Midsomer Norton road bridge.

i have been having a conversation about the bridge north of midsomer norton station on the old s and d and was wondering if anyone on here is from the s&djr society knows how much it would cost. i think i was told 6 million to lower the road and move a gas pipe. any info would be greatly appreciated. cheers Gav

 

Taken from the "New Somerset & Dorset" Blogsite (which is not the organisation that runs the Midsomer Norton Railway project but is a "champion" for the whole S&D) :

"I am sure that the S&D will see enormous strides in 2011 and beyond. Early next year we'll be launching the Silver Street Bridge Fund, which will seek to raise the £1 million to rebuild the bridge that will link Midsomer Norton to the line down to Radstock and beyond to the network at Frome. Planning permission to rebuild Midford station will be sought and hopefully we'll start work down at Spetisbury. This is a really exciting time to be involved with the S&D! Yet just ten short years ago the whole line was in deep sleep ..."

The missing bridge is a real problem as it prevents MSN operations from moving north and naturally restricts the track options at the north end of the station. The original bridge had a fairly low clearance and so it wasn't surprising that it was removed. £1million seems a lot but there will be road lowering, drains and services work all involving other authorities I would guess. May be a pipedream but to see MSN now when compared with 10 years ago is to perhaps illustrate that the line no longer sleeps. Work is also continuing at Shillingstone of course. Others may have more detailed information than I regarding ther Silver Street Bridge specs etc.

 

In a strange way i hope they dont start a bridge appeal, because it would suggest they are as divorced from reality as the person/people pushing the 'new S&D'. I dont remember MN being touted as a starting point for a fully fledged heritage railway, for obvious reasons, so if thats now the case i cant help but wonder if it wouldnt be more sensible to finish off the station and running line and then use the income on either another section of the S&D or the mothballed Radstock branch where they will get considerably more 'bang' for their 'buck'.

Chris

 

In my last post I tried to make it clear that the quote I used came from the "person/people pushing the new S&D" not from the S&D Heritage Trust which looks after the MN site and who are currently extending the line southwards. I understand that it would be a lot easier for the MN operations if the bridge was back in anyway because it would improve the track layout for operations. Historical photos of the line at MN probably illustrate this. As I understand it, the MN operation is focussed on completing the restoration of the site and extending southwards. However, as I have said before and will say again, I thought a longer S&D was a crazy idea, now with more and more people realising that railways might be a good investment, then I'm not so sure. The Silver Street Bridge is a serious impediment to any progress northwards, rather like the Loughborough situation for the 2 GCRs. However time will tell.

 

Without wanting to be negative, just how far can the SDHT go south? Apart from the fact that they don't own much land, a look at Google Earth shows that there are limits. Is Chilcompton a possibility?

I think that one of the issues S&D supporters have to face is that their efforts are fragmented. It's probably too late for the three (perhaps more) societies to come together but it would be nice if it could be arranged.

Regards

 

i think like all things you.ll either call them crazy for trying to put the railway back and say i told you so if they fail. or if they succeed be surprised. i would love the s and d re built and doing exactly what the New s&d want to do with proper commuter and heritage like the fort William line. but weather i believe it Will happen i know not. there are a few people trying and who knows what they can achieve but i don't understand why so many people are so anti them. good luck i say.

if the bridge was re built how far is it you can get to before another bridge is needed over the road to radstock.

 

The reason is simple, if railway preservation is to continue flourishing it needs to be taken seriously (as IMO does Peak Oil) - this 'New S&D' group, whose flawed arguments are nevertheless receiving more attention than they deserve, really arent helping that, and only hurt the people who are realistic and whose aims are achievable.

Chris

 

Ok Chris, but who's ideas are realistic and achievable? The folk at Washford seem to be under threat with the WSR making noises about taking over the site and Shillingstone is too impecunious to succeed. It seems to me that the SDHT at Midsomer Norton is the only game in town.

Personally I would doubt if the bridge replacement is going to happen (and I think the same is true at Loughborough) and, in any case, the trackbed to Midford is now a public footpath and it's unlikely that a public footpath is going to be turned into a railway. So, continuing south is the more likely course for the SDHT, but how far can they go? Is Chilcompton a possibility or even Binegar?

Regards

 

This is precisely the problem with whats realistically achievable at MN - at one end of the running line is a horribly difficult and expensive bridge to replace, and the other two massive infilled cuttings - according to here getting to Chilcompton requires digging out one of 170,000 tonnes and the other a mere 40,000 tonnes.
Seeing as Imberhorne is only 100,000 its hard to be optimistic...

Chris

 

Just 100,000 tonnes, I don't think so. What about the rest?

Chris

 

After looking on google earth, am I right in saying that a second bridge in Midsomer Norton is missing? The bridge would have crossed Radstock Road.

 

Would appear so.

I was wondering what the features on the line to Chilcompton are. Now I know - filled in cuttings! Seems like the SDHT is caught in two snares here. Also the line to the second missing road bridge passes by a newish housing estate.

So its the cuttings! OMG!

Regards

 

Let's not dismiss the Guys at Midsomer as another small scheme going nowhere. They have achieved a huge amount with very slim resources. They already have obtained or are negociating leases on the trackbed upto Chilcomptom cutting infill, track is being laid as fast as resources allow. The bridge over Silver Street is a must after they have completed the track upto the infill. Better to start looking at the technical side now and make clear to all that is what they are aiming for , from what I have read it is perfectly feasible, you then have nearly two miles down to Radstock with only one further road bridge that needs reinstating before you get to a suitable station site in Radstock. Yes there are issues with Sustrans and others but the local authorities are appearing to be more sympathetic. Then you have 3 miles of the S and D up and running, the infill could then be tackled after that the trackbed is fairly clear to not far off Shepton Mallet. Yes even getting over Silver Street and to Radstock is going to cost a lot of money.
From little acorns big oak trees grow.
Give these Guys your support and it can happen.It is the Somerset and Dorset we are talking about.

 

Hear, hear. I'm very impressed with them and have become a life member. Their magazine is one of the best in preservation, being produced by someone in the publishing business, and it's obvious they really want to capture the look and feel of the SDJR. When I sent them a donation recently I received a thank you 'phone call from a trustee - that's the way to make friends.

Dave

 

I also am a member of the Midsomer Norton group (not a life member yet) and I too am impressed with what they have done so far. Once the southern extension to Chilcompton is complete there will be a (small) piece of the real S&D up and running. We are used to the WSR, NYMR etc and many heritage lines are now, thankfully well established but the MN operation is still relatively new. Several railways run "S&D" themed events - this one can and will do it for real! Support it.

 

Potentially how many miles of track could they have before the challenges become realistically too expensive to overcome ?

 

that depends on what you think is unrealistic. if you think the road bridge is unrealistic then the other way its the infilled cutting and up to that point is about a mile. does anyone know how much it would cost to remove the infill. i do believe that the mile there doing tho will be double track. so that will be interesting. where are they building there engine shed? i heard they are building one.

 

The cost of removing the infill will largely depend on the type of rubbish deposited in the cutting whether it is just household waste or industrial or both, I suspect however it would probably be classed as contaminated waste. As a guide the cost of the Bluebell's waste removal alone will be several millions .They should easily be able to get back to Radstock for considerably less than the cost of removing the infill.
The plans for the shed are to the west side of the station, basically behind the signal box but further south. Leases permissions etc etc are needed though.

 

Its only money after all.

Here's how to put a railway bridge in over Christmas! In this case its the Nottingham-Grantham Line at Bingham where the A46 is being dualled. (Only 23 years late - but only survived the 2010 cuts I believe because work was already underway.) Trains will cease from 2030 tonight until later on 28 Dec.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-12073824

I don't know how much this is costing by the way but we are paying. I might go down and have a look.

 

Bridge 30 on the NYMR was replaced earlier this year for £650K, admittedly single track and using existing abutments but 28m in length and at a very remote and inaccessible location .The Silver street bridge at Midsomer Norton would probably only need to be a 12m span so it should be capapble of being replaced including abbutments road alterations etc for a lot less than a million pounds.