With now-likely additional services on the TransWilts line from December, we're moving the Community Rail Partnership into a more active informing and supporting role to tell our various communities about the opportunities that are about to be unleashed. Printing out old v new timetables (as I've been doing) starts to bring home the enormity of the trains that we're looking to fill!
Wiltshire is arranged into a series of "Area Boards" - councillors for particular towns who meet every couple of months, get community updates, approve local grants, etc ... and we (TransWilts
CRP▸ ) have just written around to them to solicit invites to their next meetings for a brief update. It's up to them, of course, whether they respond with an invite, decline to invite us, or simply don't get back to us but for those who are receptive it's a great opportunity for us to fill them in and ask questions.
We're also looking to work with station groups along the way. In Swindon, Chippenham, Trowbridge and Westbury, TransWilts trains will for a minority of the services and we're hopeful that other or wide station groups will come forward to work with us, or we can form something that's rather wider than purely a "TransWilts interest" one. I'm aware of cyclist by train groups, groups particularly concerned with wheelchair access to difficult platforms, etc ... we're happy for them to expand, or to work with us in ensuring that TransWilts works. In the case of Melksham, we're already working closely with the Melksham Railway Development Group - and that's stepped up to the role for that station.
IF YOU REPRESENT A GROUP AT ANY OF THE STATIONS - please let me know (email - graham@wellho.net; personal message or reply here). By the end of this month (September) and yu can help us set up the meeting too ;-) ....
It is probable that train services on the TransWilts line (Swindon to Westbury) will be improved from December, as part of Wiltshire Council's "Improving Wiltshire's Rail Offering" works. These improvements will bring substantial benefits to the residents and businesses served, for example:
* Wiltshire Residents will be able to visit the Swindon and Wilshire History Centre, the Olympiad, Wiltshire College and other CHIPPENHAM facilities from the west and the south of the county by public transport without having to dog-leg via Bath or spend a great deal of time on buses.
* Visitors to MELKSHAM businesses will have a choice of train connections from London during the day, rather than a single daytime train at 17:45.
* There will now be 15 rather than 7 trains per day from TROWBRIDGE to London that complete the journey in under 2 hours
* And commuters from WESTBURY to Swindon will save 30 minutes of travelling time each day.
"The TransWilts Community Rail Partnership is a group of like-minded organisations seeking to improve the TransWilts railway line which connects Swindon to Salisbury via Chippenham, Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, Dilton Marsh, Warminster and Salisbury through co-ordinated activity with the railway, local communities and government bodies." (that's from our constitution!) and we would like the opportunity to update your area board some time this Autumn on the changes that are taking place, what it means for the area, and how local feedback can be channelled to make the very best of opportunities offered.
We understand the following are set for area board meetings:
9.10.2013 or 11.12.2013 Melksham Area Board
17.10.2013 Westbury Area Board
4.11.2013 Chippenham Area Board
14.11.2013 Trowbridge Area Board
Would you like one of us to come along, give a short presentation, answer questions, distribute marketing information / timetables etc?
As a further part of our program to promote and retain the service, we're working with existing station friends groups to help improve the customer experience, and to provide feedback both ways between the railway industry, local government, passengers and the wider community. And where a friends group doesn't exist in that role, we'll be happy to form such a group as part of the partnership. Provisional dates for initial meetings are:
25.10.2013 19:30 Melksham Railway Development Group (that's an existing group)
6.11.2013 19:00 Swindon Station Group
7.11.2013 19:00 Trowbridge Station Group
12.11.2013 19:00 Chippenham Station Group
15.11.2013 19:00 Westbury Station Group
IF you know of any existing groups, please pass this on and / or put them in touch - we would much rather have them expand to help us with the new services than set up something else - if they can arrange and host one of the meetings listed here, perhaps on a different date (those are not cast in stone) so much the better - but we do need to be in touch by the end of SEPTEMBER to ensure there's time to sort out venues, invites and publicity.
Finally, on Saturday 19th October we are hosting a "TransWilts Link" meeting for all travel and transport and interest groups across Wilthshire, and those who use travel and transport services in the county (so that brings in the likes of Frome too). This is a meeting we hold every six months - it allows groups to exchange experiences, to hear (and learn) from industry leaders and technocrats, and it helps us all co-ordinate suggestions and acitivities so that we're co-ordinated rather than pulling against each other. Please feel free to pass on our details as hosts of that meeting (10 a.m., Westbury).
Update - Station groups / some date changes
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