/Bath via A4. Mind you, I can't really see how they can do any of that other than with a lot of mixed road running, but that's another matter. 

On that basis, TM to Stokes Croft is Victoria Street, Wine Street, Union Street, Haymarket and I would also lay money on the Bear Pit being filled in with HM Gov cash as Sheffield did when they built their system. So an almost completely pedestrianised Broadmead. 

 
Is it the case that this rail-borne traffic ceased as of yesterday? One for a future 'On this day'...

Mark