Posts Tagged ‘transport’
Proud to be “a danger to the public”
Bendy-buses, like atheism, are a danger to the public at large
So says Stephen Green of pressure group Christian Voice on the BBC News Website. The man obviously has a queer sense of humour, because on his own website he also says:
People don’t like being preached at.
Indeed we don’t!
In fact, Stephen Green has caused me such mirth, I reckon that’s easily worth £25 (plus Gift Aid!) to the Atheist Bus Campaign.
Tags: atheism, humour, transport
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Oct 21st, 2008
A reply from East Midlands Trains!
Just 24 hours after accusing East Midlands Trains of not replying to my letters, I received a reply. I feel I should apologise to East Midlands Trains, and Tim Shoveller in particular.
In his reply, Tim (Managing Director of EMT) asserts:
On average, fewer than 1.3 people join or alight each train calling at Aslockton
(I paraphrase slightly)
1.3 people eh? There are 21 trains which call at Aslockton every day, so you reckon that there are no more than 38 journeys in to or out of Aslockton every day? That’s just 19 people making a return trip?
Riiight. We’ll see.
Tags: commuting, east midlands trains, train, transport
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Jun 30th, 2008
East Midlands Trains: proposed timetable changes, December 2008
East Midlands Trains run regular services between Nottingham and Skegness, which stop at many smaller stations en-route. These commuter services to and from small stations are used by many dozens of people every day. EMT propose to make significant changes to these services.
Headline changes:
- More services to run from Nottingham to Skegness via Grantham
- Fewer services to stop at small stations
- 50% cut in weekday services at smaller stations (Netherfield, Radcliffe on Trent, Aslockton, Elton and Orston and Bottesford - to name but five)
- 75% cut in Sunday services at smaller stations
For me, this would be a disaster, and would leave just two trains out of Nottingham on a weekday evening: the first would leave at 17:34, which is too early for people who finish work at 17:30. The other train leaves at 20:45. (No, that’s not a typo - it would mean a three-hour wait every evening to get the train home).
Commuters in Aslockton, Elton and Orston and Bottesford would be most affected, as the last bus service from Nottingham to Aslockton is at 17:32, and there are no bus services at all to Elton, Orston or Bottesford. Significantly, residents of Bingham would be affected too, as the town is already suffering from an on-going parking problem - which would surely increase if commuters would be forced to catch the train from Bingham instead.
Are you affected?
You’re directly affected if you commute to or from:
- Netherfield
- Radcliffe on Trent
- Aslockton
- Bottesford
- Elton and Orston
- small stations east of Grantham, such as Ancaster
You’ll be indirectly affected if:
- You drive along the A52 (east of Nottingham) at peak time - rail cuts will certainly mean increased road traffic
- You visit Bingham and need to park in the town centre - commuters from surrounding villages such as Aslockton will have little choice but to park at Bingham and take the train from there
- You live in Bingham - especially near Bingham station - and would like to be able to park in front of your home!
I’m affected! What now?
If you’re affected by these proposed changes, you need to make your feelings known. The following people may be able to convince EMT to keep services running as-is.
- Your Member of Parliament (probably Ken Clarke or Alan Duncan)
- East Midlands Trains (Tim Shoveller, Managing Director or Jake Kelly, Customer Service Director)
- The Department for Transport (Margaret Lanyon is Franchise Manager for the affected area)
- Your County Councillor (Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire)
Is this letter-writing making progress?
Firstly, my local MP and County Councillor are both on-side and share our concerns.
Margaret Lanyon from the Department for Transport described the proposed timetable changes as “providing improvements”, and said that they would give “a performance gain which will improve robustness”.
East Midlands Trains hasn’t responded to any letters.
The Nottinghamshire Campaign for Better Transport are supportive, as are the people at Railfuture.
And what next?
I’ve no idea. After handing out leaflets on trains, and putting up notices at stations, I’m starting to feel we’re losing momentum. We must keep petitioning East Midlands Trains and the Department for Transport, but I fear that it’s all falling on deaf (or closed) ears.
The Department for Transport seem to want to wash their hands of the whole situation. Describing the proposals as “providing improvements” is utter bollocks. East Midlands Trains aren’t replying to letters.
Tags: commuting, east midlands trains, train, transport
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Jun 29th, 2008