The Bristol Railway Archive

From BCC Wales:

22:35 to 23:05 on Tue 10 Jun, BBC One Wales
The Railway Blues

Britain's leading writer on rail, Christian Wolmar, takes a return trip from Paddington to Wales to ask just what is wrong with our railways? For a decade First Great Western have run trains on Brunel's famous old line - and now the company is in danger of losing its franchise. But in this, the 60th anniversary year of rail nationalisation, he asks who should really take the blame for such expensive tickets and, all too often, our late and overcrowded trains. [S]


Should be an interesting watch?

No need to make a song and dance about who is to blame.
The ex- prime minister John Major and his gang of crooks were the persons who done in the industry and gave it to their friends to take the tax payer to the cleaners (NOTE THE SUBSIDIES TO THE PRIVATE OWNERS) It was well known that one day the the railways would come into their own again and the private sector should get all the profits not us the tax payers and even now the Tories are working out how to steal the rest of what was British Rail. One day the public might see the wood for the trees and see through the latest Tory swindles.

Whilst not wholly agreeing with tugboat, i do agree that it was the tory fragmentation of the railway system that destroyed what was a system already run down. To me the rot set in during an earlier tory administration when beaching was let loose. I agree that the system needed rationalisation in the 60's, but beeching was let loose with a chain saw rather than a pruning knife. A lot of the lines he closed would be extremely busy now. The 60's was an era trying to shake of the blues of the WW2 hangover, so basically he was allowed to get away with it on the promise of a bright new world. There then was underinvestment for years and years before privatisation. What i have always failed to understand was the logic behind the way it was privatised. Franchises may well work for Kentucky Chicken outlets, but the are stand alone outlets not a joined up system. I always felt that if it was going to be privatised the best way would of been to put it back in its pre-war state.
The way it is now has so many people dipping their fingers in the pie that for them all to get a feel of the money of course it going to be expensive.
The problem is now that politicians have their own survival at the top of their agenda, which means they focus on the media scare story of the day rather than focus on what makes life in this country tick.

Just to recap about the damage done to the railways by Dr beeching, yes of course it was that period that done the damage ,but in 1973/4 with the introductin of the HST"s and improving the inter city services it was then that BRwas starting to make inroads to the losses.But then came the menace of the rail transport industry the Thatcher period and then the rot set in again.In all this period of history what I said before that the tories had information that one day the railways would be back in favour and they want the profits for their friends and not us the tax payers and that part has come so very true.

john2006 wrote:From BCC Wales:

22:35 to 23:05 on Tue 10 Jun, BBC One Wales
The Railway Blues

Britain's leading writer on rail, Christian Wolmar, takes a return trip from Paddington to Wales to ask just what is wrong with our railways? For a decade First Great Western have run trains on Brunel's famous old line - and now the company is in danger of losing its franchise. But in this, the 60th anniversary year of rail nationalisation, he asks who should really take the blame for such expensive tickets and, all too often, our late and overcrowded trains. [S]


Should be an interesting watch?

The program can be viewed on the BBC website for the next few days:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/chec ... bgc=C0C0C0