The Blog of Adrian Hollister

When will the mobile operators work out that they are just wireless data providers? A commodity place with what needs to be commodity pricing? The likes of Vodafone and O2 desperately cling on to the hope that their value add is in reception, availability and price of their calls; when most people don't want these things, they expect them as basic parts of the service.

Mobile operators have started to feel the data provider pinch – data based mobile messaging is killing the text message scam that the operators have enjoyed for so long. SMS messages costing up to 20p each have been a great source of income, but iMessage and Blackberry Messenger run over the internet and sip very lightly on internet bandwidth. They are cost effective and they are a sign of things to come.

The ingress of IP phones have also crept onto the smart phone. Skype, SIP phones and similar all use tiny amounts of data traffic whilst providing a good enough service. Apples own Facetime seems at this point to be banned on the data networks – not for any good reason that I can see other than quality of the connection may be too variable; but again this is a case of waiting for the mobile operators to work out that they are just a wireless data shop.

So where do they need to go? Three to some extent has the right idea – it's all about data. Virgin Mobile in the UK are also getting there, with trials of 4G starting connected directly into Virgin's fibre network.

But there is a problem. Mobile operators have been making a lot of cash out of basic services, long contracts and hardware lock-in. They lock people into two year contracts for whilst offering discounts on handset hardware costs. This is massively attractive for some as they pay over time and not up front. Whilst those that can afford it and are the most savy are likely to just buy their phone and take the cheapest 'Internet' tariff, the majority will look to continue this buying behaviour.

You can't expect 3rd party resellers of mobile services such as Car Phone Warehouse to start selling mobile phones at a fair price and separate to a contract – it would destroy their revenue stream; but there is an opportunity out there for a companies to start selling the hardware at a fair price without a contract. A contract free phone would give the consumer the ultimate choice of provider based on real performance and not perceived value of discounted hardware.

If we want consumer choice at a fair price, we must look to break the cycle of contract based on hardware discounts. It's time for the mobile operators to realise that they are just a wireless BT and, as BT have tried to do, they need to reinvent themselves around the highest quality of internet service and drive the cost of their core services (calls) to commodity prices.

Posted by Adrian Hollister

Continuing to follow An Historical Survey of the Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway - Layouts and Illustrations and starting at Upton and heading to Compton I continue my walk from Didcot to Newbury. The original Upton and Blewbury station has gone, but you the station building is now a house and much of the local railway land has been sold for housing, so you can't just walk from the old station, but right next to the pub is a footpath that roughly follows the route of the railway.

Start: Upton near the George and Dragon Pub (closest point to original railway that's a public footpath).
Waypoint: Reclamation works near Chilton
End: Compton Station
Distance: 6 miles
Time taken: 2 hours
Elevation change: 30m
Dog walking: All off lead. Few dogs or other walkers.
Track condition: Variable from shallow mud/chalk to good gravel/old rail track.
Accessibility: Some stiles, narrow paths, overgrown in places. No shelter.
Difficulty: Easy romp.

Starting at the George and Dragon Pub, it's possible to follow a newly fences foot path behind the pub and houses to join along side the old railway. It's a simple route from here, follow the public footpath signs. There are long sections of the railway that are not public rights of way. The track conditions are mostly good but narrow, with some muddy patches and a few stiles.



It's a great walk for rolling countryside, open fields, few houses and even fewer people. The first shock of the walk is going near the reclamation works near Chilton. The railway has largely been filled in with rubble and at the time of the walk there was a massive wood fire in the reclamation yard. It's disappointing to see the old bridges covering no cutting.



But past Chilton the walk resumes into rolling hills and open fields. Churn Holt is clearly visible from the path, but 'private no entry' signs are all around the station site. If I get a chance I will find out who owns the land and ask them if I can go and wander. Churn is an odd station as it's in the middle on no where and I'm not joking there. No houses, buildings or real roads approach the station. My guide book tells me that at one point Churn was considered for the Rifle Association, but Bisley was eventually chosen. The station highlights part of the problem with this walk - there is no shelter anywhere on the route. No shelter from the elements could make this route more difficult for some and you might need to think about the weather before setting out.

The walk from Churn into Compton is only a couple of miles of largely flat land. The foot path crosses the Ridgeway and at this point you can take a quicker route into Compton and use the roads or keep to a footpath that loosely follows the railway. I have taken a chunk of journey here along the old railway itself. This is private land and I asked the farmer for permission - please don't go onto private land without permission. There is a suitable footpath following the old railway, check your OS map.

The walk into Compton is, from a railway perspective, disappointing. Most of it is private land and a lot of it has been developed. The station and sidings are now an industrial estate and there is no right of way to walk over the bridges in Compton itself. I ended my walk near the primary school and playground - it's as close to the original station as you can get and a good spot to grab a short break.

The next leg in the journey is from Compton to Hermitage. It's not a long walk, but in places the original railway has been ploughed away and there are no close public footpaths.


Reference material:
-Not high quality photo's, but they give an idea of conditions... Photo Set - Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway. Upton to Compton.
-Wikipedia
-An Historical Survey of the Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway - Layouts and Illustrations

Posted by Adrian Hollister

Gulp, not too far from here. Hope they are found ok.

Official Police notice: "Sometime between 8am and 5pm on the 20th February two Springer Spaniel puppies were stolen from kennels in the rear garden of a property in IIsley Road, Compton. A suspicious white Ford Transit was seen in the vicinity, index PE51NJK. If you have seen/see this vehicle in your area please call the Police Enquiry Centre on 101 and quote the URN number 1176 of 20.02.12"

Posted by Adrian Hollister

The closure of the A34 last week has highlighted the problem with the road. All southbound traffic diverted through the Downland's via the A338 or via Newbury. The traffic until late morning on these roads received a constant flow of HGV's and cars and, in the view of the residents that I have spoken to, very few respected the communities or speed limits of our Downland villages.

The cost of this closure to our economy is likely to be measured in the millions, but who has counted the number of minor accidents due to the sheer volume and recklessness of the traffic through our Downland villages? Great Shefford took the brunt of the traffic this time with Wantage a major sticking point just north in Oxfordshire.

For the HA to find no problem with accident rates on this route exposes the narrowness of their vision. They see the most serious accidents and nothing in their figures represent the number of minor incidents attended by the emergency services/motoring services and none seem to include any information from the insurance industry - one of the better measures of the true number of incidents.

It is still clear that there is a problem on these roads. A variable speed limit based around 50mph common speed could reduce the number of accidents to near zero and would add at most three minutes to the journey time of an 80mph average speed motorist (and next to nothing for anyone on or below the speed limit).

So why do the HA defend these three minutes? Where is West Berkshire Council? Where is Cllr George Chandler? This complacency shows why we need the Green Party represented in West Berkshire - we are the only party interested in constructive citizen centric change.

Posted by Adrian Hollister

The recent announcement by Thames Water shows that groundwater levels in the Thames area is lower than during the 1976 drought. This is compounded with low rainfall over the past couple of years. They admitted that drought was inevitable and “it's a case of when and how bad”.

I've already covered the 'for profit' nature of the business and this investment required to fix leaking pipes, to make more efficient use of resources and to invest in the future; is based totally on our ability to pay up front for the investment.

Thames Water and the other utilities must work to ensure we make the most out of our precious resources. It's time Thames Water stepped up and lets see some real give back from Thames Water. Adrian Hollister's 2p worth of advise for Thames Water is:

1. Grey Water(1). Work with new builds, rentals and renovations to ensure that grey water is installed in houses by default. If 5% of our water consumption could be replaced by grey water systems, the net saving (in terms of extraction, processing, pumping, loss and any household net savings i.e. low lime scale) would be significant.
2. Smarter working. Increase the roll-out of smart meters to all homes. Help home owners/businesses to use water more efficiently and pay for school education on the issues. Use smart meters on junctions points to automatically monitor flow and identify leaks/fraud.
3. Fix Leaks. Reducing general leakage by just 1% would save millions of litres a day. Thames Water's targets for leak reduction must be accelerated.

(1)Grey water systems use rain water and other untreated household waste water (such as water from showers) to flush toilets, feed washing machines and other not for human consumption systems.

Posted by Adrian Hollister

I've been on the accident black spot issue on the A34 at East Ilsley for a long time... there is a standard pattern, usually involving slow traffic, panic breaking from high speed and the ripple effect back around the bends. No rocket science here, just common sense.

What I find amazing is that West Berkshire Council don't seem to be representing residents here - where is the ever illusive Councillor George Chandler who covers the Downland's Ward? Pipe, slippers, and a copy of the times springs to mind.

So come on George, kick off your slippers and start earning your right to represent us - it's time West Berks Council started to pull it's weight.

Posted by Adrian Hollister

It's good to see that all but the very minor roads up here in the Downland's of West Berkshire have been salted and cleared. There are a few snow covered roads still, but there are alternatives to the same destination that are clear and I urge people to think before attempting snow and ice covered roads. So well done West Berks, keep up the good work!

Posted by Adrian Hollister

A good 3 inches of snow here in Brightwalton this morning. It stopped snowing at about 1am and was followed by some showers until about 3am. Whilst we have lost a bit of the snow we had a 1am last night, there is still a good a crunchy layer. There is lots of ice out there, so please all take care.

Posted by Adrian Hollister

The response to this campaign has been amazing, with even the most hardened pro-speeder agreeing that there is a problem on this stretch of road. I would also back a suggestion from the Newbury Today forum, which is to introduce variable speeds on the section of road with the variability based upon the conditions ahead. A common theme with all suggestions though is to ensure that they are actively monitored and managed; something the recent 'no overtaking' for lorries trial seems to have failed on. Average speed cameras along the section would meet these needs.

But, please remember, that whilst reducing the accidents on the A34 is a critical thing to do, we are also trying to stop reckless and thoughtless diversion driving through our Downland villages, and we are trying to protect the reputation that West Berkshire is an amazing place to live (and not an accident blackspot).

p.s. there are also plenty of statistics and real speed related detail from this document:

http://20splentyforus.org.uk/UsefulReports/TRLREports/trl421SpeedAccidents.pdf - Page 2 is a good start. Where you can find details such as "The percentage reduction in accident frequency achievable per 1mile/h reduction in average speed is between 2-7%"

Posted by Adrian Hollister