Train service increase will be boost Melksham needs

THE future is bright for Melksham if proposed train timetable changes go ahead according to the president of Melksham Chamber of Commerce. 

Proposals are in place for an increased timetable from early December which will see Melksham better connected.

Graham Ellis, has spoken about the difference it will make to the local economy if the planned train service comes to Melksham.

Following last week’s Comic Con event, which saw over 1,000 people attend, despite a limited train service serving Melksham, it posed the question what benefits an increased service could have locally. Graham Ellis said, “I can’t emphasise enough just what a big difference eight trains a day, reliable and at sensible times, will make to local businesses.

“Few of Melksham’s residents realise just what a destination the town is for visitors to specialist businesses – whether that’s to Hayley’s Komix and Comic Con, specialised IT courses, to businesses such as Knorr Bremse and the list goes on.

“The lack of a useable train service puts many people off using public transport to get here – they can get to Chippenham or Westbury easily enough, but are the faced with ‘what now’.  Just how important the train is for business was highlighted in the 2011 business survey in which 94% of responding local employers (sample size 160) said the train would make a significant difference to their business. There has been a significant switch to rail travel across the whole region in recent years – and many see it as the best way to make long distance journeys for business.”