A little bit of people power

On Wednesday December 10, 2008, on a cold concrete platform, we held our little protest against the machinery of Northern Rail and the GMPTE which is choosing to cut our direct services to the main Manchester stations by 90%. Here's our picture. Check it out. A cross section of normal people going to work. This week, the 0811 service has been delayed by about an hour twice, and 30 minutes once. This is not a long haul flight delayed by an hour. This is a 35 minute train ride, delayed by twice its own duration.

I hope that the above photo will appear in the Bolton News (they seem to have dropped the 'Evening' bit) very soon.

End of an era

So, that's it. As of Monday, Blackrod's 19 trains a day direct to Piccadilly become two. Two crumbs from the mighty table of Northern Rail and the subservient GMPTE. Presumably these two trains are timetabled in some sort of meaningful way to allow commuters some sort of choice? Err, no. One train is at 0721 and the next 0740. We then wait 23 hours and 41 minutes until the next service to the main Manchester stations. I'm not making this up.

So, the final day of services. Surely the excellent Northern Rail machine would have arranged an unending stream of razzmatazz to celebrate? A jazz band, perhaps. The staff in fancy dress. Garlands for all the happy commuters? Well, a more fitting tribute. The train was 50 minutes late and we had the pleasure of sitting on those terrible carriages with the bus doors. What are they? 30 years old.

The backdrop to this is that the City Council lost its Congestion Charge plebiscite by a landslide. Personally, I voted 'Yes'. The offer of £3 billion to restructure public transport in our region seemed like a gift we should not refuse; an opportunity of a lifetime. But that debate is for another time. The GMPTE is already sanctioning severe cuts to local services and forcing people onto the roads. Pathetic.

One week to go...an update

Thanks to everyone who left their comments after the entry below; please continue to leave messages about how the timetable changes will affect you. I bundled all the comments into a PDF file and sent them to the GMPTE (no reply) and to our MP Ruth Kelly (a 'we are keeping an eye on this' reply). More news as it develops.