West Somerset Railway General Discussion

Someone I know, Yorkshire born, is a bit embarrassed of his origins, by your approach.

PH

 

I'm very happy to buy an extra piece of that gorgeous bread pudding .

Paul . K

 

I don't want to stir the pot but since loco's were mentioned - Minehead MPD have, for a number of years, skilfully modified a number of locomotives to make them easier to operate.
This is something that would have probably happened anyway had the locomotives continued in service on the big railway...........

 

And save much consternation at a later date .

 

A perfectly sensible thing to do though no doubt some "purists" will think otherwise.

 

It shows - sometimes a little too often.

 

Perhaps you have not understood the parsnip reference. The full saying is that "Fine words butter no parsnips" or in other words dressing an argument up with superfluous words does not reinforce the the case. See this link for more detail

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/fine-words-butter-no-parsnips.html

How about making some coherent arguments instead? Ad hominem attacks just show the weakness of your case.

 

To me these photos sum up the need to grasp the nettle & get this right - no need to apportion any blame. As a complete railway the WSR is in an enviable position where much of the original infrastructure is intact. It now really needs a Heritage Committee of carefully chosen folk to advise the PLC board on how future developments can best be achieved without devaluing any part of the railway.

On one railway a little further north some folk were alienated & withdrew all support because two signal boxes were erected with little reference to "what the Great Western" would have done in the circumstances. This has not yet been put right to that railways cost in support.

Further north still on the SVR the Bridgnorth development, now nicely on track with a very presentable scheme, started off on the wrong tack, wasted considerable funds with consultants and alienated many before the scheme was radically changed. It was the input of a proper Heritage Committee of suitably qualified, experienced & knowledgable folk who saved the situation.

 

Having a wife from West Yorkshire I find two types of folk originate from that part of the world. One type has too much to say, the other.... well.....

 

How about a little less forthrightness (i.e. gratuitous rudeness) on your part also?
PH

 

Paul, on the ferry back to the Isle of Man, just be careful that extra portion or bread pudding dont upset the balance of the vessel too much ha ha
getting back to the real subject, that of the design and build of the building, it just goes to show how important it is to keep a eye on everything up to the point where the design goes in for planning acceptance, as once agreed, you can do very little to change a design if local planning have signed it off .

 

Unfortunately the rest of the country see Yorkshire bluntness as rudeness. I suppose it must be us who are out of step.

 

Not the only one. There's an old Yorkshire saying:
" See all, 'ear all, say nowt.
Eat all, sup all, pay nowt.
An' if th'ivver does owt for nowt, allus do it for thissen.

Translated, for those not from the chosen place: See everything, hear everything, say nothing. Eat everything, drink everything, pay nothing. And if you ever do something for nothing, always do it for yourself.

 

A heritage committee can only be a good thing for future building & infrastructure works, provided the people on the committee do have an interest in the history of railways. As i'm sure they will. And to try not let your 'consultants' get anywhere near the look of a project!

 

It needs a bit more than that really.
Ideally a group of people who have both relevant professional training in subjects such as architecture as well as a real interest in railway history and a sound appreciation of how the relevant old companies (B&ER then GWR) used to do things. Clearly running a seasonal 200,000 passengers per year service in 2017 & beyond places different strains on the railways infrastructure than perhaps it was designed for but the test should be "what would the GWR have done" in the circumstances being considered. Perhaps toilets and catering are areas where the approach needs to be a bit more up to date.

 

Am I alone in not really caring that the roof is at 36.2 degrees when the original was at 44.17 degrees ? We don't send small boys up chimneys, engines are thankfully fitted with drop grates, the signals have LEDs instead of oil lamps and there is disinfectant in the loos. Oh, and there's no lead in the paint either. Time to move on.

Now then, who else is working with the cutting back gang this weekend ?

 

Getting heritage right MATTERS. Where do you stop?

'No, it's not the right shade of green on the loco, but so what.'

'No, it's not GWR spear point fencing, but so what.'

'No, it's not the right style of lettering on the signs, but so what.'

'No, it's the wrong type of signal, but so what.'

'No, it doesn't look much like a GWR signal box, but so what' (see below).

A very slippery slope, IMHO. Especially when it is relatively easy to get things right.

If we set out to recreate a lost building and build it with the wrong roof line, roof construction and window sill design, it MATTERS.

Robin

 

Seeing as it's been mentioned a couple of times now in relation to this, I feel I ought to point out it wasn't a "so what" more that we weren't in a position to be spending money on luxuries such as lovely authentic signal boxes like we now are, see Broadway. Back then it was GWSR - who? And we needed to get to Cheltenham as soon as possible to start getting some return on the significant outlay the extension cost.

Now we're more well known and our accounts are a somewhat more healthy, see recent news items for record year etc. and as such, we can afford such niceties as snazzy signal boxes at Broadway. I'm not defending the structures themselves (although I have read they were based on a GWR design more than folk think) but the rationale behind it at the time.

 

Why did the GWRS not just have a ground frame at 'Racecourse' until resources allowed a box in recognisable GWR style to be built? Unless there are significant facilities at a terminus a GF will usually do operationally - witness Smallbrook on the IOW.

Just curious

Robin