Abandoned lines least likely to be reinstated.

[Falcon1200]

Didcot to Newbury always was, I believe, double track. Considerable chunks south of Newbury were drastically upgraded in 1942-3, including some double line sections, in preparation for D-Day, when it was a massively important transport link.

Didcot/Newbury was not always double track, it was doubled during WW2. South of Newbury the only double track section was the first part from Enborne Junction to Woodhay, although loops beyond there were extended during WW2.

 

[Irascible]

Not just the French, it seems. Whereas in the UK we just couldn't wait to tear up the track and build an industrial estate and a housing estate over the line to prevent it ever being re-opened, in the USA they generally just close the line; that means, one day the just stop running trains on it, and abandon it'
Railkarting - and trips with converted golf buggies - are popular with rail riders. Great idea - and if circumstances change in 20-30-50 years the line can be relaid and strengthened (obviously) and used again.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 29 Mar 2023 ==

The GC main line perhaps? They could alwaays brand it as HS3....................

Something similar is public transport in part of Cambodia, iirc.

We'll build houses on anything that's already been built on once, I presume there's less planning loopholes. Hence rapid destruction of anything that was once an airfield, too, no matter what the current occupants are doing with it.

 

[yorksrob]

Boris Johnson seemed to have a vision of a rail bridge or tunnel to Northern Ireland, apparently with reinstated trains running from Carlisle to the Portpatrick area. Acquaintance with an OS map should have shown how far it was to go, and the roads that have been built on the old track bed. My grandfather used to take a boat train from Newcastle 100 years ago. Following in his footsteps to trace Irish roots I can confirm that improvements to the A75 are more important - and it's a very long way from the M6/A74(M).

I'd be satisfied with the Stranrear line having a secure future.

 

[Killingworth]

I'd be satisfied with the Stranrear line having a secure future.

It's a long drag from anywhere to get there.

 

[zwk500]

Boris Johnson seemed to have a vision of a rail bridge or tunnel to Northern Ireland, apparently with reinstated trains running from Carlisle to the Portpatrick area. Acquaintance with an OS map should have shown how far it was to go, and the roads that have been built on the old track bed. My grandfather used to take a boat train from Newcastle 100 years ago. Following in his footsteps to trace Irish roots I can confirm that improvements to the A75 are more important - and it's a very long way from the M6/A74(M).

A relatively cursory look at Boris Johnson's record will show a liturgy of grandiose infrastructure proposals that are wildly optimistic and have absolutely zero chance of every happening, yet because he gets elected people are forced to entertain him for a while.
Grain Airport, London Garden Bridge, Irish Bridge, Isle of Mann Tunnel, etc. The Emirates Air Line is perhaps the only one you can credit him with and even that is a financial basket case. HS2, Crossrail, London Bike Hire were all in development long before Johnson tried to claim any credit for them.

I'd be satisfied with the Stranrear line having a secure future.

You'll be needing about 15,000 to want to move to the far corner of SW Scotland then, or persuade P&O and Stena Line to move their ferry terminal back. If the UK could actually run integrated buses I think the line would look even shakier than it does. And even so it's mainly political emotions that are keeping the line open - it doesn't even generate enough traffic to justify investment in cheaper operating practices.

 

[DJ_K666]

Not just the French, it seems. Whereas in the UK we just couldn't wait to tear up the track and build an industrial estate and a housing estate over the line to prevent it ever being re-opened, in the USA they generally just close the line; that means, one day the just stop running trains on it, and abandon it'
Railkarting - and trips with converted golf buggies - are popular with rail riders. Great idea - and if circumstances change in 20-30-50 years the line can be relaid and strengthened (obviously) and used again.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 29 Mar 2023 ==

The GC main line perhaps? They could alwaays brand it as HS3....................

Yep could do. I reckon that's a topic in itself although I do think there was a mini rail bus (think VW camper but built for railways) that would be excellent for doing that in.

I think there was one in the US where they couldn't go one way due to a live firing range so they went the other and found an engine shed.

 

[Irascible]

Perhaps someone can go clear the Radstock line & promote that as a rail-buggy route ( although probably pedal powered here ), it's some pretty nice countryside at least.

 

[Dave S 56F]

The ex G.N. railway from Grimsby to Skegness wouldn't get much chance to reopen and the Mablethorpe loop (although the lincolnshore wolds heritage railway are attempting to reopen north Thoresby to a new station near Louth) despite there not been any railways in that blackspot of Lincolnshire when beeching dropped his axe.

 

[YorksLad12]

Pontefract Monkhill to Pontefract Baghill. Part of the curve has been built over. What's left of the Dearne Valley Line service (if trains were running!) could then divert via Castleford between Sherburn and Pontefract.

 

[Falcon1200]

The Lanarkshire & Ayrshire Railway beyond Neilston to Kilwinning and Ardrossan, a line built solely to take traffic from another company's existing route, and serving nowhere of any significance which did not already have a railway (a bit like the Great Central's London extension.....)

 

[Ken H]

Severn Bridge Railway which ran from Lydney to Sharpness including a bridge over the river Severn. Closed 1960 because the bridge collapsed after 2 barges ran into it in the fog.

This just came up on a non rail blog

Link to movie about Sharpness rail bridge

 

[DJ_K666]

Perhaps someone can go clear the Radstock line & promote that as a rail-buggy route ( although probably pedal powered here ), it's some pretty nice countryside at least.

They call that 'Velorail' using what I'm fairly sure are called Draisines (?) Butvyesxamotorised railkart could easily be used. Hopefully they'd keep thecdkeletal wagon remains from the failed heritage project there.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

It keeps getting proposed but the Aberystwyth - Carmarthen line is highly unlikely ever to be rebuilt, and I have now seen a proposal to reopen the Cambrian from Moat Lane Junction, south of Newtown, Powys, to South Wales, which is even more preposterous.

In the local Welsh media recently , that the Professor Stuart Cole has said that there is no chance of the re-opening (in his view) of Carmarthen to Aberystwyth for around 40 years , this I believe in an open forum. In my view - 40 years equates to "never".......

Maybe the frequent calls for this may well now be quietened down. We shall see.

'No chance' of rail link between Carmarthen and Aberystwyth being restored in next 40 years, councillors told

Bruce Sinclair, local democracy reporter Hopes of a reinstated railway line directly linking Carmarthen to Aberystwyth are unlikely to reach fruition in the next 30 or 40 years, Ceredigion councillors have been told. Re-opening the Aberystwyth-Carmarthen rail line has long been a call shared by...

nation.cymru

 

[D365]

Tell you what, the woodhead line would have been a great one to go railkarting on back in the 80s while the track was still down. I think the French have the right idea...

I had this exact thought while on the railtour last Saturday.

 

[richard_S]

ChiefPlanner it could happen. It could be done in stages, Stage 1 could be a short line to the east side of Chilwilog with a new station there. Then the route then could be Criccieth---Chilwilog---Penychain. Stage 2 in later years the line could be extended further north to Penygroes and so on. Doing it this way would spread the cost over several years. But the line speed along the coast needs improving. The line between Porthmadog and Penychain needs doubling. If the section allong the sea to the east of Criccieth were raised by about 2 meters the 2 user worked occupation crossings could be closed and routed under the line also the 2 level crossings at Criccieth could be closed and replaced with footbridges. This would help to increase the line speeds there. At Criccieth the remains of the second platform still exist see here https://goo.gl/maps/ckFBGPcbz3Awaij38

​

​

 

[Cheshire Scot]

Stirling to Balloch

Ballinliug to Aberfeldy

Dunblane to Crianlarich

Connel Ferry to Ballachulish

Elgin to Lossiemouth

Elgin to Cairnie junction via the coast

Elgin to Dufftown

Boat of Garten via Grantown on Spey East to Craigellachie (was parallel single lines to the point of divergence with what is now the Strathspey Railway)

Grantown on Spey West to Forres

Balloch ('new') to Balloch Central and on to Balloch Pier

Luncart to Bankfoot

Macclesfield to Rose Hill

I could go on.......................
and on................
and on.....
but will leave some scope for others - and let some consult their atlases for some of the above..

 

[daodao]

Macclesfield to Rose Hill

If reopened, the Bollington Bug (a railcar shuttle to/from Macclesfield) could be reinstated! Bollington (a former mill town) had a population of 8,685 at the 2021 census.

 

[D6130]

Larkhall-Stonehouse-Coalburn

Larkhall-Tillietudlem-Lesmahagow

Stonehouse-Strathaven-Darvel-Hurlford

Lanark-Muirkirk-Auchinleck

Muirkirk-Cumnock-Annbank

Ayr-Turnberry-Girvan

I too could go on and on....but I've left my rail atlas a thousand miles away in Yorkshire!

 

[Bevan Price]

As I have commented several times elsewhere, the fact that a trackbed has been built over is - apart from cost - a relatively minor problem - if something is decided to be in the national interest.

However, with our Ministry for Roads (a.k.a the treasury + DfT), that is only likely to happen when they want to build a motorway. So probably 99% of closed lines have very little chance of ever reopening. (Maybe only 90% in Scotland)

 

[Matey]

Okehampton to Tavistock! Still a pipe dream for many.

 

[Cheshire Scot]

If reopened, the Bollington Bug (a railcar shuttle to/from Macclesfield) could be reinstated! Bollington (a former mill town) had a population of 8,685 at the 2021 census.

Just the small problem of the 'Silk Road' dual carriageway in the way with the former trackbed under it!

 

[Irascible]

Okehampton to Tavistock! Still a pipe dream for many.

However shaky the case is, there's less likely projects just in Devon ( or the nearest bit of Somerset ) - Barnstaple-Taunton is even more useless & half under the appalling link road ( appalling in design & build rather than purpose, let's be clear ).

 

[richard_S]

Rhyl to Corwen.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 23 Apr 2023 ==

The line from Rhyl to Corwen along with the line from Denbigh via Mold to Pen-y-ffordd.

 

[LOL The Irony]

The only fully abandoned line right now with any future that I know of is the Fleetwood branch.

If reopened, the Bollington Bug (a railcar shuttle to/from Macclesfield) could be reinstated! Bollington (a former mill town) had a population of 8,685 at the 2021 census.

You'd have to be at the far end of radical urbanist to even consider this idea.

 

[richard_S]

Rhyl to Corwen has me thinking is St Asaph the only city in the UK not to have a rail connection??? So there is a chance part of the line could reopen.

 

[zwk500]

Rhyl to Corwen has me thinking is St Asaph the only city in the UK not to have a rail connection??? So there is a chance part of the line could reopen.

Armagh, Ripon, St Davids, and Wells all don't have stations as well. And the designation of a settlement as a City will have no bearing whatsoever on the provision of a rail connection, given how arbitrary and largely ceremonial such a designation is. St Asaph has 3,500 people. There are bigger villages with stronger business cases for lines elsewhere.

 

[47434]

Colne-Skipton

Don't tell SELRAP they will go into meltdown. But yes, wholly agree.

 

[TPO]

It keeps getting proposed but the Aberystwyth - Carmarthen line is highly unlikely ever to be rebuilt, and I have now seen a proposal to reopen the Cambrian from Moat Lane Junction, south of Newtown, Powys, to South Wales, which is even more preposterous.

Indeed. The A470 runs along the old alignment in parts, and I think there's an "infilled" bridge between Erwood and Boughrood.

The North British from Morpeth up to Riccarton, especially the Rothbury Branch, that is unless sheep start commuting! Was a basket case and while Rothbury was a decent-ish settlement all the other stations served a couple of farms.

Is that the line that runs past Kielder (now flooded by Kielder reservoir)?

Quite a few in South Wales...Trefforest-Tonteg-Llantrisant and Tonteg-Efailsaf-Barry aren't ever going to come back.

There was also a line from Cardiff via Rhydyfelen to Pontypridd that only saw one train, before GWR sued the company...? That's not coming back either.

Aye well the line from Barry to Creigau via Wenvoe has (a) the council depot by Wenvoe tunnel mouth, (b) the tunnel itself, (c) The A4232 built on some of the alignment and (d) some building on it at the Creigau end. Similarly, the line that connected the Valleys lines along the top is now much buried under the Heads of the Valleys Road and the line to Monmouth is similarly buried under the A40 road in places. As you say, quite a few in South Wales; not just core Valleys but also further out, e.g. Afan valley, Garw Valley, Ogmore Valley, although those lines now mainly have cycleways on not roads.

TPO

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Huddersfield to kirkburton. Huddersfield to Holmfirth.

As an addendum to my response to this opening post:- as I mentioned in my previous reply one of the big hindrances to Holmfirth is the missing viaduct between Brockholes and Thongsbridge. In a cruel twist of irony, the Kirkburton branch (which was an absolute basket case) has a surviving viaduct near Lepton!

 

[CEN60]

Larkhall-Stonehouse-Coalburn

Larkhall-Tillietudlem-Lesmahagow

Stonehouse-Strathaven-Darvel-Hurlford

Lanark-Muirkirk-Auchinleck

Muirkirk-Cumnock-Annbank

Ayr-Turnberry-Girvan

I too could go on and on....but I've left my rail atlas a thousand miles away in Yorkshire!

FYI - the original Very Large Paper File in the Regional Civil Engineer's Office relating to the Larkhall Branch Reopening back in the days of BR (circa 1990) actually said Stonehouse Branch Reopening on the front of it - but as I recall that was bombed out early doors because of the state of disrepair of a large viaduct (sorry cant remember which one) - the thought at the time was it would cost more just to repair the viaduct than it would just to reopen the line and stop at Larkhall.