Stroud - station, facilities, improvements, events and incidents - merged posts

[whole diary]

[Lee]

Lee, are you sure he isn't referring to a road that runs next to the railway? He clearly says lane!

Damn you, you edited... 

Less than 20 seconds in it, though 

[Lee]

From the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) website :

23:33 Swindon to Gloucester due 00:23

This train has been revised.It will no longer call at: Kemble, Stroud and Stonehouse.This is due to emergency engineering works. Replacement road transport is in operation.

[Ollie]

Again..

makes you wonder what is classified as emergency when it was displayed hours ago and same excuse last night.

[G.Uard]

Possession being used primarily for emergency earth and structural work.  NR^» (Network Rail - home page) appear to be taking advantage of the possession to perform clearing of lineside vegetation, presumably to avoid further problems in leaf fall season and also rail defect works.

[willc]

The Swindon-Standish Junction line will be shut between October 26-30 for work on Sapperton Tunnel, embankments at Kemble and vegetation clearance. A couple of peak train to and from London will be run via Bristol Parkway.

More at http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=4293

[John R]

1 hr 40 mins bus replacement Swindon to Gloucester doesn't look particularly attractive! (Only 1 hr 30 in the up direction.)

[inspector_blakey]

Any idea if the routeing restriction "Stroud" on the cheaper fares will be relaxed to allow travel via Bristol Parkway? I don't know for sure but I'm guessing this would be quicker than the bus.

[willc]

On the basis that they allowed Worcester passengers to travel via Parkway during the summer closure on the Cotswold Line, I would be amazed if they didn't allow travel that way for Gloucester and Cheltenham passengers on via Stroud tickets.

[willc]

The timetable for train and bus services on the Stroud route during the half-term closure, including a couple of peak trains to and from London which are running via Bristol Parkway, is now available at http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=4293

[Chris from Nailsea]

More detail on the closure of Sapperton tunnel, on 30/31 October, from rail-news.com:

Strengthening Victorian shafts at Sapperton

A ^2m improvement scheme is set to improve the four deep shafts in the century-old Sapperton rail tunnel.

Once the improvement work is completed, passengers will benefit from a more reliable rail service in the Stroud and Kemble area.  Work will begin next Sunday night and will be carried out round the clock into the small hours of 31 October. Old capping beams will make way for new concrete ones ^ designed to last for the next 125 years, providing a permanent solution to secure the voids and to strengthen the rail tunnel.

Chris Rayner, route director, Network Rail said: ^A complex scheme like this will normally take six to eight weeks, but we will be completing it in just under a week to minimise any inconvenience caused to passengers.  We will also make full use of this six days to carry out strengthening work on the embankment wall near Kemble station. We have recently held a series of meet-the-manager sessions with First Great Western and the feedback received are very positive.  We would like to thank passengers for their patience and for giving us their support to carry out this work.^

Measuring 6m wide by nearly 50m deep, these shafts were among the 10 built in the 19th century to allow workers to access into the hillside to construct the Sapperton railway tunnel.  However, they were not backfilled and were instead capped off with a combination of concrete and timber after the construction of the tunnel was completed.

As these four shafts were built beneath the 1 3/8 mile long railway tunnel, track and rail ballast must be removed for engineers to access them safely.  Road-rail cranes will be used to lift and install the pre-cast concrete beams, weighing 4 tonnes each, into the shafts.

An army of 100 men will be moving nearly 1,000 tonnes of materials and eight 25m-long track into and out of an inaccessible area.

Alternative train and coach services will be provided to rail passengers travelling between Swindon ^ Cheltenham Spa.  Passengers are advised to check their journey time before they travel.

[JayMac]

From the Stroud News and Journal:

Woman suffers neck fractures and serious leg injuries after Stroud Railway Station incident

A 59 year old woman suffered two neck fractures and serious leg injuries after it is believed she jumped in front of a train pulling into Stroud Railway Station on Friday (20/08/2010).

Fire crews used specialist hydraulic equipment to lift the carriage of the South West Trains locomotive to free the woman after the incident which happened at 10.15am. She was treated on the platform by paramedics and taken to Frenchay Hospital in Bristol. A Great Western Air Ambulance was called but the woman was eventually transported by road ambulance. All three fire appliances from Stroud, including the specialist rescue appliance, and one appliance from Gloucester attended. A Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said kit was used from all engines to deal with the incident.

Around 100 passengers were evacuated from the 9.40am Cheltenham to Swindon train service and waited patiently outside Stroud Railway Station as the crew worked to free the woman from beneath the train.

A British Transport Police spokesman said the incident was not being treated as suspicious - meaning no-one else was involved.

The woman's injuries are not thought to be life-threatening but a spokesman for British Transport Police said they could be life-changing.

The line was handed back to Network Rail at 11.20am and a normal service was resumed at noon.

NB: Whilst this was indeed a South West Trains unit, it is currently on loan to First Great Western.

[JayMac]

Update from the Stroud News and Journal (26/08/2010):

UPDATE: Woman's leg amputated below knee after Stroud Railway Station incident

A 59 year old woman, who is thought to have jumped in front of a train at Stroud Railway Station, has had part of her left leg amputated.

A British Transport Police spokesman told the SNJ: "I can confirm that the woman has had the lower part of her left leg amputated below the knee.

"She is still at Frenchay Hospital and her condition remains serious but stable."

continues.....

[Chris from Nailsea]

From FGW^▸ (First Great Western) JourneyCheck:

Line problem: at Stroud

Following a person hit by a train at Stroud all lines have now reopened.
Train services running through this station may be cancelled, delayed or diverted at short notice. Disruption is expected until 00:15 12/01.

Train Cancellation

21:54 Swindon to Cheltenham Spa due 23:05 This train will be cancelled.
This is due to a person hit by a train.

Other Train Service Updates

20:48 Cheltenham Spa to Swindon due 21:51 This train has been delayed and is expected to be 62 minutes late from Gloucester.
This is due to a person hit by a train.

22:01  Cheltenham Spa to Swindon due 23:05 This train will be started from Gloucester at 22:14.
This train will no longer call at Cheltenham Spa.
This is due to a person hit by a train.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Stroud News and Journal:

Woman dies after being hit by train in Stroud

A woman died when she was hit by a train in Stroud station last night.

Passengers on the London-Cheltenham service felt the bump as the train hit the woman at about 8.30pm.

The train was stopped and the line closed for about two hours as British Transport police investigated the scene and recovered the woman's body.

Passengers were eventually taken on to Cheltenham station by coach.

One of the passengers, hairdresser Mark Blake, a partner in Blushes, which has salons in Gloucester, Cheltenham and Cirencester, said "We were just coasting into Stroud station when it happened. We clearly felt the bump and the poor woman ended up under the rear carriage, where I was sitting. It was all very upsetting but I have to say the railway staff handled everything very well and kept us informed at all stages. We could see the woman's red handbag close to our carriage. Apparently it had her passport in it."

He said he was delayed for no more than an hour or so and was then able to get to his car, which was parked at Stroud station, and drive home. It may have been a longer journey, though, for those who had to wait for a coach to take them to Cheltenham.

Mr Blake said it was not the first time he had suffered such an experience - a similar thing happened to him when he was on the same train service at Slough a few months ago.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From Stroud News and Journal:

A request to improve disabled access at Stroud railway station is to be made by Gloucestershire County Council.

The authority has said it will raise the issue as part of a consultation to select a new management firm for the station, which is currently maintained by First Great Western on behalf of owners Network Rail.

Concerns were first raised by Stroud town councillors about a lack of facilities to assist disabled passengers between platforms.

A wooden bridge on site has no lift or ramps and a passenger with limited mobility wishing to cross the tracks would be forced to exit the station to access the adjacent platform via Rowcroft.

The consultation runs until the end of March, during which GCC will also flag up similar poor access facilities at Gloucester station.