Recent Public Posts - [guest]
| Re: Bath to Ciren and back: 8/3/25 In "Introductions and chat" [367849/30038/1] Posted by grahame at 19:30, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
This Saturday I'm planning to walk Stroud to Kemble. Just under 12 miles. On most weeks I'm sharing day trip options from Melksham but this time my picture library is so thin




| Bus crashes into shop in east London - 6 November 2025 In "Transport for London" [367848/31047/46] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 19:28, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
From the BBC:

No-one was on the bus at the time of the crash, TfL said
A bus has crashed into a shop close to a train station in east London.
Emergency services were called to Station Road near Manor Park Station at about 09:00 GMT where they found the double decker bus crashed into a shop.
Transport for London (TfL) said no passengers were on the bus at the time of the crash. No life-threatening or life changing injuries were reported however one person, who was in the shop at the time, was taken to hospital for treatment.
An investigation has been launched into the circumstances, the Met Police confirmed.
Ninoshan Jeyaseelan, who owns the shop the bus crashed into, described the incident as "just insane". He told BBC London: "We just had a big bang sort of thing and the person who was driving (the bus), she was under shock herself."
Mr Jeyaseelan said his shop had minor damage. "I don't know how long it's gonna take to recover from it." He added: "No one's majorly injured you know - thank God."
A TfL spokesperson said: "We're very sorry for the damage and disruption caused when a route 474 bus collided with a shop building on Station Road. Thankfully, there were no passengers onboard the bus, however a customer in the shop at the time has sustained a minor injury and the bus driver was taken to hospital as a precautionary measure. We have support available for anyone affected by this incident. We are supporting Go-Ahead, the operator, as they investigate what happened."
| Re: Diesel pollution and Staff and Passenger safety at covered stations. In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [367847/19368/51] Posted by grahame at 19:01, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
I experienced the last great smog http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/6/newsid_3251000/3251001.stm in London in the winter of 1962. You could not see more than a couple of yards, it was dark at midday and it smelt as if the doors to Hell had been opened with the levels of sulphur present. What occurs now is merely apprentice muck! (Which does not mean to say that efforts should not continue to be made to reduce the levels).
At short notice, I was asked to write a fill in article for the Melksham News, published today, and full text of the article originally submitted now on my blog at https://grahamellis.uk/blog1771.html
My father took a job in London; in 1960 the family moved from Liverpool. At the time, the classic Portland stone buildings, where they had not been destroyed in the Blitz, were black. In my childhood, I took this as their natural colour but it wasn't. It was a layer of soot from coal burning which had culminated in the great smog of 1952. That, it is estimated, killed 12,000. As late as 1962, there was further smog which killed another 700.
Environmental issues are not new. Care for the environment such as the end of coal burning and the adoption of other modern technologies has made such a difference and can make so much more. It needs to as we seek ever more prosperous futures within sustainably planetary resources. Grand words; how can that translate locally in Melksham?
[continues]
Environmental issues are not new. Care for the environment such as the end of coal burning and the adoption of other modern technologies has made such a difference and can make so much more. It needs to as we seek ever more prosperous futures within sustainably planetary resources. Grand words; how can that translate locally in Melksham?
[continues]
| Re: School trip coach involved in a collision, Wheddon Cross, Somerset 17/07/2025 In "Buses and other ways to travel" [367846/30461/5] Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 18:39, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
From the BBC:
Police revisit scene of coach crash that killed boy

The A396 was closed on Wednesday while police carried out a partial reconstruction of a fatal coach crash
Police investigating a fatal school coach crash have conducted a partial reconstruction to help them work out the circumstances which led to the incident.
Oliver Price, 10, died of a head injury when a coach carrying Minehead Middle School pupils left the A396 near Wheddon Cross in Somerset and slid down a 6m (20ft) slope on 17 July.
Avon and Somerset Police requested a temporary road closure on Wednesday to carry out investigation work at the scene. They said the reconstruction involved the "driving of a similar coach" along the route. "We informed Oliver's family in advance of this reconstruction and continue to support them throughout our enquiries," the police said.
In a statement, the force said the necessary road closure and reconstruction would mean investigators were "better equipped to obtain clear answers and provide clarity of all parties affected" by the crash. "This step is a part of the investigative process, and is a common practice in many serious collisions, aimed at accurately determining a sequence of events and factors involved in the collision," they said.
The coach was carrying up to 70 people back from a school trip to Exmoor Zoo when it overturned. A huge emergency services presence descended on the area, including a number of air ambulances to transport those most seriously injured. In total, 21 people were taken to hospital afterwards, police said.
A full inquest is set to take place on 14 January to look into how Oliver died. The inquest is due to hear from Oliver's family, adult passengers on the coach, witnesses, the coach driver, emergency service workers and a pathologist.

The A396 was closed on Wednesday while police carried out a partial reconstruction of a fatal coach crash
Police investigating a fatal school coach crash have conducted a partial reconstruction to help them work out the circumstances which led to the incident.
Oliver Price, 10, died of a head injury when a coach carrying Minehead Middle School pupils left the A396 near Wheddon Cross in Somerset and slid down a 6m (20ft) slope on 17 July.
Avon and Somerset Police requested a temporary road closure on Wednesday to carry out investigation work at the scene. They said the reconstruction involved the "driving of a similar coach" along the route. "We informed Oliver's family in advance of this reconstruction and continue to support them throughout our enquiries," the police said.
In a statement, the force said the necessary road closure and reconstruction would mean investigators were "better equipped to obtain clear answers and provide clarity of all parties affected" by the crash. "This step is a part of the investigative process, and is a common practice in many serious collisions, aimed at accurately determining a sequence of events and factors involved in the collision," they said.
The coach was carrying up to 70 people back from a school trip to Exmoor Zoo when it overturned. A huge emergency services presence descended on the area, including a number of air ambulances to transport those most seriously injured. In total, 21 people were taken to hospital afterwards, police said.
A full inquest is set to take place on 14 January to look into how Oliver died. The inquest is due to hear from Oliver's family, adult passengers on the coach, witnesses, the coach driver, emergency service workers and a pathologist.
| Re: No reservations on this service In "Across the West" [367845/31046/26] Posted by grahame at 18:09, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
Although it doesn't really explain why the software isn't programmed to allocate coach/seat numbers that are common to both configurations and leave the seat layout that are different as the unreserved seats.
Also not clear why reservations are binary, reservations or none, as in has to be whole train that becomes unreserved, rather than just part with different configuration.
Also not clear why reservations are binary, reservations or none, as in has to be whole train that becomes unreserved, rather than just part with different configuration.
I'm not sure how many ARE common ... Even starting in coach A, there are differences ...


| Re: No reservations on this service In "Across the West" [367844/31046/26] Posted by John D at 17:06, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
Will be formed of 9 coaches instead of 10. There are no reservations on this service.
Eh?
Reservations not transferrable (software issues?)?
Eh?
Reservations not transferrable (software issues?)?
I think it's because the standard / first varies in which carriages its in between the five and nine car sets, so it also varies the numbers of seats and layout.
Although it doesn't really explain why the software isn't programmed to allocate coach/seat numbers that are common to both configurations and leave the seat layout that are different as the unreserved seats.
Also not clear why reservations are binary, reservations or none, as in has to be whole train that becomes unreserved, rather than just part with different configuration.
At least get reservations on some services, Portsmouth-Cardiff trains are still fitted (and presumably will still be in 2030 and beyond), slots in top of seat backs for card reservations, but no retrofit electronic reservation displays.
| Re: Server slow ... In "News, Help and Assistance" [367843/30293/29] Posted by grahame at 16:49, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
Fingers and toes have all been crossed all day - and thus far it looks good. Some fingers remain crossed into the evening which has been the problem time in recent days

| Re: No reservations on this service In "Across the West" [367842/31046/26] Posted by bobm at 16:28, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
That and of course it is a coach shorter and there is no coach E on a nine car, so anyone with seats there (admittedly first class) would have to be re-directed to a different coach letter.
| Re: No reservations on this service In "Across the West" [367841/31046/26] Posted by grahame at 15:46, 6th November 2025 Already liked by GBM | ![]() |
Will be formed of 9 coaches instead of 10. There are no reservations on this service.
Eh?
Reservations not transferrable (software issues?)?
Eh?
Reservations not transferrable (software issues?)?
I think it's because the standard / first varies in which carriages its in between the five and nine car sets, so it also varies the numbers of seats and layout.
| Re: North Cotswold line delays and cancellations - 2025 In "London to the Cotswolds" [367840/29711/14] Posted by Witham Bobby at 14:27, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
It's not found it's way onto GWR JourneyCheck, but
1W21 1053 Paddington to Shrub Hill lost time all the way from Didcot, and arrived at Shrub Hill 23 minutes late
so
1P30 1316 Shrub Hill to Paddington return working was 28 minutes late off Shrub Hill
| Re: Taunton Light loco movement In "Across the West" [367839/31044/26] Posted by PhilWakely at 14:15, 6th November 2025 Already liked by GBM | ![]() |
Thank you Phil, but surely a class 57 would have a higher top speed than 27mph!
Poorly I believe
| No reservations on this service In "Across the West" [367838/31046/26] Posted by GBM at 13:26, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
10:03 London Paddington to Penzance due 15:03
Facilities on the 10:03 London Paddington to Penzance due 15:03.
Will be formed of 10 coaches instead of 9. There are no reservations on this service.
And the return trip from Penzance
16:15 Penzance to London Paddington due 21:24
Facilities on the 16:15 Penzance to London Paddington due 21:24.
Will be formed of 10 coaches instead of 9. There are no reservations on this service.
Also on
13:15 Plymouth to London Paddington due 16:29
Facilities on the 13:15 Plymouth to London Paddington due 16:29.
Will be formed of 9 coaches instead of 10. There are no reservations on this service.
And the return trip from London
17:03 London Paddington to Penzance due 22:24
Facilities on the 17:03 London Paddington to Penzance due 22:24.
Will be formed of 9 coaches instead of 10. There are no reservations on this service.
Eh?
Reservations not transferrable (software issues?)?
| Re: Taunton Light loco movement In "Across the West" [367837/31044/26] Posted by GBM at 13:19, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
Thank you Phil, but surely a class 37 would have a higher top speed than 27mph!
| Re: Server slow ... In "News, Help and Assistance" [367836/30293/29] Posted by stuving at 12:35, 6th November 2025 Already liked by GBM, Mark A | ![]() |
Not just this site, of course. I've mentioned OpenRail before; the landing page there now says:
Recently the website has suffered from high loads, believed to be due to AI crawlers. Regrettably I have therefore had to restrict access to registered users.
It's a free and open registration, so only for load limiting purposes. Further down, it says:
Security Advice
Security is mediocre at best on this website. When choosing a username and password, don't select anything you use for other sites.
Security is mediocre at best on this website. When choosing a username and password, don't select anything you use for other sites.
Which is candid, at least.
| Re: 175s to GWR In "Across the West" [367835/28982/26] Posted by REVUpminster at 11:43, 6th November 2025 Already liked by GBM | ![]() |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBYj2HFmZmo
175001 motoring to Laira yesterday.
| Re: Taunton Light loco movement In "Across the West" [367834/31044/26] Posted by PhilWakely at 11:10, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
https://www.facebook.com/severnbeachminiaturerailway/posts/sad-news-it-is-with-a-sad-and-broken-heart-that-i-must-announce-that-the-severn-/122188973462583818/
I am sharing the public follow up to that - on the basis that wide coverage is sought to fill people in, and also to see if anyone wants to buy track, locomotive, carriages ...
Its with sadness and deep regret that the Severn Beach Miniature Railway project which I been working on for so long is now officially over. Our local parish council have tried to get this through and all were in support. South Gloucestershire Council have put everything theve got into stopping the planning going ahead even though at the beginning with had written permission to do so. A lease was drawn up and later retracted by council. This was a huge community project that I set up and we woukd have been open by Easter this year. The frustrations and stress this project has given me and my family had become too much to bear.
Yesterday I wrote an official letter to our parish council informing them I have cancelled the project. Im writing this as I would like you all to know the reasons why this project has failed. This of course means now I will have to see everything as I dont have anywhere else to go.
Included in the items for sale are 65 x 6 metre panoramic track using S10 rail mounted on 11 pressure creosoted timber sleepers 5x4x24" sufficient fishplates and track screws. Track tools, 5 pairs of brand new switch blades in S10. We have a rake of 3 x 10 1/4" gauge toast coaches. A practically new Exmoor 2-4-2 tank locomotive with a new 10 years hydraulic and in ticket till next year. This locomotive is ready to use now. A 40 shipping container proffesionally insulated al lined with electrics, 400 plus metres of new 4 inch round posts, stock fencing, post and rails. New galvanised gates in various sizes. 20 new ish Heras fencing panels with clips and stays. Spare sleepers and other items.To see any of these items go to website www.sbmr.co.uk or Facebook.
Yesterday I wrote an official letter to our parish council informing them I have cancelled the project. Im writing this as I would like you all to know the reasons why this project has failed. This of course means now I will have to see everything as I dont have anywhere else to go.
Included in the items for sale are 65 x 6 metre panoramic track using S10 rail mounted on 11 pressure creosoted timber sleepers 5x4x24" sufficient fishplates and track screws. Track tools, 5 pairs of brand new switch blades in S10. We have a rake of 3 x 10 1/4" gauge toast coaches. A practically new Exmoor 2-4-2 tank locomotive with a new 10 years hydraulic and in ticket till next year. This locomotive is ready to use now. A 40 shipping container proffesionally insulated al lined with electrics, 400 plus metres of new 4 inch round posts, stock fencing, post and rails. New galvanised gates in various sizes. 20 new ish Heras fencing panels with clips and stays. Spare sleepers and other items.To see any of these items go to website www.sbmr.co.uk or Facebook.
| Re: Taunton Light loco movement In "Across the West" [367832/31044/26] Posted by grahame at 10:30, 6th November 2025 Already liked by GBM | ![]() |
Interesting light loco movement today.
https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:26587/2025-11-06/detailed
0Z57 1030 Fairwater Yard to Doncaster Robert Rds Shed
What is intriguing is this in RTT Fairwater Yard
Pathed as Diesel locomotive at 27mph!
https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:26587/2025-11-06/detailed
0Z57 1030 Fairwater Yard to Doncaster Robert Rds Shed
What is intriguing is this in RTT Fairwater Yard
Pathed as Diesel locomotive at 27mph!
Class 09 diesel shunter?
| GWR problem at Taunton with 1A76 In "Across the West" [367831/31045/26] Posted by GBM at 10:25, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:P08210/2025-11-06/detailed#allox_id=0
On RTT
This service is partially cancelled
This service was cancelled between Penzance and Taunton due to the train being swapped (YU).
This service is cancelled.
This service was cancelled due to an unknown problem (TO).
The inbound service for 1A76 came from -
5A76 0849 Bristol Temple Meads to Taunton, which arrived at Taunton for an on time departure, but left 20 minutes down.
On journeycheck
06:05 Penzance to London Paddington due 11:27 will be started from Taunton.
It will be delayed at Taunton and is expected to be 10 minutes late.
This is due to a fault on this train.
| Taunton Light loco movement In "Across the West" [367830/31044/26] Posted by GBM at 10:20, 6th November 2025 Already liked by Mark A | ![]() |
Interesting light loco movement today.
https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:26587/2025-11-06/detailed
0Z57 1030 Fairwater Yard to Doncaster Robert Rds Shed
What is intriguing is this in RTT Fairwater Yard
Pathed as Diesel locomotive at 27mph!
| Re: Box Tunnel portal at risk? In "Railway History and related topics" [367829/31043/55] Posted by Mark A at 09:52, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
It's not old fashioned. It's difficult for any vegetation that puts roots into structures to be other than bad news, it's something that brings avoidable expense as time passes. Ditto trees growing within a certain distance above a retaining wall. It's now rather more difficult to organise clearing the stuff alongside a live railway line but it should be part and parcel of maintaining the railway.
Mark
| Re: Box Tunnel portal at risk? In "Railway History and related topics" [367828/31043/55] Posted by Witham Bobby at 09:15, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
Vegetation seems to be a feature of much of the railway's masonry structures these days
Perhaps I'm old fashioned to beleive that keeping trees, shrubs and under/overgrowth under control is more cost effective than allowing them to reach a stage where they can be destructive
| Re: Swindon <-> Westbury service updates and amendments, ongoing discussion - 2025 In "TransWilts line" [367827/29726/18] Posted by grahame at 08:51, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47
06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47 is being delayed between Stroud and Gloucester.
This is due to a points failure.
06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47 is being delayed between Stroud and Gloucester.
This is due to a points failure.
| Re: Call for rail fare simplification In "Fare's Fair" [367826/28318/4] Posted by GBM at 08:25, 6th November 2025 Already liked by Mark A, rogerw | ![]() |
https://busandtrainuser.com/2025/11/06/inconsistent-and-unfriendly-rail-ticket-pricing/
The Price Is(n’t) Right
Thursday 6th November 2025
Taking day trips by train north from London always brings home the huge inconsistency of rail ticket pricing, especially if you want to leave the capital around 09:00 to make the most of your day and enjoy reasonably priced fares.
One of the worst culprits for setting unreasonable fares is East Midlands Railway. Reasonably priced off-peak tickets leaving London on the Midland Main Line don’t become valid until 10:05, which is frustratingly (and deliberately) set three minutes after a fast train, taking two hours and three minutes, leaves St Pancras at 10:02 for Sheffield. Catch that train and a return to Sheffield will set you back £161.50 – and that’s jokingly called an “Off-Peak Return” which also applies on the 09:02 and 09:32 departures. Catch the 08:32 and it’ll set you back £254.20 for a return London to Sheffield. What a joke. Aside from business accounts, does anyone ever pay that?
.............continues..............
| Box Tunnel portal at risk? In "Railway History and related topics" [367825/31043/55] Posted by matth1j at 08:20, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
https://bathnewseum.com/2025/11/06/box-tunnel-blues/
The portal leading into Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s historic Grade 11* listed Box rail tunnel may be placed on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register.
:
It saddens me that such an important example of the railway history of this country, in particular when the country is celebrating 200 years of the Railway under Railway 200, is in such poor condition.
:
It saddens me that such an important example of the railway history of this country, in particular when the country is celebrating 200 years of the Railway under Railway 200, is in such poor condition.
| Re: Railways Bill 2025 - proposed New Passenger Watchdog In "Looking forward - the next 2, 5, 10 and 20 years" [367824/31040/40] Posted by CyclingSid at 08:18, 6th November 2025 | ![]() |
"Multi-modal functions" does not seem to include active travel. Another missed opportunity missed to improve cycle facilities relating to railways?
| Re: Server slow ... In "News, Help and Assistance" [367823/30293/29] Posted by grahame at 07:07, 6th November 2025 Already liked by matth1j | ![]() |
I have made a number of changes / tweaks over the past fortnight, and symptoms like that should now occur only very, very rarely. Many of the changes made mean that our front of house receptionist / manager is now picking up loads more casual and repeated enquiries rather than passing them on though to our worker server.

But, sadly, I have failed to identify what it is that's causing the spikes and ironically because the worker server now has a lower general load the spike can climb further before it cuts off. You will at times see slow responses. With the worker so busy during these spikes, it's almost impossible to log in to it and look around, the problem being gone before I can actually have that look around. There are *some* helpful patterns ....

But, sadly, I have failed to identify what it is that's causing the spikes and ironically because the worker server now has a lower general load the spike can climb further before it cuts off. You will at times see slow responses. With the worker so busy during these spikes, it's almost impossible to log in to it and look around, the problem being gone before I can actually have that look around. There are *some* helpful patterns ....
I *think* I have now identified what's been causing the problem load spike issue, and in the process also made some other efficiency changes.
Main change / issue: We have 9Gb of archived documents (and that will continue to grow) for our search engine to look through, and over 300,000 individual public posts to check too. And such searches are none-trivial. They are welcome - however, it would appear that at least one well known search engine (not Google) has been making lots of search requests and indeed with terms that are WAY off topic. A couple of lines of code mean that we now send a quick and polite reply when an automata searches for things like (and these are real searches from the hours before I made the change):
* MyFloridaMarketPlace abbreviation
* housing lawyer in penang
* Napoleon Dynamite Live reviews
* melinda breslin townsend louisville ky
* 2m tv documentaire region du sud
* wer ist emilio frazzoli unfall
While I was at it ... I have an image library containing 20,000 plus different images, a handful of which are called up frequently and consistently. They are managed by our worker server which is the one that loads heavy, but I have now mirrored around 50 of them on the receptionist server to allow that machine to answer queries without reference to the worker. Yesterday, with that change in place, our receptionist served 3,000 images of which perhaps a third were done without reference to the worker.
Here's the worker loading as of an hour ago - solid black line is today's

There will continue to be spikes, including server management and database backup operations but I don't want to see them going off the scale.
With my thanks again for your suggestion, RailCornwall, you did start a lively debate among the Admin / Moderator team on the Coffee Shop forum.
That was all good: we have reached a decision as to where such posts should be encouraged to be made - but that's not final. We on the admin team (well, me, probably
) remain happy to move and / or merge topics, if it helps our readers to find particular posts in the future.
May I emphasize again that nothing will be deleted, just because 'it's been posted in the wrong place'. On the Coffee Shop forum, we don't do that.
I may, however, move the occasional post to a more appropriate location. Goodness knows, I've moved a few of my own, when the benefit of hindsight tells me I should have put them somewhere else.
CfN.
That was all good: we have reached a decision as to where such posts should be encouraged to be made - but that's not final. We on the admin team (well, me, probably
) remain happy to move and / or merge topics, if it helps our readers to find particular posts in the future.May I emphasize again that nothing will be deleted, just because 'it's been posted in the wrong place'. On the Coffee Shop forum, we don't do that.
I may, however, move the occasional post to a more appropriate location. Goodness knows, I've moved a few of my own, when the benefit of hindsight tells me I should have put them somewhere else.

CfN.

Thanks, Chris ... all AOK. Not the first time (and I'm sure not the last) that breaking news is broken in new threads by two members in parallel at the same time, and they are sensibly merged. And if they're in different boards, that involves a move and a decision which is the better location for the developing topic. Whose name is on the top of the merged topic is automatic as the posts merged are in chronological order.
It's often worth merging in sub-topics too ... but where there is a mega-topic (as this bill and its consequences are likely to be), spin-offs and divisions may make sense. I can recall the extra car park at Tiverton Parkway was a result of the Dawlish washout ... yet logically made a full topic on its own right rather than being hidden within sea wall engineering. Such decisions are always on a balance and I weighed up the passenger voice element of the bill and whether it should be a separate topic, and decided in my mind that it should be - though I had my doubts. On that basis, the invite to Chris and other mods / admins to make the call and bearing in mind the enormity of the GBR bill, I remain of the view that major elements (there may be another element on accessibility and others) are best as threads on their own right within the same board.
As an aside, there are a few occasion where I may suggest "this should NOT be merged" against perhaps obvious evidence. That includes posts that are indexed elsewhere and merging them into other threads will break that indexing. "On this Day" topics are an example here, as are Facebook shares (anyone can make these) of our front pages. I feel a new topic coming up to tell members how to do that!














