Severn Valley Railway

[The Johnster]

Someone discussing this on another thread which has now been locked has suggested National Service; sadly, this will not work beyond teaching a bunch of anti-social thugs how to use weapons and deploy unarmed combat, and organise themselves into more effective units.  These scum are of no use at all to the armed services, or anyone else for that matter.  They do it because their lives are sh*t and they want your to be as well so that they can feel better about themselves.

 

Graffiti can be an art form, but only where permission for it's presence has been granted!

[multivac]

My worry is the expense in removing said 'artwork' - any act to remove it will likely take off any paint and varnish beneath, possibly necessitating a repaint of the entire carriage. Very not good

 

Such a shame considering the amount of time it take to paint a coach.

 

A quick search of YouTube gives many methods of removing spray paint from surfaces leaving no trace, however the mainline railways probably use a different type of of paint finishing to the traditional coach enamel. So the special cleaner might make things worse. Hopefully the varnish on the LNER coach has protected the wood.

 

I can't help from where I am but will put something towards the restoration.

[lmsforever]

Yet again more senseless vandalisim  to the hard work of dedicated people when will they stop this ,lets hope they are caught quickly and receive a stiff sentence not community service but something that brands them for what they are.

[Clearwater]

Whilst on many levels, I’m a bleeding heart liberal, I do think punishments neither fit the crime nor are imaginative enough. In this case, I doubt a short custodial sentence would make one jot of difference to the perpetrators. Instead, give them a community service order to restore the coaches/work on the SVR. Not the easy jobs,but some of the less pleasant physically graft required. At inconvenient times. Preferably whilst wearing tabards identifying them as crims. I’m sure there are plenty of necessary but unpleasant jobs on a heritage line that could be usefully put these people’s way. I suspect others here are better placed to comment on what might fit that category!

 

[i appreciate that they’d still need supervising etc and even such manual and menial tasks may be beneath them]

[Dave John]

Just adding my support, I would agree with all the other posters. 

 

 

 I hope it all comes off without too much damage to the livery. 

[kevinlms]

It could be much worse.

 

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/leader/news/rail-enthusiasts-devastated-after-fire-destroys-historic-trains-at-newport-railyards/news-story/b8c5af22a29345138079c0f7d7a6bcfd

 

The culprit, was a volunteer fire brigade member and a member of the society.

[MarkC]

Whilst on many levels, I’m a bleeding heart liberal, I do think punishments neither fit the crime nor are imaginative enough. In this case, I doubt a short custodial sentence would make one jot of difference to the perpetrators. Instead, give them a community service order to restore the coaches/work on the SVR. Not the easy jobs,but some of the less pleasant physically graft required. At inconvenient times. Preferably whilst wearing tabards identifying them as crims. I’m sure there are plenty of necessary but unpleasant jobs on a heritage line that could be usefully put these people’s way. I suspect others here are better placed to comment on what might fit that category!

 

[i appreciate that they’d still need supervising etc and even such manual and menial tasks may be beneath them]

Sadly I believe that this is not allowed - something to do with <Yooman Rites>

[Southernman46]

The most depressing part is that the "people" that do this sort of thing are so thick-skinned, selfish, disrespectful and narcissistic in their attitudes that virtually no deterrent or punishment will work ............................ one wonders how they would feel if some they value was similarly vandalised but then they rarely have anything they hold dear except maybe their god-damn mobile bloody phones ...................

[Hobby]

Graffiti can be an art form, but only where permission for it's presence has been granted!

 

It isn't graffiti if permission has been given, though.

[The Dorset Wanderer]

Whilst on many levels, I’m a bleeding heart liberal, I do think punishments neither fit the crime nor are imaginative enough. In this case, I doubt a short custodial sentence would make one jot of difference to the perpetrators. Instead, give them a community service order to restore the coaches/work on the SVR. Not the easy jobs,but some of the less pleasant physically graft required. At inconvenient times. Preferably whilst wearing tabards identifying them as crims. I’m sure there are plenty of necessary but unpleasant jobs on a heritage line that could be usefully put these people’s way. I suspect others here are better placed to comment on what might fit that category!

 

[i appreciate that they’d still need supervising etc and even such manual and menial tasks may be beneath them]

Probably these tasks would be beyond them

[kevinlms]

It isn't graffiti if permission has been given, though.

Even if art looks like graffiti, sometimes its hard to tell the difference!

 

A customer of mine took over a business premises, had a wall that was notorious for graffiti (it faces a railway line). He had a nice mural done promoting his business. I asked the artist what happens if part of it gets graffitied. He said it won't be and if it did, he'd come back and fix it for free.

 

So far untouched & its been 2 years, so there is honour amongst thieves. I thought of asking him how he learnt his trade, but thought better of it!

Edited December 27, 2017 by kevinlms

[57xx]

Sadly I believe that this is not allowed - something to do with <Yooman Rites>

Unfortunately correct, I believe some scrotes went to court with an action saying it was breaching their human "rights" for people to know they were crims serving their sentance... they won.

[The Johnster]

The most depressing part is that the "people" that do this sort of thing are so thick-skinned, selfish, disrespectful and narcissistic in their attitudes that virtually no deterrent or punishment will work ............................ one wonders how they would feel if some they value was similarly vandalised but then they rarely have anything they hold dear except maybe their god-damn mobile bloody phones ...................

 

Their phones are usually stolen; when the credit runs out they sell it on and steal another one.

It isn't graffiti if permission has been given, though.

Fair point, but you know what I mean.

[The Johnster]

Even if art looks like graffiti, sometimes its hard to tell the difference!

 

A customer of mine took over a business premises, had a wall that was notorious for graffiti (it faces a railway line). He had a nice mural done promoting his business. I asked the artist what happens if part of it gets graffitied. He said it won't be and if it did, he'd come back and fix it for free.

 

So far untouched & its been 2 years, so there is honour amongst thieves. I thought of asking him how he learnt his trade, but thought better of it!

I subscribe to the theory that people, even these sorts of low lifes, will respect something of quality that they use; I remember in the 70s when our local, badly graffitied and internally vandalised, class 116 dmus were refurbished with new seats and bright flourescent lights, and what was for those days a rather daring 'white with a blue stripe' livery; they remained in untouched condition for some time.  The same people were using them, perhaps as transport to go and vandalise something else.

 

But some vandals go beyond this and are irredeemable.  Little can be done about it; they regard fines as something that they don't have to bother paying, and custodial sentences as qualifications to be honoured; drugs are much more easily available in prisons than outside, and they can make connections and get an education in how to steal things.  Their living conditions in there are often better than the dire bedsits they get stoned and drink corner shop lager in outside.

 

Difficult to remember sometimes that these are human beings, and often little more than children.  Not all are damaged, but they tend to impregnate girls in much the same positiion who will not be able to bring the child up well, and any input they have in that process will be pretty negative, so a repeating cycle of behaviour and attitude over generations is established.  For perhaps half a century the UK has had a large underclass, maintained by the great and good from the public purse to make the rest of us feel better about our lives (cynical, me?), stock the Jeremy Kyle holding pen, and perhaps to provide a reserve of cannon fodder in case there's a war, when their anti social skills will be highly valuable.

 

Sorry, I have no answers, except perhaps to bite the bullet and provide decent housing* and a liveable benefit level* for them, encouraging them to accept responsibility for, and pride of ownership in, their own stuff, in the hope that they can be made viable citizens thereby; there is neither the social or the political will to do this, and possibly not the money either.  Making the culprits do the hard work of carriage restoration would be a tremendous effort for the SVR, who would have to closely supervise the project and constantly ensure that anything moveable isn't nicked and sold for drugs, something railway preservation does not include in it's normal skillsets, considerable though those are!

 

I regard myself as small L liberal, but am definitely not of the bleeding heart type!

 

 

*Housing benefit will not fund non-shared self-contained accommodation for people below the age of 36, so younger claimants live in shared houses (remember what fun we had when we were students; they'll love it!) which inevitably become drug sellers' heaven and breed anti social behaviour and crime.  I know whereof I speak; I live in an inner city area where this sort of thing is rife.  Benefit levels are lower for those under 25 as well, as they are expected to have family networks that can help to support them; many don't, but no allowance is made for that.  Society treats young people like crap; perhaps we should not be amazed when they respond with less than totally abject gratitude...

[woodenhead]

How has graffiti turned to drug crazed youths?

 

People who do graffiti are not necessarily on drugs.

 

To me the most appropriate solution if the culprits are found is restorative work, not beating them, cutting off hands or hanging them (as is the usual lines of punishment raised whenever there is vandalism).

 

Perhaps if the culprits can put right the damage then they may learn the value of the item and also perhaps learn a new direction to put their painting skills to that evokes pride from everyone.

 

I'm not a bleeding heart liberal but the punishment needs to fit the crime and a custodial sentence costs the taxpayer more money, doesn't help the injured party here and won't help the culprits out of crime.

[Invicta]

Unfortunately correct, I believe some scrotes went to court with an action saying it was breaching their human "rights" for people to know they were crims serving their sentance... they won.

 

There's a scheme called 'Community Payback' under which people given community sentences carry out unpaid work like cleaning off graffiti or decorating public buildings, and are apparently obliged to wear a hi-viz vest while doing it- we had a group of lads spending their weekends repainting the boundary fences at at a local school recently, and they were all wearing vests with 'Community Payback' written on the back

 

https://www.gov.uk/community-sentences/community-payback

[37114]

There's a scheme called 'Community Payback' under which people given community sentences carry out unpaid work like cleaning off graffiti or decorating public buildings, and are apparently obliged to wear a hi-viz vest while doing it- we had a group of lads spending their weekends repainting the boundary fences at at a local school recently, and they were all wearing vests with 'Community Payback' written on the back

 

https://www.gov.uk/community-sentences/community-payback

We have them in Bath as well, there were a load of them doing some garden maintenance in front of the royal crescent a few weeks ago. A good idea, I was surprised they were allowed to wear branded hi viz jackets, only a matter of time before someone kicks off about it..

[The Johnster]

If the jackets are the property of the scheme, then it cannot be any different to a Network Rail jacket in that sense; after all, the jacket wearer could well be a respectable supervisor overseeing that particular activity.  If the jackets actually identify individuals as criminals it is a different matter, but if being part of the scheme does not necessarily identify anyone in this way, I see no problem!

[Liam]

I don't know if it is related at all to the vandalism of the coaches (or maybe just as a protection against frost) but as I passed the diesel depot at Kiddy today on one of the workings I noticed some of the diesels had tarpaulin covers over them.

[caradoc]

I watched graffiti artists at work at Gourock station on CCTV one night; Knowing the Police were likely to be en route, they were extremely efficient and organised in their vandalism, and were finished and gone before the Police arrived. What a pity that such dedication and teamwork could not have been put to a more constructive use.

 

Regarding punishment for such offenders, surely the best thing is to make them work with the railway volunteers, firstly of course to repair the damage they have caused, but also to help them understand how much time and effort goes into restoring and maintaining historic vehicles, a true labour of love.

[rovex]

I sit as a magistrate and not so long ago we dealt with an offender who had been tagging the city for some considerable time, causing quite a lot of expense to the local authority and local race course who were left having to clean up the paint.

 

We sentenced him to, amongst other things, a good number of unpaid work hours (a couple of hundred I seem to recall) with the expression that it be spent so far as possible cleaning up his graffiti and that of his mates.

[Bulleidnutter]

I don't know if it is related at all to the vandalism of the coaches (or maybe just as a protection against frost) but as I passed the diesel depot at Kiddy today on one of the workings I noticed some of the diesels had tarpaulin covers over them.

Nothing to do with it at all. They have all been winterised.

[BobM]

 

Bye...bye Erlestoke......    

 

Happy 2018 guys...hope it is a good for one and all.......

 

Kindest regards.....

Bob

[Liam]

Here's my photo of Erlestoke Manor, taken at Bewdley this evening. Will be looking forward to travelling behind it again on the inaugural special for sponsors!

[Garethp8873]

Thanks to everyone who has viewed my Flickr page over the last year. It has been a great year and I look forward to seeing 2018 brings to the SVR...

 

Happy New Year!!

 

SVR 2017 Album