A major development at Pershore this week another 12 car park spaces have been marked out in the area in font of the Carlton-Smith works west of the station entrance.

Met Office issues weather warning for rain, 8-9 December

Areas of England and Wales have been warned of potential flooding and travel disruption caused by heavy rain.

The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for south west England and south Wales earlier, which will be in place from 18:00 GMT on Monday to 18:00 on Tuesday.

The forecaster said an area of low pressure approaching the UK from the south west would bring heavy rain as well as strong winds, which could last until early Wednesday.

"At present, the exact track, depth, and timings of this low are uncertain, which makes it harder to determine where will be most impacted by strong winds and/or heavy rain," said Steven Keates, the Met Office's deputy chief meteorologist.

"This system has the potential to cause disruption, and severe weather warnings are likely to be issued over the weekend as details become clearer," he added.

Outbreaks of rain will become persistent and heavy, the Met Office said, with up to 40mm (1.6in) of rainfall in some areas and 60-80mm of rain over Dartmoor and high ground in south Wales, which could amount to more than half the average monthly rainfall in December.

Spray and flooding on the roads could cause difficult driving conditions, the forecaster said, with a chance of cancellations to train and bus services.

There is a small chance of some communities being cut off by flooded roads, as well as of homes and businesses being damaged by rising water.

The Met Office warning also highlights the possibility of fast flowing water causing danger to life, with some areas also facing the potential of power cuts.



The weather warning covers much of the south-west of England and south Wales.

(BBC article continues)

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Scholar Green

Severe weather forces closure of storm-hit port terminal

One of Britain's busiest ports has closed one of its terminals following a "berthing incident" caused by severe weather conditions.

The incident took place on Friday at Terminal 5 of Holyhead Port on Anglesey, Stena Line Port announced, who said the terminal will remain temporarily closed to ensure safety. It added that the port "continues to facilitate the full sailing schedule for ferry operators".

Holyhead faced months of disruption after Storm Darragh hit Wales in December 2024, having only fully reopened in July after seven months of partial closure. Two berths at Holyhead were damaged hours before the height of a rare red weather wind warning that battered Wales last December.

The port was closed for five weeks, including over the Christmas period, as engineers fixed one of the damaged berths - Holyhead partially reopened in January and services resumed to a revised timetable. The other berth took seven months to repair and reopened in July, but the economic impact of the closures was estimated at £500m in lost trade.

Rhun ap Iorwerth, Member of the Senedd for Ynys Môn, described the announcement as "worrying" one year on from the previous disturbance, which had implications for the local community. "The priority now must be to understand what exactly has happened and what the implications might be," he said in a statement.

More than 1.5m people pass through Holyhead every year making it the most popular sea route between the UK mainland and the Republic of Ireland.

Stena Line said current weather conditions prevent a full assessment but that services would continue according to "the full sailing schedule".

Cockermouth

Residents have long complained of unreliable lifts in the Greenwich foot tunnel

Plans to undertake a "full tunnel regeneration" of the Greenwich and Woolwich foot tunnels are in the pipeline, a south-east London council has said.

Greenwich Council's acting cabinet member for transport confirmed a plan to replace the often faulty lifts in the Greenwich tunnel had been agreed with Tower Hamlets Council.

The council jointly owns the Greenwich tunnel with Tower Hamlets and the Woolwich tunnel with Newham.

However, Greenwich Council has the responsibility for operating and managing both of the pedestrian river crossings.

The local authority has come under fire for its management of the tunnels, as frequent users have consistently complained about the lifts being out of action for extended periods of time.

Greenwich Council has previously said that bespoke parts to fix the lifts were hard to get hold of, which has led to delays in getting them operational again.

At a meeting this week, councillor Calum O'Byrne Mulligan confirmed that the authority would be leading the way in fully refurbishing the Greenwich foot tunnel and its lifts alongside its council partner north of the Thames. He said: "The week before last I had an incredibly productive meeting with Tower Hamlets, the cabinet member for transport and some of their senior officers, and I was very glad that they agreed we could proceed to the detailed design phase for full tunnel regeneration."


Plans for the Woolwich foot tunnel upgrades need to be agreed between Greenwich and Newham councils

O'Byrne Mulligan said the agreed master plan included replacing both the lifts with dual-shaft systems which would increase "reliability and serviceability". The plan also includes work to improve the lighting and heritage aspects of the century-old crossing, as well as encouraging wider usage of the tunnel. He said he was "incredibly glad" that Tower Hamlets had agreed the plan, and revealed he had requested a meeting with Newham Council to implement a similar strategy with the Woolwich foot tunnel.

O'Byrne Mulligan also confirmed the council had been working with the mayor's office to deliver "a co-ordinated approach for step-free travel that is reliable and fully accessible under the river for both Greenwich and Woolwich".

Campaigners from the residents' group Lifts Now said they remained unconvinced, noting that the Woolwich tunnel's north lift was still out of use and the south lift continued to be unreliable. The group said more than 1,800 people had signed its petition and that it would keep pressing for the crossings to be managed by Transport for London.

11:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 14:51

11:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 14:51 was diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge and will be diverted between Romsey and Fareham.

It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon and Southampton Central but will call additionally at Chippenham, Melksham and Eastleigh.

It has been previously delayed, will be further delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 13 minutes late.

This is due to a tree blocking the railway earlier today.

09:28 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 12:51

09:28 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 12:51 will be diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge.

It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon.

It is being delayed between Bath Spa and Trowbridge and is now expected to be 12 minutes late.

This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

10:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 13:51

10:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 13:51 will be diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge.

It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon.

It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 11 minutes late.

This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

11:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 14:51

11:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 14:51 will be diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge.

It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon but will call additionally at Chippenham and Melksham.

It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 11 minutes late.

This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

12:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 15:51

12:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 15:51 will be diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge.

It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon but will call additionally at Chippenham.

It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 11 minutes late.

This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

10:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 13:51

10:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 13:51 will be diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge.
It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon.
It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 11 minutes late.
This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

Cancellations to services between Bath Spa and Westbury

Due to a tree blocking the railway at Avoncliff the line towards Westbury is blocked. Disruption is expected until 14:00 06/12.
Train services between Bath Spa and Westbury may be cancelled, delayed or diverted. Freshford, Avoncliff and Bradford-On-Avon will not be served.

Customer Advice
Due to a tree blocking the railway line near Avoncliff, our train service is suspended whilst our teams make it safe to run.

Cancellations to services between Bath Spa and Westbury
Due to a tree blocking the railway at Avoncliff the line towards Westbury is blocked. Disruption is expected until 14:00 06/12.
Train services between Bath Spa and Westbury may be cancelled, delayed or diverted. Freshford, Avoncliff and Bradford-On-Avon will not be served.
Customer Advice
Due to a tree blocking the railway line near Avoncliff, our train service is suspended whilst our teams make it safe to run.

12:17 Westbury to Swindon due 13:01

12:17 Westbury to Swindon due 13:01 will be cancelled.
This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

13:13 Swindon to Westbury due 13:55

13:13 Swindon to Westbury due 13:55 will be cancelled.
This is due to a tree blocking the railway.

Wiltshire Council said a survey found about half the bus shelters in the county needed repair

Millions of pounds could be used to repair and replace bus shelters in Wiltshire.

Of the 4,000 bus stops in the county, 700-800 have a Wiltshire Council-owned bus shelter. The local authority said a survey found 51% of these needed repair or maintenance.

A contract tender worth between £6m to £8m will be issued at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, with the work expected to run from February for five years, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The funding for the programme of improvements would come from current and future government grants, the council said.

Wiltshire Council cabinet member for highways, councillor Martin Smith, said the repairs would "mark an important step towards improving the county's public transport infrastructure".

"Buses play a vital role in connecting our communities, and we know how important it is to provide high-quality bus shelters that meet the needs of local people," Mr Smith said.

"Many of our bus shelters need repair or replacement, and this contract will ensure we can deliver high-quality, accessible facilities that encourage more people to use public transport," he added.

Woodside

The current trend is to reduce Sundays to what is deliverable rather than add extra trains in, the following are cut on GWR on Sundays from the Dec timetable change:

07.37 Reading - Basingstoke
08.06 Basingstoke - Reading

Bristol Temple Meads to London services drop to hourly through the day, departing Bristol at 07.45, 09.00 then hourly to 14.00, an additional working at 14.30, then 15.00, hourly to 18.00, then every 90 minutes at 19.30, 21.00 and 22.28.

Extensions south west of Bristol are vastly reduced with Bridgwater and Highbridge losing their direct trains to London, services from Weston remain at 08.29 (09.00 Bristol), 11.31 (12.00 Bristol), 13.31 (14.00 Bristol) then a gap to 22.03 (22.28 Bristol).

From Paddington departures are 07.59, 09.00 (extends to Weston), 10.30 (extends to Weston), 11.30 then hourly to 17.30, then 18.30 (extends to Weston), 19.30, 20.30 (extends to Weston), 21.30, 22.15, 22.45 and 23.33.

Through trains between Cheltenham and London are further reduced from the existing 3 at 10.47, 15.00 and 17.00 to just a single working at 10.47, the other two workings terminating at Swindon.

There are additional 387 operated services in some hours between Paddington and Swindon.

Cuts on the B&H are the 14.36 Paddington - Exeter is deleted, 4 hour gap in service at Pewsey but Newbury, Westbury and Castle Cary added to the 15.03 Paddington - Penzance. The 18:36 Paddington - Plymouth terminates at Taunton with Dawlish and Teignmouth added to the 19.03 Paddington - Plymouth.

10.32 Paignton - Paddington deleted, stops added into the 08.10 Penzance - Paddington for Pewsey and Newbury and the 09.18 (re-timed to 09.09) Penzance - Paddington for Castle Cary and Westbury. The 19.15 Plymouth - Paddington is deleted.

Midsomer (Norton)

... stations ... immortalised by Flanders and Swann "Slow Train".

Driving test touts offer instructors £250 monthly kickbacks

Driving instructors are being offered kickbacks of up to £250 a month to sell their official test-booking login details to touts, a BBC investigation has found.

Touts use these login details to book driving tests in bulk and sell them to learners on WhatsApp and Facebook, charging as much as £500 for tests that should cost no more than £75. This makes it harder for learners to book through legitimate routes and adds to already lengthy waiting times.

The BBC has also uncovered evidence that the outgoing head of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), Loveday Ryder, was told about these operations in February - yet some sellers reported to the DVSA are still operating. In response, the DVSA said it does not comment on specific complaints but has zero tolerance for those exploiting learner drivers.

We have identified touts operating in London, Birmingham, Manchester and the Home Counties. Posing as driving instructors, we approached them on WhatsApp and were offered monthly payments in exchange for login details to the DVSA's system, where instructors can book tests.

One tout boasted he worked with more than 1,000 instructors - while another, Anil Ahmed, who goes by the name "Ahadeen", said he signed up two instructors every week. We could not independently verify either of these claims. When we later confronted Mr Ahmed in person he denied any involvement, but we have found significant evidence implicating him.

The BBC has not been able to identify specific driving instructors selling their details but our conversations with these touts, the sheer volume of tests they are selling, and images of test-booking systems shared on WhatsApp suggest hundreds of rogue instructors might be involved.

Separately, 30 instructors we spoke to across Great Britain - England, Scotland and Wales - said they had heard of test slots being sold at huge mark-ups. Ten of them told us they had been approached by touts or had spoken to other instructors who had been.

At the end of October, 642,000 learners in Great Britain were waiting to take a test, with an average wait time of 21 weeks, DVSA data shows. There is a separate system in Northern Ireland.

Waits can be as long as six months, according to learners we spoke to - some say they are turning to touts out of desperation. A recent DVSA survey suggested about one in three learners had used "third parties" to book their driving tests.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander recently announced plans to change driving test rules, which it is hoped will stop touts and reduce the backlog. From the spring, only learners - not instructors - will be able to book test slots.

Instructors we spoke to welcomed the Department of Transport's (DfT) proposals, but also said they had been raising these issues for some time and now want to know whether the government will root out rogue teachers. Tests have been bulk-booked and resold for profit for years, but these instructors say it is now getting much worse.


(BBC article continues)

06:18 Hereford to London Paddington due 09:23 will no longer call at Honeybourne.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Last Updated:06/12/2025 06:50