Heard, yes. Considered, no. The case for the train.
Last Friday brought the publication of the 'final' timetable for trains through Melksham from December 2006.
Regular readers to this column will know that I've been hosting a web site to retain the service at its current level (5 each way daily) or, better, to improve it to 8 a day. But the threat all along, and to be honest the most likely outcome once you got a stupid decision (IMHO) made by a Whitehall department was of just 2 a day.
Alas, that's the outcome we have.
I set down my objectives at the start of the campaign to get the Melksham / TransWilts case heard and considered properly. I feel that, to date, I've scored 1 out of 2.
For sure, the case is being heard and the word Melksham no longer draws the comment "where on earth is THAT?" from the Railway Mandarins. I recognise First Great Western's MD and senior staff on site (and they recognise me), all four MPs who represent constituencies on the line spoke in Westminster on our behalf, to a transport minister who avoided the questions. The shadow transport secretary was here earlier this month to add his support, and I've been on Radio 4 a couple of times and even on BBC1 the other day.
But like I say, I've only scored 1 out of 2 so far. I came into this business late - after the initial decision had been taken and so it was at a point where any change would be embarrasing to the decision maker. I've tried to provide them with a neat "win-win" scenario, as more recent evidence that they initially used is now available, and shows a rapidly growing service. Alas, I have only scored 1 out of 2 though - as late as 20th June, Derek Twigg, minister at the Department for Transport sent me a letter quoting the same old (now very old) and discredited figures. So it remains that the case has not been considered properly.
Where now? There was a landmark court decision at the tail of last week too, concerning Open Access train operations. Basically, it leaves a much easier route open now for others to be invited in to run train services that aren't otherwise offered under a franchise. And I've learnt so much that I feel quite confident in
the case that I've made. If First and the DfT won't consider, perhaps National Express, Great Central, Stagecoach, Arriva or another company of that type will ... and they'll see what an excellent little opportunity there is for them in our neck of the woods.
And I'm far from dis-spirited. Even if it comes to nothing, I've made some great friends, I've learnt a huge amount about railways and railway operation, I've met some senior politicians and actaully have a higher regard for them than I did even a few months back .... and I've had a lot of fun too. Of course, from the business side, our own contingency plans are well in place. With 40% of course delegates arriving by public transport, they need to be, and it's not going to be JUST making the best of a bad job. No - we'll turn the outcome, however it might be, into a positive.
And, by the way, never say "die" until the last trains' run. The Looe branch in Cornwall was just 2 weeks from closure under the Beeching plan when it was pulled back. That was 40 years ago.
(written 2006-07-30, updated 2006-07-31)
Associated topics are indexed as below, or enter http://melksh.am/nnnn for individual articles
Z511 - Public Transport - Road [119] PHP course. Come by train. - (2004-11-15)
[187] a popular bus number - (2005-01-23)
[459] Kiss and Ride - (2005-10-09)
[474] Vintage Bus Day - (2005-10-23)
[764] Journey planning - Xephos v Transport Direct - (2006-06-16)
[1085] Lawrence Webb's Melksham Taxi service - (2007-02-18)
[1125] Train service - petititon reply - (2007-03-31)
[1254] Comparing bus stops - (2007-07-01)
[1315] Two years of campaigning for a train service - (2007-08-22)
[1428] Travel Across Wiltshire - the game - (2007-11-11)
[1511] Buses from Well House Manor, Melksham, to Bath - (2008-01-18)
[1560] HST Power Car TravelWatch SouthWest - (2008-03-01)
[1567] Melksham - Swindon. Train v Bus v Car - (2008-03-07)
[1668] Talk on TransWilts train service to Green Party - (2008-06-07)
[1723] Bath - Melksham - Devizes. Bus route changes, new timetable - (2008-07-26)
[1777] The Rise and Rise of First Bus Fares - (2008-08-29)
[2075] Supporting Parkinsons and Trains - (2009-03-11)
[2083] Do you support a decent train service? Please sign up! - (2009-03-15)
[2268] Westbury Bypass Refused - looking forward - (2009-07-04)
[2328] Melksham - no trains, no southbound buses through the town - (2009-08-08)
[2372] Public Transport from (and to) Melksham on Sundays - (2009-08-23)
[2431] Moving busstop! - (2009-09-30)
[2515] Why we have two buses an hour - but not a half hourly service - (2009-11-28)
[2522] Integrated public Transport - what could be done for Melksham - (2009-12-01)
[2533] Five guests, three groups, one car - (2009-12-11)
[2662] Is Melksham public transport actually used? - (2010-03-05)
[2672] Dear Planners, please provide viable alternatives - (2010-03-11)
[2771] Melksham to Calne by public transport - (2010-05-20)
[2789] Melksham to London (Heathrow, and Central London) - (2010-06-02)
[2791] Bath to Melksham buses - times - (2010-06-03)
[2857] Park and Ride at Batheaston - will it solve Wiltshires Ills? - (2010-07-06)
[2903] Bath to Devizes bus via Melksham - changing again in September - (2010-08-04)
[2919] London to Calne, Corsham, Melksham, Bradford-on-Avon, Chippenham by public Transport - (2010-08-13)
[2933] Bath - Melksham - Devizes buses from September - (2010-08-23)
[2958] What do these road markings mean? Could Confusion Kill? - (2010-09-17)
[2982] Travel, Transport and Tourism - A vision for Melksham, 2026 - (2010-10-03)
[2983] Strong arm tactics in the bus industry? Poor result for the customer! - (2010-10-03)
[3126] Car Parking in Melksham - thoughts on the proposed scheme, and wider thoughts too - (2011-01-09)
[3194] Buses - what they cost and their future direction in the SW and in Wiltshire - (2011-03-06)
[3290] Changes (and no changes) at Melksham bus stops - (2011-05-15)
[3301] Using public transport - USA style - (2011-05-25)
[3404] Buses on the Cambridge Guided Busway - (2011-08-24)
[3471] Vintage Bus Running Day in Warminster. An example of good bus practise. - (2011-10-09)
[3486] How important is public transport to people in the Melksham area? - (2011-10-19)
[3487] Public transport - road and rail - (2011-10-19)
[3504] Coaches from Trowbridge and Melksham to London - (2011-11-01)
[3523] When competition is not a good idea - Melksham Bus Absurdity - (2011-11-16)
[3564] I wish I was not a special case - (2011-12-29)
[3579] Transport in Cambridgeshire - seen by an outside observer. What can Wiltshire learn? - (2012-01-15)
[3580] Melksham Area - buses, trains, cycles, and roads. Meeting, 17.1.2012 - (2012-01-15)
[3631] Getting around Dublin by public transport - some observations - (2012-03-01)
[3699] Bristol 50? Bristol 25? - (2012-04-17)
[3849] New bus times - Melksham to Bath - (2012-08-25)
[3850] Bus times - Chippenham Station to Melksham, with London connections - (2012-08-25)
[3866] Celebrate! Buses from Meksham to Bath - (2012-09-18)
[3877] Public Transport Services - from and to Melksham - (2012-10-01)
[3879] Mixed mode travel - Information systems - (2012-10-03)
[3893] Public Transport across Wiltshire - a new map - (2012-10-13)
[3904] Want to help us improve transport in Wiltshire? Here is how! - (2012-10-26)
[3929] Melksham Bus Issues - to be raised at First Bus Customer Panel - (2012-11-21)
[3937] Agenda for Wiltshire Link Travel groups meeting, Saturday 1st December 2012 - (2012-11-27)
[3938] A long overdue meeting - a steeping stone towards coordinate transport user inputs - (2012-12-02)
[3951] Christmas Bus Schedule for Melksham - First Bus - (2012-12-14)
[4022] A request for all of Melksham transport groups to work integrated - (2013-03-01)
[4023] Melksham to Chippenham (Station) bus services - times and routes - (2013-03-01)
[4032] Easier public transport from Melksham to Bristol Airport - (2013-03-06)
[4108] The painful cost of local travel to Melksham - (2013-06-01)
[4111] Zigzag bus - forward for the future, or decaying service? - (2013-06-09)
[4113] Wiltshire and Melksham Transport - what is going on? - (2013-06-09)
[4123] New timetables from 28th July - bus routes 271 and 272 - (2013-06-24)
[4124] Chippenham - Melksham - Trowbridge bus changes next month - (2013-06-26)
[4143] Bus times - Melksham to Bath from 28th July 2013 - (2013-07-25)
[4149] Bus changes to Bath - good idea, but I despair at information available - (2013-08-08)
[4150] Melksham Regular Public Transport Map - as at August 2013 - (2013-08-09)
[4152] Why are bus fares so high? - (2013-08-18)
[4171] Mapping road accidents in Melksham and elsewhere too - (2013-09-12)
[4179] Changing transport and destinations - looking forward to a good future - (2013-09-19)
[4181] Grumbling about trains? Buses can be far worse! - (2013-09-29)
[4186] Melksham to Bath and Zigzag buses - at a turning point? - (2013-10-06)
[4190] A radical proposal - a cheap and effective way to provide home to city commuter transport - (2013-10-11)
[4191] Getting people to and from Melksham Station - not 20 but 700 times a day - (2013-10-12)
[4192] A positive progress behind the scenes - (2013-10-14)
[4194] TransWilts Link - meeting notes from 19th October - (2013-10-20)
[4228] Mallory Place, The Spa, Wellington Drive, Melksham - a Christmas present for you - (2013-12-26)
[4240] Melksham Rail Link - (2014-01-27)
[4247] You wait a long time - then buses come in threes. It's timetabled that way! - (2014-03-09)
[4257] Over a pound a kilometre - my bus in Weston-super-mare - (2014-04-06)
[4263] Chippenham - Melksham - Trowbridge, public transport over Easter (2014) - (2014-04-12)
[4286] Reaction in Radstock to new First bus prices - (2014-07-12)
[4290] National Express replaced by train and by Megabus from Chippenham to London - (2014-07-16)
[4425] A Welsh valley - what the transport looks like in 2015 - (2015-02-14)
[4500] The TransWilts Community Intergrated Transport Corridor - (2015-05-29)
[4546] Is the RUH hopper a limited, duplicate service running unnecessarily and at high cost? - (2015-10-18)
[4547] RUH Hopper - experience and thoughts forward - (2015-10-20)
[4592] A comparison of the public transport alternatives to the Royal United Hospital, Bath - from Melksham. - (2015-12-06)
[4615] Questions for First (West of England) - (2016-01-05)
[4619] Buses - not about the buses, but about the people who use the buses - (2016-01-10)
[4624] Campaigning for a sensible bus solution and not against anyone! - (2016-01-17)
[4629] Making travel time useful time on public transport - (2016-01-22)
[4631] What would the Wiltshire Council bus cuts mean for Melksham? - (2016-01-25)
[4636] Rail user groups worried about what is happening on the buses - (2016-01-31)
[4639] Working out the costs of running a bus service through the day - (2016-02-06)
[4648] Why is bus funding a much hotter topic than a new set of traffic lights? - (2016-02-16)
[4654] Getting to the Royal United Hospital - the Hopper and the alternatives - (2016-02-24)
[4660] What is happening on the 231 bus? What are you going to do about it? - (2016-03-04)
[4664] Mallory Place bus stop - services to Bath - (2016-03-25)
[4667] Wiltshire Supported Bus consultation - final few days - (2016-03-30)
[4670] The end, or the start? - (2016-04-05)
[4683] Saudi Arabia or Weymouth? - (2016-05-22)
[4690] Buses in Wiltshire - potential changes and where we stand at the moment - (2016-05-30)
[4692] How are bus support payments currently calculated? - (2016-06-07)
[4703] What do people use the bus for in Wiltshire - survey interim results. - (2016-07-11)
Some other Articles
PHP - a team member leavesDynamic functions and names - PythonRobert and William WhitworthMy projector has a photo-idHeard, yes. Considered, no. The case for the train.Working on Weekend in Wiltshire and othersAbove the parapit, Well House ManorTime trickles like water through a sieveMelksham Railway Calendar 2007Monday Morning at Well House Consultants Melksham