Dear MLAG Member,
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The Committee gives Notice that the Annual General Meeting of the MarshLink Action Group is called for:
Friday 23rd February 2024 from 6.45pm
in Rye Town Hall, Market Street, Rye, East Sussex
The Agenda of the Annual General Meeting is as follows:
- Welcome and introductions
- Apologies for absence
- Chairman’s report
- Treasurer’s report
- Nominations received for the Committee
- Election of the Committee
- Any other business and conclusion of formal AGM
Guest presentations (starting at approx. 7pm):
Following the formal Annual General Meeting there will be presentations and a Q&A session with Sally-Ann Hart, MP; GTR/ Southern – Phil Hutchinson (Head of Strategic Planning, GTR), James Harris (Service Development Manager, Southern & Gatwick Express) and Jane Cobb (Strategic Planning); and Network Rail – William Knighton (Senior Public Affairs Manager).
NOTES TO AGENDA
Only members of MLAG are entitled to attend and vote at the Annual General Meeting.
Item 4 – The Income and Expenditure Account for the calendar/ financial year 2023 and the Balance Sheet as at 31 December 2023 will be available at the meeting
Item 5 – Please advise the Chairman seven days in advance of the Annual General Meeting if you wish to stand for election to the Committee
Item 6 – With regard to the Committee, the Members who acted in 2022-23 are shown below;
– the members of the Committee retire at the AGM and seek re-election (other than Chrissy Harman-Brown who has resigned for personal reasons)
– David Harris was co-opted to the MLAG Committee on 17 January 2024 with special responsibilities for Three Oaks
– we are always interested to hear from frequent-passengers along the MarshLink line wishing to assist MLAG’s work so please contact us if you would like to join the Committee – email info@mlag.org.uk
Committee meetings are held at 6pm on the second Tuesday of every other month apart from July (i.e. January, March, May, September, November) and on other occasions, as required.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS during 2022-23
| Stuart Harland (Chairman) Richard Williams (Deputy Chairman) David Bookless (Treasurer/ Membership Secretary) David Carver Chrissy Harman-Brown (retired 14/1/24) John Spencer John Stedman (Consultant) |
MARSHLINK ACTION GROUP AGM – CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
MLAG’s last Annual General Meeting was in November 2022. At that time, we made the obvious point that railway companies and their customers had had a tough time dealing with the consequences of the Coronavirus pandemic with changed patterns of work and tourism reducing passenger numbers. But, since then, passenger numbers appear to have grown slowly and we hope that train travel will get back to its previous level representing an improvement in the local economy and tourism.
Our aim at the meeting on 23 February is to introduce members to representatives of the companies and Government who we rely on to provide our rail service and invite them to present to us their analysis of recent performance and any developments we may expect in the future. We thank them for their time in joining us at our AGM but also for their time and efforts throughout the year, being prepared to listen to the issues we raise then endeavour to find a workable solution.
The Committee’s role is to represent the interests of its members with the aim of improving our rail service, working with other rail user groups, in particular Hastings and Rother Rail User Alliance (‘HRRUA’) of which MLAG is a member. So, let’s look at some current issues as seen through MLAG’s eyes (though many have been issues for a long time):
Service performance
Service delays and failures are the reason for most complaints we receive and the subject of discussions between MLAG/ HRRUA and Southern Railway at our regular meetings and occasional urgent exchanges. We all expect timetabled services to operate on time but the reasons behind some of these service problems are unlikely to be fully understood from the few words put onto a customer information screen. The AGM will enable you to hear the views of Southern and Network Rail about the practicalities of operating the line and also to put your own questions.
However, one structural problem that makes the MarshLink’s position so much more difficult than other surrounding lines is that we only have an hourly service and a short delay in one service may well disrupt train schedules for much of the day. This is why we argue for priority for our hourly service over more frequent services through pinch points along the line (such as at Eastbourne, Bo Peep Junction in Hastings and Ashford). We would, of course, like to see more frequent services on the MarshLink but that’s another issue.
Rolling stock
The formation of our rolling stock has changed a few times over just a few years: it changed from 2-car units (plus the very valuable Rye Shuttle); to 4-car units during the Covid period (primarily to provide social distancing); to 3-car units (at about the time of our last AGM). Over this period, capacity has increased with 3-car units now but the Rye Shuttle provided not only additional capacity but it also provided a half-hour service at peak times and, frankly, made any missed connections at those peak times slightly more palatable for Ryers (although not for those to the west of us).
But our fundamental issue with our rolling stock is that we want the MarshLink (currently an island of diesel services) to be serviced by compatible equipment to our surrounding area so, in the event of equipment failure, replacement stock is on hand (and, similarly, trained crew if there is a crewing issue): also, for environmental reasons, we don’t want there to be a prolonged need to operate diesel trains on electric track. As we have said on many occasions over several years, the need to upgrade our rolling stock has been built into the need to upgrade the line and that was a fundamental part of the Kent/ Sussex Connect project (much discussed over the years) and it seems this project still appears to be “paused.”
Capital investment in the MarshLink line
MLAG/ HRRUA continues to be very supportive of Network Rail’s Strategic Outline Business Case, submitted to Government in 2021 to upgrade the MarshLink line (“the Kent/ Sussex Connect project”) which would enable a direct service from Eastbourne via Bexhill, Hastings, Rye and Ashford on to London St.Pancras: this would provide an hourly fast service to London and also an intermediate local service along the MarshLink line. As far as we are aware, this proposal has lain dormant with Government since then in competition with other projects around the country. We continue to await developments.
Meanwhile there are many upgrades we would like to see along the line, almost all being a part of the overall Kent/ Sussex Connect project – for example, removal of the two, level crossings in East Guldeford.
Tourism
Tourism is perhaps Rye’s main industry and one that needs supporting with a good, timely rail service. Much of the tourist traffic comes at weekends and with short notice (much of it being dependent on the short-term weather forecast for the weekend). A combination of 4-car units and Covid restrictions meant that demand was satisfied quite easily a few years ago. Now, with 3-car units, we may well find available capacity being stretched at times – this means we see the need for a weekend Shuttle service.
East Sussex Draft Local Transport Plan
East Sussex County Council has put forward its draft rail and bus transport priorities out till 2050. A very well-informed representative of ESCC visited Rye Library last month and was available to discuss the plan. The MLAG Committee is yet to analyse ESCC’s plan but it can be seen at www.eastsussex.gov.uk/draft LTP4 and there is a survey to respond to at the same address – responses required by 25 February.
MLAG’s plan
With East Sussex’s plan made known, it seems appropriate to list MLAG’s long-held proposals for the development of the MarshLink, in summary:
- the integration of the MarshLink line into the surrounding electric railway;
- to implement engineering upgrades on the MarshLink, particularly those affecting line speed;
- reinstate the service to Brighton (when the MarshLink is operated by non-diesel trains);
- reintroduce the Rye Shuttle (subject to passenger numbers);
- implement the Kent / Sussex Connect proposal;
- Ashford International Station be re-established as an international station;
- installation of lifts at Rye Station;
- some infrastructure works at Three Oaks and Winchelsea stations;
- connectivity and ticket inter-availability with bus services;
- Ticket Office at Rye Station to remain open and for the currently advertised times;
- review ticket pricing and offers;
- the integration of CCTV cameras across the Southern network.
Proposed Ticket Office closures
There was a national uproar when, nationally, the train operating companies (arguably directed by Government) started a very short consultation process to effectively close many/ most stations’ ticket offices, including Rye’s. There were arguments put forward that staff were being just re-assigned so they could more usefully assist customers from outside their offices but this was generally interpreted as a short-term measure before the role disappeared in any real form. MLAG submitted its detailed arguments against the proposal and we were very pleased when, eventually, the proposal was withdrawn across the country. But, let’s be conscious about any future restructuring of ticket offices that may be put forward to assist us (arguably) when, in fact, it may well be a government cost-cutting exercise.
And finally …………..
Your Committee has been working over many years to try to improve the MarshLink service. We come together from a variety of backgrounds and with a range of expertise. But to be blunt, we are getting older and new blood is required to continue the work. We need to find new Committee members to continue the effort. If this is something you may be interested in considering, contact us at info@mlag.org.uk
Stuart Harland
Chairman, MLAG