Citizens' Rail

Tag: community engagementDE

  • Friends of Dawlish Station thanked by Secretary of State for Transport

    Friends of Dawlish Station thanked by Secretary of State for Transport

    The Friends of Dawlish Station have been personally thanked for their efforts in rejuvenating Dawlish station by the UK’s Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin MP.

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    The Secretary of State visited the station with First Great Western, Network Rail and local MP Anne Marie Morris to discuss the future safeguarding of the line and to meet the Friends group and see the fruits of their hard work.

    Supported by the EU Citizens’ Rail project, the previously dormant group was revitalised after winter’s devastating storm damage to the line, and gave the station a green makeover in time for its high-profile re-opening in April 2014. The group is now self-sustaining and undertakes regular watering of the plants that now brighten the station. This creates a welcoming first impression for visitors to the town.

    The success of the group has been followed by the creation of a new Friends Of Teignmouth Station group at the next station along the line.

    [icon size=”14px” color=”#D42053″ background=”#ffffff” radius=”0px” type=”icon-chevron-sign-right” spacing=”0px” /] Read about how the outstanding teamwork to restore Dawlish station has been shortlisted for a national award.

  • Citizens’ Rail projects shortlisted for national awards

    Citizens’ Rail projects shortlisted for national awards

    Three projects that have benefited from Citizens’ Rail involvement have been shortlisted for UK Community Rail awards.

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    The awards are run by The Association of Community Rail Partnerships, a federation of over 50 community rail partnerships and rail promotion groups in the UK. The winners will be announced at a national award ceremony in Scarborough on 2nd October 2014. The shortlisted Citizens’ Rail related projects are:


    The Rebuilding of Dawlish Station
    OUTSTANDING TEAMWORK CATEGORY
    First Great Western, Network Rail, Dawlish Town Council, Friends of Dawlish Station, Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership & other partners

    The dramatic events at Dawlish in February 2014 with the breach of the sea wall and closure of the railway led for the first time ever to the issue of Code Black for operational disruption by Network Rail. The reopening of the railway and rebuilding of Dawlish Station just two months later on 4th April was testament to the amazing teamwork of Network Rail, First Great Western, Dawlish Town Council, the Dawlish and Teignmouth Community Interest Company, the Friends of Dawlish Station, local businesses and the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership.

    [icon size=”14px” color=”#D42053″ background=”#ffffff” radius=”0px” type=”icon-chevron-sign-right” spacing=”0px” /] Read about Citizens’ Rail’s involvement.


    TheRivieraLine.com
    INNOVATION IN COMMUNITY RAIL CATEGORY
    Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership

    April 2014. Dawlish is re-opening. Optimism is in the air. But how to harness the buzz and attract local people to try the train? Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership’s answer was a radical “one-stop-shop” website for the Exeter-Paignton line. TheRivieraLine.com is believed to be community rail’s first “responsive” website – resizing to suit PCs, tablets and smartphones. Its content is tailor-made to help non-users to overcome barriers to travel. Its people-focused photography brings a fresh, modern look to the sector. First Great Western describe it as “a massive step forward”, and statistics show users love it – staying longer and exploring more.

    [icon size=”14px” color=”#D42053″ background=”#ffffff” radius=”0px” type=”icon-chevron-sign-right” spacing=”0px” /] Visit the website.


    Transformation of Torquay Station Garden
    Robert Owen Communities Aspects & First Great Western
    BEST STATION GARDEN CATEGORY

    Torquay station gardens have been transformed by young people with learning difficulties from local organisations working in partnership with First Great Western. Working twice a week in all weathers, the station platforms have been transformed with planting on an English Riviera theme including reclamation of a large rockery and plans for the future to include a restored boat. The project has not only improved the look and feel of Torquay station but has allowed the young people to gain confidence, social interaction and nationally recognised qualifications to help them into employment.

    [icon size=”14px” color=”#D42053″ background=”#ffffff” radius=”0px” type=”icon-chevron-sign-right” spacing=”0px” /] Read about Citizens’ Rail’s involvement.



  • Minibeast Trail on The Riviera Line

    Minibeast Trail on The Riviera Line

    As part of Citizens’ Rail, a new “Minibeast Trail” has been launched on The Riviera Line to encourage young families to try the train.

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    Children from Gatehouse Primary School in Dawlish and Sure Start Dads’ Club Stay and Play in Teignmouth have made the “minibeasts” – including butterflies, dragonflies, bees, ladybirds and snails – from recycled plastic and put them on planters at Teignmouth, Dawlish, Newton Abbot, Torquay and Paignton stations.

    A special “Minibeast Trail” leaflet has been produced and children are being encouraged to visit each station, find that station’s “Minibeast” and give them a name. Once all five have been found and named, a prize of the Ladybird “Minibeasts First Fabulous Facts” book can be claimed by sending the completed leaflet to the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership.

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    Leaflets are available from local staffed stations and can be downloaded from therivieraline.com/minibeasts.

    The “Minibeast Trail” project was inspired by Catherine Pollitt from Kenn who won the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership’s “Flower Power” competition to suggest how local stations could be brightened this summer. Catherine suggested the “Minibeast” theme and Dawlish artist Melissa Muldoon worked with the children’s groups to design, make and decorate the “Minibeasts” out of recycled plastic produced by Dawlish Community College.

    It is part of the EU Citizens’ Rail project led by the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership which is working to develop the Riviera Line in a variety of ways, including by getting more people involved at the line’s stations.

    “The children had a fantastic time and thoroughly enjoyed taking part,” commented Mrs Angela Jeffery, Head Teacher at Gatehouse Primary. “I am really looking forward to seeing their displayed work at each station.”

    First Great Western Station Manager for South Devon, Laura Greening said “This scheme is a great way to encourage both local children and those visiting the area to use our railway safely and confidently. The artworks will brighten our station environment and this is a great way for the communities we are dedicated to supporting to become involved in their railway.”

    Local partners in Citizens’ Rail – which is 50% funded by the EU’s Interreg IVB programme – include Devon County Council, Torbay Council, First Great Western, Plymouth University and the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership.

    More information about the “Minibeast Trail” and the Citizens’ Rail project, including how to get involved, contact Riviera Line Project Officer Celia Minoughan at the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership on 01752 584777 or at celia@citizensrail.org or visit our Devon page.








    [icon size=”14px” color=”#D42053″ background=”#ffffff” radius=”0px” type=”icon-chevron-sign-right” spacing=”0px” /] Find out more and download your leaflet at therivieraline.com/minibeasts.

  • Burnley school children welcome European partners in style

    Burnley school children welcome European partners in style

    Children from Padiham Green Primary School gave Citizens’ Rail partners a fantastic welcome to Lancashire for the project’s latest partner meeting.

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    At Burnley Manchester Road‘s new station building (to be opened later this year), the pupils presented an educational play about the local railway (complete with historical hats and moustaches!), followed by presentations about each of Citizens’ Rail’s partner regions. The children also created a wide range of railway-related artwork, adorning the station’s community room.

    The partners were hugely impressed and touched by the effort and imagination that the children had clearly invested in learning about the culture, economy, food and history of each local area. The children in turn were excited to meet representatives from each of the countries they had been studying – providing a chance to find out more, and to try out their language skills.

    Uwe Müller from Stadt Aachen said: “The children’s work and enthusiasm was really outstanding! I was very impressed by what they had learned and presented about Aachen. I hope that one day we might be able to arrange for the children to visit our cities in person.”

    Erwan Terrillon from Pays de la Loire said: “I was extremely impressed by the quality of work that the children produced, and the way they explained the history of their railway line and the geography of the different Citizens’ Rail partners. I also very much enjoyed their words in French!”

    Our warm thanks go to the staff and pupils of Padiham Green Primary School who made it such a terrific occasion and to Community Rail Lancashire for facilitating the project – made possible thanks to their years of engagement and relationship-building with local schools.

    Enjoy some photos from the day below…


    The children present what they have learned about Aachen:



    The children had great costumes to bring to life the story of their local railway:



    Poster about Nantes – see a larger version:



    Poster about Heerlen – see a larger version:



    Poster about Burnley – see a larger version:



    A chance to meet Uwe from Stadt Aachen:



    Saying “bonjour” to Erwan from Pays de la Loire:



    Trying to tempt Andreas from Aachener Verkehrsverbund with some local delicacies:



    Carrying on the discussion in the station’s community room:



    Eye-catching artwork by the pupils:



    Dominic from Torbay Council and Erwan from Pays de la Loire wave off their new friends:



    All in all a great day – well done Class 4!



  • European breakfast on the beach train

    European breakfast on the beach train

    Passengers were treated to European breakfast snacks on the Citizens’ Rail “beach train” this weekend. The breakfast was held to celebrate the role of the EU Interreg IVB programme in making the service possible.

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    The award-winning beach train provides weekend services on the La Roche Bressuire line, offering great value days out to the coast in Pays de la Loire. The project, backed by a fantastic marketing campaign, has helped to attract thousands of new passengers to what was previously a struggling line.

    The European breakfast giveaway was inspired by a similar exercise to celebrate the launch of extra services on The Riviera Line in Devon. Passengers between Paignton and Newton Abbot enjoyed snacks representing Citizens’ Rail’s French, Dutch and German involvement. This included pains aux raisins, Dutch waffles and Printen from Aachen.

    The two breakfast events are an example of the way that partners in Citizens’ Rail are learning from each other and collaborating to develop local and regional railways.


  • Teignmouth Station gets green revamp thanks to local volunteers

    Teignmouth Station gets green revamp thanks to local volunteers

    Teignmouth Station is looking blooming lovely thanks to the efforts of the Friends of Teignmouth Station – all as part of Citizens’ Rail.

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    Volunteers from the new Friends of Teignmouth Station group joined the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership and First Great Western to brighten up the station platforms and entrance with new planters and hanging baskets. Red, white and pink geraniums and petunias now give the station a pretty, summery feel.

    Five members of the Friends of Teignmouth Station group volunteered as part of the EU Citizens’ Rail project led by the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership which aims to get more people involved at stations on the Riviera Line between Exeter and Torbay.

    Two of the volunteers came to help from local supermarket Waitrose, who are neighbours to the station. Charlotte Barnaby from Waitrose said: “Waitrose Teignmouth were delighted to be able to support the project at Teignmouth railway station. Two of our Partners, Alexis Reed and Sharon Bearham, volunteered to help through our Partner Volunteering scheme. The scheme runs alongside our Community Matters programme. It allows Partners to take time out of their day-to-day job roles to support local organisations and give back to the local community.”


    Sharon and Alexis from Waitrose


    First Great Western Station Manager Ian Mundy said: “The newly formed Friends of Teignmouth station is a great way of linking the local community into the local rail network. It’s wonderful to see people who are willing to give their time freely to improve the local environment.”

    The Friends of Teignmouth Station are keen to recruit more members. More information is available from Celia Minoughan, Citizens’ Rail Riviera Line Officer at the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership, on 01752 584777, at celia@citizensrail.org or by visiting Citizens’ Rail’s Devon page.

    Local partners in Citizens’ Rail – which is 50% funded by the EU’s Interreg IVB programme – include Devon County Council, Torbay Council, First Great Western, Plymouth University and the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership.

  • Travel survey underway across four countries

    Travel survey underway across four countries

    Local residents in each of Citizens’ Rail’s partner areas are being surveyed about their day-to-day travel to help inform future transport planning.

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    Thousands of flyers are being distributed in each partner language encouraging people to take the short survey, which can also be accessed at these links:

    Image Map

    UK (Devon) | UK (Lancashire) | Nederlands | Deutsch | Français

    The survey investigates the forms of transport that people use in their most frequent journeys, their awareness of rail services, factors that would encourage them to take the train more often, and their level of interest in getting involved in future improvements to stations and services.

    The exercise forms part of an academic evaluation of the Citizens’ Rail project, led by RWTH Aachen University and UCLAN.







  • Call for volunteers to help Teignmouth station bloom

    Call for volunteers to help Teignmouth station bloom

    Volunteers are being sought for a new gardening group to brighten Teignmouth’s railway station as part of the rejuvenation of the Riviera Line as part of Citizens’ Rail.

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    The Friends of Teignmouth Station will help to plan the greenery on the platforms and get involved in planting and watering. The station has already benefited from planters cared for by green-fingered Caroline, a member of the First Great Western customer services team at the station. The new group will expand on this work.

    The formation of the Friends is being supported by the EU Citizens’ Rail project, led by the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership, to get more people involved with their railway. Along the Riviera Line between Exeter and Paignton, the project has already helped to revive the previously dormant Friends of Dawlish Station. The Dawlish volunteers received 15 minutes of fame when their green station makeover with TV gardener Toby Buckland was featured in the national media as part of the re-opening of the line in April.

    Celia Minoughan, Riviera Line project officer at the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership (pictured above with First Great Western’s Ian Mundy), said: “The impact that the volunteers have had at Dawlish station shows what can be achieved. Whether you’re an experienced gardener or an enthusiastic beginner, it would be great to hear from you so we can make a real difference to passengers at Teignmouth.”

    To find out more or get involved, contact Celia on 01752 584777 or at celia@citizensrail.org.

    Local partners in Citizens’ Rail – which is 50% funded by the EU’s Interreg IVB programme – include Devon County Council, Torbay Council, First Great Western, Plymouth University and the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership.



  • First Great Western Community Rail Conference 2014

    First Great Western Community Rail Conference 2014

    Representatives from our lead partner, the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership, gave an update on our Riviera Line project at the First Great Western Community Rail Conference 2014 this week.

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    Other speakers were from the UK government’s Department for Transport, Devon County Council, First Great Western (the train operating company for our project area in Devon), and four fellow community rail organisations, introduced by Chris Austin: the Tarka Rail Association, TransWilts, Severnside and Heart of Wessex.

    John Burch from the Tarka Rail Association gave a lowdown on how to create a line strategy. Graham Ellis from TransWilts, England’s newest Community Rail Partnership (CRP), told the story of how they have smashed their growth targets within their first year – including anecdotes about how local people are now selling their cars because they no longer need them, and the benefits that improved services are bringing to local businesses and their staff.

    Heather Cullimore from Severnside CRP described their fantastic City to Seaside Rail Arts project, with the fruits of the project on display in a free photography exhibition until the end of 2014. First Great Western’s Nick Reid reported on behalf of Heart of Wessex CRP, telling of their huge army of volunteers who contributed 13,500 hours in 2013 alone.

    The conference was held at the excellent Seale Hayne.

  • Seaside station garden competition sparks the imagination

    Seaside station garden competition sparks the imagination

    We asked visitors to Toby Buckland’s Garden Festival for their top tips for a seaside railway station garden, and received dozens of imaginative and charming suggestions.

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    Citizens’ Rail and Travel Devon set out to discover what makes the perfect seaside railway station garden at our stand at Toby Buckland’s Garden Festival, held earlier this month at Powderham Castle.

    We were overwhelmed by the response, with more than 90 top tips put forward by visitors to the festival. They ranged from the spectacular to the practical, and everything in between.

    Two prizes were up for grabs, a First Great Western rose and a pair of train tickets to London (generously donated by First Great Western). The rose was awarded to Erika Gooding for her vision of an “edible seaside garden” featuring sea beet, Alexanders, fennel, wild edible flowers including pansies, marigolds and violets, and herbs including thyme, sage and rosemary.

    First prize went to Catherine Pollitt for her plan to capture children’s imagination by installing sculptures of small garden creatures among the plants for youngsters to spot and learn about. The models could include snails, ladybirds, worms and centipedes, and would be placed among the specific plants upon which each animal thrives.

    As part of the Citizens’ Rail project, the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership is now working with First Great Western and other partners to explore making both concepts a reality at local stations.

    Update:
    Catherine’s idea has now been put into practice in the form of the Riviera Line Minibeast Trail.