here we go ...

This is a gem from Mick Knox. Unbelievably people are STILL complaining about the so-called 'high' cost of fuel!! Are they living in a complete fantasy world or are they so stupid that they can't see what is happening around them?

We need to accept that the car is dying - there is no way it can survive the coming oil shock, and the 'replacement' technology of electric cars will be even more expensive, and will be in such short supply that they simply won't be an option for most of us.

 

We need to move on from this posturing and decadence, trying to hold on to something that is already lost for ever. We need to forget trying to prolong the agony and start planning for the future. Nostalgia is NOT an option.

 

We need to start running our road network down before it happens anyway. All infrastructure projects should be abandoned immediately and the bare minimum for safety needs to become the norm. Speed limits need to be reduced to take this into account.

 

We need to immediately start reopening closed lines, starting with important cross country routes such as the S&D, Great Central, Woodhead, Waverley, Plymouth-Exeter via Tavsistock, Dumfries-Stranraer etc, then begin to put the branch lines back in. Then new interurban light railways and tramways need to be built to fill in the gaps, so that nobody is more than a mile or so from a station. Freight facilities need to be built at all points. Urban tramways need to be built in all larger towns and, of course, cities. Standard equipment needs to be built - locos, coaches, freight wagons, track panels, catenary etc, so that the cost of rebuilding and operating are reduced. Energy generating methods, from solar and wind through to wood burning need to be optimised. ALL infrastructure expenditure over the next three or four decades needs to be thrown at rail development at all levels.

 

I know the following is really an exercise in nostalgia and will not be to most reader's tastes, but try to read it!

MPs urge ministers to scrap a planned rise in fuel duty

Comments (1087)

Ministers say they have acted to alleviate the burden on motorists

Continue reading the main story

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The government should scrap a planned increase in fuel duty to help "hard-working, vulnerable Britons", a Conservative MP has said.

Robert Halfon said the government must show it is one "that cuts taxes for millions of British people and not just for millionaires".

He tabled a Commons motion urging action on fuel prices in response to an e-petition signed by 110,000 people.

It was approved by MPs without a vote but it is not binding on ministers.

Treasury minister Chloe Smith said the government was listening to people's concerns but "now was not the time" to change duty rates as such decisions must wait for the Budget.

The government plans to increase fuel duty by 3p a litre in January - meaning an extra £1.50 to fill an average car - and Chancellor George Osborne is under pressure to scrap that as part of his autum statement on the economy later this month.

Petrol prices have tripled in the past two decades, but ministers say prices would be even higher had they not scrapped automatic fuel-tax increases imposed by Labour.

Mr Osborne scrapped the annual fuel tax escalator - a mechanism under which duty rose by 1p above inflation every year - and cut fuel duty by 1p in March's Budget.

However, he has only postponed the planned inflation-linked part of the duty rise from April 2011 to January 2012, and from April 2012 to August 2012.

Opening the debate, Mr Halfon said: "Fuel duty is not just about economics, it's an issue of social justice and this is especially true in rural communities which are being destroyed by fuel prices."

He said the government had to be "realistic and truthful about who pays the lion's share of fuel duty".

"It's ordinary families driving to work, it's mums taking their children to school, it's small businesses who can't afford to drive a van or their lorry, it's non-motorists who depend on buses who are also being crushed by rocketing food prices as the cost of road haulage goes through the roof."
'Inelastic'
In his motion, Mr Halfon urges ministers to consider whether current fuel tax rates are economically competitive; what impact they are having on economic growth and unemployment levels; and to examine the case for a price stabilisation mechanism to even out fluctuations in pump prices.

The Treasury has already said it will introduce a "fair fuel stabiliser" to ensure price rises are capped to inflation when oil prices are high.

Lib Dem party president Tim Farron agreed that people in rural areas were hardest hit because "demand is so inelastic for petrol because people have only one way of getting to work".

AA president Edmund King: "High fuel prices are already bringing in record amounts of tax"

Labour have welcomed the chance for a debate on the issue, but said there must be "concrete action" to help business and families rather than "warm words".

The party's leadership had backed an amendment by backbench MP Dave Watts urging the government to reverse January's rise in VAT to 20% - which they say would cut 3p off the price of a litre of petrol.

Russell Brown, MP for Dumfries and Galloway, said: "I have some people in remote areas who have discovered that to get to work has become far too costly and some of these people are considering giving up working all together."

Conservative Caroline Nokes, MP for Romsey and Southampton North, highlighted the struggles of haulage companies.

"Profit margins for hauliers are very tight. This makes it a very vulnerable business and in particular fuel companies are not willing to extend credit terms, leaving payments in some cases to as little as three days.

"Now when haulage firms may not be paid for work for up to 60 days, this proves to be a very hand-to-mouth industry and companies can only afford to think ahead to January."

Motorist: "Petrol prices are appalling at the moment"

The AA said the latest fuel price rises were already impacting on drivers, and that for the average motorist the planned increase would equate to an additional £38 a year at the pumps.

AA president Edmund King told BBC Radio 5Live the AA's latest survey showed that some 70% of motorists were already cutting back on journeys - or other expenditure, like food shopping, to pay for petrol.

He said price increases were "socially divisive", saying the nation was being divided into "drives" - people who can afford to drive - and "drive nots".

'Strangling the economy'

Motoring journalist Quentin Wilson, who speaks for FairFuel UK, a pressure group behind the e-petition, said he and others "want the whole fuel pricing issue to become open and transparent", adding that high fuel duty is "strangling the economy".

"There are desperate, desperate people who cannot afford to use the roads. The effect on society at the moment has been absolutely desperate. Fuel duty is strangling us," he said.

Meanwhile, Richard Hebditch, of Campaign for Better Transport, said the "big problem" is that Britons are reliant on their cars and dependant on foreign oil supplies, which are "quite risky oil supplies".

He said: "What we need to do is take the money from fuel duty and invest it in giving people real alternatives and modernising our transport systems so we aren't so dependant on foreign and risking oil supplies."

Tuesday's debate, which lasted three hours, was approved by the Backbench Business Committee.

how low can you go ...

We were staying in Exmouth last week and from the hotel room you could just see the GW main line from Exeter to Plymouth through the binoculars. I think this unusual shot emphasises the fragility of this spectacular route. It also underlines the total madness of 1960s/1970s transport 'policy', a policy dominated by arrant stupidity, ignorance and craven submission to the 'road lobby'. The S&D closure was, of course, part of this idiocy. ANY transport decisions taken in those crazy decades were invariably wrong.

Back to the GW main line. This is currently the ONLY link from the rest of Britain to places south of Exeter. Those places include the cities of Plymouth and Truro, the seaside resorts of Torquay, Paignton, Teignmouth, Newquay and many others as well as numerous large towns, industries and businesses. All linked by a narrow thread which between Dawlish Warren and Teignmouth is incredibly vulnerable to the weather, global warming and the sinking of this part of the UK.

There were of course various other rail routes at one time. It would have been extremely unlikely that all would have been made inactive at the same time. The Teign Valley route bypassed this vulnerable route between Extere and Newton Abbot and the SR has a superbly engineered route between Exeter and Plymouth which skirted Dartmoor. There was also another route via Halwill Junction to Wadebridge, reconnecting with the main line to Cornwall at Bodmin Road.

The Teign Valley route closed in 1958, the Halwill Junction route in 1967 and, almost unbelievably, the Southern main line in 1968. This was organised vandalism. The last closure was the maddest of all, as the sections from Exeter to Meldon and Plymouth to Bere Alston remained open in any case, and still do. The large town of Tavistock was actually cut off (and in winter that can mean totally) despite the line being kept open to Bere Alston, just 6 miles to the south.

Now the line to Tavistock is, at last, being restored. But why on earth aren't there solid proposals to continue the line back up to Meldon, giving an alternative route when the Dawlish route is closed and, more importantly, taking some of the trains off the coastal route to improve capacity and efficiency?

Again this just shows not only how stupid we were back in the distant days of the 60s, but just how long it's taking people to realise that those days are over, or soon will be.

In a few years' time all this madness will be seen for what it is. This is the world into which we are all being propelled, the one in which restoration of the UK rail network becomes absolutely essential to our survival as a first world economy, a fiercely logical world where large towns like Midsomer Norton, Radstock, Blandford, Shepton Mallet and Glastonbury have proper, regular and extremely busy passenger and freight services, and where empty trackbeds suddenly become the most valuable real estate in the UK.

everything's going our way

Today's news features the following - I had to look twice to believe this! Okay, the Lib Dems won't be our next government BUT a hung parliament is very likely which means that Lib Dem policies may well be enacted within a coalition. My vote will be going to the Lib Dems this year and I don't care what Backwards of Blandford thinks about this strident political opportunism!

Lib Dems plan rail expansion by cutting road projects

Norman Baker says £3bn would be set aside for the rail expansion

The Liberal Democrats have set out plans to reopen thousands of miles of railway tracks and stations.

The scheme would be funded by cutting capital spending on roads by £3bn.

Its new Rail Expansion Fund would lead to the biggest expansion of the rail network since the Victorian era, the party claims.

Lib Dem transport spokesman Norman Baker said the plan would "make our railway great again".

Councils and transport authorities could bid for money from the Rail Expansion Fund to improve, reopen or establish services.

Although exact decisions on which services could be expanded would not be made until bids were received, the Lib Dems have drawn up a list of schemes which could be suitable for early delivery.
　
These include the electrification of lines from Manchester to Liverpool, Leeds and Preston; from Birmingham to Bristol and Basingstoke; and between Leeds and York.

New or reopened stations could be funded in Ilkeston, Kidlington, Wantage, Corsham, Tavistock, Middlewich, Ashington, Blyth, Washington and Skelmersdale.

New lines could link Southport with Preston, Bournemouth with Ringwood and the Midlands main line with the Birmingham-Derby route.

And track could be reopened between Exeter and Okehampton; Tavistock and Plymouth; Penrith and Keswick; and Galashiels and Carlisle.

The policy announcement by the Lib Dems comes a month after the government outlined its plans for a new high-speed rail network, featuring 250mph trains, which would include a new line between London and Birmingham, with future extensions planned to northern England and to Scotland.

At the time, the Conservatives said that if they were elected to power, they would start work on the project in 2015 - two years earlier than the government's plan.

Revitalise railways

But in launching the Lib Dems' plans for the railways, Mr Baker criticised both of their major rivals.

Mr Baker said: "Labour has allowed the railways to wither on the vine and punished passengers with huge fare hikes while more polluting forms of transport have got cheaper.

"All the while, the Tories have been sharpening the axe they will take to the transport budget.

"High speed rail is hugely important, but it is only part of the 21st-century rail network Britain needs."

The Lib Dems would cut the government's major roads project for the years up to 2013/14 by 90% and divert almost £3.5bn to rail, according to Mr Baker.

Some £480m - currently intended for projects like motorway widening and hard shoulders - would go towards the Lib Dems' existing policy of cutting rail fares.

The remaining £2.95bn would go into the Rail Expansion Fund.

Note that the S&D is NOT included in the list of reopened lines, though it's no doubt within the 'thousands of miles' being considered. The lines listed have all had vigorous support groups for years. this is why it is so important for ALL S&D fans, and local people, to get involved with the New S&D. The key point is that there will be a fund available for reopening railways, giving an obvious push to all groups such as ours. Professionalism and carefully costed schemes will be the keys to getting hands on the cash!

everything's coming our way ...

Move to reinstate lost rail lines

Train operators are calling for widespread expansion of the existing rail network, with 14 extra lines and about 40 new stations proposed.

The Association of Train Operating Companies said there was a need for expansion to cope with rising demand.

It said the expansion, which would cost £500m and possibly reuse lines closed under the 1960s Beeching cuts, could serve more than 1m extra passengers.

Any decisions on future expansion rest with government and Network Rail.

Atoc chief executive Michael Roberts said: "Record passenger numbers and rising demand require us to plan for the long term, while climate change and population growth make it vital that in doing so, we adapt the rail network to meet tomorrow's needs.
"Providing attractive new services and easier access to the rail network will encourage passengers to switch to rail from other, less green, modes of transport.
"We have established that there is a strong business case for investment to bring a number of towns back on to the rail network.
"Now we need to safeguard these routes and develop the detailed case for investment."

The Beeching report by Dr Richard Beeching in the 1960s resulted in the railway network being cut by a third, closing 2,000 stations and 5,000 miles of track.

The Atoc report says 40 towns not currently on the rail network could benefit from the 14 new lines.

Freight potential

It says the new stations could be operational within five to 10 years.

Any decision on whether any of the plans get the go-ahead would be taken by local and regional government, Network Rail and the Department for Transport.

Atoc argues infrastructure from some of the old lines closed in the 1960s could be refurbished to form part of the new network.
Freight lines could also be adapted to serve commercial routes, it said.

Transport Minister Chris Mole said the government would consider the findings of Atoc's report.

"The government's priority is to bring about changes, such as capacity improvements, which will deliver benefits for rail passengers now," he said.

"For the longer term, we will work with local authorities who want to improve links to the rail network, and will plan to make funding available from 2014 for successful schemes which demonstrate value for money."

Financial constraints

Shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers said the research was "interesting" and made "an impressive case" for reopening disused rail lines.

She added: "Conservatives recognise the value of these transport corridors, which is why we have called for a moratorium on building on any disused rail lines still in public ownership.

"Certainly, housing growth and the need to cut emissions from transport and tackle road congestion means that all political parties should look seriously at the ideas put forward in this report, though it is clear that the state of the public finances will put constraints on what is possible over the next few years."

Bob Crow, general secretary of the Rail Maritime and Transport union, said: "RMT has repeatedly called for an expansion of rail services to create green jobs and green transport options as part of our campaign for a people's railways.

"However, any expansion should be publicly-owned and free from the chaos and profiteering of the privatised franchise system."

The areas which would be served by the 14 possible new lines identified in the report are:

• Cranleigh in Surrey
• Bordon, Hythe and Ringwood in Hampshire
• Brixham in Devon
• Aldridge and Brownhills in the West Midlands
• Wisbech in Cambridgeshire
• Leicester to Burton in the East Midlands
• Fleetwood, Rawtenstall and Skelmersdale in Lancashire
• Washington in Tyne and Wear
• Ashington and Blyth in Northumberland

Thanks to all of you who brought this to my attention. It has also been on the News24 Channel all day, though sadly accompanied by imagwes from the 50s and 60s, which rather misses the point!

Note that Ringwood is included - though not Wimborne! Of course we want this section restored to give us a second outlet in the south eastwards towards Southampton, we already have a line monitor for this section.

This is still only a tiny step in the right direction, and most of these routes have had agitation for restoration for years, which shows how important it is to get organised - notice the S&D ISN'T on this list! Note also the surprising omissions of Bere Alston-Tavistock and Lewes-Uckfiled - perhaps these are already considered 'in the bag'.

Things are clearly moving our way - remember that this is a response to capacity restraints, Peak Oil and - except for one tiny quote - even Climate Change are not mentioned.

The problem with the Beeching Report was that it was totally inflexible. It assumed that - for some peculiar reason - rail traffic would continue to decrease and that - somehow - roads would be able to cope. We all now know that isn't true at all, and that the roads are beginning their slow decline into history whilst rail can only get stronger and stronger as it ticks all the boxes - fast, clean, puctual, efficient, flexible, sustainable, cool, profitable. It's amazing how quickly things have changed in just a few short years. People used to think I was mad proposing a rebuilt S&D just five years ago - now I'm having a job keeping up with you lot!

your future transport needs you

Just to return to Tavistock for a moment, Devon County Council have formally supported the proposals passed by WDBC last week-they were supportive anyway, but now the project is officially endorsed by them, so another piece of good news. Secondly,the local newspaper, the Tavistock Times, is currently running a poll online to gauge the percentage of people who would use the rebuilt railway. I was browsing another forum last night [First Great Western coffee shop] and it mentions this poll, along with a theory that the anti railway brigade in Tavistock may well have been organising themselves to influence the outcome of the poll. To counter balance this, I was wondering if as many people who use this site could pay a quick visit to the Tavistock Times website and register a positive vote. I don't think this is cheating, because Ii imagine that if you were in the vicinity of Tavistock you would use the railway. I don't think ultimately the poll will influence any major decision making either way, but you never know how propaganda can be twisted, so best be on the safe side. Co-operation would be much appreciated. Website is here.

Personally I'm amazed that there is an anti-railway faction in Tavistock. Not only will the railway mean quicker journey times into Plymouth, but will raise house prices, especially those near to the railway. Idiots!

The article in the paper (below) is more 21st century!

THE reinstatement of the railway between Bere Alston and Tavistock has moved a step closer, following this week’s decision by Devon County Council’s executive. Councillors agreed to support the principle of entering into a joint venture partnership with Kilbride Properties Ltd to deliver the multi-million project which would re-open the line from Bere Alston station to a new station at Tavistock, with a regular through train service operated to and from Plymouth. Sections of the railway track bed of the old line, which closed in 1968, have been purchased by the county council — with the transfer from BRB Property completed in March. Some land clearance has now also been carried out along the route. Cllr Margaret Rogers, the executive member for environment, said: ‘Re-opening the railway line and developing a new walking and cycling route will provide people with real alternatives to using their cars. ‘This formal partnership will hopefully enable the development of walking and cycling trails running alongside the railway to access the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape Heritage sites. ‘Not only will this scheme help the county council to make Devon even greener by cutting congestion, but it could provide an economic boost for local tourism.’ The re-opening of the railway line and provision of a railway station at Tavistock are among the key transport proposals in the adopted structure plan, Devon to 2016, and the current West Devon Local Development Framework includes proposals for 250 homes next to the proposed railway station, south of the A390 Callington Road. West Devon Borough Council last week voted for its core strategy proposals which included backing for a rail link ‘in principle’ for Tavistock.

the future is almost here ...

Mick Knox writes (referring to the Tavistock decision) This is undoubtedly the future for rail and I have believed this since the 1990's. Just building houses and office space without decent transport links defies the lessons of history. Roads can't do this anymore, so rail is the answer. Sooner or later Radstock will realise this and it will apply to all of the country. Lost lines will return as transport is king, and without it you have nothing.....

Things will really kick off when it's obvious even to the government of the day that without rail transport the nation will go into serious decline as roads no longer are viable. Sensible businesspeople will already be realising that building (and probably even operating) new railways will be a good way of making money in the future. Genius US investor Warren Buffet realised this a few years ago and started buying up US railroad stocks. His reasoning was that once the infrastructure and equipment are in place almost all income is profit.

Hopefully local councils will also realise that modern rail transport is not only essential in an energy-constrained future, but that it will bring an income in at the local level, where railways and tramways are locally owned.

Not only will just about all the Beeching cuts be reversed, but many places that never even saw rail transport in the first railway age will get trains and trams in the second one.

excellent news - Tavistock returns!!

(All Okehampton 4.12.1984)

West Devon Borough Council, to their credit, last night voted through a plan to build 750 new homes in Tavistock, by a company called Kilbride, who will also rebuild the 6 miles of railway to Bere Alston and thus a direct link to Plymouth for the first time since 1968. [Google This is Plymouth, Western Morning News for further details]. Planning, consultation etc, is going to take another year, but it definitely looks good. I know there was a scheme to build a lot of houses on railway land at Radstock- is that signed sealed and delivered, or would it be possible to get a company like Kilbride to come up with a similar model? Or indeed, in future, maybe parts of the S and D could be rebuilt in this way. Just food for thought really, wonder what your opinions are.

From a message board post.

This is fantastic news and indeed will serve as a model for future large housing developments. A point often made to me is that there is little point building new homes if there are no modern transport links in place. In the 70s and 80s roads would have provided these links, but that's history now, or very soon will be. This should certainly apply to Radstock and surely the Midsomer Norton Trust and North Somerset Railway are making this point to everyone who will listen?

Hopefully restoration of the line to Tavistock will reinvigorate calls for the whole route to Meldon and Okehampton be restored, giving an alternative route to the sea level rise threatened Dawlish route. At the very least it will take some of the capacity restraints off the existing line as traffic continues to climb. Really the whole Dartmoor route needs to be reopened and double tracked as quickly as possible.

If this government had any balls it would make putting in modern transport links compulsory for all major new housing, retail or industrial developments. This could be heavy rail (restored or new build), light rail, ultra light rail or tramway. Soon there will be no other option in any case. Better still if rather than the new line be appropriated by a large concern they are set up as locally owned and run co-operatives, ensuring that the route is geared towards local needs and is maintained and run to the highest standards. We are getting there slowly ...