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THE SHREWSBURY - ABERYSTWYTH RAIL PASSENGERS' ASSOCIATION WELCOMES YOU TO THEIR WEBSITEThis page updated 5th July 2008 |
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SARPA is the local rail users group for the Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth
line
running from the English border through Montgomeryshire to the coast of
North
Ceredigion and ending up in the increasingly important University (and
Assembly administration
) town of
Aberystwyth. We exist to preserve and promote the line so that there is a
more sustainable
transport system for future generations. SARPA is one of the more active
rail
user groups in Wales and meets monthly. We are continually campaigning on
various issues from train times and frequency to station maintenance and
welcome any comments anybody has about the rail service in Mid Wales. We hope that during 2008, Arriva will continue to make efforts to improve their service quality, which still manages to fall below the standard required. |
CHAIRMAN'S MESSAGE |
| Chairman's message Or messages! Much has moved on since I first drafted this, so bear with me whilst I tilt at several windmills this time. Message 1 - Anyone for a recession? In certain quarters the prospect is actually appealing. The blockers will have what they will see as one hell of good excuse ready to justify not investing in the railways, instead of making increasingly desperate and nonsensical arguments. On the other side of the coin there are those that believe a recession will destroy the franchise system and see a return to a proper order as the make-believe financing arrangements of the so called privatised railways will crumble. In military parlance the concern is collateral damage. The innocent will be harmed - the prospect of a recession or slow down in economic growth will almost inevitably lead to another attack on rural railways. Why? Well after all we've had 15 years of economic growth, and several attempts to blame rural lines for spiralling costs in the rail industry that are actually caused by structural inefficiency. The closed ears and eyes are still there. The recent engineering blockade on our line reminded us of all the old bustituition arguments, and whilst I'm not having pop at Fraser Eagle and the individual coach drivers who were quite well organised and efficient, several key factors were yet again stressed. First of all the coaches were far slower than the train: 2 hours and forty five minutes from Aberystwyth to Shrewsbury compared to the train - 1 hour and fifty four minutes. Loadings were c. 10% of what the trains normally carried on the weekdays I observed; it might be cheaper to run but all the revenue and patronage disappears. With our line's footfall at 700,000 per annum where would the other 630,000 journeys go? The coaches were not of a particularly high standard and one passenger was observed getting off a coach at Machynlleth being sick and she had only come from Aberystwyth! It doesn't matter how good the bus is they still have to travel on rural roads! The Ebbw Vale line provides more fact to the debate: they're flocking in their thousands to take the train to Cardiff, but the bus link to Newport from Rogerstone station is withdrawn through lack of demand. As always we must be aware of false prophets bearing tired old and failed solutions. Message 2 - County Councillors to the rescue? Still not all is doom and gloom. I've just finished reading The Wales Transport Strategy - the policy framework on which the regional transport consortia must fit their regional transport plans to. Lots of right noises about the justification for transport into the wider economy using several themes we've been using here at SARPA for a decade plus - glad to see that Government is catching up! Though modal choice seems to be still stuck on a fence somewhat. However the system is devolved in Mid Wales, TraCC must come up with the right answers as what they decide is a priority will be set in stone. Of course the hourly service to Aberystwyth should be the number one priority for TraCC, as it benefits all three Local Authority areas and is a strategic transport measure along a European TEN-T route. One hopes that the fresh political colouring of Powys and Gwynedd will outweigh the negativity to transport from Ceredigion in the TraCC RTP. After all the hourly service is the only game in the Mid Wales town on a strategic level.With cheap petrol and diesel gone forever, just what's the point in road schemes as traffic levels will now start to decline? Unfortunately all the other transport consortia seem to have had a ten year head start and more resources, and many fear Mid Wales per se is being marginalised. Time to stand up and be counted. Message 3 - The wrong line to take At our recent meeting with the Deputy First Minster, the then Head of WAG's Rail Unit, James ventured the opinion that "rising fuel costs" may be a reason not to invest in an hourly service on our line. WRONG! In fact rising fuel costs will actually accelerate demand for rail in Mid Wales. Sorry Timothy, far from being the one line put down you intended, you flagged up the big issue. Indeed at the announcement of the £50 million infrastructure scheme for the Valleys rising fuel costs were cited as a reason for the investment! Rising fuel costs will encourage modal shift far better than anything else seen so far, and with foreign holidays being curtailed the holiday areas of Britain like Cardigan Bay will see a resurgence. Yes ATW will pay more for their fuel, and rail fares will go up accordingly no doubt, but the differential between driving and public transport will have shifted. As fuel hysteria continues - nations with lower fuel duties are all screaming as well - you need to be using the alternatives productively. Using fuel rises as a reason not to improve public transport really demonstrates a lack of grip and thought. We have to plan for the future not take yesterday's line. With Network Rail's Consultation document out for their Wales Route Utilisation Strategy or RUS, there's still time to get the right answer. NR's prediction of just 25% growth in passenger numbers for the next 10 years looks lame - we're getting that on our line every 3 years at the moment. If our punctuality problems abate and rising fuel costs bite, just imagine the potential. We can see it and SARPA's line to take is to press for investment for the future recession or not. Gareth Marston Newtown, June 2008 |
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Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth Rail Passengers Association (SARPA) 64 Churchill Drive, Barnfields, Newtown, Powys, SY16 2LH, Wales, United Kingdom © SARPA 2005-2008 All Rights Reserved Website:- Angus Eickhoff |