Graham Ellis - my blog
Direction changes - future considerations and local activities
The Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour train conveys very few passengers all the way from Cardiff to Portsmouth - but it's the same train all the way, with lots of people getting off and on along the way - at both Bristol Temple Meads an Southampton Central you'll see more people getting off and on than staying on the train; there's something of a change of direction at both of those major stops - an actual reversal in Bristol and a sharp 90 degree corner just after Southampton. These redirections are of the same train within the same operational envelope, but the passengers are significantly changed. Many join from other services, and will connect onward to other services too.As I have come to the end of my term as a Town Councillor, I am still the same person, I still have the same metrics, and many of the same friends, contacts and colleagues - but there are significant changes too.
The following are totally gone: Town Councillor, Volunteer operator at Melksham Splash Pad, Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group, Wiltshire Swindon and Oxfordshire Canal Partnership, Explore Wiltshire app liaison.
The following are much reduced: Friends of Melksham Assembly Hall, Melksham South Ward Facebook Group, Melksham Environment Group, Wilts and Berks Canal Trust, Ukraine Support Group, and general volunteer helping anything Melksham Town Council
The following continue: West Wiltshire Rail User Group, Great Western Coffee Shop.
The following are to be invigorated: Melksham Transport User Group, Option 24/7, TravelWatch SouthWest, TransWilts (if welcomed back), and personal time
Melksham - first mobility aid experience on our streets
I don't know where to post this - how to make comment. I am jumping into a new arena for me where I'm sure 000s of others are already involved. Here are some observations/pictures from using an electric mobility aid from Melksham Railway Station to our home on Spa Road at the end of a public transport journey from far, far, far away.
Public Transport staff the continent over have been helpful in the extreme. Very impressive how Europe (including the UK) staff embrace the need to provide that bit of extra help to those who are more limited than most, and provide that assistance cheerfully. We see headlines from time to time about how things can go wrong, and when they do the stakes are high, but they are the exception.
The pictures are not unique - I can find you similar Pavements in Poland, Bumps in Berlin and Cobbles in Colmar that are challenges too - but Melksham seems to have an awful lot of these issues in just a single mile walk, even though it's a town with a far higher instance of mobility aids than we saw anywhere else.
Pictures:
Top Left - outside Poundstretcher. Broken and uneven paving with utility grids which are far from flush with the main pavement.
Top Right - on Spa Road at Oakwood. Standing water and lips (up and over ) between the carriageway and main pavement.
Bottom Left - outside Cooper Tires. Very rough and potholed surfaces and and a ridge of cobbles that is far from straightforward to cross. Also noted here and elsewhwere that there's a lot of grit / broken road surface material around and we wondered when just about any of the pavements were last cleaned.
Bottom Right - Old Bath Road, coming out of the underpass. Calculated to mislead - follow ahead here and you and up on a raised pavement with (only) steps down at the far end. And the nobbled tiles not only rise to the pavement (correct) but are also sloped at an angle generating a risk of overbalancing. Can't cross the road easily here either, as there is a rise onto the pavement - the way to get to the toen on the level is to take the mobility scooter down the main carriageway - it IS quiet here, so not a massive problem during the day.
and Not Pictured - multiple locations. Cars and vans parked / delivering and parked wholly or partly on the pavement leaving little - sometimes not enough - space to get through.
Published Sunday, 8th June 2025
Retired - an apology for not being as much around
I am retired from the Town Council. After four years of being physically around for every important meeting, I have taken a step back and am catching up on elements my own, family, and life passion. Yes, that means that you don't see me around as much. Meetings that I still might usefully (but less than critically) attend are no longer given absolute priority even if they are first in the diary.This does not stop me observing, making more limited and I hope helpful comment. I remain very much around online and happy to interact even from outside the UK as appropriate. Nor does it stop me - unless actually on the move - from attending meetings online.
An apology from me - if you feel it's due. To those of you who feel I should still fly back from [somewhere] to attend a meeting as a volunteer, and plan family and personal life and field trips around when I'm wanted/"expected" in Melksham. I’m sorry – that can’t be the way it is at the moment. I have said to many others “your own sanity and family come first” and that is my way too this summer.
P.S. – I do wish that Facebook offered me a “public EXCEPT friends” posting option. The frustration you may see in the above does not come from any of the many friends I have on Facebook ([here]), nor from any of the many members of our Coffee Shop public transport forum ([here]) - you are AOK.
P.P.S. “Being physically around to fully take part in meetings” wasn’t even a part of the requirement of becoming a councillor in 2021. At that time, full attendance online was perfectly acceptable and indeed encouraged because of covid issues. We returned to a tightened (physical) attendance requirement to fulfill their roles – for councillors, though not for members of the public nor staff. To be clear – these were country-wide changes and not a local decision.
Published Saturday, 7th June 2025
Melksham Town Council - personal comments on Monday meeting
I watched the Melksham Town Council recording (from 2nd June 2025) last night (here) , where the main event was to co-opt people onto the council to fill the spaces because not enough people put themselves up for election in the first place.Only two out of your twelve Town Councillors after 1st May were elected by voters - Phil Alford and Saffi Rabey. The other 10 are there, if you like, by default. That is not a criticism of them because these 10 people were willing to put their credentials to the public. However, so was Geoff Mitcham who got 189 votes in the North Ward - the only one contested. I am - astonished and sad for local democracy that none of the 12 councillors who made it voted for Geoff in their secret(ish) ballot. He got 189 public votes more than most of them! It's not really a secret vote of council if someone gets no votes at all , is it?
Perhaps Geoff and Sue Mortimer know too much about how the council works; we will never know what went on in the secret discussion that the councillors had in that side room. It certainly could look like Geoff and Sue were given a very public and perhaps planned slap in the face the other night for all their commitment to the town - "not wanted here".
I also noted in watching the meeting that several other meetings were being rescheduled at short notice. And that (as if it were needed) confirms my decision not to stand again. It messes the personal plans of the individuals who give their time to be councillors - as councillors (as opposed to staff or the public) are not allowed to perform their full roles at meetings remotely.
Two new councillors were co-opted on Monday - I didn't catch their names as the sound quality and my deafness make it difficult to pick things up at times. The new MTC web site has slipped back from a 1st May launch and is now scheduled for launch on 12th June. As I write (4th June 2025) the old website still shows me and a number of friends who have left as councillors, and the diary lacks future dates and agendas. I'm sure that the legal requirement to post notice of meetings on the board in a public place outside the Town Hall will be being met, but democracy feels a bit opaque.
Published Wednesday, 4th June 2025
Lessons from Tessin - how to run robust public transport?
Yesterday (20th May 2025) was one of those days so full of experiences that 8 hours away our "pension" in Warnamunde brought 80 hours of ideas to write up. Now that I am no longer a Town Councillor though, I ask myself if it's useful me having these thoughts and seeing these things or if they become merely personal experiences. Much of the Town Planning and development stuff *is* now just personal observation - but much of the travel and transport stuff relates to ongoing niche (but it's not niche - it's needed for all of us) getting around and there are so many good examples and some problems seen that help me appreciate that some things are worldwide or that we have some things right. Enough of the generallities.Tessin is a small town set inland from Rostock. The little local 2 carriage train runs there every hour, ans it was the one line out from Rostock I had not travelled on; Tessin was just a name.
The train was waiting on platform 11 at Rostock when I got there 20 minutes before it was due to leave (lesson - train arrives in good time and people can get happily seated) (lesson - if a train's in place to start its journey early, it can leave pretty well on time). Rostock Hbf is in parts a mess at present. Only 3 tracks in the large station throat are on place while a big bridge is being worked on, and the station canopies are half missing. People are working on the bridge - away from trains but with trains running (thought - we are very protective in the UK - perhaps even too much??).
A whole load of passengers joined just before the train left - other trains had arrived from further afield on other platforms (lesson - time and arrange trains to connect) and we passed through a maze of pointwork, past the signal box which looked like it's still in use (thought - local train control to aid local working if things are not 100% as planned). Train manager / conductor comes through to check tickets. (lesson - if tickets are routinely checked on train we do not need gates stations with all the expense of equipment and staff).
The tracks all filter out and we find ourselves on a single track in open countryside, 10 minutes of so to the first station. A single lowish platform (but the train has a low floor too and as doors open a shelf / blade is projected agains the edge of the platform to give level access (lesson - quick and easy loading of bicycles, wheelchairs, etc). A bus is waiting literally just across the platform (another benefit of "open" stations) and actually leaves even before our train does (lesson - have buses connect with trains and await their arrival) (lesson - a few extra seconds on the train schedule keeps it on time)
And so we carry on. The countryside is a mixture of man-made production - field of wheat and oilseed and of cows. Apart from the cows, the railway line is unfenced (lesson / thought - why do we fence our minor railways). And there are wooded / forest areas, solar farms and wind turbines. Love the or hate them, this is the modern countryside (question - why don't we have wind farms in Wiltshire?)
After a couple more stations, I feel us pull across to the right and we pull up at Sanitz (b Rostock) and passenger get off. A train coming the other way pulls up into the main platform. Passengers cross the track at the end of the platform on the level off our island platform (question - as smaller passing stations where all trains stop, why do we need subways, bridges, lifts).
On some crossings there are barriers ... lots of crossings in this flat land. Some have half barriers that operate as the train approaches, others have simple zig-zag fences to stop people accidentally running onto the tracks. But mostly the line in open. (thought - if you can walk along the pavement beside road traffic, why does the railway need the extra protection?)
After a minute or two at Sanitz, we carry on. There are colour light signals, but no picking up of a token as you'll see at places like Yeovil and Maiden Newton (lesson - tokenless block is modern and practical and works well) and after a couple more stations we pull into Tessin. Perhaps a dozen people get off - the busy train from Rostock has dropped off people as it's gone along so it's not all that busy at the outer extreme - rather it works as a whole. The driver cuts the engine while the train works for its return time (question - why are engines kept running so often at Westbury and other UK stations?)
The bus stop is across the platform. There's car parking, plenty of sheltered and used cycle space, and the old station building has been repurposed as a restaurant. Like Melksham, the station is a few minutes walk from the town and one of my fellow passengers asks me if I know my way / am lost. A mixture of lack of a common language and an my indication I am good with an international sign and he's on this way (lesson - even a small station can be friendly).
Oh help - that was a 35 minute journey and I have already written all this - observing how things are done here. The next 40 minutes of my walk around Tessin hasn't even been addressed yet.
Published Tuesday, 20th May 2025
Strikes me - no longer a councillor
It struck me ... that for the first time in my life, The Pope is a younger man than I am. I am not a Catholic - not even a Christian, but I can admire the many of their morals and some (but far from all) who proclaim to be Christian. It also struck me today how much has been done in Melksham and across the UK to celebrate the end of the second world war in Europe, and I thank and congratulate all the people who have helped bring these celebrations, and with it reminded us all of the horrors of the war that was ended in our part of the world. A thought for my children's grandfather who was a PoW in Japan; a GENTLEman in all senses - for him I think that war lasted a little longer.
And it struck me too how revleived I am to have turned the page as I have retired from Town Politics. I did take a look at the Agenda for next Monday's Town Council meeting but no desire to be there nor to be raising issues in the swirl that is clearly ongoing, both in public and no doubt behind the scenes. I wish those who carry on with that baton godspeed; I will be happy to answer and inform queries that come my way, but outside the areas I'll still be active in, I will not be pressing my views and questions onto them.
I have spent much of today sorting our Interrail Rules - not for myself, but in resolution of a query raised on a Facebook page "Interrailing for the Older Crowd" which had given rise to a sharp difference of opinion. All sorted by asking the people at Interrail and I note that my post to explain has 48 comments and 58 likes, so clearly it's somrthing of interest. On our local GWR rail passenger forum, 77 members have been logged in during the last day, therr have been 9 topics under discussuion since I woke, and four of my fellow moderators have also been around. The moderator team are now long term friends; in truth there is little moderation to do because we have an intrinsically friendly setup and members who are all a delight, even if at times we don't see things identically.
Pictures - from last Saturday, out with old friends and new ones bringing attention to issues that need to be addresses in our region with public transport.
Tomorrrow - out in the countryside. Next week - stating with 3 evenings of meetings / events and then on Thursday we start putting all that Interrail theory into practise. I will be around / online; for those areas I'm still much involved you probably won't notice that I'm away apart from exotic pictures shared of strange places, and tales of fascination, example, development and fun.
Published Thursday, 8th May 2025
Voting for the future - in Wiltshire
The Melksham Environment Group met last night (29th April 2025) and we discussed our local elections tomorrow, informed by the story of the last four years but to look forward to the next four - and to candidates who will be effective, trustworthy, consistent, active, representative and honest. The majority of us spoke with a view to qualities such as those, with only the odd one majoring on political party. Indeed, here in Melksham South I am - amazing for me - voting for my Conservative Candidate - that's Simon Crundell, who has by far the best match to my criteria as well as having credentials that align him with the environmental (including transport), openness and equality issues I have championed as a Town Councillor - not perfectly, but far closer in a package than any other candidate. I stress that after the election I will look to work in my specialist areas with whomever you elect to the best of my ability and the maximum of their willingness to do so.
Quoting (with permission) a follow up from Mike Saunders written after last night's meeting:
| Hi Team, Last night we acknowledged that local authorities and central government are not - to quote Shirley’s description - Exemplars ! Tomorrow when we vote at the local elections it is easy to dismiss that we are assembling parts of a decision making team who may not have the skills to make appropriate decisions ! Do we ever look at the way they operate their personal or professional life before we confer decision making to them ? So often people standing for election when asked why they are standing, quote something in the order of - “I want to make a difference and support society” - how ambiguous a statement is that, and how often do these people on whom we confer decision making base there vote on political leaning rather than the best interest of the community ? If public bodies were businesses what percentage would become bankrupt, can we as society afford to fund there decisions for very much longer ? Is local authority decision making often driven by personal gain like our lifestyle provides us with a toilet ? Mike. |
Mike's point about us assembling a team with skills is an important one. We don't vote based on making up a rounded team as would be done on a commercial board to make the whole thing well rounded - rather we choose individuals who are good orators, willing to promise results whether or not they are practical, and may not have experiences needed anywhere in the team.
Here in Melksham Town, and in Melksham Without, the fact that we have fewer candidates than seats actually offers an opportunity to the incoming people to choose the best people to fill the slots though co-option - to look for skilled people who will make up an excellent team overall, even if some of the additions lack the charisma that would have got them elected. At the same time whichever two of Saffi Rabey, Phil Alford and Geoff Mitcham get elected in the North Ward - the only place there's a parish election - will have an authority far and above that of any of the other parish councillors who will NOT be there by democratic vote, even though we live in a democracy.
Please - vote for your unitary choice tomorrow - for the right person for the team. Thank You.
Published Monday, 28th April 2025
Thank you - to the town from a retiring councillor
My final Melksham Town Council meeting (the Economic Development and Planning Committee) as a Town Councillor last night. I have - helped - achieve some things. I have been frustrated at some things (and by some people) and my heart has wept at a wastage of good people and the time and money associated with that turnover. There are now / remain some good people - different ones from before I joined - and I wish them well for the future and hope that some or someone on the team can ensure that these frustrations become a thing of the past.The "Class of '21" brought in some excellent councillors, and I thank them all for their comradeship through the four years. Five of them left the council during the term, and a further five of us are not standing for re-election. I will miss them - and add a note of appreciation to two in particular.
To Saffi Rabey, who I have not always seen eye to eye with, but has her heart in the right place, qualities I lack, and who's thanks last night were especially apprecitated. I would be voting for her as one of my Town Councillors on May 1st if I were in the North Ward
And to Simon Crundell who bravely received the mantle of mayor and ran with it through much of a difficult time. Simon is standing in the South Ward for Wiltshire Council on May 1st, and has my vote - that may surprise readers who see my tendency rather to the left of the Conservative Party, but it's very much for the person not the party; Simon is no "lobby fodder" and has a proven knowledge of and presence here in Melksham. Scroll down to my previous blog to read more of my reasoning for supporting Simon.
A huge thank you too to all the various staff who have left, who have arrived, and who have both arrived and left. In some cases (councillors too), departures have shattered dreams, lives and livelihoods. But everyone - yes everyone - who has arrived and who has left have some wonderful qualities and I wish you all well for the future. I have appreciated working with you.
Town / Parish councils are partners - with their communities and with wider local government both at the next level up (Wiltshire Council) and around us. In the case of Melksham Town, it is almost literally "around" as Melksham Town is almost completely surrounded, doughnut like, by Melksham Without Parish Council. We have a lot of common interests and co-operative projects and I have especially enjoyed working on those, and feel that the joint workings have been productive. So an especial thanks to the officers and councillors there.
Finally in my thanks - a big "Thank you" to the community - residents, volunteers, and others. It's an utter joy to have been working with you / serving you - and that comes even for those of you who have a moan at me about the council and are asking me to explain the scarsely-explainable. Hardly with exception, you are polite, listen to what I can say, and are testing me and helping me think and develop even if we do not always see eye to eye.
Personally, I am not going away ... I have put in thousands of hours to Melksham Town Council over 4 years. About half the time saved as I leave the council will be for a more relaxed life - the other half will be to help give me better time to learn and follow up on public transport projects. As I write this it's 08:15 on the morning after that meeting, and I'm seated in the buffet at Westbury Station. I have already met a regular rail commuter from Melksham to Bristol for an informal, unplanned, but welcome update ... and then our Transport Focus rep (the civil servant who's tasked with looking after passenger interests and systems with GWR) also for an unplanned but welcome update. Please keep in touch on bus and train interests and as friends and sharers of interests.
Published Wednesday, 23rd April 2025
Where my vote goes - Melksham South Ward
My postal vote has arrived and I'll be returning it in the next few days, voting for Simon Crundell to be my Wiltshire Councillor for the next four years. In the end, my decision was surprisingly easy. Let me tell you a few things you may not realise about Simon that helped me choose.Simon is one of two candidates I have heard from or seen on social media in the past three weeks, and he has been also available throughout the last four years. During those 4 years he has not been afraid to inherit difficult roles ("poison chalices"). So he comes with both local government experience to do an effective job, and a young keenness to do a fresh job. I don't always see eye to eye with Simon, though surprisingly often I do - he's very much his own man and aligns well on environmental issues, including but not limited to public transport. And I trust Simon and Melksham can; I know he will represent and consider my views as appropriate.
Over the past 4 years, I have been concerned at the same person being both one of my Town Councillors and my Unitary councillor, as I have seen that gives rise to conflicts of interest - look (in the South Ward) at issues where the Town and County have negotiated over both Melksham House and the Blue Pool. I would be delighted to have my Wiltshire Councillor being a different person to one of my Town Councillors - that would be good for both councils, and for the time the people have to give to the role. Simon is not standing for this or any parish council - he shares my concerns.
My decision is not a party one – far from it – but I do feel re-assured by a candidate who is on a consistent platform from one election to the next, as Simon has been. Simon's refreshing too - I learn from him.
We can learn from history - but we must look forward. To elect a candidate who has a record of supporting strategic planning across the whole Melksham area, developing and encouraging business development and environmental issues; we shouldn't have so many empty shop fronts (but neither should we encourage businesses that have little chance of success) and we should look to encouraging Melksham as a modern, connected city. Four out of our five candidates are known to me by their history and track record, and that knowledge helps me confirm that Simon is the best candidate to represent us for the next 4 years as we move forward.
I will - temper - my comment by saying that whilst Simon comes out top for me to the extent that I'm offering this public endorsement, we have other candidates too who put there heart into this, and I hope and look forward to working closely with whomever is elected as my Wiltshire Councillor for the common future good of Melksham and the county. I have personally stood down from the Town Council to allow me more time to specialise on travel and transport issues; it's 15 years since the train group became a partnership and passenger numbers have risen 25 fold in that time. Bus services have survived in Wiltshire unlike in other counties (we have some good staff at Unitary level), and are growing again – now full buses into Bath, increased frequency, etc, but we still have a lot of work to continue with. We need appropriate public transport use to grow in order to avoid gridlock as the population grows. Simon has been very much a protagonist, supporter and indeed user of public transport - and joined up train, bus, and cycling too.
Graham Ellis, 20th April 2025
- written as a retiring Town Councillor, and resident of Melksham for 25 years
- also a former business owner, and employer in the town
- member of the SCOB (Campus Operations Board) throughout its life
- past President of the Melksham Chamber of Commerce and Industry
- concentrating as I ease out many activities on making our public infrastructure and transport better for existing and new residents, the town’s economy and the environment.
Published Sunday, 20th April 2025
Melksham South Ward - who to vote for?
I have a decision to make - who to vote for as my next Wiltshire Councillor. I would say "on 1st May 2025" but with a postal vote, the decision really needs to be made next week. No choice given to the electorate for TOWN council - seats for everyone who volunteeredBefore I talk about my criteria for making my decision, I will stress - whoever is elected I will look to support in their working and activities for the good of the ward, where I was a Town Councillor for the past four years, and for the general good of the whole of the Melksham area and indeed Wiltshire.
We have five candidates in the South Ward - three representing political parties which have put up candidates in all 98 wards, one representing a party with 44 candidates, and one of 18 independents across the county. No less that three of our candidates are former mayors of Melksham, a further one has been very active in local politics over the years (and is brother of yet another former mayor) and the final candidate is new to me. For me, there is no blindingly obvious candidate to choose and I am listening, reading, learning all about the new candidate, and updates and manifestos from the others.
My criteria include:
* Is this person also going to be one of my Town Councillors?
* What does this person's track record tell me?
* Does this person live in or near the ward?
* Does this person listen?
* Is this person honest and complete?
* Is this person effective?
* Does this person know the ward and the town?
* Is this person informative, communicative and trustworthy?
* Does this person's vision align with mine?
* Is this person robust enough to stand up to bullying (and not a bully themself)
* Does this person support and cherish staff as a valuable team resource?
* Will this person have enough time and family support to do the job?
* Is this person looking at a national rather than Wiltshire Agenda?
* Is this person consistent in what they say, party/grouping, actions?
* Does this person see projects through?
* Is this person likely to have influence at WC?
Interesting list, isn't it? How much weight I give to each of these items and what my considered view/guess is to some of the woolier points will temper my choice.
Published Thursday, 17th April 2025