Portishead Railway
Encyclopedia
The Portishead Railway was a branch line railway running from Portishead
in Somerset
to the Great Western Main Line
in Bristol
, England. It was constructed in the 1860s by the Bristol & Portishead Pier and Railway, which was incorporated to build a pier
and a 10 miles (16.1 km) broad gauge
link to the Bristol and Exeter Railway
at Bedminster Down. The line closed to passenger traffic in 1964 and freight in 1981. The line was rebuilt and reopened in 2002 for freight trains only from the junction with the Bristol to Taunton Line at Parson Street
to the Royal Portbury Dock
s, via a new spur built in 2000/2.
's Great Western Railway
(GWR) took over the Bristol and Exeter Railway and operated the Bristol & Portishead Pier & Railway for 40 percent of the receipts.
On 1 July 1885 the GWR bought the Portishead Railway and it became a branch line of the GWR to serve the pier and dock at Portishead, from which Brunel's steamships sailed to North America. In 1880 it was converted from the GWR's broad gauge to standard gauge
. Passenger services were discontinued in 1964 as part of the Beeching Axe
, and freight was discontinued in 1981, but the railway was not dismantled.
In 1985 a series of steam excursions ran along the line as part of the "GW150" celebrations. This is thought to be the last commercial use before the line was rebuilt.
The railway branches from the mainline at Parson Street Station
in south Bristol and runs north along the south west bank of the River Avon
. Ashton junction is where a former line across the river and into Bristol Harbour
curved off. (On the opposite bank is CREATE Centre platform served by the Bristol Harbour Railway, with the former rail bridge now a walk way.) On the North The first station was Ashton Gate
, opened 1906, followed by Clifton
Bridge, half a mile south of the Clifton Suspension Bridge
, near the Cumberland Basin and modern Brunel Way road. In the Avon Gorge
the railway runs through a short tunnel where the Clifton Suspension Bridge runs overhead. In 1928 a halt was opened at Nightingale Valley, a footpath which leads up to the Leigh Woods
suburb of Bristol, but this was closed four years later. The railway then crosses the flood plains south of the Avon estuary on an embankment, passes through another short tunnel and across a viaduct at Pill
. Ham Green Halt, serving a now demolished hospital just east of Pill, opened in 1926. There were then stations at Pill, and Portbury
. From there the line then runs west to Portishead
.
In the 1920s a second Portishead Station was built to serve a planned shipyard, though this was never built and the station soon closed. In 1954 the original Portishead station was demolished, to provide space for the second Portishead power station
, and a new station constructed in a new location, lasting only a decade before the line stopped carrying passengers.
A new junction has been created from which the line to the Royal Portbury Dock
leads off.
to transport freight, at a cost of £21 million. The guests for the official opening ceremony were taken from Parson Street railway station
to Portbury on a train hauled by Bristol Industrial Museum
's Portbury locomotive on 21 December.
Local politicians and organisations have been campaigning to have the remaining 3.3 miles (5.3 km) repaired and a new station constructed at Portishead. A campaign group is aimed at reopening the station and the short stretch of unopened line. The coastal town largely serves as a dormitory town for Bristol
workers, and the main route into the city, a single carriageway, the A369, is often unable to cope with the volume of commuter traffic. When current construction work is completed Portishead will be the largest settlement in the country without a link to the rail network. The Department for Transport
currently does not support the proposals, estimating the costs to be too high at £17 million, and because of scheduling complications due to its use by freight trains. The 2006-2011 Joint Local Transport Plan
reserves £1 million for the project. In January 2009, it was announced that Network Rail
is to carry out a feasibility study on re-opening the line.
First Great Western
are to run a test train on the line in September 2011.
and Freightliner services. The major freight flows along the line are bulk coal and newly delivered vehicles. All services are operated by class 66
locomotives.
Portishead, Somerset
Portishead is a coastal town on the Severn Estuary within the unitary authority of North Somerset, which falls within the ceremonial county of Somerset England. It has a population of 22,000, an increase of over 3,000 since the 2001 census, with a growth rate of 40 per cent, considerably in excess...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
to the Great Western Main Line
Great Western Main Line
The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in Great Britain that runs westwards from London Paddington station to the west of England and South Wales. The core Great Western Main Line runs from London Paddington to Temple Meads railway station in Bristol. A major branch of the Great...
in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, England. It was constructed in the 1860s by the Bristol & Portishead Pier and Railway, which was incorporated to build a pier
Pier
A pier is a raised structure, including bridge and building supports and walkways, over water, typically supported by widely spread piles or pillars...
and a 10 miles (16.1 km) broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
link to the Bristol and Exeter Railway
Bristol and Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...
at Bedminster Down. The line closed to passenger traffic in 1964 and freight in 1981. The line was rebuilt and reopened in 2002 for freight trains only from the junction with the Bristol to Taunton Line at Parson Street
Parson Street railway station
Parson Street railway station serves the western end of Bedminster in Bristol, England. It also serves other surrounding suburbs including Bishopsworth and Ashton Gate, along with Bristol City FC.-History:...
to the Royal Portbury Dock
Royal Portbury Dock
The Royal Portbury Dock is part of the Port of Bristol, in England. It is situated near the village of Portbury on the southern side of the mouth of the Avon, where the river joins the Severn estuary — the Avonmouth Docks are on the opposite side of the Avon, within Avonmouth...
s, via a new spur built in 2000/2.
History
The line opened on 12 July 1867 and was extended to the docks on 5 July 1879. In 1876 Isambard Kingdom BrunelIsambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
's Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
(GWR) took over the Bristol and Exeter Railway and operated the Bristol & Portishead Pier & Railway for 40 percent of the receipts.
On 1 July 1885 the GWR bought the Portishead Railway and it became a branch line of the GWR to serve the pier and dock at Portishead, from which Brunel's steamships sailed to North America. In 1880 it was converted from the GWR's broad gauge to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
. Passenger services were discontinued in 1964 as part of the Beeching Axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, and freight was discontinued in 1981, but the railway was not dismantled.
In 1985 a series of steam excursions ran along the line as part of the "GW150" celebrations. This is thought to be the last commercial use before the line was rebuilt.
The route
Parson Street railway station
Parson Street railway station serves the western end of Bedminster in Bristol, England. It also serves other surrounding suburbs including Bishopsworth and Ashton Gate, along with Bristol City FC.-History:...
in south Bristol and runs north along the south west bank of the River Avon
River Avon, Bristol
The River Avon is an English river in the south west of the country. To distinguish it from a number of other River Avons in Britain, this river is often also known as the Lower Avon or Bristol Avon...
. Ashton junction is where a former line across the river and into Bristol Harbour
Bristol Harbour
Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It has existed since the 13th century but was developed into its current form in the early 19th century by installing lock gates on a tidal stretch of the River Avon in the centre of the city and...
curved off. (On the opposite bank is CREATE Centre platform served by the Bristol Harbour Railway, with the former rail bridge now a walk way.) On the North The first station was Ashton Gate
Ashton Gate railway station
Ashton Gate railway station was a railway station serving an area of Bristol, England, which included Ashton Gate football ground, the home ground of Bristol City F.C.. It was located on the Portishead Railway.-History:...
, opened 1906, followed by Clifton
Clifton, Bristol
Clifton is a suburb of the City of Bristol in England, and the name of both one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells...
Bridge, half a mile south of the Clifton Suspension Bridge
Clifton Suspension Bridge
Brunel died in 1859, without seeing the completion of the bridge. Brunel's colleagues in the Institution of Civil Engineers felt that completion of the Bridge would be a fitting memorial, and started to raise new funds...
, near the Cumberland Basin and modern Brunel Way road. In the Avon Gorge
Avon Gorge
The Avon Gorge is a 1.5-mile long gorge on the River Avon in Bristol, England. The gorge runs south to north through a limestone ridge west of Bristol city centre, and about 3 miles from the mouth of the river at Avonmouth. The gorge forms the boundary between the unitary authorities of...
the railway runs through a short tunnel where the Clifton Suspension Bridge runs overhead. In 1928 a halt was opened at Nightingale Valley, a footpath which leads up to the Leigh Woods
Leigh Woods
Leigh Woods is a 2 square kilometre area of woodland on the south-west side of the Avon Gorge, opposite the English city of Bristol and north of the Ashton Court estate. It has been designated as a National Nature Reserve. Small mountain biking circuits are present in the woods and the area is a...
suburb of Bristol, but this was closed four years later. The railway then crosses the flood plains south of the Avon estuary on an embankment, passes through another short tunnel and across a viaduct at Pill
Pill, North Somerset
Pill is a village in North Somerset. It is situated on the southern bank of the Avon. Pill now includes Ham Green and is adjacent to the village of Easton-in-Gordano...
. Ham Green Halt, serving a now demolished hospital just east of Pill, opened in 1926. There were then stations at Pill, and Portbury
Portbury
Portbury is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England within the Unitary Authority of North Somerset.The parish includes the hamlet of Sheepway which is situated on the moorland at the northern edge of the Gordano valley, between the Gordano services on the M5 motorway and Portishead, near...
. From there the line then runs west to Portishead
Portishead railway station
Portishead railway station was opened by the Bristol and Portishead Pier and Railway in 1867; it was approximately from the village of Portishead. After the opening of the Pier in 1870, the line was extended with an additional railway station opened by the pier...
.
In the 1920s a second Portishead Station was built to serve a planned shipyard, though this was never built and the station soon closed. In 1954 the original Portishead station was demolished, to provide space for the second Portishead power station
Portishead power station
Portishead Power Station refers to a series of two coal and oil-fired power stations. They were built in the dock area of Portishead in Somerset, South West England....
, and a new station constructed in a new location, lasting only a decade before the line stopped carrying passengers.
A new junction has been created from which the line to the Royal Portbury Dock
Royal Portbury Dock
The Royal Portbury Dock is part of the Port of Bristol, in England. It is situated near the village of Portbury on the southern side of the mouth of the Avon, where the river joins the Severn estuary — the Avonmouth Docks are on the opposite side of the Avon, within Avonmouth...
leads off.
Reopening of the line
During 2000 and 2001 the railway was rebuilt as far as Pill, and a short spur constructed to the Royal Portbury DockRoyal Portbury Dock
The Royal Portbury Dock is part of the Port of Bristol, in England. It is situated near the village of Portbury on the southern side of the mouth of the Avon, where the river joins the Severn estuary — the Avonmouth Docks are on the opposite side of the Avon, within Avonmouth...
to transport freight, at a cost of £21 million. The guests for the official opening ceremony were taken from Parson Street railway station
Parson Street railway station
Parson Street railway station serves the western end of Bedminster in Bristol, England. It also serves other surrounding suburbs including Bishopsworth and Ashton Gate, along with Bristol City FC.-History:...
to Portbury on a train hauled by Bristol Industrial Museum
Bristol Industrial Museum
The Bristol Industrial Museum was a museum in Bristol, England, located on Prince's Wharf beside the Floating Harbour, and which closed in 2006. On display were items from Bristol's industrial past – including aviation, car and bus manufacture, and printing – and exhibits documenting Bristol's...
's Portbury locomotive on 21 December.
Local politicians and organisations have been campaigning to have the remaining 3.3 miles (5.3 km) repaired and a new station constructed at Portishead. A campaign group is aimed at reopening the station and the short stretch of unopened line. The coastal town largely serves as a dormitory town for Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
workers, and the main route into the city, a single carriageway, the A369, is often unable to cope with the volume of commuter traffic. When current construction work is completed Portishead will be the largest settlement in the country without a link to the rail network. The Department for Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
currently does not support the proposals, estimating the costs to be too high at £17 million, and because of scheduling complications due to its use by freight trains. The 2006-2011 Joint Local Transport Plan
Local Transport Plan
Local transport plans, divided into full local transport plans and local implementation plans for transport are an important part of transport planning in England...
reserves £1 million for the project. In January 2009, it was announced that Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
is to carry out a feasibility study on re-opening the line.
First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
are to run a test train on the line in September 2011.
Current operations
The route is currently served by both DB SchenkerDB Schenker Rail (UK)
DB Schenker Rail , before 2009 known as English, Welsh and Scottish Railway is a British rail freight company. EWS was established by a consortium led by Wisconsin Central Transportation Corporation in 1996 by acquisition of five of the six freight companies created by the privatisation of British...
and Freightliner services. The major freight flows along the line are bulk coal and newly delivered vehicles. All services are operated by class 66
British Rail Class 66
The Class 66 is a six axle diesel electric freight locomotive developed in part from the British Rail Class 59, for use on the railways of the UK. Since its introduction the class has been successful and has been sold to British and other European railway companies...
locomotives.
Sources
- Awdry, ChristopherChristopher AwdryChristopher Awdry is an English author best known for his contributions to The Railway Series of books featuring Thomas the Tank Engine, which was started by his father, the Rev. W. Awdry. He has also produced children's books based on a number of other railways, as well as non-fiction articles...
, (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. London: Guild Publishing. - Portishead Railway Group, 2006. "History of the Portishead Railway." Accessed 2006-04-15.
- Transcript of House of Commons debate on reopening the railway, 24 January 2005
- Local Transport Plan (Ch 3, P 51)]