Disaster

We have just found out that the Island Line here on the Isle of Wight is closed for upgrade, upgrade of track, trains and related facilities. So the only way for us to get out on the town at Ryde of an evening is to go by bus. A trip which would not take any longer when you add in the walk to Brading Station, but is somehow rather off-putting, not just because of the perils of bus journeys in these plaguey times. I don't suppose we will do it. Michelangelo's (of reference 3) will have to wait until the new rolling stock is in, up and running.

But I did think to ask Southwestern Trains about it, which got me to reference 1. Which is a train spotter's delight with lots of fascinating pictures - including that of Brading Station above - but which tells me that the line will reopen at the end of March, 2021. No project timetable visible that I could see. One understands that the Island Line is not exactly at the top of the to-do list for busy Southwestern Trains executives, but one might have thought that they could do better than this.

One good bit of news is that the island has seen fit to make a major investment in the line, which we find to be a major convenience. Part of the reason for our liking to be in Brading.

Another interesting bit of news is that the island is wondering about whether the line from Newport should be reinstated. For which see reference 2. From where I associate to what must be the many miles of minor roads, perhaps a hundred miles or more, on the island which have fallen into disuse and are now at best farm tracks. Rather as they have in the more remote parts of Devon. An upside being that some of them have become footpaths entirely suitable for the older walker.

PS: the word 'plaguey' crops up in 'Camilla' and is known to the online version of Merriam-Webster, a common enough word in the years after the plagues of the 17th century, but is not known to the Blogger software, which gives it the red underline.

Reference 1: https://www.southwesternrailway.com/destinations-and-offers/island-line/island-line-upgrade.

Reference 2: https://iwightinvest.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/RYR-SOBC-Executive-Summary.pdf.

Reference 3: https://www.ristorantemichelangelo.co.uk/.