A NAILSEA man has been listed on the New Years Honours List 2024 for his tireless work in improving the region's railways.

The Honours system recognises individuals who have made outstanding achievements in public life and who have helped the UK.

Since its inception, Keith Walton has acted as chairman of the Severnside Community Rail Partnership, a not-for-profit organisation that aims to improve the appearance and quality of our railways.

The partnership aims to give a voice to the local community and promote sustainable, healthy travel for all.

It also seeks to promote social and economic development.

One of the ways it does this is through ensuring that local railway stations are kept presentable. 

Until 2007, the platforms at Avonmouth station left something to be desired. Graffiti covered the walls, which would often make passengers feel uneasy.

In order to battle this problem, the partnership teamed up with a local school to create pieces of community artwork.

Keith said that, since many of the children had older brothers or connections to those that did the graffiti, this deterred them from ruining the artwork and encouraged them to take pride in where they lived.

Keith said: "This helps keeps stations clean and attractive."

A second mural was created by Rob and Sophie Weaver to pay homage to rare birds seen in the area. This was created under funding from ‘A Forgotten Landscape’ Heritage Lottery Funding.

The creation of community artwork has also been encouraged in North Somerset.

The Severnside Community Rail Partnership website details artwork created by Damien Jefferies at Yatton Station: "A celebration of the station heritage and local wildlife around the Strawberry Line cycle path covering a shipping container which houses adapted bikes for the Strawberry Line Cycle Hire project."

The partnership also prides itself on improving the reliability and punctuality of train services by working with operators and local councils. 

This has helped to improve passenger numbers. Last year, over 1,500,000 used the service, compared to around 375,000 in 2005.

Despite his hard work, Keith told the North Somerset Times that being given this honour was "totally unexpected."