I will be there - but please don't let that put you off also volunteering to help.

CfN. 

 
Next Saturday (18th July 2026) - Melksham Carnival.  This is a call and briefing for walkers to support the Melksham Transport User Group.

We have a thousand bus and train timetables to hand out and asking if YOU are available to help us.  We have a Faresaver bus promised to follow just behind us - raise awareness and helping us remind people of all the places they can go by bus and train this summer and Autumn.

"Just bring yourself" is the instruction - but please let me know ahead of time if you're coming so that I can brief you as part of our group, and have a group tabard available for you - transport group pink, or environment group green.

We rendezvous at the Central Car Park by 17:30 at the very latest for an 18:00 start.  There are no extra car parking spaces there if you're coming by car - just space for the procession including the bus.  But our team is very welcome to park at our place (48, Spa Road) - arrive there by 17:00 please - for us to walk in to the start.  And we (Lisa and I) will have a supply of cold and hot drinks afterwards.

Key safety rules - organiser's and ours.

1. No alcohol during the event (and my addition, do not drink beforehand either!!)

2. No getting on or off moving vehicles (specifically, the bus will come to a halt to pass down fresh supplies of leaflets and bottled water for the walkers)

3. Your health and safety, and the health and safety of those around you, comes first and second. Getting the message out only comes third.

4. The objective is to promote public transport to, from and within Melksham and the timetable booklet is the ONLY leaflet to be promoted / offered to people. And it should NOT be forced into their hands - only if they want it when offered. I walk the route after the event picking up any discards - historically they will be few even though we start with a darned good supply

5. If people ask questions as we walk, we have very limited time to answer. "Sorry – I don't know" is perfectly valid. I will supply each walker with some black and white sheets with contact details / QR codes so they can be encouraged to follow up for us to get them answers.  These sheets not to be promoted - they are a second level fallback; most of the extra data is in the 36 page booklet anyway.  If in doubt - please call me over; I am there to support walkers.

The weather forecast - thank goodness - is for it to be dry, and somewhat cooler than it has been of late. Excellent.

If you are retuning home from Melksham by train or bus, the parade will conclude in good time to catch the final services to Chippenham and Swindon, to Trowbridge and Westbury, and to Bath and to Devizes. 

Later that evening, the third place playoff for the World Cup takes place, and the following evening it's the final. England are going to be in one of those two matches - there will be some excitement about the forthcoming match but it should not impose on the carnival.

Big, big THANK YOU to Faresaver for the bus, leaflet help and partnership working.



Edit note: Minor typo corrected, purely for clarity. CfN.