The Swanage Railway Trust
- Swanage Pump - General Manager's Newsletter - October 2005
 | Time to ReflectWith only 3 months left of 2005 it is good to look back on a year that, so far, has seen a number of developments that have been longstanding either come to fruition or progress further. At the start of the year we saw the introduction to use of the signal box at Corfe Castle and after some getting used to by all staff this has now come into its own both for the operation of additional trains and for the expansion of possibilities at special events. As a new event we tried a Branch Line Weekend and this is to be continued and developed next year. In addition we held the ‘one-off’ SWANAGE 120 which, for obvious reasons, we will not hold again in 2006. However, the local CAMRA Branch is going to hold a Beer Festival on the same weekend next year. As a further expansion to the special event programme some investigation is taking place into running a steam rally on a trial basis next year to establish the feasibility of adding this to the 2007 programme. There are several purposes to the special events that we hold and it is hoped that these events will help promote that railway to a wider audience, increase passenger numbers in the quieter months and provide something a bit different for those operating the railway. As ever help in putting together such a programme is always needed – please contact me if you could help. The last weekend of normal operation (19th and 20th November) will see us putting on Open Days for local residents and visitors. These aim to interest people in our services and special events as well as try to entice a few more people to join us as volunteers – please attend and help to make people welcome if at all possible. Working Party DatesThere are a number of groups that meet to do specific tasks on a variety of days. They are all only too pleased to welcome new people to help – even if only on the odd occasion. A contact name and number is given so that you can check details beforehand if you wish. It would also be great if new volunteers could be brought in who have previously not volunteered because of the regular commitment required for many other jobs on the railway. Carriage CleaningMeets 2nd weekend of the month at Swanage station. Contact Mike Standhaft Infrastructure Support Group (ISG)Meets 3rd Saturday of the month, locations vary. Contact Frank Roberts 07703 566941. S&T WorkMeet most Wednesdays, usually at Corfe Castle. Contact: Dave Cobb Carriage and WagonMeet weekends in the Swanage Goods Shed. Contact Jeremy Weller. Reconnection SummaryThe following text is based on a briefing note compiled for general information and presentation to outside bodies on the current state of the reconnection of the Swanage to Wareham railway. HistoryFrom the 1970s members of the Swanage Railway Project have been working to reinstate the line between Swanage and Wareham that was closed by British Rail in 1972. Until 1995 efforts were focused on gradually extending the line to its current operational limit at Norden from where a Park and Ride scheme serves Corfe Castle and Swanage. The services that are currently provided also serve a small number of local residents throughout the year and a much larger number of ‘temporary residents’ during the summer months. With the opening of the line to Norden attention turned more seriously to the problems inherent in extending further – with a combined operation required between SRCL and, at that time, Railtrack. This led to the formation of the Purbeck Rail Partnership which has acted as the focus point for such discussions. This body has worked to introduce a service that will fulfil the public service needs of a through service without compromising the current heritage operation’s character or viability. Initial proposals to run a through service using South West Trains stock proved impractical due to the regulatory regime. The culmination of this process was the submission of a bid for Rail Passenger Partnership funding which, due to structural changes in the rail industry was rejected due to lack of funds in the summer of 2004. With the rejection of this bid and the forthcoming re-franchising of the South Western franchise by the Department for Transport all options for a connecting service are being revisited by a SRT/SRCL working group within the Purbeck Rail Partnership. Options are also being discussed with Network Rail relating to the future status of the line between Motala and Worgret Junction. The successes so far
The problems
Around the RailwayMarketingSanta Specials Santa bookings are now starting to come in. Publicity Unit The Great Dorset Steam Fair was a very successful event publicity wise with over 5000 publicity packs distributed from our stand. A big thank you should go to Mick & Sharon Hatton who stayed up on site for the whole week. Steam Gala Despite the bad weather on the Saturday figures for this event were very good overall with Sunday being particularly good. Preliminary reports from the Bournemouth and Poole club indicate that they were well pleased with their side of the event. Waverley The Waverley’s annual visit to Swanage this September landed 645 passengers for a total of £3622.00 fare revenue. Wilts & Dorset The joint promotion with Wilts & Dorset which was run during the main summer season for the first time has produced the following results: Wilts & Dorset sold a total of 74 adult tickets, 57 senior tickets and 19 child tickets. We in turn sold 7 adult tickets and 4 concession tickets to Studland and 3 adult tickets and 4 concession tickets to Bournemouth. Station CateringSwanage Birds Nest The Steam Gala, from our point of view, was a great success. We exceeded budgeted figures in the Birds nest on both Saturday and Sunday. Thinking the rush would subside somewhat the following week, we found that on Monday, we took as much revenue as the Gala Saturday, our only ongoing problem areas being, 1. lack of staff and volunteers. 2. The long wait in the queue to be served. As a result of these two points it is proposed to consider opening a tea kiosk on the platform at Swanage Station. This would allow staff in the Birds Nest to work more efficiently by shortening the queue and enabling hot meals to be ordered and dispensed more quickly. Also it would eliminate some of the congestion around the counter area and allow the Birds Nest staff to clear up and cash in on time. Furthermore, this new facility would cater for customers waiting for later trains that run after normal closing time of the Birds Nest. Draw tickets could also be sold from this site for longer periods than is at present possible in the Birds Nest. It would be necessary to find an extra member of staff/volunteer to man this facility. OperationsSteam Gala The steam gala operated as planned a very good timetable with nothing to ambitious, having three block sections made the operation interesting. The Corfe to Norden shuttle was very successful. We had no problems with stock or locomotives over the weekend; thanks must go to Frank Mead and Paul Allwood for their efforts during the week before the event. Stock Movements Two coaches arrived on the 12th & 13th September Nos. 667 & 1323 from the Mid-Hants Railway, also on the 13th the Bulleid Brake left for Ramparts at Derby. Locomotive, Carriage & WagonLocomotives
Coaches All coaches (3 sets) are available for traffic. InfrastructureAreas of Responsibility This document, highlighting 150 or so aspects of railway infrastructure and who is responsible for them, was released this month following extensive consultation. Plan of Works – Issue One The first copy of this document was released this month. This is our first attempt at bring together all “works” within the Group in one document. It is a disjointed document at present, but hopefully the document, in Excel format, will fall into place as a management tool. I must stress that the owner of each section is the department manager, and I am encouraging them to update the information, initially every other month. A public copy will be published in Station House, Swanage. Waste Management Policy The draft plan went out last week. There have been two very positive returns so far. Infrastructure Noticeboard There will be a new noticeboard in the foyer of Station House - covering the electric meter cupboard where the old press-cuttings noticeboard was. It is needed so as to aid the passage of information, without overloading the Weekly Traffic Notices. Management of Eldon’s I released a letter to all Com, Directors and Managers in relation to Eldon’s on 2 Sep. Only comments were from Bob Payne ref the way ahead (all positive). I hope that the ISG can commence clearance of the Pad on 15 Oct. – all help gratefully received. Corfe Footbridge Bridge painting ongoing now and painting gangs will meet Sat 1st and Sat 15th Oct. They hope to dig footings after daily running ceases. They hope it will be installed by Easter, but this is dependant on health of team and the weather. Utilities Survey This is ongoing, drawing on assistance from DCC. Infrastructure Support Group Gas store move complete. Prepared and primered a flat wagon last Saturday. Attendance is still disappointing. Next meeting 15 Oct. Can you help? Civil EngineeringBridge No. 17 Completion of re-pointing work to the masonry finally brings the refurbishment of this structure to conclusion. Proposed Siding at Herston Bank A level survey of the area has been undertaken and a preliminary layout drawing indicates that this scheme is feasible without realigning the running line, although the siding will need to be at a lower level. Discussion between interested parties to develop the scheme further is proposed ad preliminary costings can then be calculated. Swanage Signal Box Problems with the macerator to the W.C. – a refurbished unit is to be fitted soon. Unit is stored in the signal box at present. Infrastructure Vehicle It has been decided to part with the van and it is to be disposed of. If anyone wants it or knows a person who can make use of it then please let me know. Staff matters A new face may have been observed around the railway recently. We have as a volunteer Mark Stone (no relation to Mick) who is currently spending 5 days a week in the Infrastructure Dept. with Civils, P. Way and Frank Roberts. Signal and TelegraphMaintenance work has slipped behind. Hope to get back on schedule during September. Repairs The problem of flooding in the locking and relay rooms under Swanage signal box has been resolved by replacing the mortar under the door sill and building a bund around the cable ducts into the relay room. Painting Work on painting the Harmans Cross Signal posts has commenced with the Down Starter complete. Tablets and Tokens An order for casting 12 new tokens for the Electric Key Token machines has been placed and will be available shortly. This will make up the current shortfall in tokens so there will be 6 in each of the 4 machines. Faults Several minor faults reported were point adjustments have been affected by the hot weather. These have been adjusted accordingly. TelecomInternal Telephone System & Cable Network A cable fell from pole no. 60 and had to be re fixed. This was due to rot at the top of the pole. Some of our poles are getting a little dodgy to say the least and we will need to start replacing some in the not too distant future. I finally finished commissioning the line tester (Kindly donated by Gartell Light Railway) installed in Swanage Exchange. All three exchanges now have identical testers, which will help greatly with fault locating. The telephone (Swanage 30) in Swanage Signal Box has been replaced. The replacement may not be quite such a museum piece, but its transmission qualities are vastly superior and callers can now hear the signalman. An updated issue of the Internal Directory has been produced and has been fully distributed to all locations. Business Communications Manager & BT Lines The Goods Shed extension (218) now has an auxiliary bell installed in the rafters, which should help them hear it better. When we know how to do this we will also provide an extra extension and voicemail for Mike Whitwam as VLO. Permanent Wayw/e 29th Aug.
w/e 9th Sept.
w/e 16th September
w/e 21st Sept.
StationsSwanage
Herston
Harman’s Cross
Corfe Castle
Norden
VacanciesContact the named person (via Station House) for more information:
Notes from the Board Meeting on September 24thMatters arisingIt was reported that in addition to Shaun Sharpe, Langdon Tomkins would be available to undertake electrical work on a contract basis. [Please filter electrical work requests through Frank Roberts at present] Health and SafetyNo report tabled. The need for lights at the Norden Nest was raised under the GM’s report and it was agreed that this should be added to the work programme. FinanceThe report this month was generally more optimistic with revenue for August having been above expectation. Similarly revenue for September seemed to be heading for target. It is, therefore, the final quarter that will see success or failure for the profit/loss figure and it is important that budgets are adhered to in order to break even or return a modest profit – given the performance in 2003 and 2004 this will be an achievement. Cash flow has also improved somewhat and this is now an area for focused attention. General Manager’s ReportPDC plans for the installation of ticket machines at Norden are progressing and advice is required on VAT aspects of the ticketing. A small display had been put on for Church Knowle Parish Council who are supportive of the reconnection of the railway and our aspirations for Furzebrook. It was agreed that the Steam Gala had been a most successful event and t hat a detailed financial analysis would be prepared for the next meeting. A recent meeting of PRP had seen the DfT franchise sponsor visit and as a result all options would be re-examined – a summary document will then be issued to update all interested parties. The operation of a DMU to the Blue timetable on Mondays and Fridays in October was confirmed. A draft phone policy was agreed in principle – subject to some further amendment. Proposals for 2006 fares were tabled for comment. These will be discussed in more detail by the Marketing C’tee but see no rise in the headline Swanage Norden fare of £7-50 due to the implementation of car parking charges by PDC at Norden. The overhaul of the Cl. 117 unit was discussed and it was agreed that Roger Sinar would investigate the requirements and report back. Various personnel issues were discussed. Of general import was the rise in minimum wage in line with the Govt. minimum and revision of some other staff in line with this from 1st October 2005. Reports into two failures were discussed by the Directors and the recommendations will be passed to appropriate managers for action. Progress ReportsThere would be a meeting with politicians and senior officers of DCC on Wednesday 28th September. Future Meetings
SRT Open ForumAn Open Forum is held before the monthly meeting of SRT Directors (CoM) in the Rectory Classroom – the next meeting is on 29th October 2005. It will take place at the new time of 2pm. Nick Brown |
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