1st August is now the fancied date for Okehampton Interchange to open.

 
'Time Out' article.

"Two beautiful towns could get direct trains to London
Campaigners in Wiltshire want to reinstate direct trains from London to Trowbridge and Bradford-on-Avon"

Mark

https://www.timeout.com/london/news/beautiful-wiltshire-towns-direct-trains-london-072626

 

I have indeed Grahame,  many times over the years.

My first visit was July 1991 when the Harz system, including freight, was still run by DR (Deutsche Reichsbahn) as part of the local public transport network.
The Brocken had not yet re-opened following re-unification and there was still a Russian outpost at the summit.
Steam still reigned supreme and regular parallel departures from Eisfelder Talmühle and Alexisbad were a sight to behold and clearly a source of pride amongst the loco crews!
Gernerode to Quendlingburg was still standard gauge and had a passenger service.  The connection with the Nordhausen tram network probably hadn't even reached the drawing board stage
A major part of the Harz network ran in "green tunnels" through dense coniferous forest well before the beetle struck leading to the present almost post-apocalyptic landscape - but much better distant views!

Dave

 

I am old enough to remember when pigeons were viewed as so cute there was a kids' TV programme about them…

 
Oddly the Paignton masterplan of 2015 envisaged an open crossing with no cars, only pedestrians. The trains would be going as in this case slow enough to stop. A Voyager is shown in the image. The tall statement building is on the site of Poundland and SportsDirect.

Paignton Town Square 2015 adopted masterplan by Robert, on Flickr

 
Not until tomorrow morning if they want to see tonight's acts. Campsite must be vacated by midday.

 

Stop being added to London - Amsterdam trains.

Not sure they'll stop on the return though? (Are they going to add a full border post there?)

 
A year ago, it ought to be said. Not recent.

 
This time, man's best friend causing the train to paws...



I'll leave others to comment on the merits, or otherwise, of trespassing instead of waiting for railway staff, and crawling under a train...

 
Same happened with those pair of services last week, only it was crew shortage then. 

 
Replacement unit came from Reading to pick up service with the 11:02 to Marlow.  The Henley service resumed with the 10:45 from Twyford.

 

Was only one round trip donkey cancelled listed as problems with the doors

 

The Siemens e320 / class 374 have 902 seats compared to the old e300 / class 373 which had 758.  Also part of the restriction on the number of services is the capacity of the Chunnel also SE-trains operate more services on HS1 than in 2007

 

Lance Corporal Jones would probably have bought a few from you too!

 

Another good reason why not ...


Which leaves a gap of about 4 hours each way ... and I think festival go-ers will be headed home?

 

Business balance, perhaps ... fill all the trains you are running, retire some of the older ones, and sell as a product where the demand outstrips the supply and you can charge a premium price?   Just asking ...

 

 

Eurostar might be filling their trains, but they are running lot less than in the past.

Eg the summer 2000 timetable had 10 weekday departures for Brussels, and no less than 24 to Paris on Fridays.
5 only operated Fridays : 10:53, 13:37, 15:53, 1648, 1923
3 operated Mon & Fri : 07:53, 09:53, 12:23
Tue-Thur was just 16 trains to Paris

17 of the 34 services called at Ashford, and 4 called at Calais-Frethun

https://www.reddit.com/r/trains/comments/g064jl/eurostar_southbound_timetable_from_summer_2000/

The current offering based on next Friday (31st July) is a mere 17 trains, a lot less than the 24 trains that operated 26 summers ago

 
How times have changed.

I am old enough to remember when the Min of Ag (then MAFF, now DEFRA) used to pay you for shooting pigeons. I believe the rate was 6d (=2 1/5 p).

 

Agreed - from a business viewpoint, if you can fill all of your trains alll the way in England, why offer an intermediate station with the empty seats it leaves for part of the journey, for the delay to other passengers, for the hassle of having a second set of border controls, and for those extra minutes on the train time that will impinge on reliability at best and may cause you to have to put another train in the cycle due to longer running and shortened turn around time.   Of course, if someone else wanted run an Ashford to somewhere-on-the continent shuttle and connect with trains in many directions from Ashford ...

 
Not a good morning in the Thames Valley.   The unit on the Marlow branch has also broken down.  Both have gone back to Reading.

 
4 Halle (Saale) Hbf

 
Cancellations to services between Twyford and Henley-On-Thames

Due to a fault on this train between Twyford and Henley-On-Thames all lines are closed.
Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until 13:00 26/07.

 

Please, no more "praying", we've been asked to stick to the subject and avoid religion! 

.........that said, if anyone finds themselves near John Lewis in Oxford St around 0630 on Mondays/Wednesdays and in need of amusement, you may just spot me desperately sidestepping, waving my hand around and running (well, trotting)  trying to avoid being crapped on by our feathered friends who congregate in enormous numbers at that time of day and target me whilst I nip through to Cavendish Square!

 

This good news, it is the result of the complete merger of Thalys and Eurostar into the single Eurostar branding.

I use used Eurostar London - Paris 2 weeks ago, I will say the boarder passport check at St Pancras was the simplest I have seen since we exited the EU.  The French border passport check was via an E-gate and no passport stamp.  The return at Gare de Nord did involve a French boarder Police physical check of my passport the UK entry via E-gate.

I cannot see Eurostar returning to stops at Ashford and Ebbsfleet any time soon as most trains are fully booked London - Paris / Brussels and form recollection of the times I stood on the domestic platforms at Ashford when Eurostar arrived only a handful of passengers  were waiting to embark on trains to  Paris / Brussels likewise disembarking

 
Pigeon guano is corrosive, it destroys masonry, attacks paint thus increases steel rusting.  The guano also contains diseases and toxins which are a risk to human health; breathing this dust can cause infections like Cryptococcosis, Histoplasmosis, and Psittacosis.

When I was working I had been around when the pest control teams have been working, the use of birds of pray does keep the numbers down to an extent by scaring the pigeons away, but there are times when the pigeon population is large culling with lethal force is the only option.

When we had a pigeon infestation in traction power substation in the larger Southern Region 'cathedral' substations it could take an environmental cleaning team 2 - 3 weeks or longer to remove the guano and then the substation maintainer can make good the  damage caused to the electrical equipment enclosures

 
It'd be good to keep this on topic for what is a transport forum: purpose-built dovecots aside, a combination of e.g. pigeons and buildings isn't a positive one and needs to be addressed, and we can add grey squirrels and brown rats to that catalogue too.

Mark

 

To put that % into perspective, based on the latest figures (2024), over 30 million animals were subjected to non stun slaughter- that is, had their throat slit whilst fully conscious and able to feel what was going on.

27 million halal, 3 million for kosher.

Chickens, sheep, cattle.

The dastardly Islamophobes/racists who make up the RSPCA have noted with concern that this represents a huge rise on previous years, and are calling for a removal of the religious exemption which allows for this brutal and cruel process to continue, a campaign which I am sure anyone who claims to have any interest in animal welfare will wholeheartedly support.

 

All correct, as is the extra information - I suspect you have been there, Dave 

1 ?? (yes - somewhere in Poland)
2 Vienenberg
3 Wernigerode Westerntor
4 ??
5 Eisfelder Talmühle
6 Drei Annen Hohne
7 Berlin Hbf
8 Pasewalk
9 Hotel Altora dining room, Wernigerode