8 - Woburn Sands is the only one of these Marston Vale stations that will remain open in EWR proposals

5: Dilton Marsh - it receives more than one 'parliamentary' train per day

4. Acton.  There is no station called just 'Acton'.  All the others have a station with both the single word name and a two-word name the begins the same.  For example, there is both Catford and Catford Bridge, which is the example I'm familiar with.

[snip]

Man hit by seven Tubes died accidentally - inquest

Warning: This article contains details that some readers may find distressing

A man who stumbled and fell on to tracks at a London Underground station while drunk before being struck by seven Jubilee line trains died accidentally, an inquest has concluded.

Brian Mitchell, 72, was killed by a train terminating at Stratford in east London on 26 December 2023 at 14:50 GMT, East London Coroner's Court heard. The emergency brakes were not applied by any of the four incoming train operators (TOs).

CCTV showed Mr Mitchell trying to climb back on to the platform for about a minute at 14:45 before appearing to lie down on the tracks. He had 272mg of alcohol in his system, more than three times the legal driving limit.

Claire Mann, Transport for London (TfL)'s chief operating officer, said: "We will respond to the coroner's prevention of future deaths report and are taking action to prevent incidents like this from happening again."

Three of the four incoming trains which struck Mr Mitchell at platform 13 also departed the station. Following the first, fatal, strike, subsequent trains arrived at 14:56, 15:05 and 15:16. The operator of the third train misidentified the body as an inflatable doll, the jury concluded. The fourth TO did not apply the emergency brake due to being in shock. No signal was given to stop the trains, the jury found.

Addressing Mr Mitchell's family who attended virtually, Graeme Irvine, senior coroner for east London, said: "I want to offer my sincere condolences to the family. All deaths are tragic in their own way: Brian's death is particularly harrowing and the CCTV is something I'll think about for a long time. The images probably compound the grief felt by the family and for that I'm truly sorry."

Thanking the jury and coroner for "their thorough investigation", Mr Mitchell's family said they "found it almost unbelievable" that he was struck seven times.

Thomas Jervis, a partner from the law firm Leigh Day which represented the family, said: "People who use the TfL network assume the right processes are in place to ensure safety. The coroner has been clear – he has ongoing concerns that further lives could be at risk, and he will be issuing a prevention of future deaths report. While this legal case will not bring Brian back, his family sincerely hope that meaningful change will be introduced so that this cannot happen again."

Mr Mitchell, who was wearing dark clothing, had spent nearly an hour at the far end of the platform with his bag before falling forwards on to the track.

A post-mortem examination found multiple injuries caused by blunt-force trauma to the chest and head were primary cause of death. His face was stained with soot.

Jubilee line drivers are known as train operators (TOs) because the trains use automatic train operation, which automatically accelerates and applies the brakes for signals and stops, jurors heard.

The TOs "did not see, hear or feel anything unusual", the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) said. Because Mr Mitchell's body was underneath the rear incoming carriage, none of the three outgoing drivers would have seen him.

The inquest heard that the RAIB was told by each of the four arriving TOs that they had not been preparing to leave their cabins as they arrived at Stratford.

Mr Mitchell, who had spent Christmas Day visiting a friend in Bushy, took two buses to Stanmore station where he boarded the Jubilee line, using his Freedom Pass to travel to the other end of the line before sitting on a bench at Stratford station. Mr Mitchell was living in Hanwell, west London, at the time of his death but was born in Edinburgh. He was known to be homeless in 2017 and 2019.

Ms Mann added: "Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mr Mitchell... We are committed to learning from this tragic incident and assisted the coroner during the inquest."

Also, not mentioned on JourneyCheck, Realtime Trains is showing the five car 802006 booked for tonight's 19:53 Paddington to Hereford sevice which will mean a second consecutive short-form in tomorrow's London bound peak.

King greets those who showed bravery during Huntingdon train knife attack


King Charles greets rail worker Samir Zitouni and his wife Eleni Sakkoulei

King Charles has met a group of rail staff and passengers who had shown bravery during the Huntingdon train knife attack last month.

The group included railway worker Samir Zitouni, who was hailed for his efforts to save passengers, train driver Andrew Johnson, and Stephen Crean, who was stabbed in the hand when he intervened.

Eleven people were treated in hospital for injuries after the attack on the London-bound train, that had been diverted to Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire.

Anthony Williams, 32, has been charged with 10 counts of attempted murder related to the train attack.


Driver Andrew Johnson has been praised for his quick thinking in diverting the train

There was much praise for the response of passengers and train crews during the incident on the service between Doncaster and London King's Cross on a Saturday evening.

In Parliament, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood paid tribute to the "breathtaking bravery" of those who had helped, including the "heroic acts of the passengers and train crew who intercepted the attacker". MPs had called for the highest civilian medal, the George Cross, to be awarded to those who had shown great bravery.

King Charles gave his own recognition with an audience at the Palace, where he posed for photographs with the visitors. They included Andrew Johnson, the train driver who was praised by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander for diverting the train from the fast to the slow track after the alarm was raised.

A short hearing in the case against Mr Williams was adjourned at Cambridge Crown Court earlier this month and proceedings are due to resume on 28 January 2026.

On in-train door open buttons, I will admit (not sure what the stock was) to opening the train loo door on one occasion rather than the door to get off ...

Plan for flights connecting Wick with Aberdeen and Edinburgh

People in the north Highlands could be able to fly to Edinburgh next year under a proposed expansion of the subsidised air service at Wick John O' Groats Airport.

Eastern Airways entered administration in November, grounding regular flights between Wick and Aberdeen.

Highland Council hopes to find a new airline to run the public service obligation (PSO) route, which is supported by the local authority and Scottish government. A spokesperson said the initial two-year contract would be for operating services from Wick to both Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Highland Council leader Raymond Bremner said the publication of an invitation to companies to bid for the contract represented a "major step" forward in efforts to secure the future of Wick's air services.

He added: "I have long made the case that not just continuation, but expansion of these services is needed to best serve people living and working in the north Highlands. I am also keenly aware of the local demand for restored air connectivity to Edinburgh."

Transport Scotland said it was considering the business case from Highland Council on a future Wick to Aberdeen/Edinburgh route and would confirm next steps in due course.

Replacing collapsed bridge 'nigh on impossible' cost for council

Replacing a historic former railway bridge across the River Spey would be "nigh on impossible" due to the cost, a councillor has said

The 350ft (107m) Spey Viaduct - an iron girder structure near Garmouth - partially collapsed at the weekend.

Moray Council said initial inspections suggested scour - fast-moving water eroding foundations - appeared to be the cause.

Councillor Marc Macrae said the cost of a replacement for the 1886 bridge would be beyond the council's means.

Moray Council said that at the time of the last inspection report by a specialist contractor, in 2023, there was no evidence of scour.

The Speyside Way - a long-distance trail which traces the River Spey from the Moray Firth to the Cairngorms National Park - passes one end of the bridge.

It is also part of the National Cycle Network.

Councillor Macrae represents the local Fochabers and Lhanbryde ward and is also chairman of Moray Council's economic development and infrastructure services committee.

He told BBC Scotland News he had felt a "state of shock" at what had happened, as the structure had been part of daily life for so long.

After the railway line closed in the 1960s the bridge remained popular with walkers, cyclists and tourists.

"I think the important thing at the minute is to assess the damage that has been done, we need a plan for how we remove the two deck sections that are now in the river," he said.

"And then look to investigate the rest of the structure of the bridge.

"I wouldn't even like to guesstimate a figure to repair the bridge, let alone replace the bridge if necessary."

He said it would be challenging to find the funding to replace the bridge, when competing with other services for money.

"In the current financial climate, it's going to be nigh on impossible," he said.

"I would hope national government if anything would step in here because it's a project way beyond the means of the local authority and the constrained budgets we have at this time."

Mr Macrae said the bridge had been relied on for well over a century, so it was important to find some kind of solution.

"It might not be the iconic bridge because of the cost. But I think the fact these two communities have been linked together for such a long period of time, people will look to see a solution put in place," he said.

"I am very sad that this has happened."

Roddy Robertson, the chairman of Garmouth and Kingston Community Association, said concerns had been raised for more than a decade.

"One of our fears was it would get to this position that we are in today, that the bridge would become unsafe, it would be too expensive to fix, and we would lose that bridge," he said.

"So it's extremely frustrating to see the bridge lost when it possibly could have been saved. Who knows, we won't know that, that's hindsight now I suppose.

"The community is absolutely devastated, yesterday (Sunday) was a bit of grief almost if you like, I know it's a structure, today is now asking questions about why did it happen and where do we go from here."

He said although it was not a road bridge, it brought people to the local communities.

"It's now a nine-mile trek round to get to the same place," he said.

"It's an ideal place to walk.

"Part of me always thinks every cloud has a silver lining, we will see what we can build from this, whether it's a replacement, hopefully something good will come from this."Moray Council has maintained the bridge since 1968 when the railway line was closed.

The local authority said in a statement on Monday evening: "Engineers have now assessed the Garmouth Viaduct and on initial inspection can confirm the collapse appears to be due to scour.

"It appears that over the last year the river flow path has changed, which may have contributed to a change of impact on the piers.

"We're in the process of instructing a specialist engineer to undertake a more detailed inspection and assessment and hope that this can be progressed before Christmas or early in the new year."

Options will be presented to councillors "as soon as practicably possible".

The statement added: "We're well aware of the strength of feeling in the local community, and further afield, for this bridge and how well used it is by walkers and cyclists."

The bridge will remain closed until further notice.

explaining how to open train doors, given the number of times I've seen people struggle.

Train crashed into buffer due to driver microsleep



A train crashed into a buffer at London Bridge railway station due to a driver's microsleep caused by fatigue, the rail safety regulator has said.

At 15:45 GMT on 13 December 2024, the Southern service struck the buffer on platform 12 despite the emergency brake having been applied, a Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) report found. Nobody was injured.

The driver had less than their normal amount of sleep the night before and the rota "was constructed in a way that increased the risk of fatigue", the report says. The driver had worked many of their rostered rest days before the accident.

Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) says it now uses "robust scientific modelling to plan staff shifts".

The report also found that none of the engineered protection systems fitted to the train intervened to prevent the collision because the train was travelling too slowly for them to be deployed.

One underlying factor was was that GTR's fatigue risk management "was not sufficiently effective and that it had not adopted some elements of industry good practice", inspectors found.

A second underlying factor concluded "there are no safety systems currently fitted to mainline trains which can detect and mitigate short losses in driver alertness".

The Rail Safety and Standards Board has been urged "to provide guidance when seeking external advice about medical conditions and working hours that may increase the risk of fatigue in safety-critical staff".

The RAIB has recommended GTR improves its fatigue risk management and follow best industry practice.

Samantha Facey, GTR's safety, health and security director, said efforts were being made to meet the recommendations. She said: "Safety is always our number-one priority and we're determined to learn from every incident to improve our safety standard for our people and our customers.

"We're committed to making sure our staff are fit and alert when they're at work – in August we updated and improved our fatigue risk management standard to help us manage fatigue more effectively, which includes reports from staff related to tiredness. We've also set up stronger working groups with staff representatives and we're now using robust scientific modelling to plan staff shifts so we can spot and prevent fatigue before it becomes a risk."

Wednesday December 17

And bad news for tomorrow morning:

I want that bus's numberplate.

My initials and my day of birth.