A THANK YOU to those who have brought the new train service to fruition
Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2013-12-06 09:49:13 - Graham Ellis
A new train service such as the TransWilts one doesn't just materialise out of thin air. All aspects of the service need to be checked and validated and good cases made and then a mechanism for delivery and promotion of the service has to be provided. This takes a long time, and a great deal of commitment from many people. It's rather akin to a marathon relay race, and spectators at the finishing line should be aware that although the people carrying the baton over the line are vital, there are many unsung heroes without whom it wouldn't have been possible.
In alphabetic order of forename, we should salute... Adrienne Westbrooke; Alan Baines; Alan Weymouth; Anne Lock; Bob Lee; Chris Hankin; Chris Irwin; David Philips; David Redgewell; Duncan Hames; Gordon Dodge; Gordon Edwards; Jean Harris; Jenny Raggett; John Crook; John Hamley; John Money; John Wilkinson; John Williams; Jon Glover; Julian Crow; Julie Boston; Lee Fletcher; Margaret Willmot; Mary Jarvis; Mike Williams; Nick Westbrook; Paul Johnson; Pete Jobson; Peter Blackburn; Phil McMullen; Richard Gamble; Rolf Brindle; Sheila Wilkinson; Sion Bretton; Steve Petty and Terri Welch. Each of these people has had... significant involvement as a campaigner or passenger, longstanding and initiated at least 8 years ago... or has gone greatly above or beyond what would normally be expected from their linked professional role... or has invested lots of time and effort - e.g. 150 days or 1500 new threads on our online forum... or has nurtured and encouraged others along in the same direction and providing support to those working towards improvement. Some of those names make uncomfortable bedfellows with each other, but it's very much the wide range of roles and people all pulling in the same direction that have made this possible. And the hard work only now begins - with the train operator, the local councils, and the community continuing to co-operate to ensure that the service is advertised, nurtured, tuned and developed so that it's not only been gained but will also be retained through strong use over the coming year or two.
Melksham station, and TransWilts train services, were withdrawn in the 1960s under the auspices of the Beeching report. Although extensive closures may have been right at that time, with 20 years it was appreciated that some were a step too drastic, and a number of stations were re-opened 20 years later, including Melksham where a limited service was provided for commuters to Swindon from 1985. That was no mean feat in itself, and groups such as the Melksham Railway Development Group and the West Wilts Rail User group provided input and volunteer community support. Service levels and timings changed somewhat over the years, but were patchy, and the Strategic Rail Authority, looking to reduce rolling stock needs in 2004, specified a service for the current franchise period that allowed the two return trips a day to be very poorly timed for daily commuters. And passenger ticket sales plummeted under the new service, in contrast to stations on other lines serving comparable population centres where they have grown 80% in the last few years. A line with only occasional trains, serving the five largest urban areas in Wiltshire, and with those few trains near-empty is only one side of a story; the other side of the story is the very real dampener on economic growth that's put on the communities along the way by lack of appropriate middle and long distance public transport. And thus was born the "Save the Train" campaign. The objectives were:
a) To make people aware that there was an issue to be looked at - what level of service was appropriate?
b) To look at the issue in some detail so that an appropriate service level was agreed
c) To gain that level of service
d) To retain the appropriate service (and "appropriate" may change over the years)
At first, many of the campaigners who's names are listed above felt like isolated voices, with the majority official responses being to back up the SRA's 2004 specification. However, it became apparent quite quickly that the growth figures forecast for rail use were woefully pessimistic, and that towns such as Westbury, Trowbridge, Chippenham and Melksham were all growing fast. It's become "cool" to travel by train again, and fears of climate warning, increasing road congestion and rising petrol costs have moved us into a very different scenario. By 2011, the community was ready, and with wider support from business organisations, the county and the rail industry to look at the case in some detail. It was suggested that an appropriate service would be an additional train from Swindon, at least to Westbury, every 2 hours, and analyses were undertaken to check that case
a) A business study showed a benefit to cost ratio of 2.74 to 1... an excellent figure
b) An operational study showed that the current infrastructure has capacity to carry the service, both before and after electrification through Swindon
c) A survey of local businesses drew 160 responses representing 11,000 employees - and 94% said that the service would make a significant positive difference
d) A public survey drew 1600 responses, with 600 people coming forward to say they would use the train for commuting, and many more for leisure
e) A trial service on 8 summer Sundays, challenging the community to attract people to trains, was so successful that the trains had to be lengthened all summer
Having checked from all aspects that the proposed service level should work (it still requires connection, information systems, reliability, prices, safety too), the question came as to how to achieve it - and at that point the community moved from a campaigning to a co-operation and 'work with' roll. The people at county, in national government and in the rail industry whom we had rightly had to convince of the case were now on board with it. So it was no longer "Save the Train" - it was the "TransWilts Community Rail Partnership". Such partnerships are a recognised structure, wherein the community works with government and the rail industry to provide combined marketing and intelligence support for train services. And although the three elements are already working well together, it has to be said it's not been an easy change for some. And the Association of Community Rail Partnerships has denied us membership, citing that CRPs are primarily to market existing service and at present (November 2013) ours isn't at a marketable level. But that's changing.
Under the new franchise that should have started in March 2013, and with a grant won from the Local Sustainable Transport Fund, Wilsthire Council and the new franchisee were set to be running that "appropriate service" from December 2013. Alas, due to systemic issues with the franchising system that were highlighted on the West Coast, the franchising was cancelled and all improvements to service across the South West put on hold. It has taken extraordinary work by people listed above, and many many other too, to put all the pieces back into place, reprime the pumps, and its now all signed off for that appropriate service to start on Sunday, 8th December.
Running and supporting a service needs a lot more people and effort than the earlier stages of campaigning - the need for resources grows, and the CRP is making every encouragement to newcomers to join in supporting the line. Station groups are being set up along the line, links with First and Wiltshire Council getting even closer and it's no longer possible to tell the poacher from the gamekeeper. People who have been involved for many years - yes, that list above - stand back in awe at ties and say "wow" at some of the things that are happening, and we're all set for a fabulous launch, and for some busy services. Once the service is running, we'll be in a position to re-apply to formally join ACoRP and be able to start making full use of their skills and experience in marketing the line - perhaps unlocking further doors for us. Make no mistake - much hard work has been done, and another phase of hard work is starting.
You, dear reader, can support the service by using them. By telling your friends about them. By passing on idea to us of things that could improve the service. If you want to be more actively involved, watch this space in the coming weeks; just at present we're 10 days away from a launch and we're making sure that all the 'I's are dotted and the 'T's crossed. Adverts, editorial, leaflets, station decoration, Santa train, web sites, forums and much more. Do visit our website at http://www.twcrp.org.uk to find out more.