Dear Sir or Madam,
I was intrigued to see that I can now download a copy of the “Villager” magazine from the Wincanton Window website, but not from the Horsington Blog. Can you explain?
A Reader
We don’t know. It is of course possible that the Villager magazine is unaware of our existence. As far as we know, everyone in Horsington and South Cheriton now gets the magazine delivered to their door, but you know how it is -you need to refer to it immediately after you used it to light the fire. So, as a service to our readers we are including a permanent link to the latest downloadable version in our “Blogroll” (right hand column.)
Incidentally, we have included a link to the excellent Wincanton Window ever since our launch.- Ed.
Templecombe is just one of 600-odd stations whose ticket office is threatened with closure. Another is Rotherham, where the ticket office has been closed for rebuilding, and the locals are concerned that it might not re-open. (Compare Templecombe, where the associated signal box will close at some point in the future, and then what will happen to the ticket office?).
At Question Time on the 15th October, at about the same time as SW Trains’ Andy Pitt was telling us there were no plans to close the Templecombe ticket office, The Transport Secretary, Phil Hammond. was telling the House of Commons that ownership of stations was being transferred to the train operators “so that they can have a more direct, hands-on involvement” Translation: Can shut ticket offices without any reference to Government or Network Rail –Ed
Rotherham’s MP, Dennis MacShane, told the Minister “many constituents do not do computers and need help and aid”.
The Minister agreed –well sort of. “I agree there will be the need for assisted channels”.
Mr MacShane: “Assisted channels?” (possibly uttered like Lady Bracknell’s “A handbaaag?”)
Mr Hammond: “I will tell the right hon. Gentleman what assisted channels are. Even as the purchase of tickets, over time, is bound to become more computer based, as new technologies are deployed and more tickets are bought online, through mobile technology and so on, there will still be a need for an assisted channel, and we will ensure that there is one. Translation: We will regard people who do not like computers or ticket machines as disabled and provide limited, minimal facilities at inconvenient times (or rather times which are convenient to the train operator, but not to anyone else –Ed
We asked a direct question regarding the possible closure of Templecombe station ticket office and got the following reply from SW Trains Managing Director Andy Pitt during the “Live web chat” on September 15:
“We have no plans to close Templecombe ticket office. We will be revising the opening hours following the Network Rail closure of the signal box and the withdrawal of their staff who currently retail tickets at this location. At this time I do not have a date when the Network rail box will close, but the ticket office opening hours will not be changed until after this date.”
In response to an earlier general question, Mr Pitt said “We have no immediate plans to implement the recommendations made in the McNulty report, but will continue to review opening hours across our network at every ticket office to ensure they reflect the commercial demands of the market.
“Available sales channels for customers to purchase rail tickets have grown significantly over the last few years because of new technology, and whilst ticket offices will still play their part, customer demand dictates that we continue to retail in the most cost-effective way”.
We say – not having plans to close it does not mean it will stay open for ever. We think rail users should keep up the pressure, and would urge our local politicians to keep an eye on the situation.
Voters in Horsington will become part of a new parliamentary constituency to be called Glastonbury & Wincanton, replacing the existing Somerton & Frome constituency.
The new constituency will have 75,231 voters from the Mendip and South Somerset District Council areas.
The proposals by the Boundary Commission now go into an extensive consultation stage, and the final parliamentary map will be resolved by the end of 2013.
Or rather a charming picture, painted by Cucklington artist Philip Rawlings, which will be offered for auction at the Sunday charity quiz and auction at the Half Moon on Sunday 25 September.
Also on sale will be lots of delicious cakes and local produce, including an industrial block of cheese. Mouse farmers please note.
The quiz will be set by Landlord Andrew, and the usual close finish is anticipated.
It’s all in aid of Cancer Research
The full size original is currently on view at the Half Moon -Ed
Templecombe station’s statue to the memory of personal contact on the railway (Picture: John Baxter, Wincanton Window)
Key contacts to help you fight proposed Templecombe station ticket office closure
Around a quarter of the country’s railway station ticket offices are listed for closure, and inevitably Templecombe is one of them.
This is a pity, because the Templecombe office is one of the friendliest, most helpful, knowledgeable and pleasant places on the entire rail network. Some excellent people will lose their livelihoods, while the rest of us will struggle with the car park machine and the ticket machine on the platform. Our travelling experienced will be diminished further, as the rail companies try to remove any remaining pleasure from rail travel, charging premium prices for a third world service. There are safety, security and disabled access implications as well.
What can be done? No firm decision has been made. There is nothing on the SW trains or South Somerset District Council Websites about this, so it may not be too late. If enough people write to SW Trains, their MPs, local councilors and the local council itself, it may be possible to apply some pressure and head these proposed changes off. None of our elected representatives seem to be running with this, so give them a jab.
Our MP – David Heath MP -17 Bath Street , Frome, Somerset , BA11 1DN or via website. www.davidheath.co.uk
William Wallace is also a county councilor, but it would be unkind to write to him twice.
SW Trains operates the line. There is a” live web chat” this Thursday 15 September between 2 and 4 pm where you can raise questions and put points to SW Trains management. Just go to the SW trains website www.southwesttrains.co.uk and follow the links.
SW Trains managing director is Andy Pitt. Write to him at SW Trains, Friars Bridge Court, 41-45 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 8NZ.
Some points to make
• How much do ticket machines cost? We hear £30,000 or more. So where is the cost saving?
• How does the proposed closure fit with the company’s committed aim of “improving the delivery of our service to our customers, being an even better partner to work with, and making an increasingly positive impact on society and the environment”? And all the other corporate social responsibility guff on their website?
• Automatic machines do not always sell the cheapest ticket
• There are frequent problems with automatic machines
• Train companies frequently change the rules regarding peak times and ticket availability
• Many people will find themselves paying unjustly levied penalty fares
• The lack of a personal touch will seriously diminish the travelling experience
• Current fares are very expensive and are set to rise further –the public would rather pay for staff on the ground than management bonuses.
• Wheelchair users and others with handicaps or difficulties will not be able to cross the line
• Car park users will be seriously inconvenienced if the ticket office closes
• A manned station is a safe station
You can guarantee that the ticket office will close if nobody makes a fuss!
PS: Templecombe Station volunteers are also looking for recruits to help restore Templecombe station’s famous garden to its former glory, including the now-weathered statue. Contact Alison.clements@tiscali.co.uk
Updated 9 September: Mobile Phone reception can be very poor in Horsington and on the marsh. So which Phone network gives you the best coverage?
The Blog surveyed its readers. 30 people have taken the trouble to respond –thank you. The results are inconclusive, but this is what we found for INDOOR coverage.
Horsington The only networks used by survey respondents appear to be Vodaphone, Orange and BT Mobile. Vodaphone and Orange reception ranges from “excellent” to “very poor”. The one respondent on BT mobile describes it as” intermittent”. Our verdict: Vodaphone has the edge –just, but there is a dead patch where reception is very poor.
Vodaphone is top, but still with dead patches
Horsington Marsh Some people will be surprised that they have mobile phones down there, but they do! Only Vodaphone gets a” Quite good” rating for indoor reception. Everyone else is varying degrees of rubbish. Verdict: Vodaphone, or go outside to make or receive calls.
Vodaphone is "Quite good", but nothing else works indoors
South Cheriton Only 2 responses here. Both rate Orange and Vodaphone with “Excellent” reception. Verdict: Insifficient data, but Vodaphone and Orange appear to be top.
North Cheriton No responses. Can someone go and wake them up?
In general so-called smartphones (iPhone,Blackberry, Samsung Galaxy etc) have much worse reception than their conventional counterparts – but they can pick up the wi-fi network in the pub.
We can hardly claim that this is a scientific survey, as the data is a bit sparse. The only way to be sure is to test friends’ phones on different networks, and see which works best for you
The latest Blog visitor figures suggest that readership is increasing slowly and steadily month on month, and that the blog is now established as part of village life.
There have been just under 6,000 hits since the blog started. Two thirds of our visitors are regulars, coming back time after time. A third of our regulars have made 10 or more visits. Some readers have made over 50 visits.
As a news medium for the village it is unrivalled. Readership doubles when we have dramatic events to report.
There have been 95 articles published since we started, and 136 comments on those articles. Most have these have been good natured, and we have only had to remove two which strayed beyond the territory of friendly banter. So for the moment, we will continue to operate a policy of free speech – your comments will be published immediately, without any editorial intervention. So keep them coming, keep it polite, and use your real name unless you have a really compelling reason not to. You have nothing to fear from anyone.
So, dear readers… Tell us about things which should be reported – editor@idnet.com.
Tell us when you have an event to promote- editor@idnet.com. Use our free services and “for Sale” pages to promote your business and sell stuff.
Let us have material for the Horsington historic photo and video archive. Old Photographs (including the 1960’s), 8mm cine film, videos. All material will be returned. editor@idnet.com
Finally… SUBSCRIBE to the Blog. You will get automatic email updates every time a new article appears. Totally confidential. Your email will not be abused in any way.
The Old Inn at Holton has won the south west region of the Great Pub Awards dining pub of the year competition, and has been mentioned in The Indepedent’s list of the top 50 gastropubs in Britain.
As well as the specials and an imaginative “fine dining” a la carte, the Old Inn has plenty of pub favourites and regular affordable choices – steak on Tuesday, simple suppers (two-courses for a set price) on Thursdays), a £5 fish and chips deal always on offer, and a Sunday main-course roast (beef, lamb or chicken) for £7.50.
The 16th century pub had an extensive renovation in 2009. Well worth a visit.
