Recent Public Posts - [guest]
| Re: Problems with Hitachi Intercity Express Trains - discussions from 1 January 2026 onwards In "Across the West" [370354/31357/26] Posted by ChrisB at 16:55, 31st December 2025 |      |
Just DM'd you, Worcester Passenger!
| Re: Problems with Hitachi Intercity Express Trains - discussions from 1 January 2026 onwards In "Across the West" [370353/31357/26] Posted by Worcester_Passenger at 16:42, 31st December 2025 | |
I'm comfortable with your post appearing here, Worcester_Passenger. Your excellent research will no doubt provide very useful reference material in this ongoing discussion.
CfN.
CfN.
Thanks!
| Re: North Cotswold line delays and cancellations - 2025 In "London to the Cotswolds" [370352/29711/14] Posted by Worcester_Passenger at 16:40, 31st December 2025 | |
I've posted an analysis of scheduled and actual running times between Ascott and Evesham on the 'Problems with IET trains' topic, at https://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=31357.msg370335#new.
| Re: AQ - Sometimes there are no trains ... 7.12.2025 In "The Lighter Side" [370351/31222/30] Posted by grahame at 16:34, 31st December 2025 | |
Sometimes I get the impression life's trying to confuse me into submission. And now Graham's joined in!
I found Fiesch as the site of picture 14 but I was told that wasn't right. I was surprised, as it was a very good ID - so wherever the right location was must be more like Fiesch than Fiesch is. Then, after the whole quiz had been declared "difficult" but only twelve of the answers listed, on two more occasions the last couple of answers m didn't appear.
Now we are told that it was Fiesch after all! So I'm not sure what to believe is correct, whether something else in my first answer was seen as in error, what was confused in the past, or what is still not what it seems.
I found Fiesch as the site of picture 14 but I was told that wasn't right. I was surprised, as it was a very good ID - so wherever the right location was must be more like Fiesch than Fiesch is. Then, after the whole quiz had been declared "difficult" but only twelve of the answers listed, on two more occasions the last couple of answers m didn't appear.
Now we are told that it was Fiesch after all! So I'm not sure what to believe is correct, whether something else in my first answer was seen as in error, what was confused in the past, or what is still not what it seems.
Oh dear - so sorry for the confusion I have caused on that one ... I can appreciate your [rant] -> [/rant]. With the exception of just one or two members - including yourself - picture identification outside Great Britain tend to be slow, and in the mixed quizzes it's the GB ones that go first, which is why I see the continental ones as difficult.
I am looking back in self analysis and working out why I may have said "no" to Fiesch. Something in the back of my mind suggested to me that you were suggesting a place in Germany / Austria which it was not and based on the back of my mind, I answered in the negative. Sorry about that; we all make mistakes and that was one of mine - I suppose I rush (and rushed) through "lighter side" stuff with just 'checking lighter'.
| Re: Weather updates from across the UK and implications for infrastructure - 2026 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370350/31355/51] Posted by John D at 16:09, 31st December 2025 | |
Just read an interesting article on road salt, starts to lose effectiveness below about -8c and if it gets really cold it is almost useless.
Apparently snow will quite happily settle on the salt, it needs weight of vehicles to turn water into brine
The weather forecast for my area (West Wiltshire) is showing down to -6c on Saturday night. And normally there are local areas that get slightly lower. So on cusp of where a salted road can ice up.
Might have to borrow my daughters car (we have fitted it with all season tyres with 3PMSF three peak mountain snowflake symbol). Whereas mine has the summer tyres it came with, which go really hard when cold. Not sure I want to be trying to use a damp salted motorway at 70mph with hard (not grippy) tyres.
| Re: AQ - Sometimes there are no trains ... 7.12.2025 In "The Lighter Side" [370349/31222/30] Posted by stuving at 15:47, 31st December 2025 | |
Sometimes I get the impression life's trying to confuse me into submission. And now Graham's joined in!
I found Fiesch as the site of picture 14 but I was told that wasn't right. I was surprised, as it was a very good ID - so wherever the right location was must be more like Fiesch than Fiesch is. Then, after the whole quiz had been declared "difficult" but only twelve of the answers listed, on two more occasions the last couple of answers m didn't appear.
Now we are told that it was Fiesch after all! So I'm not sure what to believe is correct, whether something else in my first answer was seen as in error, what was confused in the past, or what is still not what it seems.
| Re: Problems with Hitachi Intercity Express Trains - discussions from 1 January 2026 onwards In "Across the West" [370348/31357/26] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 15:26, 31st December 2025 | |
I'm hoping that posting on this 'new' topic on December 31 is OK.
...
Unless Hitachi can get the engines working properly soon, an emergency timetable looks very likely.
I'm comfortable with your post appearing here, Worcester_Passenger. Your excellent research will no doubt provide very useful reference material in this ongoing discussion.
CfN.
| Cross-border rail passengers warned of new year disruption, West Coast Mainline In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370347/31363/51] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 15:17, 31st December 2025 | |
From the BBC:
Cross-border rail passengers warned of new year disruption
Train passengers are being warned of disruption to cross-border services in the first week of the new year due to major engineering work.
Network Rail says the West Coast Mainline between Lockerbie and Carlisle will be closed from New Year's Day for six days.
Replacement bus services transport passengers between the two stations. Buses will also replace trains between Carlisle and Dumfries when the line is shut from Friday until 6 January.
The cross-border closure is part of a wider shutdown of the line to allow the installation of a new bridge at Clifton, near Penrith.
The 426ft (130m) bridge, which weighs 4,200 tonnes, will carry trains on the West Coast Main Line over the M6.
The removal of the previous bridge and the installation of the new structure begins on Hogmanay and will affect services on the line until 15 January.
Part of the M6 motorway will also be closed and Network Rail says it will use that opportunity to also replace more than 50 miles (80km) of overhead cables. And it added that "significant work" will also take place on an ongoing £61m upgrade to signalling systems north of Carlisle.
Rail passengers are being warned that the West Coast Main Line will be closed:
* From 1-4 January through Preston, between Oxenholme and Carlisle, and Carlisle to Dumfries and Lockerbie
* From 5-6 January between Oxenholme and Carlisle, and Carlisle to Dumfries and Lockerbie. The line through Preston will be open.
* From 7-14 January the line north of Carlisle will be open. The line between Oxenholme and Carlisle will be closed until the early hours of 15 January.
Engineers will replace the bridge over the M6 near Clifton
The M6 will be shut between junctions 39 at Shap and 40 near Penrith on two consecutive weekends.
The closures will take place between 20:00 on Friday 2 January and 05:00 on Monday 5 January, and between 20:00 on Friday 9 January and 05:00 on Monday 12 January.
William Brandon, Network Rail's project manager, said: "This is a vital project which will improve journeys for passengers for decades to come." He added: "We appreciate passengers' patience while this work is completed, and I would urge anyone planning to travel in this period to check National Rail Enquiries in advance."
Chris Liptrot, operations director at Avanti West Coast, said it would operate an amended timetable. "Some journeys between the north-west, Carlisle, and Scotland will involve changes onto a shuttle service as well as rail replacement buses," he added. "We strongly advise customers to plan ahead and check their journey before travelling."
Train passengers are being warned of disruption to cross-border services in the first week of the new year due to major engineering work.
Network Rail says the West Coast Mainline between Lockerbie and Carlisle will be closed from New Year's Day for six days.
Replacement bus services transport passengers between the two stations. Buses will also replace trains between Carlisle and Dumfries when the line is shut from Friday until 6 January.
The cross-border closure is part of a wider shutdown of the line to allow the installation of a new bridge at Clifton, near Penrith.
The 426ft (130m) bridge, which weighs 4,200 tonnes, will carry trains on the West Coast Main Line over the M6.
The removal of the previous bridge and the installation of the new structure begins on Hogmanay and will affect services on the line until 15 January.
Part of the M6 motorway will also be closed and Network Rail says it will use that opportunity to also replace more than 50 miles (80km) of overhead cables. And it added that "significant work" will also take place on an ongoing £61m upgrade to signalling systems north of Carlisle.
Rail passengers are being warned that the West Coast Main Line will be closed:
* From 1-4 January through Preston, between Oxenholme and Carlisle, and Carlisle to Dumfries and Lockerbie
* From 5-6 January between Oxenholme and Carlisle, and Carlisle to Dumfries and Lockerbie. The line through Preston will be open.
* From 7-14 January the line north of Carlisle will be open. The line between Oxenholme and Carlisle will be closed until the early hours of 15 January.
Engineers will replace the bridge over the M6 near Clifton
The M6 will be shut between junctions 39 at Shap and 40 near Penrith on two consecutive weekends.
The closures will take place between 20:00 on Friday 2 January and 05:00 on Monday 5 January, and between 20:00 on Friday 9 January and 05:00 on Monday 12 January.
William Brandon, Network Rail's project manager, said: "This is a vital project which will improve journeys for passengers for decades to come." He added: "We appreciate passengers' patience while this work is completed, and I would urge anyone planning to travel in this period to check National Rail Enquiries in advance."
Chris Liptrot, operations director at Avanti West Coast, said it would operate an amended timetable. "Some journeys between the north-west, Carlisle, and Scotland will involve changes onto a shuttle service as well as rail replacement buses," he added. "We strongly advise customers to plan ahead and check their journey before travelling."
| Re: Camilla fought off attacker with shoe as teenager, book says - Paddington train In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370346/30667/51] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 14:58, 31st December 2025 | |
An update, from the BBC:
Queen praises Hunt family for their bravery after triple murders
Queen Camilla has praised the courage of BBC racing commentator John Hunt and his family - after his wife, Carol, and two daughters, Louise and Hannah, were killed by Louise's ex-partner.
In a conversation with John and his surviving daughter, Amy, the Queen also shared publicly for the first time, her experience of an indecent assault as a teenager.
The Queen was speaking during a discussion on violence against women on BBC Radio 4's Today programme - guest edited by former Prime Minister, Baroness Theresa May.
The Queen told the BBC she had been "so angry" and "furious" about the attack - first reported in a book earlier this year.
She said she had "sort of forgotten" what had happened to her, but that the courage of the Hunt family had prompted her to speak about her experience.
She recalled having been on her way to meet her mother when "this boy - man - attacked me" adding "I did fight back".
...
"I remember something that had been lurking in the back of my brain for a very long time," the Queen told them. "That, when I was a teenager, I was attacked on a train… I remember at the time being so angry," she said.
The Queen recalled getting off the train and "my mother looking at me and saying: 'Why is your hair standing on end and why is the button missing from your coat?' I had been attacked." She added: "I was so furious about it and… when the subject about domestic abuse came up, and suddenly you hear a story like John and Amy's, it's something that I feel very strongly about."
The indecent assault was first reported in Power and the Palace, a book released earlier this year by former royal editor of the Times newspaper, Valentine Low.
According to the book, the Queen had been 16 or 17 years old when the incident happened on a train to Paddington Station. It reported how the man touched the then teenage Camilla Shand and that she then hit him with the heel of her shoe. When she arrived in London, she reported the incident to station staff and the man was arrested, the book reported.
Buckingham Palace made no official statement when the story was first reported.
After hearing the Queen's story, Amy Hunt told her: "Thank you for sharing that, Your Majesty. It takes a lot to share these things because every woman has a story."
(BBC article continues)
Queen Camilla has praised the courage of BBC racing commentator John Hunt and his family - after his wife, Carol, and two daughters, Louise and Hannah, were killed by Louise's ex-partner.
In a conversation with John and his surviving daughter, Amy, the Queen also shared publicly for the first time, her experience of an indecent assault as a teenager.
The Queen was speaking during a discussion on violence against women on BBC Radio 4's Today programme - guest edited by former Prime Minister, Baroness Theresa May.
The Queen told the BBC she had been "so angry" and "furious" about the attack - first reported in a book earlier this year.
She said she had "sort of forgotten" what had happened to her, but that the courage of the Hunt family had prompted her to speak about her experience.
She recalled having been on her way to meet her mother when "this boy - man - attacked me" adding "I did fight back".
...
"I remember something that had been lurking in the back of my brain for a very long time," the Queen told them. "That, when I was a teenager, I was attacked on a train… I remember at the time being so angry," she said.
The Queen recalled getting off the train and "my mother looking at me and saying: 'Why is your hair standing on end and why is the button missing from your coat?' I had been attacked." She added: "I was so furious about it and… when the subject about domestic abuse came up, and suddenly you hear a story like John and Amy's, it's something that I feel very strongly about."
The indecent assault was first reported in Power and the Palace, a book released earlier this year by former royal editor of the Times newspaper, Valentine Low.
According to the book, the Queen had been 16 or 17 years old when the incident happened on a train to Paddington Station. It reported how the man touched the then teenage Camilla Shand and that she then hit him with the heel of her shoe. When she arrived in London, she reported the incident to station staff and the man was arrested, the book reported.
Buckingham Palace made no official statement when the story was first reported.
After hearing the Queen's story, Amy Hunt told her: "Thank you for sharing that, Your Majesty. It takes a lot to share these things because every woman has a story."
(BBC article continues)
| Re: Problems with Hitachi Intercity Express Trains - discussions from 1 January 2026 onwards In "Across the West" [370345/31357/26] Posted by Worcester_Passenger at 14:55, 31st December 2025 | |
I'm hoping that posting on this 'new' topic on December 31 os OK.
Prompted by some comments in a recent edition of Modern Railways, I’ve been looking at scheduled and actual running times. I’ve used the data from RTT for the Mondays-to-Fridays from November 3 to December 12, for the section of the Cotswold line between Ascott and Evesham. These timings are only to the nearest minute at each location.
I looked at trains that do the ‘standard’ calls, at Kingham, Moreton and Honeybourne, and I excluded the trains with ‘padding’ in their timings (mostly in the up direction in the late afternoon). The ‘standard’ working timetable timing for down trains (pass Ascott to arrive Evesham) is 30 or 30.5 minutes (the variation is down to the dwell time at Honeybourne); in the up direction (depart Evesham to pass Ascott) it is 30.5 or 31 minutes.
I excluded Friday November 14 – there was an issue about defective track between Evesham and Moreton. I also excluded an occasion when the ‘halts’ train was cancelled (when the following train did these calls), and a couple of occasions when trains skipped stops to catch up with the timetable.
That left me with 476 timings in the down direction and 327 in the up direction.
I’ve plotted the results as cumulative distributions on the two attached charts. In the down direction, the scheduled running time is 30.25 minutes, depending on the dwell time at Honeybourne. But the median actual running time (achieved by half of the trains) is 32.5 minutes. And 25% of trains take 34 minutes or longer – some 12% slower than the timetable.
Only 26% of trains take 31 minutes or less.
The chart for the up direction is broadly similar – a scheduled average of 30.75 minutes, a median of 32.5 minutes, and 28% taking 34 minutes or longer.
What this is telling me is that the trains can’t keep up with the current timetable, and that it’s not all surprising to find them being turned short – down Hereford trains only getting as far as Malvern and so on.
The Cotswold line may well suffer badly in this regard – the standard calling pattern between Oxford and Worcester Shrub Hill (57 miles) has 8 intermediate stops, so the station-to-station distance averages out at 6.3 miles. Over that distance, acceleration is very important, and that will be badly affected by engines that are not working.
Unless Hitachi can get the engines working properly soon, an emergency timetable looks very likely.
| Re: Weather updates from across the UK and implications for infrastructure - 2026 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370344/31355/51] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 14:35, 31st December 2025 | |
A very detailed update, from the BBC:
UK prepares for New Year celebrations as cold weather warnings issued
It is an excellent, detailed and wide-ranging updated news item, so I won't quote from it here: please click on this link to read it all, or just pick out the parts that affect you.
Please do take care out there, if you are travelling, and have a Happy New Year!
CfN.
| New Year's Eve trains disrupted by cable theft near Doncaster, South Yorkshire In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370343/31362/51] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 14:19, 31st December 2025 | |
From the BBC:
New Year's Eve trains disrupted by cable theft near Doncaster
Rail passengers have been warned of delays and cancellations until the end of New Year's Eve after signalling cables were stolen in South Yorkshire.
National Rail said several routes had been affected following the theft between Doncaster and Sheffield, which it first reported shortly before 05:30 GMT on Wednesday.
After initially saying the disruption was expected to last until mid-morning, National Rail later said passengers were likely to face problems all day.
Services run by Northern, including local services in South Yorkshire and trains running from Doncaster to Hull and Scarborough, are among those affected.
CrossCountry services between Edinburgh and Birmingham New Street, which call at Sheffield, Wakefield, Leeds and York, have also been affected.
TransPennine Express services running between Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes, which call at Doncaster, have been hit as well.
A spokesperson for Northern said services were able to run between Doncaster and Swinton again from about 09:30 GMT onwards, although they warned that "fewer trains will be able to operate along this route while this issue continues". They also said that trains between Sheffield and Doncaster/Adwick "may be delayed or revised".
"Northern train ticket restrictions have been lifted in the affected areas, including advance and peak restrictions, during this disruption," they added.
A National Rail spokesperson said: "Theft of signalling cables between Doncaster and Sheffield means trains must run at a reduced speed on all lines. As a result, services operating between Doncaster and Sheffield may be cancelled, delayed by up to 25 minutes, revised or diverted. Disruption is expected until the end of the day."
Rail passengers have been warned of delays and cancellations until the end of New Year's Eve after signalling cables were stolen in South Yorkshire.
National Rail said several routes had been affected following the theft between Doncaster and Sheffield, which it first reported shortly before 05:30 GMT on Wednesday.
After initially saying the disruption was expected to last until mid-morning, National Rail later said passengers were likely to face problems all day.
Services run by Northern, including local services in South Yorkshire and trains running from Doncaster to Hull and Scarborough, are among those affected.
CrossCountry services between Edinburgh and Birmingham New Street, which call at Sheffield, Wakefield, Leeds and York, have also been affected.
TransPennine Express services running between Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes, which call at Doncaster, have been hit as well.
A spokesperson for Northern said services were able to run between Doncaster and Swinton again from about 09:30 GMT onwards, although they warned that "fewer trains will be able to operate along this route while this issue continues". They also said that trains between Sheffield and Doncaster/Adwick "may be delayed or revised".
"Northern train ticket restrictions have been lifted in the affected areas, including advance and peak restrictions, during this disruption," they added.
A National Rail spokesperson said: "Theft of signalling cables between Doncaster and Sheffield means trains must run at a reduced speed on all lines. As a result, services operating between Doncaster and Sheffield may be cancelled, delayed by up to 25 minutes, revised or diverted. Disruption is expected until the end of the day."
| Re: Swindon <-> Westbury service updates and amendments, ongoing discussion - 2025 In "TransWilts line" [370341/29726/18] Posted by bobm at 09:36, 31st December 2025 Already liked by grahame | |
My source is Real Time Trains, which suggests it is.
| Re: Swindon <-> Westbury service updates and amendments, ongoing discussion - 2025 In "TransWilts line" [370338/29726/18] Posted by grahame at 09:20, 31st December 2025 | |
The 05:11 has not run since Christmas Eve. It is not due to run tomorrow or Friday either.
I *had* noticed its absence tomorrow. But resumes Monday, right? After the peak service 'pulled' without consultation or notice from Dilton Marsh, leaving passengers high and dry, my trust in GWR telling us about changes has been severely dented.
| Re: AQ - 5.12.25 - A year in the life In "The Lighter Side" [370337/31211/30] Posted by grahame at 09:17, 31st December 2025 | |
Completed solution:
January - Westbury - picture 7
February - Westminster - picture 4
March - Paddington - picture 11
April - Melksham - picture 9
May - Chetnole - picture 1
June - Haguenau - picture 5
July - Angers - picture 8
August - Harran - picture 10
September - Acton - picture 6
October - Whitstable - picture 2
November - Blunsdon - picture 3
December - Trowbridge - picture 12
| Re: Swindon <-> Westbury service updates and amendments, ongoing discussion - 2025 In "TransWilts line" [370336/29726/18] Posted by bobm at 09:12, 31st December 2025 | |
The 05:11 has not run since Christmas Eve. It is not due to run tomorrow or Friday either.
| Re: Swindon <-> Westbury service updates and amendments, ongoing discussion - 2025 In "TransWilts line" [370335/29726/18] Posted by grahame at 08:52, 31st December 2025 | |
The 05:11 from Gloucester to Southampton did not run this morning - not flagged up on JourneyCheck and it looks like an unannounced timetable change has removed it - to start at 06:55 from Westbury, first southbound trains at Melksham not until 09:09 which is a fat lot of good for the regular commuters on the 06:30. Even then, the remaining train ran 22 minutes late Westbury to Salisbury where it was terminated:
This service was cancelled between Salisbury and Southampton Central due to the planned train being replaced with a slower train (MS).
| Re: AQ - Sometimes there are no trains ... 7.12.2025 In "The Lighter Side" [370334/31222/30] Posted by grahame at 08:42, 31st December 2025 | |
Complete answers ...
1. Telgart (Slovakia)
2. Ludvika (Sweden)
3. St Malo (France)
4. Santorini (Greece)
5. Katacolon (Greece)
6. Venice Mestre (Italy)
7. Storlein (Sweden)
8. Melksham (England)
9. Tallinn (Estonia)
10. Faro (Portugal)
11. Felletin (France)
12. Leer (Germany)
13. Koper (Slovenia)
14. Fiesch (Switzerland)
15. Narvik (Norway)
16. Newcastle (England)
... a mixture of rail replacement buses on a temporary basis, and some where there isn't a train coming (back) and perhaps never has been one.
| Re: Cornish mainline and branch line delays - ongoing discussion In "Shorter journeys in Plymouth and Cornwall" [370333/28556/25] Posted by GBM at 08:33, 31st December 2025 | |
08:16 Par to Newquay due 09:03
08:16 Par to Newquay due 09:03 will be cancelled.
This is due to a points failure.
(Also points failure West of Newton Abbot, but that's a different forum placement)
| Re: Candidate for redoubling? AQ 13.12.2025 In "The Lighter Side" [370332/31251/30] Posted by grahame at 08:26, 31st December 2025 | |
0. Exmouth
1. Yetminster
2. Bad Kleinen (Germany)
3. Newquay
4. Melksham
5. Castlebar (Ireland)
6. Sea Mills
7. Morchard Road
8. Chandlers Ford
9. Wexford (Ireland)
There are so many places where a modern service level reflecting the more-than-doubling passenger numbers on an infrastructure reduced to what was minimally needed in the '70s and '80s is having an effect on reliability, flexibility to increase further, and growth.
| Re: New Towns - suitable stations? - AQ21/2025 In "The Lighter Side" [370331/31305/30] Posted by grahame at 08:01, 31st December 2025 | |
I thought there were still some answers missing, and on checking I find that quizzes 5, 7, 13, and 21 (this one) do lack complete answer sets.
But based on the presumption that we know the initial letters, I had one last look at the unfound ones here. There are not a lot of stations with names starting with I, so that is made much easier - it's IBM (Halt), which may or may not still be a station by whatever definition is relevant. That restricted choice does not hold for the others three, so they are not easy guesses.
There was a well spotted pattern in this one - the first (alphabetically) three letter code under each starting letter, which I took as being a good way to select 10 stations based on random catchment areas, parts of Great Britain, services, etc, to ask about whether the fit development.
A. Alexandra Palace
B. Barnham
C. Cadoxton
D. Dalgetty Bay
E. Earlsfield
F. Falmouth Dock
G. Garrowhill
H. Habrough
I. IBM
J. Jewellrey Quarter
I don't think there are many green field opportunities around E, F, and J. It has been pointed out that B has issues otherwise it would have happened years ago. I is ripe for brownfield redevelopment and I'm going to stop at that point being unfamiliar with others
| Re: New Years honours - 2026 - "railway" people In "Who's who on Western railways" [370330/31350/2] Posted by Electric train at 08:00, 31st December 2025 | |
If you really require those details, ChrisB, they are readily available in the full list on the Government's website, at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/694929f072075a1d4a5089cd/NY26_Gov.uk_List__Final__18_12_25.pdf
However, there are some other names in that list, where senior people at the Department for Transport have been awarded "Order of the Bath, Companions of the Order of the Bath" for 'Services to Transport'.
Surely, they were just doing their jobs - for which they are probably already very well paid?
CfN.
However, there are some other names in that list, where senior people at the Department for Transport have been awarded "Order of the Bath, Companions of the Order of the Bath" for 'Services to Transport'.
Surely, they were just doing their jobs - for which they are probably already very well paid?
CfN.
In a National voluntary organisation I have been involved in the nomination process for civic awards, "just doing their job" is not sufficient even for and award for being a highly committed volunteer. There has to be more about that person than just doing a job or roll.
The awards process is not perfect and I agree that just being a certain level of civil servant should not warrant a gong
| Re: Llangollen Canal - Whitchurch, Shropshire canal breach: 22 Dec 2025 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370329/31316/51] Posted by Electric train at 07:52, 31st December 2025 | |
Sorry, I'm in the middle of moving it: it's a specific infrastructure issue in the UK, not a viable alternative means of travel.
There isn't a specific board for 'canals': perhaps there should be?
CfN.
Ah ... where?? I think we both come from the viewpoint that the canals are not really a means of transport these days.There isn't a specific board for 'canals': perhaps there should be?
CfN.
Would the same argument be used for heritage railways? Just being the Devils Advocate
Thank you for your post, Electric train.
You make a good point - but one which I would rebut, as follows:
Firstly, we do indeed have a very substantial number of topics relating specifically to heritage railways - of which there are many, throughout the UK, and which carry thousands of (generally leisure) passengers. Similarly, we have several topics covering ferries, steamships and other public transport based attractions. These often 'heritage attractions' are generally widely used, judging by the sheer number of posts they generate on the Coffee Shop forum. Not so much so with 'canals' - which were never much of a 'tourist attraction' - more an historic working environment in the wider infrastructure.
Secondly, (and perhaps more personally), I know that most of the administrator and moderator team here on the forum have something of a 'canal / narrowboat' background (myself included). While we also have active interests in heritage railways, I may perhaps have favoured 'canals' disproportionately in my own posting out on the forum. There is, however, absolutely nothing to say that any of our members should not post anything relevant about canals, heritage railways, or their historic infrastructure (whether on land or over waterways).
Meanwhile, may I offer best wishes to all of those boatowners, families and others dealing with that Llangollen canal incident. Chris from Nailsea.
As I said just being Devils Advocate
I have been a boater on the Thames, canals and sea going far longer than I worked on the railways. Llangollen canal incident sadly means a number of people have not just lost their boat but the home, luckily there was no loss of life or serious injury
| Re: Eurostar - merged posts, ongoing discussion topic In "The Wider Picture Overseas" [370328/26929/52] Posted by Electric train at 07:39, 31st December 2025 Already liked by eightonedee, GBM | |
I have come to the conclusion from the news reports that there was a de-wirement in one of the tunnels, sounds like it was a le-Shuttle caught up in the entanglement; that train may not have been the cause of the damage.
It is difficult enough to sort OLE de-wirements on open plane line, the logistics required in a 22 mile long tunnel are not to be underestimated; and repair cannot be done until the damaged train had been hauled clear of the damaged area.
I know from my previous dealings with Eurotunnel when I was working they are acutely aware of the demands on their systems over certain peak times of the year, Christmas and New Year being one of them; the place a lot of resources in the lead up to and over these peaks.
The did well recovering so quickly
| Re: Eurostar - merged posts, ongoing discussion topic In "The Wider Picture Overseas" [370327/26929/52] Posted by TaplowGreen at 05:52, 31st December 2025 | |
Horrendous.
BBC News - Eurostar delays enter second day as passengers stuck onboard overnight
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0q4eg03eyzo
| Re: New Towns - suitable stations? - AQ21/2025 In "The Lighter Side" [370326/31305/30] Posted by stuving at 00:27, 31st December 2025 | |
I thought there were still some answers missing, and on checking I find that quizzes 5, 7, 13, and 21 (this one) do lack complete answer sets.
But based on the presumption that we know the initial letters, I had one last look at the unfound ones here. There are not a lot of stations with names starting with I, so that is made much easier - it's IBM (Halt), which may or may not still be a station by whatever definition is relevant. That restricted choice does not hold for the others three, so they are not easy guesses.
| Re: Llangollen Canal - Whitchurch, Shropshire canal breach: 22 Dec 2025 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [370325/31316/51] Posted by grahame at 22:04, 30th December 2025 | |
The board for so much of this stuff is, probably ...
Heritage railways, Railtours, buses, canals, steamships and other public transport based attractions
Railway lines and other public transport attractions, largely separate from the national network. Covers those saved from closure, reinstated or specially built and includes commemorative events.
... and there seems to be scope there for leisure canals. The Llangollen current issue thread there, perhaps. I would get concerned if we had separate threads for every arm (Wendover Arm or Bumblehole Basin, anyone) but then I guess if we ended up with an Ardingly and a Mannez Quarry thread that would be getting interesting - if perhaps member driven so we would move with it.Railway lines and other public transport attractions, largely separate from the national network. Covers those saved from closure, reinstated or specially built and includes commemorative events.
