Our steering group
At the moment, we are an informal group of volunteers - we may have to formally constitute later. Our Steering Group is made up of:
Steve Melia
Steve Melia, aka The Green Travel Writer, writes travel articles around the UK and Europe, without driving or flying. In 2009 he moved from a village on Dartmoor to Bristol City Centre to work as a lecturer in sustainable transport at UWE Bristol. He gave up the car when he moved and discovered how easy it is to walk around Britain by public transport. He has been gradually recording his walks as gpx files on this web page. He retired from his day job in 2021 in order to travel, write and share his passion for walking by rail.
Andy Stevenson
Andy is a keen walker and outdoor enthusiast and works as Senior Lecturer in Design at the University of Worcester. His passions have always been cartography and the outdoors and these have driven his PhD study which looks into the evolution of mapping guide materials for recreational walkers. 'Railwalks' falls very much into Andy's area of research interests too - having recently been involved with the development of 'Rail Trails: Worcestershire' a project collaboration with Worcestershire Community Rail Partnership to develop 100 miles of walks between stations in the county. Outside of his university commitments Andy also devotes time to his own mapping and guide project 'Point2 Guides' whilst leading groups on walks in the the region too.
Kieran Seale
Kieran Seale is a transport planner and an independent consultant specialising in governance, strategy and policy. During lockdown he created 'Walk By Rail' (www.walkbyrail.co.uk) which aims to help people in London to use the rail network to walk in the Chilterns. Having worked in the NHS, Kieran is particularly interested in promoting the benefits of walking for physical and mental health.
Miriam Ricci
Miriam Ricci is an impact evaluation consultant, personal and business coach and Pilates teacher. She is also a keen walker and urban flaneuse, and loves spending time in nature. For over 20 years, she worked as an academic researcher, delivering and/or evaluating sustainable mobility initiatives, including: Engaging Young People with Community Rail and Days Out by Train in the West of England which delivered free rail-based excursions to over 2,000 people, mostly from disadvantaged communities. Miriam was awarded a Community Rail award for engaging with a diverse audience. Connect with her on LinkedIn.