Latest news with #heritage railway
BBC News
10 hours ago
- BBC News
Bus link to West Somerset Railway withdrawn after 20 years
Campaigners have criticised a decision to scrap a bus to a heritage railway station after 20 years due to low passenger 28 bus, which runs from Taunton to Minehead, provides a direct transfer to the heritage railway service at Bishop's Lydeard from mainline Group has confirmed that the stop will be "temporarily withdrawn" from 31 August, with Somerset councillor Richard Wilkins saying it was "not a cost-cutting measure".Somerset Bus Partnership has called for an "immediate suspension of the withdrawal", adding: "This vital stop links Taunton Station with the West Somerset Railway, a major heritage attraction drawing thousands of visitors annually." The 28 and 28A will continue to serve Bishop's Lydeard by stopping outside the Lethbridge Arms, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Somerset Bus Partnership said: "By removing the stop at Bishops Lydeard Station and relocating it over 500m away, without proper accessibility infrastructure or a full equalities impact assessment, the company is potentially denying access to disabled passengers in violation of their rights."This mirrors the damaging impact of recent changes to Service 2 in Lyngford, Taunton, where the withdrawal of stops left many elderly and vulnerable passengers struggling to access their daily needs, including GP appointments and essential shopping." Wilkins, portfolio holder for transport and waste services, said the changes would be reviewed ahead of the 2026 summer timetable."There will still be a bus stop close by the Lethbridge Arms in Bishop's Lydeard, which will require customers to walk to the railway – but this route is short and safe, using the underpass under the A358."This change is not a cost-cutting measure, as First is looking to redistribute the time taken to serve these stops, providing greater reliability for passengers."James Eustace, commercial director for First Bus in Somerset, said: "These changes are about making sure our services run more reliably and reflect the needs of our passengers."
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Severn Valley Railway tracks laid at zero cost for bridge repair
A heritage railway has said tracks have been re-laid across its newly-repaired bridge at zero Severn Valley Railway railway runs for 16 miles from Kidderminster in Worcestershire to Bridgnorth in Shropshire, and suffered a landslip in with the line opening on Friday to welcome the Flying Scotsman, tracks have been put in place across the Mor Brook bridge thanks to help from mainline railway companies."I started making phone calls to contacts in the rail industry, and was completely knocked out by their willingness to get involved and the generosity of so many companies," said Severn Valley Railway director Steve Featherstone. "Whilst repairs to the embankment and bridge structure were covered largely by insurance, the track re-lay element wasn't," he said. "In record time, this superb team has been able to carry out a task that would have taken the railway's own very small permanent way gang around three weeks to complete. It's made all the difference, and we are hugely grateful."The effort saw volunteers bring in people, equipment and consumables at no cost to the heritage line - they dubbed the team the "Orange Army Volunteer All Stars."Companies taking part included some closer to home, like Stafford-based Ap Webb and Birmingham-based AWE Technologies, as well as those from further afield like National Rail and Balfour 30m of the track and track bed were damaged in the landslip between the Bridgnorth and Hampton Loade stations. It meant that trains could not operate Flying Scotsman will celebrate the railway's reopening on 25 July, and will also run on 26 and 27 July as part of the Swingin' Sixties event, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of the line in preservation. Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
New York Times
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
All Aboard a Steam Train to See ‘The Railway Children'
The steam train departed the station with a gentle chug, belching clouds of steam that streamed past the carriage windows. Gathering speed, the locomotive transported its passengers through a damp green valley, past gray stone buildings, rain-dripping oak trees, banks of ferns and hillsides dotted with sheep. For many visitors to the Keighley and Worth Valley heritage railway, the picturesque five-mile route through northern England from the town Keighley to Oxenhope village is the main attraction. But for the passengers on Tuesday, it was just the beginning. A theater adaptation of Edith Nesbit's classic children's book, 'The Railway Children,' awaited them when they stepped down from the train in Oxenhope. To take their seats, passengers headed into a large engine room shed next to the platform, where they sat on either side of a railway track. The scenes played out on a movable set that shunted up and down the tracks. And at certain key moments in the play, a second real steam train rolled in as part of the action. It was a fitting setting for a play set entirely around a small village station in the steam age. 'The Railway Children' follows three children — Bobbie, Peter and Phyllis — who must leave their comfortable London home for a simple cottage in the countryside after their father is imprisoned on suspicion of being spy. The children are cheerfully resilient in the face of sudden poverty and are soon welcomed into the rural community. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
