Park and ride developments - Lyme Regis

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Perturbed by Park and Ride Provision

http://publictransportexperience.blogspot.com/2019/04/perturbed-by-park-and-ride-provision-1.html

Lyme Regis does really need a Park and Ride service. There is very little parking space in the town centre, with the main sites being some distance away down (to the beach) and up (wearily from); in peak summer all of them can be full and traffic congestion is compounded with frustrated visitors driving to and fro in the hope of finding a space.

For several years a shuttle minibus ran from Charmouth Road car park in the west ...

And that carries on with a history.   To learn about the situation at present

http://publictransportexperience.blogspot.com/2019/04/perturbed-by-park-and-ride-provision-2.html

After a brief visit to Lyme Regis on Saturday (last) fbb was astounded to meet, face to face, a Jurassic Coaster double deck bus on Lyme Regis Park and Ride.

And there was another one going in the opposite direction!

Total loading on the two vehicle was FIVE, three arrivals and two departures - so it was a wise decision to schedule double decks! fbb had seen no local publicity for this plentiful provision but that was no real surprise as Lyme is across the border in D*rs*t (where be dragons!).

So, back at fbb mansions, a delve into the wonders of the interwebnet as we are continually told, "It's all on line."

There appears to be an east and a west car parks ... buses passing through the pinch point in the centre of Lyme Regis as they traverse bewteen them.  The online publicity is lacking (!!) and the service not doing very well in terms of loading.   Runs over easter; don't know if it will be back later in the year.


Several posts this morning quote "Fat Bus Bloke" on Passenger Transport Experience .... worth a look not only for buses (but if you scroll down the daily blog pages) snippets of other stories he's found - perhaps while sitting on a bus in a queue waiting to get to Portishead or Lyme Regis.

[bradshaw]

First has a number of double deckers spare and normally these are used for school services during term time. One even picks up students in Loders, when it can get past the parked vehicles.
The P&R^▸ (Park and Ride) ends before the schools return so it could be seen as a marginal cost exercise.
There was an eastern park and ride site by that housing development some years back but it fell out of use.
Although living in the area, I have seen no publicity about it at all. Lyme is usually off limits from Easter until the autumn.
There are two useful car parks there in which you may find spaces. One is on the western, Monmouth, beach and the other is on Woodmead Road ( DT7 3HN)

[JayMac]

Lyme Regis is one of my go to places for dog walkies. However, even off season it can be a pain to park.

I avoid Lyme Regis during the summer though. Not because traffic and tourists become unbearable, but because Finn isn't allowed on the beach from May to September!

[Lee]

I remember back in the mid-2000s there was a lot of activity around proposals to reopen the Axminster-Lyme Regis railway and have it end at a Park & Ride site - https://www.bridportnews.co.uk/news/990827.bluebell-line-back-on-track/

More recently, Simon Calder raised it as a possibility - https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/railway-routes-uk-restore-lines-government-reconnect-coasts-carlisle-edinburgh-strata-florida-wells-a8098061.html

[bradshaw]

There are people in Lyme pressing for an all year ban. The result of too many dogs not being under proper control.
They are allowed on Monmouth, Cobb Gate and East Beach all year. This link provides useful information

https://jurassiccoast.org/discover/things-to-do/dog-friendly-beaches/

[RichardB]

I remember back in the mid-2000s there was a lot of activity around proposals to reopen the Axminster-Lyme Regis railway and have it end at a Park & Ride site - https://www.bridportnews.co.uk/news/990827.bluebell-line-back-on-track/

More recently, Simon Calder raised it as a possibility - https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/railway-routes-uk-restore-lines-government-reconnect-coasts-carlisle-edinburgh-strata-florida-wells-a8098061.html

I have to say I have not heard any talk locally about the idea since we got involved with the Axminster - Exeter section of the West of England Line (the East Devon Line) in earnest with the start of the SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) franchise in 2017.  I don't know the station site in Lyme Regis but reading about it, it seems to have similarities with Ilfracombe and Sidmouth in that it is high above the town and a fair way from the seafront.  If the geography allowed it to be in a central, well located position like Minehead or Swanage, it might have already reopened, at least to a park and ride, but sadly, of course it isn't. 

[JayMac]

There are people in Lyme pressing for an all year ban. The result of too many dogs not being under proper control.
They are allowed on Monmouth, Cobb Gate and East Beach all year. This link provides useful information

https://jurassiccoast.org/discover/things-to-do/dog-friendly-beaches/

I always check where and where not Finn is allowed to go. Fully aware of the high season restrictions in Lyme.

If the locals want a year round ban then we'll go elsewhere. Taking the lunch/pint/shop spend with us.

[bradshaw]

Completely agree with you, problem is big dogs let loose with children around and owners not seeming to care or understand. I put the link in for those not familiar with Lyme.

I would hate an all year ban as our small dog loves the beach, although afraid of the water!

The old Lyme station was at the top of the hill, where Travis Perkins is now.
We used to stay at Lyme in the 1950s, travelling from Crewkerne by train. The walk from the station to Monmouth beach was one thing, the return uphill another!

[Celestial]

Completely agree with you, problem is big dogs let loose with children around and owners not seeming to care or understand. I put the link in for those not familiar with Lyme.

Isn't the problem just as much that you cannot rely on owners preventing their dogs from using the beach as a toilet, which with people (especially children) playing in the sand is a health risk.

[JayMac]

Any one who doesn't have control of their dog and doesn't clear up after them should be dealt with as laws and byelaws allow.

To ban all dog owners for the actions of a few is an overreaction.

I agree with summer bans when beaches are busy, but late autumn through to late spring, when the beaches are quieter, should see them remain available for dog exercise.