02/03/2014 Spotlight

Good evening. A transport expert There is more throughout the

Good evening. A transport expert says the likelihood of a second

train line into the South Wdst remains very small despite the

problems at Dawlish. The man, who set up the model which ministers use

when deciding which rail schemes get the go`ahead, says any alternative

to the existing railway would need to be cheaper than maintainhng the

coastal route. Scott Binghal reports.

The storm in early February left the rail line at Dawlish hanging by a

thread. The vulnerability of this stretch of track has promptdd calls

for an alternative route. Btt the expert who set up the model used by

ministers to decide which schemes get the go`ahead says gaining

approval will be difficult. New railways are very expensive. More

land would have to be bought and there would also be issues `bout the

stations that the new route would serve and whether particular towns

were bypassed by it. Transport spending in the South West hs the

lowest of any English region, largely due to the relatively low

numbers of rail users here, while easing overcrowding on commtter

trains in the South East will always be a vote winner. Dawlish m`y have

the government's attention for now, but with engineers working round the

clock, the line could be up and running by Easter. That is when

politicians and council leaders will need to sharpen their elbows.

A work man is recovering in hospital after the digger he was operating

toppled into the sea off Portland in Dorset. The coastguard helicopter

crew winched the man to safdty from the water at Castletown. It is

believed the digger fell from a 20 foot wall. His injuries are serious

but not life`threatening. A family whose home and cars were

hit by an articulated lorry are today assessing the damage. The

emergency services were called to Old Newton Road in Bovey Tr`cey

early yesterday after the supermarket truck crashed into the

property and hit five vehicles. The householder said he and his wife

woke up to a trail of destrtction. The 40 tonne truck has taken all

three vehicles right the wax along the road and written them all off

and then it's taken out the next door neighbour's car, wrote that

off, and then it's pushed another vehicle right the way down the road,

into the next door neighbour's garden, and taken all their conifer

hedge out. Cornwall has been celebrating the

life of St Piran with the traditional outdoor play about the

patron saint of tinners. Thd annual event involves a cast of local

actors, schoolchildren and lusicians and moves across the dunes `t

Penhale Sands. This year, for the first time, those taking part were

able to see the remains of the saint's oratory, which is now being

excavated. I think it gives the Cornish a sense

of identity, wanting to know more about our saint, and so the fact his

oratory was covered up has really been quite sad for many people, and

now finally we are uncovering it. Haggis, spicy meatballs and Thai

chicken were among the ingrddients this weekend at the World P`sty

Championships. A record number of people competed in the third year of

the event at the Eden Project in Cornwall. Chris Lyddon has the

story. Baked to perfection, but will it be

success on a plate? The judges have the best job here. They givd marks

for crimping and texture, and then just get stuck in. Salmon and

monkfish in this one. I've had a lot of pasties today and a lot of

pasties in my life, and that blew us away, I have to say, really by the

taste. It looked great, it smelt lovely, the pastry was amazhng, and

then the fish really worked, a real surprise.

It is a pasty`lover's idea of heaven. The culinary creations of

150 bakers, an Olympics of the humble oggy. It is something which

is deceptively simple, the pasty, and everybody has an opinion, but a

great pasty as opposed to jtst a good everyday pasty, is somdthing

that is a gourmet food for the common man. Lucy Bennett is just

two, but it's her second tile in the competition. They are going to get

cooked and then you can havd it later! So what is the secret of a

world`class crimper? It is `ll about this, but for me, I'm going to

cheat. That is the only way to win. I have got machines with me to make

pasties. I'm going to cheat. He s basically going to do a Wallace and

Gromit and try to come up whth a new way of doing something a pahr of

hands can do more simply. Along the winners, aptly named Simon Cornish,

the new winner of the Junior Cornish Pasty World Champion. The

12`year`old's brother and hhs dad are both previous World Chalpions.

But it was the Cornish pastx which was the real winner here.

On to rugby, and in the Championship, the Cornish Phrates

beat Jersey 19`15 in a very wet game at the Mennaye Field this afternoon.

Onto the weather now, and there are several flood warnings in force

tonight. Here's Holly with the forecast.

This afternoon's rain has bden replaced by heavy `` thundery

showers tonight and tomorrow they could bring the risk of snow. There

is a risk of hail and thunddr through tonight, but we havd got

some clear spells around as well, which means that we could gdt quite

chilly, perhaps with a touch of Frost and I swear temperatures get

low enough. There could be ` few centimetres of snow above 300

metres, but the showers of rain will be heavy and organised, so we could

see a fair bit of surface w`ter on the roads. In the Channel Islands,

the combination of swells and strong winds also leads to the risk of

coastal flooding. Next week, we have got some bright conditions `round at

times, but we have also got some continued rain and showers.

That is all from us now good evening.

will be back. Good evening. The chances are, you

are enjoying your evening on a nice warm sofa while it rains outside.

Pretty heavy rain in parts of the country and for tomorrow morning,

wrap up warmly, it will be a cheap upstart right across the country.

This is where the rain is right now from Portsmouth to London across to

the north-east and the east of the country and it will push out into

the North Sea. Not all of the rain will clear away but it will be cold

enough for some icy stretches across parts of Northern Ireland, the

Northwest of England, too, but everywhere will have a chilly start.

Not exclusively snow to higher ground, maybe to some lower land,

too, but in the south-east, rain showers and pretty grey and

unpleasant, but other parts will be enjoying some sunshine, but Swales,

parts of Yorkshire. North-east Scotland looks like staying grey,

wet and cold. Not so bad on Tuesday for the bulk of country but if it

does rain, it will be in Cornwall and maybe Devon, but this