SVR General Discussion

Unfortunately my local Tesco is having a revamp at the moment… trying to get hold of Steam Railway or Trackside is rather difficult at the mo,
More importantly I can’t get hold of Viz!

 

Many years ago (ok, about 1990) the best bits used to be pasted to the (inside) wall of the 'work coach' in the bay at Kidderminster. Quite an education for a ten year old that and the permanent blaring of LW Atlantic 252.

 

We used to have Atlantic 252 on at Arley from about 1996 certainly got me into some more obscure stuff.

 

Talking of obscure, we are often getting blasted by "German Grime" beats at Rothley...(I was almost going to say music - but it is Not!). Mind you I did not expect to be listening to the Beach Boys either!

 

You really need to listen to some of the stuff one of my colleagues listens too… and produces

TBF I can’t really knock other people’s musical tastes after I had a conversation last week with a friend about the time I saw Slipknot…

 

I don't know who you or you old man are and it may be that he is more than a run of the mill supporter or volunteer but if a General Manager was happy to frequently sit down for 3 hour general chin wags it would take up a big chunk of their time. A GM has to keep in touch with what the grass routes are saying and thinking , they also have to be approachable but if they are getting paid a decent salary I would expect that they are not left a huge amount of time for 3 hour general chin wags.

 

I don’t know the ins ands outs of what was said between the 2 of them but from what I was told Mr Dunster had a bit of a walk about and chat with staff yesterday, so whilst it might not have been a 3 hour personal chat with Dad, it was a visit to go and have a bit of a poke around and have chinwag with various members of staff that, whether it was paid or voluntary staff I’ve no idea, I wasn’t there.

Going and making time to have a chat with your staff is never a bad thing in my opinion, it’s certainly something I try to do in my own job from my own time as a youngster down the SVR it was certainly something I saw myself from Mr Rees and Mr Ralls.

Whilst not wanting to split hairs about time spent chatting to who and what, do you not think it was a good thing that the interim GM of the SVR thought it was a good thing to give up their own time on a Sunday to go and have a chat to try and get to know some of those people they will be in charge of?

 

That makes more sense. As I said I think a GM needs to Know what the grass routes are saying and thinking , they also have to be approachable. Doing that by having a bit of a walk around, dropping in at coffee breaks or down the pub, having meetings with groups etc are positive things to do. It was just the 3 hour personal chat that caught my eye as I thought if that is what people expected to be able to have regularly with a GM they were probably mistaken and it would not be a good use of a GM's timer.

 

I may have worded it badly.

 

I agree, there is a balance to be struck, Alun certainly used to be regularly on the end of platform one at Bewdley, and if not him, then John Leech or Jones the Traffic, and a quick word or the opportunity to ask a question not only made us feel more included in the decision making process, but did much to break down the "them and us" feeling and gave the management a feel for what who among the volunteers were likely to be reliable people to get feedback from, although yes, it can also be time consuming.

 

Welcome to the March edition of Branch Lines, which you can access in the usual way at https://www.svrlive.com/blmar23 . We hope you enjoy reading it!

Lesley and Patrick

Co-editors

 

SVR gold shareholders will need to check their passes. The railway has goofed yet again by recently issuing gold shareholders with silver passes.

Additionally, the discount vouchers sent to some shareholders state "Bridgnorth to Kidderminster", whereas the cover letter states a discount to Freedom of the Line tickets. It infers that the only start point is Bridgnorth but surely this cannot be correct?

 

They are FoTL and can be used from any station.

 

Update from the 2857 society for those that don't do Facebook:

We promised you an update following on from our Trustee Meeting on March 4th, so here it is…

2857s Future - The trustees were in agreement that our main priority was to see the locomotive running and not sat around idle for an undefined period. We all agreed that in an ideal world running on the Severn Valley Raiwlay is our main priority and as such we have contacted the SVR requesting a meeting to determine where 2857 sits in their plans. We also discussed options elsewhere should the need arise and it was noted that at least 3 intersted parties had been in touch with us. Further to this, it was decided to delve a little deeper in to these options but no firm commitment has been made towards any proposal yet.

Membership - Some changes to how we structure our membership were discussed at length. The current membership system will be kept until the AGM in October when a new system will be proposed and voted on by our membership. The changes that will be proposed are hoped to increase revenue for the Society and help to cushion some of the costs associated with the printing of our 28 Lines magazine.

2857s Website and Social Media Pages - Our brand new website is progressing and we hope to have something to show within the next couple of months. We have taken the decision to build a new website, rather than update our old one, because it gives us more options to modernise and push to get younger people involved. Our Social Media pages have now tracked quite the following and we would ask anyone who wants to keep up to date with the Society to like and follow our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Other than that it is business as usual and The Society continues to ask that, if anyone is interested in joining as a member/shareholder please do so through our website. Also if anyone wishes to become a trustee of the locomotive or feels they have something they could offer to The Society please get in touch.

 

The possibility of moving elsewhere seems to be quite radical for a group so firmly rooted at the SVR. I'm a bit surprised to learn of three other possible alternative bases, though. I'd have thought that most lines needing an engine of this size are already so equipped. Maybe the NYMR could make an offer for the Flying Pig when that comes out of traffic, though? Or the 8F perhaps?

PS, only joking, the NYMR should have around 10 locos available this year with 34101 and 75029 to add probably next year, so they don't need any more! (Sadly)

 

Though a large loco, it has also shown itself to be economical for heritage line use. Heavy freight 2-8-0's are generally more content at heritage line speeds than many mixed traffic 4-6-0's, for example. 2857 had also built a reputation for very reliable performance when in service.

 

I believe comment has been passed from footplate staff on other railways about 2857 being in better nick coming towards the end of its current ticket than certain other locomotives not long from recently being outshopped.

As someone who’s not an expert on matters regarding the footplate, a lot of my friends who are a bit more knowledgeable than me on these things have nothing but praise for 2857.

 

I would not have thought radical, just an owning group seeing the full picture that if there is little or no need for it where it is now then you either say nothing and upset those who have donated or worked on it when it just sits around, or you be upfront now with both those supporting the loco and the SVR.
If it is not in the SVR's plans then better to know now I would have thought.

 

She has gained a good reputation and it has been hard won. Some of the feedback we received whilst at the NYMR was particularly pleasing given the challenge of the line and the general suspicion of anything with brass on in Yorkshire!

In fairness to the SVR a fair amount of credit for the condition the loco has been maintained in throughout it's ticket lies with the railway's engineering services. Significant work was undertaken to the bottom end in the last couple of years of operation which less responsible organisations may have been tempted to let slide at that stage of a loco's ticket.

 

Which is pretty much the decision the Erlestoke Manor Fund have reached. There isnt the demand for their locomotive this year on the SVR, it has to pay for itself and they wish to see it running. EMF has also used Tyseley for overhauls and repairs so they can get their locos turned around more quickly. However, they still see the SVR as their home base, with their sales coach there etc. I'm sure the SVR would get first refusal on use.
Same with Southern Locos Ltd, they will have engines spread across several railways this year, indeed it is not long ago one had an extended stay at the SVR - but ultimately they are a Swanage organisation.
There is nothing radical or disloyal in seeking what is best long term for your loco and your membership - I'm sure the SVR understands that more than most.