Public Transport News in the South West is dominated by strike action:-

i) First Great Western (FGW) Train Managers/Conductors Strike

The RMT has called a two day strike of train managers and conductors employed by FGW to be held on Sunday 20 January and Monday 21 January – the union claims that there has been ‘a breakdown in industrial relations’ and objects to the use of managers to ‘drive and guard’ FGW trains.

Talks are continuing between FGW management and the RMT in an effort to resolve the current dispute – if the two day strike takes place, thousands of rail passengers across the region will have to find alternative transport to travel to and from work, school, college etc.

Train services operated in the region by CrossCountry and by South West trains will not be affected, if the strike goes ahead

ii) Wilts and Dorset Driver Strike

Drivers employed by Wilts and Dorset at their depots at Blandford, Bournemouth, Lymington, Poole, Ringwood and Swanage staged one-day strikes on Thursday 3 January and Tuesday 8 January in their continuing dispute relating to the length of continuous driving time, without a break. A further strike is planned for Wednesday 16 January, when the management proposes to provide a limited daytime service on routes 3, 4, m5, X8, 8, 9, 13, 16, 36, 121, 128 and 143 with a standard fare of one pound for any single journey (except route 121 where normal fares will be charged).

An early resolution to this industrial dispute, which is causing severe inconvenience and hardship to thousands of bus users, appears less likely as the management are refusing to hold any further discussions with the RMT until the threat of any further industrial action is removed. A further one day strikes is also scheduled for Wednesday 23 January.

Axminster loop

Network Rail announced that new track will be installed, alongside the existing single-line railway, for one and a half miles either side of Axminster station to provide a passing loop of three miles – the new passing loop will enable South West Trains to deliver the company’s franchise commitment to provide an hourly service between Exeter St Davids and London Waterloo via Honiton, Axminster and Crewkerne from 13 December 2009, provided that Network Rail completes the work by that date. The location of the new loop should also enable South West Trains to reduce the current eastbound journey time from East Devon to London.

A new platform will be constructed at Axminster station, together with a footbridge link to the existing platform.

TravelWatch SouthWest is committed to lobbying for the early construction of a further passing loop between Honiton and Pinhoe to enable two trains per hour to operate in each direction between Exeter St Davids and Axminster/Honiton serving the proposed station for the new community of Cranbrook.

As South West Trains only has a limited number of diesel trains, the Department for Transport is currently planning to withdraw all services operated west of Exeter by the company, when the new hourly service between London Waterloo and Exeter St Davids commences operation in December 2009.

South West Trains currently operates two trains in each direction on Monday to Friday between Exeter St Davids and Paignton and between Exeter St Davids and Plymouth – the existing 1735hrs Exeter Central to Paignton will be withdrawn, resulting in no through train in the evening peak from Exeter Central to Dawlish, Teignmouth, Newton Abbot, Torquay and Paignton between 1714hrs and 1819hrs. Ivybridge station would see a reduction in trains from nine in each direction to just seven – the withdrawal of the 1748hrs Plymouth to London Waterloo train would mean that Ivybridge commuters would have to wait at Plymouth until 1843hrs for a return service! TravelWatch SouthWest is lobbying the Department for Transport to provide regional train operators with sufficient diesel rolling stock to maintain the existing services west of Exeter, currently operated by South West Trains.

South West England Draft Regional Spatial Strategy

The report of the panel who conducted the examination in public (EiP) into the draft Regional Spatial Strategy, prepared by the South West Regional Assembly, has now been published. TravelWatch SouthWest was represented at the examination in public and the panel’s report, particularly the redrafting of the draft Regional Transport Strategy, reflect the submissions made by public transport users in the region.

The panel report has been submitted to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Hazel Blears – she will consider the panel report and then publish her proposed changes to the draft strategy which will be subject to a further twelve week public consultation.

The full report is available online to download.

And finally,

First Devon and Cornwall made significant alterations to the timetables for services 2, 2A and 2B (Falmouth – Penzance via Helston) from 7 January 2008 at ‘the request of Cornwall County Council’.

The revised timetables are available on the First Devon and Cornwall and traveline SouthWest websites, but NOT on the Cornwall Public Transport website (maintained by the County Council), where the ‘latest news’ is the publication of a timetable supplement dated 2 September 2007!