Your fantasy heritage railway

Why not just drain the resevoir? It was constructed, for Liverpool, in the teeth of the opposition of the whole of Wales and was never really needed.

Meic

 

The camerton branch.....

 

You can follow most of the old formation on google maps as it still remains.

 

I would Like the following reopened.

1. S&D
2. GCR
3. The East Lincolnshire Mainline
4. Carmarthen - Aberystwyth route.
5. Waverley Route.
6. Kings Lynn - Dereham route.
7. Hunstanton - Kings Lynn
8. Lincoln - Boston
9. Fairford & Tetbury Branches.
10. Aviemore - Forres
11. Northampton - Market Harborough
12. Rugby - Peterborough Route.
13. Rugby - Wigston (MCR)
14. Honington - Lincoln
15. Nuneaton - Coalville/ Burton Routes.
16. Peak Rail
17. All Cambrian Routes.
18. Barnstable - Ilfacombe & Padstow Routes.
19. Barnstable - Taunton.

All reopened for heritage operations or for Network Rail use.
Yes it's one thing to dream, but the reality another!

 

Bournemouth West -Wimborne- West Moors- Brokenhurst/Sailsbury

 

Only a small list then?

 

Porthmadog to Blaenau Ffestiniog in 2 foot gauge.

 

I'd go for that too

 

For me, it would have be what would have been my nearest line were it still open - the "Cuckoo Line" from Eridge to Polegate. The best scenery in East Sussex, 1 in 50 gradients and if it were still open, the prospect of daily running at least between Heathfield and Polegate - the latter in particular a town desperately in need of a railway. Of course, it would be a bit too close to the already established K&ESR and the Bluebell, but then we're talkinjg fantasy here.

Perhaps one day, when the Spa Valley are well ensconsed at Eridge, they might dream of extending down the Northen secion of this lovely line. If they could get as far as Mayfield (new station needed here as the Bypass has gouged out the original formation, leaving the old station perched high up on an embankment) that would make a most attractive destination.

 

Buckfastleigh to Ashburton. Nice terminus; shame the rails don't reach it.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/8516283.stm

Calling Heritage Railway Operators and locomotive owners, you may wish to try tapping this chap for some loose change. £56 million will buy you a state of the art Typhoon strike fighter or a whole fleet of Tornados (LNER variety that is!). As he lives in Gloucestershire I think he could pay for the Glos Warks Railway Broadway Honeybourne link and double track the whole line to boot as well as bridging the gap at Loughborough. Somebody somewhere must know this nice man. He says cars are at the top of his list; no they're not, a full size train set is! What say you? Lets face it, the begging letters are going to be flying off to him and I'm not too proud to beg where railways are involved!

 

Hooton - West Kirby in the Wirral with some Praires, Manors and an ex Birkenhead 9F and Crab (for local interest).

Knowing the cramped station sites the MPD would have to be at either Hooton or Hadlow Road (Willaston).

 

I'd also add the Mawddwy branch from Cemmaes Road on the Cambrian to Dinas Mawddwy. A 7 mile branch with a mainline connection in stunning scenery, with an array of motive power from the inappropriate (maybe an S15) to the very appropriate (the Bluebell's Dukedog).

 

Now this would be a great one - the 20-odd mile route between Hawick and Melrose on the Waverley Route, steeply graded the entire way. There are no preserved lines nearby, Melrose and Hawick are both big commuter towns and the Edinburgh-Tweedbank (just shy of Melrose) section of the route is being reinstated as a commuter route over the next few years so there could be a mainline connection. Motive power would be everything LNER (Bittern and Flying Scotsman both worked excursions over the final days of the line in the 60s) and the odd Jubilee or WD engine.

 

Since there seems to be quite a lot of love for the relatively obscure but beautiful Meon Valley railway amongst contributors to this thread, you might be interested in a little bit of news. There appears to be a fair amount of building work going on at the privately-owned Droxford Station at present, which at first glance would appear to give cause for concern for the future of this historic location with its D-Day connections.

However it would appear the current owner is in fact building a replica signalbox and platform shelter to the original designs using reclaimed materials. There is no indication that these will be for anything other than private use on a site which is not open to the public, but surely it's a heritage initiative that deserves huge praise anyway. Top man, well done.

 

Now that would have been a nice preserved line, Droxford to alton but a right headache though for station staff, imagine the confused punters, not knowing which steam hauled train to get on and the panic when it turns left at butts junction

 

Re open the Skipton Grassington branch back into Grassington or even on into Kettlewell, put a triangular junction station in place with the E&BAR. Work the Swinden quarry trains with the Embsays industrial fleet. and run the passenger service with standard 2's and 3s working push and pull A Black five (Ivatt.style caprotti rebuild) for occsnl heavier trains. Resident mainline locos: the Caprotti 5, a Brit ( a new one, with Caprotti ) 71000, and a 91xxx... add a Brick and stone built shed at Embsay or Skipton ideal for turning and servicing up the S & C...

 

The Portishead Branch

From the point of view of the south west a trip down the Avon Gorge on the Portishead branch. The docks cannot use it on sundays and the route is still metaled under the undergrowth right into Portishread town well the junction to the power station although the track terminates at portbury dock where the connection was severed . The land was put aside for the new station at Portishead and a car park , by persimmon homes but it looks like its up for sale . NSC now own the route. A nice replica GW station cannopy or something like the terminus at Morton Hampstead , Ashburton or Newquay . A 45xx or DeanGoods or a 40xxx, 80xxx or even a 14xx or auto fitted or a pannier anything DMU included.

Trains could work all the way into Templemeads platform 13 by the fish dock without crossing or using the up and down main totally segrigated.

I know NSC are involved with discussions on comuter reopening, with First but without the characture that we all remember, and the prices being quoted are mega money. With the sort of money they are quoting we could provide new build loco 4 fully refirbished MK1's and pway and freight wagons, all the stations to original designs and the track work to a high standard using local contractors.

Perhaps a preservation should be promoted by NSC and a private group to open Portishead to Portbury shipyard thats about 3 miles in authentic standard GWR and then maybe look at getting inspection cleared and feasably the reconnection. Another possibility would be a transfer platform at Portbury shipyard /dock gate until an agreement for through running was reached.

ADDITION *******

There was a piece in last nights evening post ( this is bristol ) Monday june 21 page 10 ctr " Where will station go" Donald Davies of Pill makes 3 points to try and get some action to get the line open. 1 That cycle network have taken over use of the tunnel under the M5 avon bridge and other road bridges this is a single track formationthis is unacceptable long term there should be a liscence right of way for only short tem use. There is not enough room on the formation at these pinch points for the two to co exist. 2. Is enough land allocated for the terminus at Portishead, there might be now but there won't beby the look of it( there is a proposal from LIDL to build next to it and on part of the ring fenced car park area ),and should a park and ride be provided at say east of the "villiage quarter" before the first Bristol road overbridge or at portbury shipyard where some land still exists, he describes it as Portbury Parkway.3 Possibility of a parkway in the Portbury Dock complex for a park and ride to Bristol by train using the existing freight only metals.

There is a myth within NSC that they would need to provide continuous heavy financial support to operating the line once open and this seems to be the biggest stumbling block along with their supporting "Bristol commuters" not Portishead or NSC based ones with their funding on part of the lines operation.

Yes under a large network operator that is what would happen, but if it was dual use and it was a preservation group operating a service and operating a preservation operation with the mix of motive power I think that would be a very different issue. Not many Preservation Railways get a continuous grant from their LA of £100's of thosands to keepa service running , its a strain to get even help for capital projects such as toilets from your LA, let alone running services.


Personally I recon that a preservation group based at Portishead with brains and hands on experience which many have, could do this job better than any commercial operation. Portishead has a big catchment of retired and well meaning people, generally neccessary for a preservation set up to function effectivly.All these people would like their rail connection to Bristol reinstated .

Preservationists seem to be adept at flexible working and opening doors by dialogue and agreement without the need for millions of pounds to be spent, also having input means they can take a part in their surroundings, care more about the product its athetics and archetecture in the area.

I sight Portishead open air pool as a demonstration of how the public can take a solid action, it is in its second year so far of trust control. It is not having the massive financial input from NSC now and you might say is better for it.Why do stations and railway connections need to be so different.When operators own their trains they tend to look after their assets.A private group, would yes have older DMU's butthey would supply a service at a price the community could afford most likly.