Oswestry Update

The new website has gone live.
Well done to Richard and the team.
https://cambrianrailways.com/

Have a look and see what you think.

 

Seems comprehensive, well laid out.

 

More work going on at Weston. Thanks to CHR Facebook for the picture

 

Very interesting article in the newsletter about the potential use of the line from Oswestry to Gobowen including an innovative way to cross the main road...!
The newsletter can be accessed from the CHR homepage. Don't forget to sign up for future updates.

 

I can't find a link on the homepage. I did find an archive of newsletters by googling, and signed up for the future ones, but the last one there was from January.

John

 

SKY RIDE INTO OSWESTRY

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Normally associated with taking passengers up and down mountains, cable transport systems are becoming increasingly popular in urban areas. Advantages over ground-based transport systems are that they’re quiet, emit no direct air pollution and, in contrast to new railways, tunnels or bridges, are significantly cheaper to build.

The cable system proposed by Shropshire Advanced Future Transport (SHAFT) for connecting Oswestry to the main railway network at Gobowen would follow the existing trackbed route, with intermediate stops at Park Hall for the Hospital and our community orchard (CROP) where a branch would go off up to the top of Old Oswestry Hillfort, where it is proposed to build a small astronomical observatory and open a wine bar.

The largest impediment to a ground-based system is that of crossing the A5 Oswestry Bypass, either by a tunnel or some sort of bridge. A cable system would solve this problem by simply gliding over the current road crossing. In addition, passengers would be treated to spectacular views of the North Shropshire countryside and Welsh hills to the west.

Professor Bernard Von Spoofsbergen of the University of Gruyère in Switzerland and a world authority on funicular transport, complimented SHAFT on its enterprising, forward-looking plan. 'These days it is good to think outside the box, and congratulations to those involved for this bold idea.'

Reception of the proposals have been mixed, with Sally Sparrow, assistant to the deputy manager of the Oswestry Business Investment Zone (OSBIZ) enthusiastically claiming that ‘This revolutionary new system would bring hoards of people into town, it would send our footfall counter off the scale. What with the new artificial beach and wave machine in Red Square coupled with the proposed annual re-enactment of the Battle of Maserfield, a visit to Oswestry would really become a once-in-a-lifetime experience.’

On the other hand, long-term Oswestry resident Roberta ap Williams was sceptical: ‘Don’t know about this cable car system, sounds a bit dodgy to me – and I suffer from vertigo. What we need are more shops like turning that old building (Oswestry Station) into a Matalan and a bit of opencast coal mining.'

 

I too can no longer find the link to sign up on the website. I shall see if this can be corrected.

 

Nice one ilvaporista.....

 

This is the piece in the latest newsletter. I have only copied it to here for those not signed up to receive it directly.

 

Look what just landed at Oswestry.

https://www.facebook.com/cambrianheritagerailways/
and for those who don't do FB
http://www.heritage-railways.com/locosdb/locosdb2.php?RefNo=1411

 

A busy scene at Oswestry this morning as loco crews prepare for familiarisation runs with the newly arrived steam loco. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to stick around for the loaded test runs.

 

What a great story:

https://cambrianrailways.com/chr/news/on-track-for-a-stronger-more-confident-future/

 

The latest newsletter has been published. You can sign up to receive it directly.

https://com.us19.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0073422ad24bffb78cac8dad7&id=d9adf7dce0

I hope that there will be a link soon from the new website.
In the meantime there are lots of ongoing updates and jobs being undertaken.
The latest is the new sign on the front of Oswestry station. Hopefully the scaffolding on the rest of the building will be removed before too long.

 

Was that somewhere CHR intended to go at some point? Estate agent sale page

 

Not officially... Only with unlimited cash would it have been possible to arrive there.

 

Even so, it would be worth keeping an eye on any planning applications and at least lobbying for a retention of a viable trackbed through the site.

If I've understood the map here [Cambrian Heritage Railways - Wikipedia] correctly the Llynclys bit could theoretically be extended to Pant, which is only one station away from Llanymynech.

 

To get back to the station at Pant and then to Llanymynech requires substantial investment and circumnavigating obstacles built on the trackbed. It would also require local support. If you think that the residents of Parracombe are hostile you should meet their Welsh cousins!
The other suggestion was to carry on from the current railhead at Blodwell junction and use the old Potts line to gain entry to Llanymynech from the south.
That would mean a substantial river bridge across the English Welsh border and an investment of some millions of pounds to buy and restore the trackbed.
CHR is an organisation which turns over 10's of thousands of pounds and has around 500 members, of which about 10% are active volunteers. It will be a long and expensive job to open the current 7 miles, anything else, for the moment, is purely a dream.
You can keep an eye on what is going on but it will be only on an informal basis, honestly there is not much local enthusiasm for the railway south of the current railhead.