Head of Travel and Events for the international healthcare communications company ...

Report of a car on the line at Holt.

BREAKING: The railway line is blocked after a car, reportedly being chased by police, ended up on the tracks.



The incident happened on the line between Chippenham and Trowbridge around 4am this morning (17 March).
A spokesperson for Great Western Railway said: "A car has been driven on to the line between Trowbridge and Chippenham.

"Network Rail are making arrangements to have the car removed, until this is done we are unable to run trains."
It's affecting services running between Swindon and Westbury, with many diverted. Trains are unable to serve Melksham. Disruption is expected until around midday.

Just wondering if the Cross country services will still go via Camp hill or straight down the main line from Birmingham New street.

21:45 Penzance to London Paddington due 05:04

16/03/26 21:45 Penzance to London Paddington due 05:04 will be diverted between Taunton and Reading.

It is being delayed between Taunton and Reading and is now expected to be 110 minutes late.
This is due to an obstruction on the track

If you've got a blue badge or disabled person's bus pass, you may now qualify for a Disabled Person's Railcard as the eligibility criteria for the scheme has been expanded from today (Sunday 1 March). Below we explain what's changing and how to apply.

A Disabled Person's Railcard entitles the holder and an adult companion to one-third off most train fares across England, Scotland and Wales – we've more info on how it works below.

It currently costs £20 for one year or £54 for three years. The Rail Delivery Group, the firm in charge of railcards, says it has no plans to increase prices as a result of it becoming available to more people.

If you're not eligible for this railcard, there may be another one you can get – for full details of the different types available, see our Cheap train tickets guide.

From 1 March: Blue badge holders and others now qualify

Until now, the Disabled Person's Railcard had only been available to those receiving certain benefits or with certain medical conditions (as set out below). It will remain available to those people.

From today (Sunday 1 March), however, eligibility has been expanded to cover a wider range of both visible and non-visible disabilities, meaning more people will be able to apply for one.

The criteria now includes those who:

Have a blue badge.

Have a disabled person's bus pass (England, Scotland and Wales).

Have a disabled person's Freedom Pass (London only).

Can't drive on medical grounds.

Receive Armed Forces Compensation Scheme benefits.

Receive Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit for 20% degree of disablement or higher.

Are without speech.

The existing application process remains the same, but if you meet any of the new criteria, you'll also need to provide one of the following documents:

A copy of the front and back of your blue badge.

A disabled person's bus pass.

A disabled person's Freedom Pass.

A letter from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) or a health professional confirming you're unable to drive on medical grounds.

An award letter confirming receipt of an Armed Forces Compensation Scheme benefit.

An award letter confirming receipt of an Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit for 20% degree of disablement or higher.

A document from a health professional confirming that you're without speech.

For full info on the expanded eligibility criteria, see the Disabled Person's Railcard website.

You can still get it if you receive certain benefits or have certain conditions
The previous qualifying criteria for a Disabled Person's Railcard isn't being removed – this means that you can still qualify if you:

Receive Personal Independence Payments or Adult Disability Payment.

Receive Disability Living Allowance or Child Disability Payment at either the higher or lower rate for the mobility component, or the higher or middle rate for the care component.

Have a visual impairment.

Are registered as deaf or use a hearing aid.

Have epilepsy and receive drug treatment for it.

Receive Attendance Allowance, Severe Disablement Allowance or Pension Age Disability Payment.

Receive war pensioner's mobility supplement.

Receive war or service disablement pension for 80% or more disability.

Buy or lease a vehicle through the Motability scheme.

See the Disabled Person's Railcard website for full info on eligibility criteria.

Eligibility will be extended again from September 2026

Under further planned changes from September this year, you may also qualify if you have a disability or condition that requires professional health evidence and more detailed assessment to verify. This will include:

Some long-term or degenerative health conditions.

Neurodiversity that has a substantial impact on a person's ability to travel by train.

The Rail Delivery Group says it will share information on what evidence will be required closer to the time.

You can get a third off most fares with this railcard

The Disabled Person's Railcard's discount applies to advance tickets, anytime day tickets, anytime single tickets, anytime return tickets, and off-peak and super off-peak tickets (day, single and return). It covers both standard and first class for all these ticket types.

It can also be used to get one-third off a Transport for London (TfL) travelcard for zones 1-9 and Oyster pay-as-you-go travel on the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, London buses and more.

The discount also applies to buying tickets for Gatwick Express, Heathrow Express and Stansted Express. See full info on using your railcard.

The Rail Delivery Group says Disabled Person's Railcard holders save an average of £126 a year, or £4.70 a journey – to see how much you could save on a specific journey, use its calculator.

Visually impaired, blind or using a wheelchair? You don't need a railcard to get discounted train travel
If you're visually impaired or blind: you and and an adult companion can get 34% off anytime singles or returns and anytime day singles, and 50% off anytime day returns, both standard and first class. You can also buy an adult season ticket that lets a companion travel with you at no extra cost.

You don't need to buy a Disabled Person's Railcard to get these discounts, but you do need to provide evidence of impairment or blindness. This has to be either a CVI, BP1 or BD8 certificate, or documentation from a recognised institution, such as social services, your local authority or Blind Veterans UK.

If you're a wheelchair user and will be staying in your chair for the journey: you and a companion can get 34% off anytime singles or returns and anytime day singles, and 50% off anytime day returns, both standard and first class, on adult and child fares. Again, you don't need a Disabled Person's Railcard to get these discounts. But to take advantage of them, tickets must be purchased from a staffed train station ticket office.

For more details, see the alternative discounts section on the Disabled Person's Railcard site.

A leading communications expert has been ordered to pay nearly £1,500 after she launched a foul-mouth tirade at railway staff.

Erika Waring, 65, was dropping her mother Margaret, 88, at the main entrance of Wilmslow Railway Station in Cheshire at 1.20pm on August 21, 2025, when staff told her she had driven into a restricted area and directed her to the car park.

Waring, who is Head of Travel and Events for the international healthcare communications company Havas Lynx, was taking her mother, who has severe mobility issues, to London on a West Coast train for a day of sightseeing.

The Convent school educated mother-of-one from Dunham Massey, Greater Manchester, repeatedly swore at station staff after they asked her to move on, calling one porter a 'f***ing b***h'.

Staff initially advised Waring to move her vehicle to a car park at the rear of the station. But she retorted with a barrage of foul-mouthed abuse.

The altercation even spread to the station platform as Waring and her mother waited for their train.

Police were called to the station which has received complaints online over a lack of free short stay parking close to the main entrance due to 'aggressive' cab drivers 'hogging the drop off area.'

It costs £3.30 for up to two hours to park a car outside the main entrance to the station - even in the four disabled bays.

Officers located Waring's vehicle, noted the registration and later called her in for interview under police caution.

During questioning, Waring said her mother had 'severe mobility issues' and she parked her car temporarily in the restricted area of the station to help the elderly lady climb the steps to the platform.

She criticised staff at the train station saying they were being 'vociferous' towards her.

At Crewe Magistrates' Court, Waring pleaded guilty to two charges of using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour to cause harassment, alarm or distress.

She was fined £738, ordered to pay both members of staff £150 in compensation each plus £380 in costs and a surcharge, with total costs amounting to £1,418.

A charge of common assault against a third employee, for which Waring had faced up to 12 week in jail under sentencing guideline, was withdrawn.

The prosecutor added: 'The defendant allegedly responded aggressively, with words to the effect of "F***, you f***ing t**t. You do not know what you are talking about" along with multiple repetitions of the word "F***".

'The defendant was of good character before this incident.'

In mitigation, Waring's lawyer Stuart Flood said: 'This was a very unfortunate and certainly embarrassing incident for a lady of hitherto good character.

'She was travelling down to London with her elderly mother who is 88 and who has severe mobility issues.

'Quite clearly, this lady has drawn up outside the station and dropped her mother off.

'She saw her mother walking gingerly towards the station entrance and this lady parked up temporarily and ran to help her mother to get to the steps to the platform where she and her mother were going to travel to London.

'Quite clearly the member of staff took exception to where this lady parked her car.

'All she was trying to do was get her elderly mother as quickly as she could into the station.

'She felt the way the staff were dealing with her was not appropriate and unfortunately she lost her cool and said words which she should not have done for which she totally apologises for.

'It was certainly out of character for this lady. Unfortunately, it continued when she was in the station.

'She had parked her car and gone into the station where words were said.

'By this time she was seated with her mother on the station platform, another member of staff approaches and is quite vociferous in his demands to move her car.

'But all she was doing was to make her mother comfortable on the platform.

'She felt she was quite vulnerable.

'Again words were said and she says: "I received words." She accepts she used some profanities that she is embarrassed about.'

Mr Flood added: 'She has worked both in the UK and America but the majority of time in America where she spent 40 years.

'She has always been in employment. She works for a communications firm as head of travel and events.

'She sends people all around the word as part of her job. She is a single lady. She returned to the UK to be near her mother.

'It is a very embarrassing situation and one that will not be repeated.

'I hope you will accept her sincere apologies to the staff members. It was in the heat of the moment.

'She was concerned for her elderly mother. She has travelled all over and used many public transports both in the UK and US and never had any problems hitherto.

'On this occasion, she felt members of staff had not treated her the way they should but she responded in a way she felt she should not have done.'

In sentencing Waring, JP Robert Alves told her: 'This was a very unpleasant incident that we would not have expected from someone with your standing in the community.

'It was a completely unacceptable display of behaviour and language that you used to those public service employees.'

There's been a lot of interest especially as people can avoid Bristol and the Severn bridges

That's my local - about 30 yards from my front door.

At a time of falling demand for drinking in pubs, we can't fight to save them all.

Use of a building as a public house: it's something that without safeguards in place, is vulnerable, and it's not only the 'Use it or lose it' that applies.
 
Mark

Train testing under way on new Birmingham rail line

Final testing is being carried out at five new railway stations in the West Midlands before they open their ticket barriers to passengers.

Stations at Willenhall and Darlaston in the Black Country will open on Thursday 19 March.

And three Birmingham stations - at Moseley, Kings Heath and Pineapple Road - will open on Tuesday 7 April as the Camp Hill Line is brought back to life.

It was closed in 1941 during World War Two, because of a shortage of coal, and never reopened.

On Monday, trains were travelling between Birmingham New Street and Kings Norton via the three new Birmingham stations as work is completed at the locations.

National Car Parks (NCP) has gone into administration, putting 682 jobs at risk.

The car park operator said demand for parking had not recovered to pre-Covid levels, pointing to "shifts in commuting and customer driving patterns".

After consistently losing cash, it could no longer afford to pay its creditors and was unable to scrap "long-term, inflexible" leases on loss-making sites.

Its administrators, PwC, are looking to sell the business as the "best outcome" for those NCP owes money to. "All sites are open, staff remain in post, and trading continues as normal," PwC added.

"We will be engaging with landlords, employees, and other stakeholders as we explore all options," PwC said.

NCP is one of the biggest car park operators in the UK, running 340 car parks across the country, including in airports, hospitals and transport hubs.

Community rail in the UK began as a grassroots movement in the late 20th century, emerging from local initiatives to save, promote, and enhance rural branch lines and stations facing closure or neglect. Formalised by the government's 2004 Community Rail Development Strategy, it shifted toward increasing usage, strengthening local ties, and promoting social inclusion.

The four key pillars of the UK government’s Community Rail Development Strategy are designed to empower local communities and maximise the value of local railways. They focus on:
* Providing a voice for the community: Giving local people a say in rail services and development.
* Promoting sustainable, healthy, and accessible travel: Encouraging, greener, active travel choices.
* Bringing communities together and supporting diversity and inclusion: Connecting people and supporting inclusion.
* Supporting social and economic development: Boosting local economies and social well-being.

These pillars are implemented through specific initiatives such as:
* Volunteering: Engaging local residents in station adoption and improvement.
* Education: Connecting with young people to encourage sustainable travel habits.
* Tourism: Promoting local rail travel and connecting people to destinations.
* Diversity: Ensuring community rail activities are accessible and welcoming to everyone.
These pillars are designed to create a more relevant, inclusive, and efficient rail network, adding roughly £18 in value for every £1 spent, according to the Community Rail Network.