Ashchurch for Tewkesbury Station - campaign for renaming and other improvements

[whole diary]

[Electric train]

^1,000 for a new sign for drivers.

Eh?? 

That's about right, production cost a lot of railway signs are custom made often by RBL and then there is the fitting cost.

Oh and we must not forget the "sighting" process 

[IndustryInsider]

Presumably the 2+7 and 2+8 stop car boards for HST^▸ (High Speed Train)'s?  Two platforms, so four would be required in total.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thanks for those explanations - I'm now reassured! 

I also noted this, from that article:

... with an average of 15 people a week using the service, First Great Western has now decided to make the extra stop permanent.

So FGW^▸ (First Great Western) are happy that the fares they collect from those relatively few passengers will cover the full costs of the stop in the future. That's very encouraging, and not just for Ashchurch. 

[Btline]

How on earth can 2 people per day cover the costs? I suppose the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) has to come from Worcester so it would be passing through.

If they re-named the station Tewkesbury Parkway they might get more people! Extending all of the Cheltenham HST to Worcester this way would also drum up the Gloucester - Worcester traffic and get more people to use the station.

[Chris from Nailsea]

If they re-named the station Tewkesbury Parkway ...

... that would be another ^1,000 for some new signs. 

[JayMac]

Extending all of the Cheltenham HST^▸ (High Speed Train) to Worcester

Stabling facilities? Staff facilities? Pathing? Timetabling?

[Btline]

Indeed! I'll make them myself for less...

Surely FGW^▸ (First Great Western) hav a depot in the Wos area? As for stabling, there is plenty of space for sidings at Worcester - or at least there was.

Only an idea: seeing as no-one has increased the pathetic 2 hourly Malvern to Bristol service.

[grahame]

How on earth can 2 people per day cover the costs?

Single to London (standard class) 78.50 / 157.00 return.  At that time of the morning, I doubt whether the traffic is local so if there's room on the trains, 5 stops a week brings an income of a thousand or two pounds.  Looks like common sense ...

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the previous news article:

Together with Gloucestershire County Council, the train operators agreed last December that the 5.21am train from Worcester to London Paddington would stop at 5.40am at Ashchurch. And with an average of 15 people a week using the service, First Great Western has now decided to make the extra stop permanent.

The county council agreed last year to put ^13,000 into the project ^12,000 of that for fuel, and ^1,000 for a new sign for drivers.

First Great Western will now take over the full costs of the stop.

So, now that those new signs are installed, the only ongoing cost of that additional service (which First Great Western will cover) is the ^12,000 for fuel over the year.  As grahame says, looks like common sense ... 

[ellendune]

Extending all of the Cheltenham HST^▸ (High Speed Train) to Worcester

Stabling facilities? Staff facilities? Pathing? Timetabling?

There is of-course the small fact that the turn round at Cheltenham does not give time fro a trip to Worcester and back so that would mean additional HST's - any idea where they would come from? If they were available then the cost would have to be covered from additional income.  Remember that Worcester also has a service to london via the North Cotswold line.  I think you are talking about a whole different ball game.

[JayMac]

Indeed ellendune.

I could've added 'Stock?' to my list.

[Btline]

Nah, they have enough stock - just pinch HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) from the Cotswold line. :p

[Andrew1939 from West Oxon]

BTLine - pinching HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) from the Cotswold Line is just what FGW^▸ (First Great Western) does already but I think you must have your tongue in cheek.

[Btline]

Indeed, hence the tongue in cheek smiley.

It would be an option to improve Worcester's links to the XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) service at Cheltenham and Gloucester.
The best option would be an extended Snow Hill line service running to Gloucester to make Worcs - Glous hourly. This would provide extra links such as Kidderminster - Cheltenham.
Even better would be FGW^▸ (First Great Western) running 1 tph Worcs to Bristol or sharing the running of the service with LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise).

This all needs stock - what's frustrating is that LM had the stock (after axing the Walsall to Wolverhampton line), but they ran an isolated Worcester - Gloucester service and timetabled it so it ran just after the FGW service. Unsurprisingly this got axed and the 100 mph stock was poached for Shrewsbury.

This was a wasted opportunity, as LM and FGW now claim there is no demand. Well of course - the M5 is  currently better!

[CLPGMS]

I think that the take-up at Ashchurch would be higher if there was a return train from London which called there.  Perhaps, the 1948 from PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) to Worcester could do so.

It would be an option to improve Worcester's links to the XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) service at Cheltenham and Gloucester.
The best option would be an extended Snow Hill line service running to Gloucester to make Worcs - Glous hourly. This would provide extra links such as Kidderminster - Cheltenham.

For once, I agree with Btline.  It occurs to me that too many trains (FGW^▸ (First Great Western) and LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise)) run between Worcester and Great Malvern, with the result that some only carry one or two passengers between these stations, especially when trains are only 10 minutes apart.  If some way could be found to divert, say, 3 LM trains per day to run from Birmingham, via Kidderminster, to Cheltenham (or Gloucester) instead of Great Malvern, at times in between the existing FGW service, making connections at Shrub Hill, then the whole operation could cost next to nothing.  LM train crews already know the route as one train per week runs from Birmingham to Gloucester (2346 from Shrub Hill on Fridays only).   I suspect that it would just be a case of "where there's a will, there's a way"!