Project Wareham

Like you I tend to agree we have a lower threshold using our own cars, but unless you are stuck on a motorway there is usually some alternative route, even if it is a lot further in the terms of mileage.
Last evening for example if I had been at Lymington Pier or Brockenhurst the options are limited to none. Maybe by that time even the toilets (if there are any) would be locked so basic amenities may not be even available, let alone food and drink. At least by road you can find a bush to have a pee behind if you are desperate, difficult on a station platform although I have more than once seen people doing that off the platform edge.

 

Not necessarily the best idea in 3rd rail territory.

 

I would contend that in the South of East of England if the motorway is "gunged up" you are probably better off staying on the motorway (say 9 times out of 10) because all the surrounding roads rapidly become gunged up by traffic trying to find an alternative route and that gunging up (on the parallel a roads) can be far worse. Also the Highways Agency prioritise resolving motorway issues before problems on any other road type.

 

If what I overheard was correct, the cost of the increased premium to Swanage Railway for required main line Public Liability Insurance [£150 million ?] was more or less the same as the cost of the present operation. So it would seem using volunteers was of no financial benefit.
Whether that will remain the same if Wareham operations were to be considered for 2024 I have no idea.

 

I suspect we can all speculate as much as we like but hopefully those with the full financial facts will make a thorough analysis, look at how the economy is doing, make an good thorough set of conclusions and proceed that way. It maybe that the whole thing needs to go on hold and wait for better days to come, at least they,ve tried and times do change.

 

From SR's social media a repost of a short video by Francis Bourgeois and his girlfriend travelling on the DMU, who (according to his wiki entry) has "over 2.9 million TikTok followers and 1.8 million Instagram followers". Partly uses a fisheye lens which looks strange.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CuCrt9_NV5V/
Shared to many young people might give the Wareham service a bit of a boost?

 

Crikey it would only take .005% to turn up for the same service and the DMU would be busted. Not to mention the car parking at Wareham station.

 

The idea of Project Wareham surely is to use mainline to Wareham, then the heritage DMU to Corfe or Swanage! (Although in the video it does not show how they got to Wareham).

 

Crikey indeed and thinking it through a bit: ten times the the postulated figure would still be only one in fifty thousand. If those activist enough to go to the trouble of liking the journey it actually acted on it and came in person..... One hesitates to think. Jammed platforms out to the far side of Bournemouth? Tickets machines out of anything to print a ticket on so families galore with E Tickets, ticket inspection rising quite well to the challenge but not where the mobile signal could not cope?

Actually though particularly difficult at the the moment it is perfectly possible to find stock cleared for the main line and run it through to Swanage but having left the main line you are up against the inherent limitations of single line and platform length in particular.
Splitting long trains might be a palliative but you would need to be able to do it readily and reliably - and on the way out as well as in.

 

Absolutely but that is the part of Project Wareham that needs more work. The fare levels (of the through fares), the connections, the marketing of the opportunity that the service affords all need far more work complicated by the fact that it is a very minor issue for SWR but very important to SRC.

 

Good job most passengers are inbound rather than locals.
In the last 5 days that services operated the connection to the last train (due 16:48) has been missed 3 times and once it even missed the connection off the 16:27 as well.
This popped up in my email today, saying "hi" may the the last thing on my list.

Meet SWR executives

If you're around at Basingstoke station between 4pm-6:30pm on 18 July, swing by and say hi!

Voice your thoughts to senior management and SWR executives and find out what improvements SWR and Network Rail are making to the network, stations and trains.

 

"Swing by" FFS.
Next, they'll be thanking people for "reaching out".

 

Walking back from the Doctors this morning having had NHS old peoples health check (where I was told I drink too much alcohol a week, quelle suprise) I notice the Bubble Car was on the Wareham end of the set. An issue with a drive car or planned maintenance?

 

Another month has gone by and, having just checked, disappointingly I still can not book a ticket from Bournemouth to Swanage via Wareham using the SWR website.

https://www.southwesternrailway.com/destinations-and-offers/heritage-railways/swanage-railway

South Western Railway expects to be able to sell through tickets from its stations and online from the end of April – please note however that these will not be available from ticket vending machines.

I have not seen any news items about the performance of the Wareham service.

 

You can buy tickets for Swanage from the machine on the platform at Wareham. That's something.

 

Thats good to know (but contrary to what they say on the webpage).

 

SWR staff on the platform showed me “Swanage” coming up as a destination. Whether it will price it and give you a ticket, who knows.

 

And yet more competition from the buses. Suddenly it is awash with them down here.
A new X50 open top route (which is confusing as the X50 was the new route designation when the ferry was out last winter, so that may cause issues for a few early on).
Page 35 on the timetable link.
https://www.firstbus.co.uk/sites/default/files/public/node_images/wessex guide may23 WEB_0.pdf

 

Isn't First Wessex, Dorset & Somerset buses the same owners (70%) as SWR

 

Yes they are the owners,this X50 bus runs at the moment but it starts and finishes at Wool,but from the 23rd July will start and finish at Swanage.