Cancellation of the last train home at Bristol Temple Meads last night

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

Having travelled into Bristol on the train yesterday evening, intending to return home on 'the last train to Weston-super-Mare' (1C32), I was rather interested to see what would happen when that service was cancelled (at the very last minute). 

I had arrived at Bristol Temple Meads in plenty of time to catch the 23:35 - only to see that it was delayed by at least 15 minutes.  No problem: I amuzed myself by watching live updates for our incoming train on the 'information for staff' screen, on the wall to the left of the 'lost property office' in the concourse. 

Up on the platform, it was only announced at the very last moment that our train would be cancelled, so instead of arriving on platform 15, it would terminate on platform 3. With timely instructions from various GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) platform staff (backed up by two uniformed police officers from the BTP^▸ (British Transport Police)!), we all went over to the public information desk.

There, the one member of GWR staff (unfortunately, I didn't catch his name, but he was brilliant!) in the office was frenetically writing out taxi passes for passengers to all of the stations further down the line - as far as Exeter.

So I eventually got to my home station in a taxi - delayed, but in view of the ghastly weather, not unreasonably so.

My thanks to all of the GWR staff on duty at Bristol Temple Meads for dealing with that clearly 'last minute' cancellation so professionally.

[bobm]

Just for completeness - the reason for the cancellation was flooding at Hele and Bradninch crossing. Apparently the cattle grids were washed away and even part of the road surface needed replacing.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thanks, bobm. 

Yes, there was some indignation expressed at Bristol Temple Meads last night, as to why the train was terminated there: "Surely it could have continued until Highbridge, if the flooding is in Devon?"

The trouble is, what do you do with an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) which is then stranded at Highbridge overnight?  That's a hypothetical question, by the way. 

[John R]

There is the facility to turn trains back at Highbridge, though in this instance I'm slightly puzzled as to why it couldn't run as far as Taunton and then return to St Philips Marsh.

[Chris from Nailsea]

I don't know, John R: possibly train crew 'out of time', if that was the case?