Meon Valley Railway Restoration

I've heard a group has been formed with the aim of re building the southern section of the Meon Valley railway, from Knowle junction to West Meon.

Does anyone have any more information on this group and their aims?

This section of track bed is remarkably intact, and I've always thought it would make a relatively easy restoration project. However with the Mid Hants railway so near by, I wonder how successful it would be in attracting visitors and volunteers?

 

Thirty (or forty) years too late I fear. The reasons in the last sentence apply strongly although IMHO the Meon Valley shades the Mid-Hants scenically. I travelled in the last steam run from West Meon to Wickham and back in a GWR brakevan hauled by a U.S.A. tank. A very nice run but, please, no more schemes.

Paul H

 

Just what the movement needs - another 'crackpot' scheme!!! Ray.

 

Define "crackpot." Most if not all such schemes over the years have been called "crackpot" by somebody or other. As for the possible effect on the MHR, hard to say I suppose. The NNR and MNR seem to survive in spite if being quite close to each other. Same for the KWVR and Embsay.

 

I have a hunch (no more than a hunch) that small schemes in the near vicinity of big ones actually profit by the presence of the bigger scheme; in that some visitors may choose to "drop in" as part of a planned visit to the main scheme, when they may not actually have chosen to visit the area at all if the only attraction were the "small" scheme; that would particularly apply to people making an effort to travel a reasonable distance.

I suspect the Romsey Signal Box, for example, benefits from its general proximity to the MHR in attracting visitors (and maybe volunteers) who would not otherwise visit.

Not that I am advocating reopening the Meon Valley just on that logic, mind!

Tom

 

Is this a wind-up? Has anyone heard or seen any announcements?

 

A new home for the Bunch collection, perhaps?

 

I believe there was a 'crackpot' scheme to run steam trains between Loughborough and Leicester once. I wonder what became of that!!

 

Hi Paul
I was also there but i think you mean Droxford which was where the loco was stabled with a coach and the brake van.
Still got the photos which you may be in ?.
Regards Colin

 

I can't see it happening.

Found this on Youtube which shows the Sadler Pacerailer working on the Meon line.


http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=J25JhDZK7fw&desktop_uri=/watch?v=J25JhDZK7fw

 

Now dont start that one again.

 

Yes of course, I do mean Droxford!

Paul H.

 

That journal of record, Wikipedia, has the following to say about re-opening attempts: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meon_Valley_Railway)

Link 1 points to http://mv-spud.tripod.com/home.html
Link 2 points to http://meonvalleyrailway.webs.com
Link 3 points to http://www.meonvalleyrailwayheritagesociety.co.uk (which won't open for me).

Make of that, and the linked websites, what you will! (Given the plethora of websites, and the disbandment of one group and its instant replacement by another with the same aims, I'm tempted to wonder whether a copper boilered J39 / SR L1 / LNER L1 will be suitable motive power... But I might have completely misjudged this aspect).

Tom

 

Thanks for the links James. Some interesting if slightly ambitious plans! Particularly the long term plan to look into rebuilding the line to Alton. Can't see that happening.

 

That the Meon Valley could and should have been one of Britain's great scenic heritage lines is beyond doubt, but that chance came and went back in the 1970s. It's dead easy to set up a Facebook page setting out ambitious plans but in the real world the land is owned by Hampshire County Council who are unlikely to want their popular walking and cycling route disturbed by steam trains. Even if they were to agree to shared usage it's difficult to see how a standard gauge operation starting from a green field site could hope to compete with the slick and professional Mid Hants and even harder to see any justification for a narrow gauge scheme with no historical relevance to the area at all. Wickham would not seem to be a good choice as an operational base as there is OAP housing very close at hand on part of the old goods yard. It seems to me that if this scheme were to gather any momentum at all the would-be preservationists should be talking to the owner of the beautifully restored Droxford station or HCC about the West Meon station site where there is at least lots of space.

 

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Hi Steve, what can your project offer that the Mid Hants can't?

 

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Well said, its nice to have a vision.