Great Western Coffee Shop

http://www.highways.gov.uk/news/pressrelease.aspx?pressreleaseid=158177

OK, not a website link that features very often on this forum, but this could have a bit of an effect on passengers numbers. I hope the additional units are in place by then, or alternatively FGW put some other contingency plans in place. Time for the Class 67+  9 Mk2s that ATW rolls out for internationals at the Millennium maybe?

"On Monday 31 March the A36 will close for major roadworks at Limpley Stoke and Monkton Combe and remain closed for the next 12 weeks."

All the heavy lorries are being send up through Melksham, I note ... here's the A350 past the town

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/a350tj1.jpg)

Not so great news for me- this means I'll have to spend even longer going to work every day in my friend's uncomfortable car, on a diversion.

Although I could take the train from Bath down to Warminster every day which I think I'll do, despite the morning train being inconveniently timed...

Wiltshire Times article link.
http://www.wiltshiretimes.co.uk/news/latestheadlines/display.var.2084045.0.a36_section_to_close_for_12_weeks.php

Shops, businesses and university staff are gearing up for three months of major disruption when roadworks begin next week (link below.)
http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=180730&command=displayContent&sourceNode=232315&home=yes&more_nodeId1=163047&contentPK=20245449

The owner of the Furniture Mill, at Monkton Combe, Paul Clark, has staged a "name your price" sale to try to sell as much stock as possible before the road closes on Monday.

Mr Clark, who has run the store for almost 20 years, said:

BNES Council has released a PDF map showing the location of diversion signs around the works (link below.)
http://www.bathnes.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/030D0113-4A47-475F-9CDD-7FAF6170B5A4/0/InterouteClosuresandSignage100018_324_P1.pdf

Do you think FWG will reduce fares just like they did for customer like they did when A46 was closed for customer in Stroud Valley? ;D

Sadly no, my fare was the same this morning! Good idea though Sion!

The services were only very slightly busier than normal this week, if at all.

Judging by the amount of traffic outside my house, which is on a diversion route, everyone would rather be stuck in miles long queues than get the train!!

Gridlock and traffic jams up to five miles long are hitting Bath and surrounding villages following the closure of the A36 (link below.)
http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=163490&command=displayContent&sourceNode=163316&contentPK=20303184&folderPk=89126&pNodeId=163047

While hundreds of people face hours of delays as a result of the work on the A36, others are enjoying the peace and quiet the closure has brought (link below.)
http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=163490&command=displayContent&sourceNode=163316&contentPK=20303629&folderPk=89126&pNodeId=163047

The diversions, which are sending cars on alternative routes through Bath, have been directing lorries away from the city to prevent further congestion.

And that has meant some long-awaited tranquillity for city centre residents.

Rather than roaring through Bath while using the A36 as a through route, HGVs are being sent on the A350 through Wiltshire.

This means the roads in the city centre should be relatively free of lorries for the next 12 weeks.

Residents' groups are looking for long-term solutions to the problem and believe an HGV restriction would improve traffic flow and air quality.

Apparently, Bath and North East Somerset Council is going to give an announcement soon to say that lorries will not be allowed to pass through the city between 10am and 6pm.

B&NES Council is working with Wiltshire County Council and the Highways Agency to develop alternative routes around Bath for HGVs to use (example background link below.)
http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=456.msg1331#msg1331

A lorry driver got stuck on the A36 - despite 200 signs telling truckers to steer clear of the route (link below.)
http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=163490&command=displayContent&sourceNode=163316&contentPK=20303622&folderPk=89126&pNodeId=163047

Wonder how many railway bridges the idiot has hit and got away with.

More cars etc will be on A350 through Melksham.

Drivers in Bath are suffering more headaches after work to replace a gas mains along the Lower Bristol Road got underway (link below.)
http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=180730&command=displayContent&sourceNode=232315&home=yes&more_nodeId1=163047&contentPK=20339005

Long queues have built up both into the city centre and out to Bristol after Wales and West Utilities began to dig up the road at its junction with Brougham Hayes.

A Wales and West Utilities spokesman said the work was scheduled to last for 11 days. It had been planned to coincide with the Easter school holidays in order to minimise disruption.

Potentially a missed opportunity for FGW for the West Wilts commuters as a decent advertising campaign may have brought in a few more customers, although it may be double edged sword considering current capacity.

I can see the headlines ^Rail campaign too succesful^ etc and drives even more passengers from rail. If the 3 car sets were already in place then it might have been worthwhile.

Works by a self-styled country lane artist called Scrumpy are bringing smiles to the faces of hundreds of frustrated drivers (link below.)
http://thisissomerset.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=147472&command=displayContent&sourceNode=243687&home=yes&more_nodeId1=242222&contentPK=20531444

Since April, when the A36 near Bath closed for three months for major roadworks, more commuters have been taking an alternative route through the village of Hinton Charterhouse.

But to stop people using the picturesque village and surrounding narrow lanes as a cut-through, four-way temporary traffic lights are now in place at the village crossroads and have been causing further headaches for drivers.

However, soon after the closures began, brightly-coloured paintings began cropping up at the roadside along the B3110, in clear view of where cars were queuing.

Aimed at lightening the sombre mood, they bore humorous slogans such as "Welcome to Heathrow Terminal 5", "Queue here for the Portsmouth Ferry" and the most recent to appear was "Smile your (sic) on YouQueued".

I live near the signposted diversion route and it's a lot busier that usual at the moment ...

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/div01.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/div02.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/div03.jpg)

This stretch of the A350 is always busy, but there was a serious jam some two miles long the other  morning when I had to venture out there.  The Department for Transport's map makes it clear why:

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/ado8.jpg)

Towards the left of the map, you'll see a V shaped pair of congested roads (orange and red). The leftmost one is the A36, closed at present and the one on the right is the A350 which is taking the extra traffic.   The red (worst congested) sections are two sections near Melksham,, and between Chippenham and the M4.

The A36 is due to reopen on Friday night (link below.)
http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=180730&command=displayContent&sourceNode=232315&home=yes&more_nodeId1=163047&contentPK=20881600

... and open it did - with some celebration, apparently:

http://www.wiltshiretimes.co.uk/display.var.2359019.0.party_marks_end_of_road_closure.php

Unfortunately, there are now fresh problems (being blamed on the poor quality of the resurfacing, apparently):

Just over a week after the A36 reopened, an accident involving three cars closed it again for more than four hours last night. Emergency services were called to the stretch of road close south of Limpley Stoke at 7.20pm. When they arrived they discovered that there had been a collision involving a Mini Cooper, a Volkswagen Passat and a Peugot 206, which was on its side. Three people were trapped in the Peugot but three others who had been travelling in the other cars had managed to free themselves and escaped with cuts and bruises.

Police closed the road while firefighters from Bath and West Wiltshire cut through the roof and doors of the Peugot to release the people inside.

The road partially reopened at around 11pm to allow traffic travelling towards Bath to continue on its journey, but it was not completely clear until just after midnight.

See http://thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=163490&command=displayContent&sourceNode=163316&contentPK=20990256&folderPk=89126&pNodeId=163047