Great Western Coffee Shop

7 p.m., Railway Inn, Westbury, on 9th October. Andrew Griffiths talks on "First Great Western, Progress and the future"

I'm posting this in several relevant board - full details and general follow ups at:

http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=714

On a TransWilts specific issue, please note that the TransWilts line is the ONLY line  into Westbury from which First Great Western is NOT offering an appropriate service to this meeting.   Travelling from Melksham, which is about 10 miles away and has a population of 24,000, you would need  to catch the 06:44 train in the morning and hang around Westbury for 12 hours.    After the meeting you can then sleep rough on the platform anc catch the 07:02 back home in the morning.

As Andrew will be talking about "FGW - Progress and the future", this is an excellent opportunity to raise the issues of the TransWilts service that was cut back by FGW last December, and what appear to be stillborn plans for an improvement in the new timetable.

I wish I could Graham, as I strongly support your campaign!  Unfortunately not though, but us folk (I in particular!) who are disappointed with the FGW service from South Wales are very strongly in support of the Melksham/West Wilts case.

A group of people need to be late for the meeting

"Sorry Andrew, I couldn't get on the first service because it was full and standing, and the second was X mins late!"

That's been thought about from Melksham, where we would be late if we came on the only available train, even if was running and on time.   However, that would trivialise it and just make a publicity point. I would much rather be there for the whole meeting, listen carefully to Andrew, and ask him some very strong  questions indeed from a position of as much current knowledge as possible

Anyone planning to buy Andrew a beer?

Getting to this meeting from Melksham:

Bus service 234 at 18:01 from the Market place to Trowbridge Town Hall, arrive 18:23.   Walk to railway Station, train to Westbury arrive 18:50. Journey time 49 minutes

Return - 21:12 train to Trowbridge, arrive 21:18. Run to Town Hall for the 21:25 bus, 21:43 in to Melksham. Journey time 31 minutes.  If the train is late or if you can't run fast enough, the next bus gets you in to Melksham at 23:29. Journey time 137 minutes.

Train from Melksham to Westbury by train - when available - 15 minutes

Could the meeting not have been given a start time of 1930? One would assume that the West Wiltshire Rail Users Group (strong supporters of the Melksham / TransWilts cause , click on http://www.wwrug.org.uk/Melksham.htm) knew that the only realistic train from Melksham arrived at 1925 , and that a lot of folks from the town would want to attend.

At the other end of the meeting, the last train to Weymouth leaves at 21:38 and the last train to Exeter at 21:57.  Whilst this is the "West Wilts" group, I suspect we will have at least one person there who wants to get back to Somerset, Dorset or Devon.

I see your point. I will be there , and the last train that I can catch back to Portsmouth leaves Westbury at 2159.

I'm hoping that Andrew will have time to answer the question posted here:

http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/whytrust.html (http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/whytrust.html)

How did it go then?

You'll see lots of general answers around the board.   On the Melksham specific, really nothing that I / we didn't know already.   No ability to give me anything that reassured me that it will actually happen this time.  Sympathy for the time it has taken and frustration.

Pointedly, no answer on the return of the 142s in 2009.  But also a note, correctly, that we really all HAVE to work together or we'll get nowhere

Melksham was the very last subject that Andrew brought up in his talk. But at least it WAS brought up and is still on the agenda.

I hope you said I wasn't happy about them coming to Paignton  ;D

No-one at the meeting (including FGW) is happy about it ... rather like preaching to the converted.   

People to tell ....  try Ben Bradshaw, MP for Exeter and Gordon Brown's "Champion of the South West".   Try Gwyneth Dunwoodly, chair of the transport subcommitee of the House of Commons.  Tell Ruth Kelly, Minister of Transport and Tom Harris, minister of state at the DfT for rail.