Swindon - facilities, improvements, signalling, events and incidents, including GWR history - merged posts

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Swindon Advertiser:

Sensory Garden at Swindon Station is set to thrive again


Florist Louise Joachim by the Sensory Garden at Swindon Station

The derelict sensory garden at Swindon Station may soon be rejuvenated. A flower shop owner has begun talks to take responsibility for the upkeep of the garden, which has long been denounced as an eyesore.

Louise Joachim, owner of Wendy House Flowers, is on a mission to make the garden live up to its name once more. She has appealed to First Great Western and the station manager to allow her to fill the garden with a variety of plants which appeal to the senses, including flowers, herbs and fruit plants.

The garden first caught her attention after her young son took an interest in trains. ^He is a bit of a train fanatic,^ said Louise. ^Most evenings we are up there making trips or watching the trains, so having been there quite a few times I noticed the garden looking run down. It has been like that for ages and it is such a shame to see it that way. Having seen the regeneration of other stations they have really put a lot of effort into it. With Swindon being at the heart of the rail network, it is a shame people do not make a big deal about it. We make a lot of our rail heritage, but our station looks like a dump.^

Louise wants to make the garden attractive once again, and is offering her services to make that happen. ^I just think it should be somewhere people can enjoy,^ she said. ^It would not just be pretty flowers ^ I want to make the garden live up to its name. I want it to appeal to all the senses, so I would like to grow flowers, herbs and fruit plants.

^There should be things people can touch and smell, where they can indulge themselves. It could be a quiet little haven where people have a place to enjoy nature. The train station is people^s first impression of Swindon, and I want it to be pretty spectacular.^

Louise started Wendy House Flowers after going through the Outset Project for people wanting to start their own business. ^I wanted to focus on where my passion lies, which is floristry, and I thought this would be the perfect time to make the jump,^ she said. ^I have been doing floristry for years, and it is in my blood to be green-fingered. So I did some courses and developed on those skills.

^I have been part of the Outset Project which is offered through the Job Centre to help people start up their own business, providing us with a mentor and additional funding. They teach you all the aspects of business and it has been amazing, a really valuable experience. Everything has come together perfectly since then.^

A spokesman for First Great Western said: ^We are aware of the garden and some of the impressions surrounding it. If a local business is interested in putting some work into the garden to improve it, that is something we would welcome and take into consideration.^

[bobm]

The group has announced it has secured an agreement to put the panel into a purpose built building at the Great Western Society at Didcot.

http://www.swindonpanel.org.uk/resources/updates/Swindon_Panel_Update_4.pdf

[bobm]

Signalling problems at Swindon currently means no trains can travel west of the town towards Gloucester, Chippenham or Bristol Parkway.

The 16:30 and the 17:00 Bristol Temple Meads to Paddington services have both diverted via the Berks & Hants line missing out Chippenham, Swindon and Didcot Parkway stops.

[phile]

They can run towards Gloucester because, according to Journey Check, the South Wales trains are diverted that way.    Bristol trains diverted via Berks and Hants.

[bobm]

Developing situation...  as you say they can now run via Kemble

[Timmer]

Hearing that replacement buses haven't turned up at Bath yet for onward travel to Chippenham and Swindon with passengers advised to head to the bus station where their tickets will be accepted.

[bobm]

Journeycheck advising passengers between Chippenham and Swindon to use Stagecoach Service 55.   First Somerset & Avon Bus X39 Bristol (City Centre)-Bath Spa, First Somerset & Avon Bus 231 Bath Spa-Chippenham, First Somerset & Avon Bus 319 Bath Spa-Bristol Parkway, Stagecoach Bus 94 Cheltenham Spa -Gloucester, Stagecoach West Buses 20/21 Stroud (Town Centre)-Stonehouse (Main Street) and Stagecoach West Bus 14A Stroud-Stonehouse-Gloucester services are conveying passengers via any reasonable route until further notice.

[Timmer]

Thoughts with all those trying to get home tonight as this is causing major delays and cancelations at both ends of the line.

[Electric train]

Thoughts with all those trying to get home tonight as this is causing major delays and cancelations at both ends of the line.

I was on the 16:12 ex Padd (stopper to Reading) this evening which made its usual progress towards Ealing Broadway when we stopped at the signal just by the new dive under, after a short while the drive announced that we would not be stopping at Ealing Broadway or Southall  much shock to some; we were crossed over to DN Main in front of a HST^▸ (High Speed Train (Inter City class 43 125 units)) (think it was 16:15 ex Padd) and then crossed back west of Southall

There was a unit in plat 4 at Ealing Broadway all decamped no sign of emergency services or any one else for that matter

[bobm]

Passenger taken ill on board a train at the platform at Ealing Broadway.

[grahame]

Hearing that replacement buses haven't turned up at Bath yet for onward travel to Chippenham and Swindon with passengers advised to head to the bus station where their tickets will be accepted.

Bus route 231 - takes 65 to 74 minutes from Bath bus station to Chippenham railway station (train takes 15 minutes)

Journeycheck advising passengers between Chippenham and Swindon to use Stagecoach Service 55.  ...

Bus route 55 takes 70 minutes from Chippenham railway station to Swindon (train takes 15 minutes)

A slow old journey indeed tonight ... and a reminder of just why the train is so preferable for journeys like these

[bobm]

Of the trains which have run, this is probably the worst affected service.

[John R]

I was on that one beyond Swindon. Apparently if left Swindon roughly on time, had to stop on its way to Wootton Bassett following the failure, eventually reversed to Swindon where it came into platform 1. Then had to reverse east to enable it to stand at platform 4 (can't travel towards WB from 1). I suspect that's where the departure time of 1758 comes from.

Finally left Swindon westbound at around 1850, crawled to Chippenham. On departure from Chippenham had a green to red SPAD^▸ (Signal Passed At Danger - very bad!) when the signals failed again, resulting in a further 20 minute delay.  Finally terminated at Temple Meads 3 hours late.

[SDS]

Update at 20:16: 1A33 20:30 Bristol TM^▸ (Train Manager, or possibly Ticket Machine, depending on context) to Paddington will run booked route
Update at 20:14: Temporary block working is in place, a reduced service will be running booked route.


1C20 15:30 Paddington to Weston SM was originally trapped in the area with no signals which explains the delay.

What with all these recent NeR failures, someone really needs to kick NeR into touch.


And now as im writing this there is a points failure at AML affecting Up Relief Line and trapping 2P82 18:37 Banbury to Paddington and 2G61 20:46 Greenford to Paddington. 

[SDS]

Passenger taken ill on board a train at the platform at Ealing Broadway.

Ambulance attending to a person having a heart attack on 2R49 at Ealing Broadway. :-(