Bristol Temple Meads Station Approach

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

Actually, I do believe Network Rail / FGW^▸ (First Great Western) already have some such plan - if you give me a while, I'll try and dig it it out, and post it here. 

Here it is: see http://www.plot6.co.uk/PDF/info/Scope_of_Services_v1.pdf - Network Rail, not FGW.

[JayMac]

Actually, I do believe Network Rail / FGW^▸ (First Great Western) already have some such plan - if you give me a while, I'll try and dig it it out, and post it here. 

Here it is: see http://www.plot6.co.uk/PDF/info/Scope_of_Services_v1.pdf - Network Rail, not FGW.

Seek and thou shalt find

I note that on page 1 of this document there is a very prominent notice not to disclose the information to 'third parties'. I trust that part of the time it took you to find this document was taken up by a call to the DIIE to get the necessary clearance for proles like me to read it!   

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thanks, bignosemac! 

If Network Rail were that worried about their document being "disclosed to a third party, without the written permission of the Director, Infrastructure Investment Enhancements", why did they publish it on the internet ??

And just one more gem, taken at random from that 14 page text:

1.9.5
A materials assessment shall be made to create a high quality public realm using materials acceptable to the rail industry and local design code and strategies

[JayMac]

I have read the first few pages and concur with the problems of overcrowding in the ticket hall area. Yesterday (Fri 6th Nov 2009) at 1330ish the queue for tickets, at both the manned windows and the TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) extended out of the main entrance. The queue for the Travel Centre was also spilling out onto the booking hall concourse.

Whilst staffing all ticket windows and Travel Centre points would help, I think that it is time for a radical redevelopment of this part of Temple Meads. There are, no doubt, problems with re-jigging what is a listed building, but at the end of the day a station needs to be fit for purpose. At the moment the booking hall area, including the PIS^▸ (Passenger Information System) screens, entrance to WHSmith and gateline is just too cramped.

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) have, in the past, tried some solutions to alleviate the problems. I speak from experience; I was once, briefly, employed through an agency to provide Customer Service under the screens to facilitate getting passengers onto the right platform as quickly as possible.

Rail-side, Temple Meads is actually quite a spacious station - it just needs more room before the gateline. The area currently occupied by the 'covered' car-park in the Brunel trainshed could, I think, be better utilised as a booking hall. You could couple this with removing private cars from the station approach to the land on the Temple Quay side of the Brunel trainshed.

Pie-in-the-sky? No doubt some 'conservationists' would decry redeveloping Brunel's original trainshed, but I'm sure with a little bit of sensitive redevelopment it could be possible. So much better than using the trainshed as a car park.

[JayMac]

Thanks, bignosemac! 

If Network Rail were that worried about their document being "disclosed to a third party, without the written permission of the Director, Infrastructure Investment Enhancements", why did they publish it on the internet ??

Good point, well made! If you receive a 'copyright infringement notice' and end up in court I'll appear as a material witness for the defence. 

[JayMac]

And just one more gem, taken at random from that 14 page text:

1.9.5
A materials assessment shall be made to create a high quality public realm using materials acceptable to the rail industry and local design code and strategies

Dontcha just love management speak?

[Chris from Nailsea]

The area currently occupied by the 'covered' car-park in the Brunel trainshed could, I think, be better utilised as a booking hall. You could couple this with removing private cars from the station approach to the land on the Temple Quay side of the Brunel trainshed.

Pie-in-the-sky? No doubt some 'conservationists' would decry redeveloping Brunel's original trainshed, but I'm sure with a little bit of sensitive redevelopment it could be possible. So much better than using the trainshed as a car park.

See page 6 of that document:

The Digby Wyatt Shed

Originally added to Brunel's original terminus, is presently utilised as a station car park which is inappropriate and degrading from an architectural perspective. The feasibility proposal should include the 4,000 sq ft of the shed for the re-location of station facilities, retail and commercial use and/or for improvements to the existing ticket office and booking hall.

[smithy]

I have read the first few pages and concur with the problems of overcrowding in the ticket hall area. Yesterday (Fri 6th Nov 2009) at 1330ish the queue for tickets, at both the manned windows and the TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) extended out of the main entrance. The queue for the Travel Centre was also spilling out onto the booking hall concourse.

Whilst staffing all ticket windows and Travel Centre points would help, I think that it is time for a radical redevelopment of this part of Temple Meads. There are, no doubt, problems with re-jigging what is a listed building, but at the end of the day a station needs to be fit for purpose. At the moment the booking hall area, including the PIS^▸ (Passenger Information System) screens, entrance to WHSmith and gateline is just too cramped.

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) have, in the past, tried some solutions to alleviate the problems. I speak from experience; I was once, briefly, employed through an agency to provide Customer Service under the screens to facilitate getting passengers onto the right platform as quickly as possible.

Rail-side, Temple Meads is actually quite a spacious station - it just needs more room before the gateline. The area currently occupied by the 'covered' car-park in the Brunel trainshed could, I think, be better utilised as a booking hall. You could couple this with removing private cars from the station approach to the land on the Temple Quay side of the Brunel trainshed.

Pie-in-the-sky? No doubt some 'conservationists' would decry redeveloping Brunel's original trainshed, but I'm sure with a little bit of sensitive redevelopment it could be possible. So much better than using the trainshed as a car park.

i too saw the que for tickets yesterday,whilst having a crafty smoke around 14.00 the line of people was almost at the taxi rank cafe,could it be bridgwater carnival travellers causing extra ques? as the taunton trains yesterday afternoon were also very busy.

[ReWind]

I too witnessed the long queue's yesterday.

The 13.53 FGW^▸ (First Great Western)  2 car Taunton service was extremely busy, I abandoned the idea of travelling on that train.

XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) services heading south were severely delayed aroung lunchtime yesterday, reason unknown.  I ended up boarding the 12.44 XC HST^▸ (High Speed Train) to Taunton, which turned up at 14.38.

The 13.44 XC Voyager, which turned up at about 14.20, was very busy too.

The Station yesterday, was generally very busy.

Oh, and the forecourt, well, only a moped could of moved there.   

[JayMac]

I have read the first few pages and concur with the problems of overcrowding in the ticket hall area. Yesterday (Fri 6th Nov 2009) at 1330ish the queue for tickets, at both the manned windows and the TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) extended out of the main entrance. The queue for the Travel Centre was also spilling out onto the booking hall concourse..

i too saw the que for tickets yesterday,whilst having a crafty smoke around 14.00 the line of people was almost at the taxi rank cafe,could it be bridgwater carnival travellers causing extra ques? as the taunton trains yesterday afternoon were also very busy.

Ah, Bridgwater Carnival. I didn't think of that. Kinda explains some of the extra people I guess. I wonder whether the loadings were significantly higher for a Friday on stoppers to Taunton later into the afternoon. Did FGW^▸ (First Great Western) provide any extra services to Bridgwater before and after Carnival?

[Chris from Nailsea]

For those who missed the Bridgwater carnival - a video report, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page). 

[TheLastMinute]

At the risk of staying off topic, for those who missed Bridgwater the same carnival circuit continues though out the next week -

Burnham/Highbridge (Mon 9th), Shepton Mallet (Wed 11th), Wells (Fri 13th), Glastonbury (Sat 14th) and Weston-super-Mare (Mon 16th) plus an "unofficial" carnival at Midsomer Norton on Thur 12th. More details at http://www.somersetcarnivals.co.uk.

TLM

[Chris from Nailsea]

At the risk of staying off topic ...

Thanks, TLM! 

Well, indeed at the risk of straying, or staying, off topic: I've added all those events to our calendar. 

If anyone is able to go to one of these carnivals, they really are spectacular!  Great entertainment for any children, and they raise money for charity - so the traffic jams on the way home are worth it! 

[TheLastMinute]

Or indeed the crowed trains back from Weston! (woo-hoo back on topic!)

[JayMac]

At the risk of staying off topic ...

Thanks, TLM! 

Well, indeed at the risk of straying, or staying, off topic: I've added all those events to our calendar. 

If anyone is able to go to one of these carnivals, they really are spectacular!  Great entertainment for any children, and they raise money for charity - so the traffic jams on the way home are worth it! 

Still straying/staying off-topic, I'm hoping to make it Weston's Carnival - if train times allow! I've recently discovered a neat new (well, new to me...!) photography trick called 'Stereoscopic Imagery' and am desperate to try it out. I recently attended a fascinating book talk about 'Stereoscopic Images', hosted by one of my heroes, Brian May. I've learnt the trick of taking two images of a scene from slightly different perspectives, and when viewed side-by-side with a suitable viewer (or free-viewing a-la 'Magic-Eye' pictures) the scene is rendered in glorious 3D.

To the forum: Please forgive my indulgences....but I may be seen taking photos of Bristol Temple Meads' architecture over the next few days to hone my stereoscopy skills.