An update for our Parish - worth sharing here as it gives a TransWilts checkpoint with a Melksham bias ...
TransWilts Community Rail Partnership (
TWCRP» ) in association with Melksham Railway Development Group (
MRDG» ).
Report for Melksham Without Annual Parish Meeting, 11th April 2016
* Past year
It's been a busy year at Melksham Station, and for train services on the TransWilts line.
At Melksham Station, additional free car parking for some 20 cars was opened last summer, and a ticket vending machine commissioned to allow the collection of tickets bought online in advance, and for purchase of tickets for on-the-day travel. The trial service of 8 trains each way per day continued, with the latest published journey numbers for Melksham Station up from 24,000 to 58,000 in a year, making in the 7th fastest growing station in the
UK▸ . Passenger journeys on trains to from and through Melksham rose from 180,000 in the previous year to a run rate at the end of 2015 or around 235,000 journeys; due to 6 weeks of engineering works in the summer, annual numbers for local TransWilts traffic can only be estimated. Business analysis suggests that further significant growth should be anticipated if train freqnency or capacity is increased.
The Melksham Rail Link bus, which used the Frome minibuses vehicle to provide extra services to link with commuter trains, had grown a run rate of around 9,000 journeys per annum (about a dozen on the busiest bus each day) by July 2015, but funding through Wiltshire Council was withdrawn on 16th July, and there is no longer an easy link for commuters without cars to the station from Bowerhill or the newer eastern hosing areas of Melksham.
Evening bus services from Chippenham to Melksham, which we had arranged to accept rail tickets and provided a useful late night way back to the town, were withdrawn from 2nd August when Wilsthire Council ceased funding them. Rail users were a small part of the traffic carried on that bus, but it made a big difference to those people as it provided the final piece in a jigsaw of long distance travel by public transport rather than by car.
Leaflets and season ticket wallets, pocket timetables, coverage in the Bowerhill Villager, the Melksham Independent News and the Wiltshire Times, provision of information via the Town Hall,
TIC▸ , and Library and on local radio and online via our own web site, Twitter and Facebook has helped raise the profile of the service. We've held two "TransWilts Link" events to co-ordinate public transport planning across the county, promoted day trips to Weymouth in the summer (with well loaded 8 coach trains on August Saturday resulting) and had Santa visit us in December (now travelling on 2 train services to see all the children - not just one as it was in the past)
The national RailFuture awards are presented annually in the autumn, and in November we entered for four awards - and came out with two golds and two silvers - for the best individual campaigner, the best social media campaign, the best web site, and the best overall campaign. Such awards are important as they bring our local line to national attention, helping us as we develop forward for the future and look to justify our line's place as part of the national network.
* Present
In order to handle the dramatic increase in passenger numbers, and the need to ensure a secure future as a "second string" to current service support, the TransWilts
CRP▸ has become part of the TransWilts Community Interest Company, and we're looking at public transport to, from and within Wiltshire as a whole. In a survey we did (but before the rail link bus was withdrawn) some 80% of passengers used other wheeled transport to or from the station at one end (at least) of their TransWilts Journey, so it's all about integrated transport. The Melksham Railway Development Group is a member of the partnership, and act as eyes, ears, mouth and volunteers in Melksham.
As I write, there's a consultation underway from the
DfT» (Department for Transport) relating to our application for "service designation". Designation would offer extra funding and networking opportunities to TransWilts and would further raise our national profile, as well as delegating some powers should we wish to have local exceptions to national policies. The consultation closes on 6th April, but I would not anticipate a decision being announced until after the parish meeting.
* Future
Initial 'seed' funding for the service runs until December 2016 - from a grant from the DfT through Wiltshire Council. Although we are very much aware that both the rail link bus and the 234 services ceased last year at a "suitable" point in the funding contracts, we're fairly sure that the train service itself will be able to carry on at current or better levels, much thanks to the volunteers, Chair (Paul Johnson) and President (Peter Blackburn) of TransWilts
CIC▸ , Peter (again) as chair and John Hamley as secretary of MRDG and to Great Western and the DfT.
From 16th May 2016, an extra service runs in the middle of the day on weekdays, and that's a permanent service. An extra Sunday morning service will run too for the summer.
If all goes well, from May 2017 our 1 carriage train will be replaced by a 2 carriage train, and that by a train with higher capacity carriages, and another extra service, late in 2018.
Melksham Station is currently only long enough for one carriage, but as part of ongoing works, Network Rail are planning to extend the platform to 3 carriage lengths. This will add station capacity and speed up train loading as traffic continues to grow. Melksham Rail Development Group and the CRP have been awarded a grant through the
GWR▸ community fund - with match funding from local sponsors - to prepare for this work to connect the extended platform via a walkway and cycleway to Foundry Close. This will reduce the walking distance from the station to Foundry Close by 800 metres, to north Melksham and Beanacre by 700 metres and to Melksham Forest by around 500 metres.
Last August, during engineering works, the line was shown to have the capacity for an hourly train each way, and that's an aspiration we're working towards - though it's unlikely to be realises this year. We are also working with partners to join the Swindon - Westbury service to Westbury - Warminster - Salisbury - Southampton services, including the service to Southampton Airport. The effect of these changes will be to meet existing passenger flows with existing train units, and also have those train units much better utilised and offering through journeys where connections with waits are currently the order of the day.
This year, Wiltshire's supported bus services are under review with every probability that public funding will be cut after the May 2017 Wiltshire Council elections. Additionally, it has been observed that First Bus's commercial services to Melksham have been reduced over the years, with 234, 235, 236, 237 and 273 all no longer running - just the council supported 271 and the commercial 272 remain from this operator. TransWilts is keeping abreast of the situation, with a view to assisting with integrated total transport solutions; we believe that by providing extra travel opportunities on the buses (such as train connections), together with through ticketing and other steps designation will allow, a modernised bus network answering most journey requirements can be provided at a fraction of the current subsidy - growing the service to viability as has been done with the train.
* Involvement
The Melksham Railway Developement Group (of which the undersigned is vice chair) would like to thank Melksham Without Parish Council for their continued supports - both financial and otherwise. Without such support, we would not have been able to help get where the station and service is today, and without ongoing support we wouldn't be able to carry on that work into the future.
Friends and volunteers are always welcome. See
http://transwilts.orgTransWilts Forum, Red Lion Hotel, Salisbury - Saturday 16th April, 09:30
Melksham Railway Development Group - next meeting Melksham Town Hall, Friday 29th April, 7:30 p.m.
Current services from Melksham
http://twcrp.info/melkshamprepared by:
Graham Ellis -
grahamellis@transwilts.orgCommunity Rail Officer, TransWilts Community Rail Partnership
TransWilts CRP 48, Spa Road, Melksham, Wilts, SN12 7NY
A division of the TransWilts Community Interest Company (CIC)
http://www.transwilts.org - 0845 459 0153
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