Still ongoing, no reopening date yet available.

 

Doubt it - they'll just 'repaint'/revinyl another set/s surely? Then you won't be able to tell very easily....

Anyway, off to Selhurst depot (via Newhaven! & Brighton apparently)

Reopening on September 1

 
Carriages being removed:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c79gpp4dvwxo

 

So I must offer my apologies - it ran 59% of the time, and on the occasions that it did run, was on average half an hour late - a triumph for a flagship service! 

 
It says ‘Opening Autumn 2026’ on the hoardings protecting the worksite, so I’d imagine it’ll open then, though you can’t really see what’s going on because of the hoardings.

 
According to the University of Bristol website, the Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus is due to open on the 8th Sept.  Has anyone heard anything about the new Temple Meads east entrance opening to coincide with this?  Have they even installed the new gates yet?

 

We were out on the river that night in a skiff, albeit the non tidal Thames, returning from Sunbury. Very clear and windless, with glassy reflections, and the 'Yarmouth Belle' passed us heading upstream, a lot of lights and kerfuffle from the party on board.

Not very long before, on a downstream trip on the tidal Thames in a skiff and in the centre of London, in to sight and heading upstream and making her way slowly against the ebbing tide came the boat that sank the Marchioness. Mindful to ignore previous instructions from a chap on a Metropolitan police boat to tuck ourselves into the shore - and, anyway, aware that in this case we'd been seen (her forward visibility was not exactly optimal and from a small boat all you see is bow) we made a minimal course alteration and passed her in the appropriate way for that situation, i.e. port to port.

I read that after several changes of ownership, name and country, she eventually came to grief off Madeira with the loss of life of one member of crew.

Mark

 
From the BBC:

 
To clarify, I've just quoted from Wilts & Berks Canal Trust CEO Mike Gibbin's 'important letter' to members. "It outlines the effect of the Vale of the White Horse reservoir (WHR) on the Wilts & Berks Canal and the Fighting Fund set up to support this critical stage", if that helps. Sorry, I should have made that clear.

 
Certainly a magnificently extreme example of 'Correlation does not equal causation'.

Mark

 

Negative reports can deceive - It runs more often than not. Here's the Recent Train Times record for the last 8 weeks for the return journey

 
I noted - and comment made elsewhere - that the front 4 carriages of the train (which did not derail) were in the new GBR livery. Whilst we must wait for the RAIB there is no suggestion, nor ongoing research planned according to their initial reports, that the paint job on the train was anything to do with the accident.   However, does it now "mark" this unit as being "one of the ones involved at Lewes" and might we anticipate a further repaint to avoid passengers on future journeys being aware of this part of its history?

 
Our Coffee Shop has been around for 20 years - can you believe it?     The majority of content remains current-times stuff, but we are informed by history.   However as a "historic" sight we have only glimpses, and on days like today I find myself looking at significant events that may have shaped things for the future, or be early examples of what is common today or has resulted in improvements so that things should not happen today.

From travel and transport news I remember, but before the Coffee Shop

20th August 1979 - The East Coast Main Line rail route between England and Scotland is restored with the opening of the Penmanshiel Diversion

20th August 1989 - Dredger "Bow Belle" collides with pleasure boat "Marchioness" on the River Thames in central London; "Marchioness" sinks in 30 seconds, drowning 51

To see "On this day" across the whole year, visit https://www.passenger.chat/otd.html?all=365

 

09:03 London Paddington to Newquay due 14:27
09:03 London Paddington to Newquay due 14:27 will be terminated at Plymouth.
It will no longer call at Liskeard, Bodmin Parkway, Lostwithiel, Par and Newquay.
This is due to a fault on a train.

14:52 Newquay to London Paddington due 20:23
14:52 Newquay to London Paddington due 20:23 will be started from Plymouth.
It will no longer call at Newquay, Par, Liskeard and Saltash.
This is due to a fault on a train.

Rarely seems to get past Plymouth.

 

I have not (yet?) read the new NPPF - is the 4 trains an hour specified?   Each way or a 30 minute service? Possible by stopping trains that already go through but don't stop?   Looking at the line from London to Penzance, I would look at ... Kintbury, Bedwyn, Castle Cary, Tiverton Parkway, Menheniot, Bodmin Parkway, Lostwithiel, Par and St Erth as stations that may fit the criteria.    Others across the GWR area which have at least 4 trains an hour passing through and  that come to my mind are Avoncliff, Freshford, Newton St Cryes, Pilning, Dean and Mottisfont.

 

 
How many stations are there that are:
a) outside settlements or in green belt AND
b) served by at least 4 trains per hour?

Would the policies listed in NPPF apply just to areas around existing stations or could a developer pay for a new one in order to make use of the NPPF rules? (though the new station would itself be subject to planning...)

 

Please don't encourage him.     

 
The report includes a picture of the track 'irregularity', but the BBC news version makes it clearer:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gx12v8z51o

 

The earlier post from JohnM describes it, and I'm sure a clear map will be available in the very near future which I will post; I have an unclear map that confirms that they do meet.    Since I left the Town Council I have stepped back from W&B and WS&O active involvement to let my successor as MTC rep to those organisations have a clean start without his predecessor breathing down his neck, so I am notes not as well informed as I used to be.


Edit note: Minor typo corrected, for clarity. CfN.

 
So how does it threaten the canal - can you put up a map showing the canal route & reservoir limits? I can't see that they can meet?

 
Yep - no warning, NPPF was changed on Monday.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/full-steam-ahead-to-fast-track-more-homes-near-stations

 

Agreed ... and as an outrider they could replace the whole system with something more appropriate for current times.

 

Same reservoir, new name??

 
deleted

 
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/derailment-of-a-passenger-train-at-lewes

 
Could be almost anything - from 0% again to CPI% instead of RPI% to RPI+1%

 
There are two Thames Water reservoirs being planned - or are you talking about the one to be sited near Abingdon (to the south)? They can't be planning two that close to each other surely?

 
The Huddersfield Narrow, the Kennet and Avon, The Forth and Clyde and the Rochdale have all returned from being abandoned ditches - or even just ridges in the ground - into fully operational waterways. In places on so many restored waterways, significant hurdles have been placed in their way by developments since the waterway initially closed. Those hurdles need to be overcome, and have been in all the cases I have mentioned, throughout the route.

The Thames and Severn Canal / Stroudwater navigation is another example - in that case, restoration is underway and major problems like the M5 motorway have been overcome.  It's high stakes stuff - one imprenitable blockge can ruin a whole through route scheme.

The Wilts and Berks canal has been out of use for over a century, and has a nunber of significant developmnts in the way.  In Melksham, a new route - the "Melksham Link" is planned to take the canal through the town; the police station sits on the old bed, together with a whole lot of other development in the town.   I was at a W&B meeting last night, and it's good to hear of improving (though often not great) relationships with develops looking to build on fields the link will also pass through.  And if we look at Swindon - huge story to tell concerning how the newer stuss is to be avoided, and how sections of canal are actively coming into water as the town grow.

The White Horse Reservoir is different.  It threatens the only practical route of the canal, but unlike the other obstacles I have mentioned, it's not there yet - it's just a proposed development.  Thers is no dispute as to the need for a resetvoir - but where there's a significant problem is that Thames Water want to build it in such a way that it makes the canal restoration 50% again more expensive - for the whole route.   Thames Water is a company with shareholders and they appear to be looking to ride roughshod over the key pathway for the canal to keep their costs down and their profits up.    It should not be an "either/or" - the reservior and the canal through can co-exist and it makes huge planning sense to do both at the same time. 

post strictly "as I understand it".  I happened to be at last night's meeting in support of something else ...