Colne Valley Railway

I'd like to see the three survivors repaired and marshalled as a (somewhat overbraked) set. Perhaps a lottery bid based on a rotating residency for the set between NNR (M&GN soc own 295) EARM (own the Boston coach) and wherever the British Enginemen's Steam Preservation Society (owns 1019 at the CVR) end up (MNR would be great). That would rival the quad arts

 

Could something like this actually have a positive effect on a loco group such as the black 5s? As their current members are unlikely to leave the society due to them having to move, not societys fault, but moving to a new location would most likely see many new members join as its now on their railway.

 

put it this way, if the CVR can set up a restoration base at County School, then throw its efforts into that and getting the track extended , how long is the running line at the CVR? and whats the distance between the MNR 's current limit of operation and County School ? when the CVR rails have to be lifted could the materials be used to start the extending of the track so that one day, hopefully when one of the black 5 steams, not only will they be celebrating that but having a working railway throughout.

 

Could we wait for more information from the society before calving up the assets of the society and all groups involved. No doubt many members of the railway are upset about the current situation and blind speculation by the forum about what is best for various locos and carriages is not helpful. Any discussions about moving will invariably take place behind closed doors, as it should. Patience is a virtue.

 

I presume you mean County School.

 

Thought this was a discussion forum?

 

Tragic news coming out of Colne but unfortunately hardly surprising. Lets hope the railway is able to survive in some form. As for the locos the line is rather small for a Black 5 and espically a Merchant Navy dont think it will to hard for them to find a new home at least.

 

And if the site owner really is giving them the proceeds from any sales of the rolling stock he owns , he is being extremely generous!

 

Looks like from the VCT site the MNR owns 9 MK1 coaches.

 

I feel distinctly uncomfortable about discussing the future of individual locos, vehicles, etc. They are other peoples property, their owners may well have plans of their own and it must seem, to them, a confounded cheek for complete strangers to be making up wish lists and fantasy train consists. Anyway, as far as we know from the SR report, the landlord has only given notice to the CVR Society and that notice has nine months to run, during which time the railway can operate normally. Moreover, at the time of the report at least one of the Black 5 owners had not been given any notice to quit and for all we know this may apply to other groups and individuals.

I think it is quite legitimate to discuss possible new locations for the CVR, in fact the Society Chairman specifically asked for help in this matter, but we should steer clear of discussing individual's private property. When/if they need advice, no doubt we shall hear.

 

If you're referring to my fantasy Great Eastern bogie consist, apologies if it caused offence. I was only trying to highlight the existence of an interesting bit of rolling stock...and then I got carried away

 

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You're forgiven! It didn't cause me any offence, but I can see how it might do so to the owners.

 

One of our volunteers, whom we share with the Colne Valley Railway, today handed me a copy of the "Halstead Gazette", the local newspaper which covers the CVRs area. which puts a little more flesh on the bones of the "Steam Railway" report.

The CVRs chairman makes it clear that the Society wish to remain on or near the line of the original, pre-grouping, Colne Valley & |Halstead Railway and that they have identified "about 25" possible sites in that area. The original line was about 19 miles long and, although it has been severed by sections that have been returned to agriculture and, in Earls Colne, Halstead and Sible Hedingham, by residential and industrial development, a quick look at Google Earth shows that a great deal of the route remains intact.

The HLF says that it is committed to "supporting the CVRPS to develop a project that will secure the future of this 150 year old community railway ( the CV&HR)" and, if the Society can find a suitable site, the lottery grant (£1.65m) will be awarded to help them. It would appear, from this, that the lottery funding is dependent on the Society retaining a direct connection with the Colne Valley.

Regarding the landlord's plans for the present site, the paper quotes a local councillor as saying that the site is contaminated and on a flood plain and he doubts that planning permission would be granted.

The site of the former station at Yeldham, west of the current CVR site and currently a footpath, has recently been cleared. West of Yeldham, a substantial length of original trackbed appears to be intact. Watch this space!

 

There is a saying " I can see through a five bar gate" which crossed my mind as I read the last post. There does seem some great hope for the CVR it seems. I am unfamiliar with the area - my forbears left Constable Country over a century ago - but I can see the need for the railway in the area,

 

I think the consideration was for a bunch of people who have have put their life and soul into the CVR and how they must be feeling at the moment - it's called having a little understanding and humanity, which may be concepts some on here struggle with!

Steven

 

That is good news as if they still have the HLF backing that will be able to give them a good kick start, and they can get the current owner to sort out the rolling stock it might be some hard work ahead of them but in the long term a blessing with a chance of a longer run as well. https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place...2!3m1!1s0x47d858064ad93e11:0x686af1b9afa24e8c

 

I went to the Colne Valley for the first time on Sunday, prompted by the ominous news about its future and a 'use it before it's gone' impulse. The approach road doesn't show it off to its best advantage - there's plenty to trigger a diatribe from that chap who's so proud of his "linear scrapyard" phrase and although I find a lot of the stock among the rusty stuff fascinating, for the casual visitor it's not the best introduction...

...however...

...once actually in the station area, I couldn't fault it. There's a lot more there than you'd expect in terms of additional attractions - the 'more than just a train ride' tag on the leaflet isn't just an empty slogan. It's really making the most of limited space to offer a variety of things to keep visitors - both casual and enthusiast - occupied and informed. And every volunteer I encountered was spot-on for friendliness and professionalism too.

Very much indebted to the chap who offered to give me a tour of the yard as well. Being able to get some better pictures and see more things was a bonus, but I also learned a huge amount from him about the stock's histories, how different locos were to drive and maintain etc. He was a brilliant advert for the people involved in railway preservation.

There was plenty going on too, with the Austerity on passenger services (both Mk1s and Pullman), and the 31 and black 03 shunting around - 31255 producing more smoke than WD190 in the process. Both sounded equally good to my ears...

I definitely left wishing everyone involved the absolute best for the future, whether that future is in the current spot or elsewhere. Sometimes you really do have the best experience from a people point of view at the smaller, lower-profile lines.

 

From the CVR's facebook page:

'We've come to an agreement with the Mr Young that subject to Heritage Lottery funding, we will purchase the running line, buildings and rolling stock from him, meaning we'll be able to stay where we are. We’re grateful to Mr Young for agreeing to sell us this land which has been the home to the Colne Valley Railway for the past 40 years'


Let's just hope they get that lottery funding.

 

And a further post:

'The volunteers at the Colne Valley Railway would like to thank everyone for their support this year. We're pleased to announce that we've been granted a one year extension on our lease which means we'll be operating next year.'