Agree S&T^▸ (Signalling and Telegraph), vegetation clearance has been an opportunity missed.

Platform 1 also needs enlarging, at peak times it gets very cosy and has done for a few years.

Thanks for the comments. I was in the Queens Hotel posting that watching live departures, fortunately I was in no hurry yesterday.

Also sadly I didn't do a screen grab showing even PADDs cancelled/delayed at the time. Red across the board.

Boarded a Pompey thinking it was the 14.xx only to find it was the 13.xx with everyone having sat there for an hour. The next Pompey joined up on platform 4 to make 6 car at which point I decided the Queens was a better place to wait for the next hour. Did think of via Swindon but at that pointnt was going to be swings and roundabouts on arrival time.

The next Pompey was old faithful 150001. Only a couple down at Trowbridge especially with Bath rugby crowd boarding on the way.

Only posted here as I'm trying to get back to Trowbridge with most of the line between BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains) and NWP closed due to safety inspection all afternoon.

Both lines out I think, but no idea what might have caused it.

Normally a damaged freight wrecking the track before they found out it was done over a considerable length.. Not sure what happened today.

Hence all the blue lines I think as I type this.

Many thanks for the correction Paul. Memory fade since I last had a serious interest in the subject.

Far too sensible to ever be adopted.

A very impressive piece of work, applaud the effort. Gave me a smile this morning, they'll never be employed in the rail industry coming up with practical plans like this.

Yes, 9 sets was the figure I remember from several years ago. And the 172/9's for the route would have been corridor ends. They would have had to build more of them in the intervening period after being first mooted.

Not sure which HST^▸ (High Speed Train (Inter City class 43 125 units)) power car type has the Short Swing Link for use over third rail that would get them to Pompey as an enlarged Castle fleet.

You probably wouldn't need the second power car on the longer distances and just have it as a DVT^▸ (Driving Van Trailer (carriage) or Deep Vein Thrombosis, depending on context) and save weight.How many mainline registered 31's are there still about, might be cheaper to reengine a few of those and nice comfy Mk 2 stock with tables.

If memory serves, and happy to be corrected, I think the area group was Wales and West covering the services under discussion, old regional railways.

SubsequentlyWales and Borders and Wessex. At hat time the Weymouth's terminated at Bristol. The same stock then formed the Bristol GT Malvern bit, it may have stood for 15+ mins at Bristol before continuing.

As a group the Wessex routes seemed to work very well as a devolved management area, although quite different areas it felt as though it had an individual identity that could be managed and marketed across the whole region without any 'Capital' influence or dominance. That sadly changed once First got their hands on it. A similar fate may well befall HoW^‡(resolve) in SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) hands.

I hope I don't seem to be saying it was better when I was young type argument, I just have a gut feeling that although numerous different demands the 'Wessex' model wasn't really given sufficient time to develop into a valuable regional public transport asset.

Leave the Bristol Gloucester route with GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) or XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)). Taunton Cardiff to the Welsh.

Not a great deal of that on the Edinburgh circular but we're using 67's top and tailed. HST^▸ (High Speed Train (Inter City class 43 125 units)) with DVT^▸ (Driving Van Trailer (carriage) or Deep Vein Thrombosis, depending on context) anyone?

Lunacy. 

At least when the Pompey is a little late running the regular Bathites are in the starting blocks to swap platforms knowing the PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) will be let out first.

Sadly they didn't alter the signage to accommodate the alterations. Certainly the subway should have been altered to indicate platform 11 is also up the other stairs would have helped.

Also there used to be platform announcements regarding Bath passengers trying to get on short formed trains that there were more comfortable options. That seems to have stopped and it's now a free for all.

Refurb in situ and redeployed elsewhere possibly

Only thing I can think of.

Are there any plans to alter p!atform 3 to accommodate the additional line?

I appreciate it's difficult to judge at the moment but when it was originally built it was a very simple retaining wall and rubble fill afare to expand platform 2. And there have been numerous spray paint lines in the past 18 months indicative of new platform edges, that was my interpretation.

Given the extent of the current work, the realignment of the platform would be minimal.

Thanks Paul.

It always seemed an oddity as the last bit of the old Regional Railways timetable that didn't get revised. Forget all the odd destinations that the Alphaline from Waterloo served, Manchester being one and Milford Haven another for the ferries, forget the other. Left with the rump that SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) provide from BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains). Still very useful although iirc ran non stop from Warminster set down only at a couple of points.

Someone must have seen a need for it to have retained it for so long, and we may have not seen the pink 31's which used to do the run on a Friday.  ;Date

They could always get the ship to pick up in Plymouth Graham.