No, Dr Beeching

Good news from the Association of Train Operating Companies, as they suggest re-opening some of the old railway lines closed down by the Beeching axe in the 1960s.

The one with the best business case is the Totton to Hythe (note to Daily Telegraph- this is Hythe, not Hyde) one as it is still used by freight trains. I find that getting from Southampton to Hythe (or vice versa) in the evenings, when I need to, problematic. There are buses from Southampton to Hythe till quite late, but my memory of buses there were always the small bone-shakers which left me with a bad headache. One way I used to use was getting a train down to Totton and then a bus from there, but buses from Totton to Hythe don't run after about 6. There is the Southampton-Hythe ferry, but that stops early evening most of the week.

The other local idea is opening up a railway station in Ringwood (or "Ringworm" as I always call it). When I heard this, I assumed that there would be a Bournemouth-Salisbury line, stopping at Ringwood. However, there is an old line between Brockenhurst and Ringwood which could be rebuilt.