Fire Engines Photos

When you say two new stations, do you mean that the one old station is now being replaced by two new stations?
Also, is the location of the temp station a problem for the retained crews or is it close to the old station?

Added by David Jones on 04 September 2011.

The old station has been pulled down and a new 6 bay station is going on the same site and a second new station is going in at the other end of the town at Uckington with 4 bays. the temp station is the other side of town to the old one so the retained are on delayed turnout, in rush hour it can take them anything up to 20 mins to get in.

Added by Des moore on 05 September 2011.

20 minutes? That's ridiculous! Is that station fully retained and is there any real need for two stations?

Added by David Jones on 06 September 2011.

Hi David... No the station is Wholetime the Retained section man 1 pump, Incident Control unit and a Water/foam Carrier. All of their trucks will go to the new station on the site of the old so response times will go back to normal. I guess they see the delayed times as acceptable as its only for a year. There is a need for two stations now as the town has expanded so much.Gloucester is going through the same at the moment, two new stations in the process of being build but both on completely new sites, again both at either ends of the City.

Added by Des moore on 06 September 2011.

Do you know which appliances will be going to each stations and wether any new appliances will be issued to the stations? I'm guessing both stations will be wholetime/retained?

Added by David Jones on 06 September 2011.

I think Mr Moores' explanation was quite explicit so to jump on the bandwagon of 20 mins. is ridiculous is a little unfair, do you understand the system of delayed turnout and it's implications and after all Cheltenham still has 3 pumps whereas some boroughs have a broken down ARP.
This situation will only last for 12 months, Glosfire should be congratulated for their progress so please keep this to a photo site and you want to become an armchair CFO then join a different organisation

Added by Avonmouth on 06 September 2011.

If its a "delayed turnout" of 20 mins, surely Winchcombe or Tewkesbury could be quicker? Is this a start of eroding 3rd pumps at Glos?

Added by Gary Simpson on 06 September 2011.

I was not having a go at Gloucestershire FRS, I was merely saying that 20 minutes is a long time in any situation and as Gary says, wouldn't it be better to send another appliance as first priority before mobilising the retained. Also, would it not have been better to place the temp station closer to the old station?

Added by David Jones on 06 September 2011.

Winchcombe and Tewkesbury are both retained. One of the "negatives" of the consultation process was the response times of the retained following the old station closure. I was merely making a point about the precarious position that it puts the cost effective and loyal retained crews in.


Added by Gary Simpson on 06 September 2011.

Gents. At present due to the delayed turnouts, either Winchscombe or Gloucester (depending on which side of town the incident is) are mobilised in addition to Cheltenham's retained crews to maximise fire cover in the town during this construction process.

Added by Liam Hall on 16 September 2011.

Thanks for the clarification Liam.


Added by Gary Simpson on 17 September 2011.

With the increasing suburban sprawl around towns and cities with populations like these, it seems the transition from a single central station to two separate ones is increasingly common. It seems to mirror the approach in many US cities, where numerous single pump stations are often the norm. In some other European cities, however, including France, Germany, Spain and Italy it seems a lot more common for towns this size to continue to rely on a single fire station, although in Germany it is often backed up by several volunteer station locations.

Added by Rob Johnson on 02 June 2025.

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