The East Anglian branch of Railfuture, which campaigns for better passenger and freight rail services, is quite active by
anyone's standards, as is demonstrated below.
The 40th Anniversary Celebratory Leaflet gives some examples
of our past successes and some of the key East Anglia branch campaigns for the future.
The branch holds four branch Meetings every year, in different venues around the region, all located near to railway stations.
For details, see Branch Meetings.
Two or three times a year the branch has a stall at public events to promote the pro-rail message, and to recruit new members.
There are four issues a year of "Rail East" (see Back Issues), the branch newsletter, which is sent
to all members in the branch area and also opinion formers, particularly in Local Government. Typically the newsletters are
published 2-4 weeks before each meeting.
The branch issues Press Releases to make the public, media and rail
industry aware of Railfuture's position when news stories occur.
Rail News Snippets, as shown on this web-site, are produced once each month.
The officers (e.g. secretary, vice-chairman), others committee members and normal members give up
their time to help promote rail travel. Time is spent on many activities including the following:
Promote the smaller stations to local people to ensure the station survies and, hopefully, thrives;
Conduct passenger counts at the smaller stations to encourage train operators to provide better services - see below;
Attending Route Utilisaton Strategy meetings organised by Network Rail;
Attending presentations by train operating companies, such as the franchise presentations by National
Express Group, First Group, GB Railways PLC etc.;
Attending shareholders meetings, e.g. GB Railways AGM (prior to its acqisition by First Group) and
Railtrack AGM (prior to its replacement by Network Rail);
Joined TOC promotion train trips e.g. Crosslink press train, Cambridge-Norwich press train;
Been guests of TOCs at promotional events, e.g. First Great Eastern's launch of new trains in Wildenrath, Germany;
Organised and taken part in sponsored cycle rides to raise funds for rail projects (such as the cycle
shelter at Watlington station);
The branch also contributes to Railfuture national events, and organised the 2004 National AGM in Peterborough. It
will also be organising the 2006 National Rail Users' Conference in November 2006.
Representatives from the branch have also had private meetings with a variety of organisations:
East Anglia Regional Assembly (EERA) in 2006;
Owners ot Snetterton Race Track, Norfolk, to discuss their proposal for a new station;
Confederation of British Industry (CBI) in 2003 at their East Anglia offices in Newmarket;
Gave a presentation to CHUMMS multi-modal study in 2000.
The branch has also promoted itself, and attepted to get new members, at:
ACoRP's Community Rail Weekend in September 2005 at Norwich and Yarmouth stations;
Impington Village College's open evening in 2002;
Histon Feast in 2002.
Station counts performed by the branch (for the entire day, usually on a Thursday) are as follows:
- Attleborough on Ely-Norwich line (2009)
- Downham Market on Ely-King's Lynn line (2009)
- Dullingham on Cambridge-Bury St Edmunds line (2010)
- Halesworth on Ipswich-Lowestoft line (2012)
- Meldreth on Cambridge-Royston line
- Newmarket on Cambridge-Bury St Edmunds line (2009, 2011)
- Whittlesey on Ely-Peterborough line
Railfuture has also assisted Norfolk County Council and NXEA in a station usage survey at North Walsham
on the Norwich-Cromer line.
The branch is very eager for members to help out, and there are vacancies to join the committee. Contact the chairman,
Peter Wakefield, or the secretary, Nick Dibben. See Branch Contacts.
|
