Wye Valley Railway
Encyclopedia
The Wye Valley Railway was a standard gauge
railway that ran for nearly 15 miles (24.1 km) between Chepstow
and Monmouth
along the lower part of the scenic Wye Valley
in Monmouthshire
, Wales
, and Gloucestershire
, England
. It followed the route of the River Wye
for most of its length. The line opened on 1 November 1876 as an independent company but was financially unsuccessful and amalgamated with the Great Western Railway
in 1905. The GWR ran the line until the Transport Act 1947
, which nationalised the railways of Britain. From then, it was operated by British Rail
until its closure to goods traffic in 1964; passenger traffic was withdrawn before that date on 5 January 1959. The southern section of the railway between Tintern Quarry
and Wye Valley Junction remained open until 1981, when operation was then cut back to Dayhouse Quarry, (near Tidenham Station
). This remained used for quarry traffic until the early 1990s.
in 1866 due to many railway companies taking out loans and not paying them back. The business was in a debt of 11 million pounds when it collapsed (equivalent to £828 million in 2003).
The southern part of the line, between Chepstow and Tintern
, was particularly complex in engineering terms, requiring a long tunnel of 1188 yards at Tidenham
, a stretch along a steep hillside above the River Wye
, and a second short tunnel and bridge at Tintern. Evangelical services were organised during the construction of the line at Woodcroft
and Tidenham, partly in an attempt to combat drunkenness among the labourers building the railway. North of Tintern the line followed the valley bottom, with a bridge over the river at Penallt
. Outside Monmouth, the line used an existing viaduct across the river which had been built in 1861 by engineer Joseph Firbank to carry the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway. On 18 November 1875, during the construction of the line, a landslide occurred near Redbrook
, the event was reported in one of the columns in the next days Times
, this event led to serious doubts about the railway's future.
The railway was opened on 1 November 1876, from Wye Valley Junction near Chepstow, on the main line
between Gloucester
and Newport
, to Monmouth Troy which was then one of Monmouth's two stations. Here passengers could change for Pontypool
(along the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway
), Ross-on-Wye
(along the Ross and Monmouth Railway
) and Coleford
(along the Coleford Railway
). Trains stopped at the intervening stations on the line, Tidenham
, Tintern
, Bigsweir
(later renamed St Briavels), and Redbrook
as well as Chepstow
, Tutshill Halt for Beachley
and Monmouth Troy
which were constructed by different companies. Tintern Station was the largest station after Monmouth Troy Station; it had an island platform in the centre of the station.
The line was intended to serve both tourist traffic and freight, such as those visiting Tintern Abbey
, and also the limestone quarries, paper mills and metal works in the Wye Valley. Although constructed by the Wye Valley Railway Company, the line was operated from the outset by the Great Western Railway. It was not financially successful, and in 1905 the Wye Valley Railway Company was bought by the GWR. The Wye Valley Railway had been bankrupt more than once during its short life as an independent company and GWR's purchase of the line may well have been inevitable. The GWR added several halts along the line, at Netherhope Halt
(1932), Brockweir Halt
(1929), Llandogo
(1927), Whitebrook Halt
(1927), Penallt Halt
(1931), and Wyesham
(1931). Penallt Halt and Redbrook Station became the closest stations on the line with only a viaduct over the River Wye separating them.
In the inter-war period, there were about five trains in each direction each day, and popular excursion trains were also run to Tintern, particularly to see the harvest moon
through the abbey windows. Redbrook Station became nationally noted for its floral displays. However, after a long decline in revenue associated with the growth of motor traffic, the line closed to passengers in 1959, four years before the national Beeching cuts
. The last ever passenger train was a special service run by the Stephenson Locomotive Society
. It was hauled by two GWR Pannier Tanks, class 6400
. They were numbers 6439 and 6412 (see Today's Remnants). The train ran all the way along the branch from Chepstow to Monmouth, from there it ran along the Ross and Monmouth Railway (which was also closed at the same time), to Ross-on-Wye. The special service was the only known train to make the route in one single journey. The railway closed to general goods traffic between Monmouth and Tintern Quarry in 1964. Several railtour
s ran by enthusiasts were held through Tidenham tunnel in the 1970s, one of the last of these in 1978, the Tintern Totter was hauled by a Class 20: D8098. The engine has survived into preservation and is owned by the Type One Locomotive Company. The section to Tintern Quarry closed in 1981, there were three special services to the site of Tidenham Station in the 1980s, then the rest of the line was abandoned when Tidenham Quarry closed in the 1990s.
The branch started at Chepstow station on the west side of the River Wye. It followed the route of the South Wales Railway
(now Gloucester to Newport Line
) over the River Wye on the Chepstow Railway Bridge to Tutshill Halt a small request stop
serving the village of Tutshill
. The WVR left the main line at the Wye Valley Junction and headed up on an embankment to Tidenham, the first station on the line. It was also the first station on the line to be closed, temporarily to release staff during World War I
; it was then re-opened in 1918. Tidenham station remained open until the closure of the line to passenger services in 1959, by which time it had been demoted to a halt.
Just outside the south portal of Tidenham tunnel was Netherhope Halt this was the last halt to be constructed on the line before it was closed to passenger services in 1959. The line then headed into Tidenham tunnel (1190 yards) - the twenty-first longest tunnel
on the Great Western Railway at its time. The line ran along the east side of the Wye, passing Tintern Quarry. It then went through the smaller Tintern tunnel, (182 yards) and crossed back to the west bank of the River Wye before coming to Tintern Station.
Tintern was the largest station on the line. This was because the Wye Valley Railway Company hoped to generate much income via the tourists visiting the famous Tintern Abbey
. The line came to Brockweir Halt, followed by Llandogo Halt which was the smallest stop on the whole railway. The railway followed the course of the west bank of the River Wye to St Briavels Station which was named Bigsweir
station upon opening and re-named St Briavels
& Llandogo
in 1909 and then simply St Briavels from 1927 in anticipation of the opening of Llandogo Halt.
Journeying along the line the train would come to Whitebrook Halt, then Penallt Halt. Penallt Viaduct
carried the railway over the River Wye again and onto the east side of the river before reaching Redbrook on Wye Station. This station won numerous prizes for its flower displays and became renown throughout the valley. Wyesham Halt was the last stop before Monmouth Troy. The section between Wyesham and Monmouth involved crossing the Wye one last time by a large viaduct that was built by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway in 1857 as part of their plans to expand into the Forest of Dean
and to Coleford. Monmouth Troy Station was also constructed by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway.
Monmouth Troy was on the west bank of the river and consisted of two platforms, a typical GWR footbridge, station building, separate cafe building and a large goods yard
. It was here that the Wye Valley Railway met the Ross and Monmouth Railway and Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway
All of the original stations on the line, Tidenham, Tintern, St Briavels and Redbrook had some kind of loop
for trains to pass each other. Tintern, St Briavels and Redbrook stations were the only stations apart from Monmouth Troy and Chepstow to have facilities for unloading freight trains.
works at the village of Tintern. It was opened in 1874 although it was officially opened in 1876 due to the fact that the branch was completed before the Wye Valley Line which it branched off from. The short line became known as the Wireworks Branch even though by the time the branch had opened the wireworks it was meant to serve had gone out of business. It struggled on until 1935 when the rails buckled in the heat of summer. The tracks remained mostly dormant until 1941 when they were sent for use on the railways of the Western Front
of World War II
, but were sunk in transit across the English Channel
.
soon after closure, however the short stretch between Whitecliff Quarry and Coleford remained open until 1976 for freight traffic. The operation of this section was passed to the Severn and Wye Railway
. The goods shed was converted into a museum (the Coleford Great Western Railway Museum
) on the railways of the Forest of Dean and the Great Western Railway.
Many things remain of the WVR. The rails between Wye Valley Junction and the north portal of Tidenham tunnel are largely intact, but the rails have been lifted for the remainder of track. Three former railway bridges across the River Wye are still standing, Penallt Viaduct, which now carries a footpath between Redbrook and Penallt
, the Wireworks Branch bridge, also a footpath and the impressive 21 - arch viaduct at Monmouth, which carried the railway over the river, is still in place though the central metal section has been removed and it is inaccessible to pedestrians. The station building and goods shed at St Briavels Station are still mainly intact.
Tintern Station has been re-named 'The Old Station Tintern' and is now a popular picnic site and base for short walks with a permanent exhibition of the history of the line. The Wye Valley Walk
passes through the site and paved footpaths extend to nearby Tintern and Brockweir
. It won the Green Flag Award
in 2009. In 2010, the old carriages were replaced with new refurbished ones, which now hold the 'Destination Wye Valley' exhibition as part of the £2.8m Heritage Lottery
funded 'Overlooking the Wye Scheme' which is conserving various sites within the lower Wye Valley.
Monmouth Troy Station was removed from Monmouth and re-built brick by brick along the restored Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway
and is now known as Winchcombe railway station
.
Pannier Tank 6412, the engine pulled the last passenger service along the line on the 4th January 1959 was preserved on the West Somerset Railway
between 1976–2009 and was purchased by the South Devon Railway
in January 2009. It has also starred in the children's TV series
The Flockton Flyer
.
, which owns the track bed
between Chepstow and Tintern, has announced plans to turn the route into a cycleway, reopening the tunnels at Tidenham and Tintern and constructing a bridge over the River Wye near Tintern Station. Public consultations on the proposals took place during 2009, with a view to Sustrans re-submitting proposals for "a traffic-free path for walkers, cyclists, people with disabilities and horse riders" for planning approval later in the year. A consultation report was subsequently published by Sustrans. The proposal is to create a path between Brockweir and Sedbury, mostly using the abandoned railway track bed. Almost all the entire length of the old line is within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
. The campaign has been meet with mixed reactions from the local community. There is a considerably large number of locals who support the plans, and this is reflected in the public comments on the Forest of Dean planning website, but there is also a committee of locals who strongly oppose the path proposal. The Forest of Dean District Council approved the plans on 9 November 2010. The route would form part of National Cycle Route 42
.
In the 1970s an association was formed to collect materials for re-opening the line as a heritage railway, the whereabouts of this group is unknown.
A group also exists to promote the reopening of the line as a modern railway with electric services
, they have a website with information about the line's history and evaluations about re-opening the line fully to Monmouth Troy.
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...
railway that ran for nearly 15 miles (24.1 km) between Chepstow
Chepstow
Chepstow is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, close to its confluence with the River Severn, and close to the western end of the Severn Bridge on the M48 motorway...
and Monmouth
Monmouth
Monmouth is a town in southeast Wales and traditional county town of the historic county of Monmouthshire. It is situated close to the border with England, where the River Monnow meets the River Wye with bridges over both....
along the lower part of the scenic Wye Valley
Wye Valley
The Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an internationally important protected landscape straddling the border between England and Wales. It is one of the most dramatic and scenic landscape areas in southern Britain....
in Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire (historic)
Monmouthshire , also known as the County of Monmouth , is one of thirteen ancient counties of Wales and a former administrative county....
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, and Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It followed the route of the River Wye
River Wye
The River Wye is the fifth-longest river in the UK and for parts of its length forms part of the border between England and Wales. It is important for nature conservation and recreation.-Description:...
for most of its length. The line opened on 1 November 1876 as an independent company but was financially unsuccessful and amalgamated with the 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...
in 1905. The GWR ran the line until the Transport Act 1947
Transport Act 1947
The Transport Act 1947 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Under it the railways, long-distance road haulage and various other types of transport were acquired by the state and handed over to a new British Transport Commission for operation...
, which nationalised the railways of Britain. From then, it was operated by British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
until its closure to goods traffic in 1964; passenger traffic was withdrawn before that date on 5 January 1959. The southern section of the railway between Tintern Quarry
Tintern Quarry
Tintern Quarry was a quarry in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. It was served by the Wye Valley Railway from 1876 until it closed 1981. The quarry was on the opposite side of the River Wye from the village of Tintern....
and Wye Valley Junction remained open until 1981, when operation was then cut back to Dayhouse Quarry, (near Tidenham Station
Tidenham railway station
Tidenham Station was the station for the village of Tidenham on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was opened in 1876 during the construction of the line and closed on 5th January 1959 following the closure of the line to passenger services...
). This remained used for quarry traffic until the early 1990s.
History
The line was inaugurated by an Act of Parliament in 1866, although construction was delayed until 1874 because of national economic circumstances. These events were caused by the collapse of the well known firm Overend and GurneyOverend, Gurney and Company
Overend, Gurney & Company was a London wholesale discount bank, known as "the bankers' bank", which collapsed in 1866 owing about 11 million pounds, equivalent to £981 million at 2008 prices.-Early years:...
in 1866 due to many railway companies taking out loans and not paying them back. The business was in a debt of 11 million pounds when it collapsed (equivalent to £828 million in 2003).
The southern part of the line, between Chepstow and Tintern
Tintern
Tintern is a village on the west bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, Wales, close to the border with England, about 5 miles north of Chepstow...
, was particularly complex in engineering terms, requiring a long tunnel of 1188 yards at Tidenham
Tidenham
Tidenham is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean of west Gloucestershire, England, adjoining the Welsh border.The parish includes the villages of Tidenham, Beachley, Boughspring, Sedbury, Tutshill and Woodcroft, and according to the United Kingdom Census 2001 had a population of 5,316...
, a stretch along a steep hillside above the River Wye
River Wye
The River Wye is the fifth-longest river in the UK and for parts of its length forms part of the border between England and Wales. It is important for nature conservation and recreation.-Description:...
, and a second short tunnel and bridge at Tintern. Evangelical services were organised during the construction of the line at Woodcroft
Woodcroft, Gloucestershire
Woodcroft is a small village in the Forest of Dean district of Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the eastern bank of the River Wye, opposite Piercefield House, two miles north of the Welsh town of Chepstow...
and Tidenham, partly in an attempt to combat drunkenness among the labourers building the railway. North of Tintern the line followed the valley bottom, with a bridge over the river at Penallt
Penallt
Penallt is a village in Monmouthshire, Wales set high on a hill above Monmouth. In the centre of the village, by the village green, is the 17th century village pub, the "Inn at Penallt", formerly called the Bush Inn....
. Outside Monmouth, the line used an existing viaduct across the river which had been built in 1861 by engineer Joseph Firbank to carry the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway. On 18 November 1875, during the construction of the line, a landslide occurred near Redbrook
Redbrook
Redbrook is a village in Gloucestershire, England, adjoining the border with Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located on the River Wye and is within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.- History :...
, the event was reported in one of the columns in the next days Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, this event led to serious doubts about the railway's future.
The railway was opened on 1 November 1876, from Wye Valley Junction near Chepstow, on the main line
South Wales Railway
The South Wales Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Gloucester and Dean Forest Railway with Neyland in Wales.-History:The need for the railway was created by the need to ship coal from the South Wales Valleys to London, and secondly to complete Brunel's vision of linking London with...
between Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
and Newport
Newport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
, to Monmouth Troy which was then one of Monmouth's two stations. Here passengers could change for Pontypool
Pontypool
Pontypool is a town of approximately 36,000 people in the county borough of Torfaen, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire in South Wales....
(along the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway
Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway
The Coleford, Monmouth, Usk & Pontypool Railway was a standard gauge railway of which ran between Monmouth to Pontypool. It was opened in 1857, passenger services were withdrawn in 1955...
), Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye is a small market town with a population of 10,089 in southeastern Herefordshire, England, located on the River Wye, and on the northern edge of the Forest of Dean.-History:...
(along the Ross and Monmouth Railway
Ross and Monmouth Railway
The Ross and Monmouth Railway was a standard gauge railway of which ran between Ross-on-Wye and Monmouth....
) and Coleford
Coleford, Gloucestershire
Coleford is a small market town in Gloucestershire, England in the west of the Forest of Dean with a population of 8,351 . It is situated some four miles east of the Welsh border, and is close to the Wye Valley, a popular walking and canoeing area...
(along the Coleford Railway
Coleford Railway
The Coleford Railway also known as the Coleford Branch, was a short-lived standard gauge railway line which ran for approximately between Monmouth and Coleford. It was constructed in the 1880s, opened on 1 September 1883 and closed on 1 January 1917...
). Trains stopped at the intervening stations on the line, Tidenham
Tidenham railway station
Tidenham Station was the station for the village of Tidenham on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was opened in 1876 during the construction of the line and closed on 5th January 1959 following the closure of the line to passenger services...
, Tintern
Tintern railway station
Tintern railway station served the village of Tintern on the Wye Valley Railway. It was opened in 1876 and closed for passengers in 1959 and freight in 1964, when the line was closed completely...
, Bigsweir
Bigsweir
Bigsweir is a locality in the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which straddles the boundary between Gloucestershire in England and Monmouthshire in Wales. It is located about 2 miles north of Llandogo, 2 miles south of Whitebrook, and 3 miles west of St. Briavels...
(later renamed St Briavels), and Redbrook
Redbrook on Wye railway station
Redbrook on Wye railway station was a station serving the village of Redbrook on the now disused Wye Valley Railway. It was opened on 1 November 1876 with the rest of the line and remained open for 83 years, it closed in 1959...
as well as Chepstow
Chepstow railway station
Chepstow railway station is a part of the British railway system owned by Network Rail and is operated by Arriva Trains Wales. Chepstow station is on the Gloucester to Newport Line. It is located within of the town centre, at Station Road, Chepstow...
, Tutshill Halt for Beachley
Tutshill for Beachley Halt railway station
Tutshill for Beachley Halt was a request stop on the South Wales Railway and Wye Valley Railway. It was opened on 9 July 1934, and was intended to serve the nearby village of Tutshill...
and Monmouth Troy
Monmouth Troy railway station
Monmouth Troy was one of the two former stations at Monmouth. It was built in 1857 by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway and was used by several other branch lines as the local rail network expanded...
which were constructed by different companies. Tintern Station was the largest station after Monmouth Troy Station; it had an island platform in the centre of the station.
The line was intended to serve both tourist traffic and freight, such as those visiting Tintern Abbey
Tintern Abbey
Tintern Abbey was founded by Walter de Clare, Lord of Chepstow, on 9 May 1131. It is situated in the village of Tintern, on the Welsh bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, which forms the border between Monmouthshire in Wales and Gloucestershire in England. It was only the second Cistercian...
, and also the limestone quarries, paper mills and metal works in the Wye Valley. Although constructed by the Wye Valley Railway Company, the line was operated from the outset by the Great Western Railway. It was not financially successful, and in 1905 the Wye Valley Railway Company was bought by the GWR. The Wye Valley Railway had been bankrupt more than once during its short life as an independent company and GWR's purchase of the line may well have been inevitable. The GWR added several halts along the line, at Netherhope Halt
Netherhope Halt railway station
Netherhope Halt was a railway station on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was opened in 1932 and closed in 1959; it was demolished soon afterwards.-References:...
(1932), Brockweir Halt
Brockweir Halt railway station
Brockweir Halt was a request stop on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was opened to the public on 23 September 1929, it closed in 1959 when passenger services were withdrawn from the line. It was situated just north of Brockweir bridge. Nothing now remains of the trackbed because of the...
(1929), Llandogo
Llandogo Halt railway station
Llandogo Halt was a request stop on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was opened on 7th March 1927 to serve the village of Llandogo. It was closed in 1959 following the withdrawal of passenger services on the line. It was the smallest construction on the Wye Valley Railway....
(1927), Whitebrook Halt
Whitebrook Halt railway station
Whitebrook Halt was a request stop on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was built in 1927 to serve the village of Whitebrook and opened in February that year. It was closed in 1959 when passenger services were withdawn from the Wye Valley Railway. The station came too late to make full use out of...
(1927), Penallt Halt
Penallt Halt railway station
Penallt Halt was a request stop on the former Wye Valley Railway. It was opened on 1 August 1931 and closed in 1959. Penallt Halt and Redbrook Station were the closest stations on the line with only Penallt Viaduct separating them. Penallt Halt was close to the village of Redbrook....
(1931), and Wyesham
Wyesham Halt railway station
Wyesham Halt was a request stop on the former Wye Valley Railway, it was also used by the Coleford Railway. It was opened on 12 January 1931 and closed in January 1959. The rails between Wyesham Halt and Monmouth Troy were not lain by the Wye Valley Railway, its operator, but by the Coleford,...
(1931). Penallt Halt and Redbrook Station became the closest stations on the line with only a viaduct over the River Wye separating them.
In the inter-war period, there were about five trains in each direction each day, and popular excursion trains were also run to Tintern, particularly to see the harvest moon
Harvest moon
The Full Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox.-Appearance:All full moons rise around the time of sunset. In general the moon rises about 3 minutes later each day...
through the abbey windows. Redbrook Station became nationally noted for its floral displays. However, after a long decline in revenue associated with the growth of motor traffic, the line closed to passengers in 1959, four years before the national Beeching cuts
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...
. The last ever passenger train was a special service run by the Stephenson Locomotive Society
Stephenson Locomotive Society
The Stephenson Locomotive Society was founded in the UK in Autumn 1909 for the study of rail transport and locomotives.It was originally named The Stephenson Society in honour of George Stephenson. In late 1911 the professional engineers seceded from the Society to form the Junior Institution of...
. It was hauled by two GWR Pannier Tanks, class 6400
GWR 6400 Class
The Great Western Railway 6400 Class is a class of 0-6-0 pannier tank steam locomotive introduced by Charles Collett in 1932. All 40 examples were 'auto-fitted' – equipped with the remote-control equipment needed for working autotrains....
. They were numbers 6439 and 6412 (see Today's Remnants). The train ran all the way along the branch from Chepstow to Monmouth, from there it ran along the Ross and Monmouth Railway (which was also closed at the same time), to Ross-on-Wye. The special service was the only known train to make the route in one single journey. The railway closed to general goods traffic between Monmouth and Tintern Quarry in 1964. Several railtour
Railtour
A railtour is a special train which is run in order to allow people to experience rail travel which is not available using timetabled passenger services...
s ran by enthusiasts were held through Tidenham tunnel in the 1970s, one of the last of these in 1978, the Tintern Totter was hauled by a Class 20: D8098. The engine has survived into preservation and is owned by the Type One Locomotive Company. The section to Tintern Quarry closed in 1981, there were three special services to the site of Tidenham Station in the 1980s, then the rest of the line was abandoned when Tidenham Quarry closed in the 1990s.
Route and Stations
South Wales Railway
The South Wales Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Gloucester and Dean Forest Railway with Neyland in Wales.-History:The need for the railway was created by the need to ship coal from the South Wales Valleys to London, and secondly to complete Brunel's vision of linking London with...
(now Gloucester to Newport Line
Gloucester to Newport Line
The Gloucester to Newport Line is a railway line that runs along the bank of the River Severn in the United Kingdom from Gloucester to Newport....
) over the River Wye on the Chepstow Railway Bridge to Tutshill Halt a small request stop
Request stop
In public transport, a request stop or flag stop describes a stopping point at which trains or buses stop only on an as-need or request basis; that is, only if there are passengers to be picked up or dropped off. In this way, infrequently used stopping points can be served efficiently.Trains save...
serving the village of Tutshill
Tutshill
Tutshill is a small village within the parish of Tidenham in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the eastern bank of the River Wye, which forms the boundary with Wales at this point and which separates the village from the town of Chepstow...
. The WVR left the main line at the Wye Valley Junction and headed up on an embankment to Tidenham, the first station on the line. It was also the first station on the line to be closed, temporarily to release staff during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
; it was then re-opened in 1918. Tidenham station remained open until the closure of the line to passenger services in 1959, by which time it had been demoted to a halt.
Just outside the south portal of Tidenham tunnel was Netherhope Halt this was the last halt to be constructed on the line before it was closed to passenger services in 1959. The line then headed into Tidenham tunnel (1190 yards) - the twenty-first longest tunnel
Tunnel
A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...
on the Great Western Railway at its time. The line ran along the east side of the Wye, passing Tintern Quarry. It then went through the smaller Tintern tunnel, (182 yards) and crossed back to the west bank of the River Wye before coming to Tintern Station.
Tintern was the largest station on the line. This was because the Wye Valley Railway Company hoped to generate much income via the tourists visiting the famous Tintern Abbey
Tintern Abbey
Tintern Abbey was founded by Walter de Clare, Lord of Chepstow, on 9 May 1131. It is situated in the village of Tintern, on the Welsh bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, which forms the border between Monmouthshire in Wales and Gloucestershire in England. It was only the second Cistercian...
. The line came to Brockweir Halt, followed by Llandogo Halt which was the smallest stop on the whole railway. The railway followed the course of the west bank of the River Wye to St Briavels Station which was named Bigsweir
Bigsweir
Bigsweir is a locality in the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which straddles the boundary between Gloucestershire in England and Monmouthshire in Wales. It is located about 2 miles north of Llandogo, 2 miles south of Whitebrook, and 3 miles west of St. Briavels...
station upon opening and re-named St Briavels
St Briavels
St Briavels is a medium sized village and civil parish in the Royal Forest of Dean in west Gloucestershire, England; close to the England-Wales border, and south of Coleford. It stands almost above sea level on the edge of a limestone plateau above the valley of the River Wye, above an ancient...
& Llandogo
Llandogo
Llandogo is a small village in Monmouthshire, south Wales, located between Monmouth and Chepstow in the lower reaches of the Wye Valley AONB, two miles north of Tintern. It is set on a steep hillside overlooking the River Wye and across into the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England.- History...
in 1909 and then simply St Briavels from 1927 in anticipation of the opening of Llandogo Halt.
Penallt Viaduct
Penallt Viaduct is a viaduct that formerly carried the Wye Valley Railway over the River Wye; the river at this location forms the border between England and Wales . It was located between and stations; passenger services ceased on the railway in 1959...
carried the railway over the River Wye again and onto the east side of the river before reaching Redbrook on Wye Station. This station won numerous prizes for its flower displays and became renown throughout the valley. Wyesham Halt was the last stop before Monmouth Troy. The section between Wyesham and Monmouth involved crossing the Wye one last time by a large viaduct that was built by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway in 1857 as part of their plans to expand into the Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean
The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. The forest is a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.The...
and to Coleford. Monmouth Troy Station was also constructed by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway.
Monmouth Troy was on the west bank of the river and consisted of two platforms, a typical GWR footbridge, station building, separate cafe building and a large goods yard
Monmouth Troy Goods Yard
Monmouth Troy Goods Yard was a large goods yard near Monmouth Troy railway station in Monmouth, Wales. It was opened in 1857 by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway at the same time as the station. As other railways forged their way to Monmouth Troy the goods yard grew in importance...
. It was here that the Wye Valley Railway met the Ross and Monmouth Railway and Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway
All of the original stations on the line, Tidenham, Tintern, St Briavels and Redbrook had some kind of loop
Passing loop
A passing loop is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at a station, where trains or trams in opposing directions can pass each other. Trains/trams in the same direction can also overtake, providing that the signalling arrangement allows it...
for trains to pass each other. Tintern, St Briavels and Redbrook stations were the only stations apart from Monmouth Troy and Chepstow to have facilities for unloading freight trains.
Tintern Wireworks Branch
Tintern Wireworks Branch was a short lived line built across the River Wye to the wireWire
A wire is a single, usually cylindrical, flexible strand or rod of metal. Wires are used to bear mechanical loads and to carry electricity and telecommunications signals. Wire is commonly formed by drawing the metal through a hole in a die or draw plate. Standard sizes are determined by various...
works at the village of Tintern. It was opened in 1874 although it was officially opened in 1876 due to the fact that the branch was completed before the Wye Valley Line which it branched off from. The short line became known as the Wireworks Branch even though by the time the branch had opened the wireworks it was meant to serve had gone out of business. It struggled on until 1935 when the rails buckled in the heat of summer. The tracks remained mostly dormant until 1941 when they were sent for use on the railways of the Western Front
Western Front (World War II)
The Western Front of the European Theatre of World War II encompassed, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, and West Germany. The Western Front was marked by two phases of large-scale ground combat operations...
of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, but were sunk in transit across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
Coleford Railway
The Coleford Railway was a branch line which ran between Coleford and Monmouth. It was opened in 1883 and became the fourth and final line to reach the town of Monmouth. The railway closed on New Year's Day 1917, partly due to wartime economy measures and partly because it was losing money - it never reached the hopes of its constructors. It joined the Wye Valley Line at Wyesham Junction and both railways ran along the same line for a short stretch until they both arrived at their joint terminus, Monmouth Troy. The tracks was ripped up between Wyesham Junction and Whitecliff QuarryWhitecliff Quarry
Whitecliff Quarry was a quarry in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. It was served by the Coleford Railway from 1883-1917 and the Severn and Wye Railway from 1917 until its closure in 1976. The quarry was near the town of Coleford....
soon after closure, however the short stretch between Whitecliff Quarry and Coleford remained open until 1976 for freight traffic. The operation of this section was passed to the Severn and Wye Railway
Severn and Wye Railway
The Severn and Wye Railway was a small railway network in west Gloucestershire that was constructed to allow exploitation of the mineral resources of the Forest of Dean. The Severn and Wye Railway and Canal Company began construction of the tramway and the Lydney Canal in 1810. In 1868 the tramway...
. The goods shed was converted into a museum (the Coleford Great Western Railway Museum
Coleford Great Western Railway Museum
Coleford Great Western Railway Museum is a railway museum located in Coleford, Gloucestershire, England. The museum was founded in 1988. Based in the former GWR Goods Shed along the Coleford Railway. There was also another station situated at Coleford, it was opened by the Severn and Wye Railway...
) on the railways of the Forest of Dean and the Great Western Railway.
Today's Remnants
Penallt
Penallt is a village in Monmouthshire, Wales set high on a hill above Monmouth. In the centre of the village, by the village green, is the 17th century village pub, the "Inn at Penallt", formerly called the Bush Inn....
, the Wireworks Branch bridge, also a footpath and the impressive 21 - arch viaduct at Monmouth, which carried the railway over the river, is still in place though the central metal section has been removed and it is inaccessible to pedestrians. The station building and goods shed at St Briavels Station are still mainly intact.
Tintern Station has been re-named 'The Old Station Tintern' and is now a popular picnic site and base for short walks with a permanent exhibition of the history of the line. The Wye Valley Walk
Wye Valley Walk
The Wye Valley Walk is a long distance footpath in Wales and England following the course of the River Wye .-Distance:The whole route now that it has been extended runs for 136 miles .-The route:...
passes through the site and paved footpaths extend to nearby Tintern and Brockweir
Brockweir
Brockweir is a small village on the eastern bank of the River Wye, within the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. A road bridge links it across the river to Monmouthshire, Wales, about a mile outside the village of Tintern and 7½ miles north of Chepstow...
. It won the Green Flag Award
Green Flag Award
The Green Flag Award is the benchmark national standard for parks and green spaces in the United Kingdom. The scheme was set up in 1996 to recognise and reward green spaces in England and Wales that met the laid down high standards...
in 2009. In 2010, the old carriages were replaced with new refurbished ones, which now hold the 'Destination Wye Valley' exhibition as part of the £2.8m Heritage Lottery
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
funded 'Overlooking the Wye Scheme' which is conserving various sites within the lower Wye Valley.
Monmouth Troy Station was removed from Monmouth and re-built brick by brick along the restored Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway
Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway
The Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway is a volunteer-run heritage railway on the Gloucestershire/Worcestershire/Warwickshire Borders that has reopened the closed railway line between Laverton Halt and Cheltenham Racecourse railway stations in Gloucestershire/Worcestershire., it currently...
and is now known as Winchcombe railway station
Winchcombe railway station
Winchcombe railway station serves Winchcombe in Gloucestershire, England, although it is actually located in the village of Greet. It is located on the Honeybourne Line which linked and and which was opened by the Great Western Railway in 1906...
.
Pannier Tank 6412, the engine pulled the last passenger service along the line on the 4th January 1959 was preserved on the West Somerset Railway
West Somerset Railway
The West Somerset Railway is a railway line that originally linked and in Somerset, England.It opened in 1862 and was extended from Watchet to by the Minehead Railway in 1874. Although just a single track, improvements were needed in the first half of the twentieth century to accommodate the...
between 1976–2009 and was purchased by the South Devon Railway
South Devon Railway Trust
The South Devon Railway Trust is a charitable organisation that operates a heritage railway from Totnes to Buckfastleigh in Devon, alongside the River Dart...
in January 2009. It has also starred in the children's TV series
Children's television series
Children's television series, are commercial television programs designed for, and marketed to children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run in the early evening, for the children that go to school...
The Flockton Flyer
The Flockton Flyer
The Flockton Flyer was a children's TV series made by Southern TV for the ITV network. There were two series, each of six episodes. Series 1 was first transmitted in spring, 1977 and Series 2 followed in early 1978. Programmes were shown at 4.45 pm on Monday afternoons...
.
Proposed Uses and Cycle Path
SustransSustrans
Sustrans is a British charity to promote sustainable transport. The charity is currently working on a number of practical projects to encourage people to walk, cycle and use public transport, to give people the choice of "travelling in ways that benefit their health and the environment"...
, which owns the track bed
Track bed
A track bed or trackbed is the term used to describe the groundwork onto which a railway track is laid. Trackbeds of disused railways are sometimes used for recreational paths or new light rail links....
between Chepstow and Tintern, has announced plans to turn the route into a cycleway, reopening the tunnels at Tidenham and Tintern and constructing a bridge over the River Wye near Tintern Station. Public consultations on the proposals took place during 2009, with a view to Sustrans re-submitting proposals for "a traffic-free path for walkers, cyclists, people with disabilities and horse riders" for planning approval later in the year. A consultation report was subsequently published by Sustrans. The proposal is to create a path between Brockweir and Sedbury, mostly using the abandoned railway track bed. Almost all the entire length of the old line is within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...
. The campaign has been meet with mixed reactions from the local community. There is a considerably large number of locals who support the plans, and this is reflected in the public comments on the Forest of Dean planning website, but there is also a committee of locals who strongly oppose the path proposal. The Forest of Dean District Council approved the plans on 9 November 2010. The route would form part of National Cycle Route 42
National Cycle Route 42
National Cycle Route 42 is a part of the National Cycle Network running from Glasbury in Mid Wales to Gloucester in England. It provides a north-south link from Route 8 to Route 4, and provides an alternative south route for Lon Las Cymru for those starting at Chepstow instead of Cardiff...
.
In the 1970s an association was formed to collect materials for re-opening the line as a heritage railway, the whereabouts of this group is unknown.
A group also exists to promote the reopening of the line as a modern railway with electric services
Electric locomotive
An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or an on-board energy storage device...
, they have a website with information about the line's history and evaluations about re-opening the line fully to Monmouth Troy.
See also
- Great Western RailwayGreat Western RailwayThe 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...
- Ross and Monmouth RailwayRoss and Monmouth RailwayThe Ross and Monmouth Railway was a standard gauge railway of which ran between Ross-on-Wye and Monmouth....
- Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool RailwayColeford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool RailwayThe Coleford, Monmouth, Usk & Pontypool Railway was a standard gauge railway of which ran between Monmouth to Pontypool. It was opened in 1857, passenger services were withdrawn in 1955...
- South Wales RailwaySouth Wales RailwayThe South Wales Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Gloucester and Dean Forest Railway with Neyland in Wales.-History:The need for the railway was created by the need to ship coal from the South Wales Valleys to London, and secondly to complete Brunel's vision of linking London with...
External links
- Information and photographs of the line
- Photographs of the line
- Monmouthshire County Council - The Old Station Tintern
- Sustrans' proposal
- Wye Valley Communities For Safe Cycling
- History of the line and evaluation of reopening the railway.
- Tunnels of the Wye Valley line
Further reading
- Handley, B and Dingwall, R: The Wye Valley Railway and the Coleford Branch, The Oakwood Press, Usk, 1982, ISBN 0-85361-530-6, Third Edition: 2007, ISBN 978-0-85361-665-8.
- Yorke, Stan: Lost Railways of Gloucestershire, Countyside Books, Newbury, 2009, ISBN 978-1-84674-163-0
- Mitchell, Vic and Smith, Keith: Branch Line to Monmouth, Middleton Press, Midhurst, 2008, ISBN 978-1-906008-20-8