Radstock recovery

The trackgang has been recovering more materials from the Radstock Regeneration land today, not a bad morning for it. Almost ready for another lorry load to come out now and move it to Midsomer Norton.

(Pics both via Somerset and Dorset Railway)

FACEBOOK - NEW SOMERSET AND DORSET RAILWAY

It seems strange to be lifting track from one line that has an active restoration group to move to another, two miles away - but such is the complexity of the various groups in the area that this has happened before! In the future no doubt lovely fresh new track will reappear here or very close by, as the North Somerset line extends from Frome up to Radstock with an eventual connection to the S&D.

This part of Radstock is, at last, having houses built. Remember that every house will contain future passengers for the lines in Radstock! The development company does support the two future Radstock railways, fully understanding that they will be essential transport links that, soon enough, people will factor into their decisions as to where they move to. A small piece of land has been secured for a future rail link through this site, thanks to the work of Pete Russell at the SDRHT.

Anyone who gets involved in the restoration of the greater S&D could end up just about anywhere if they are part of the hands-on team! 

spetisbury tomorrow

(Radstock North)

SUNDAY 16th DECEMBER - SPETISBURY WORK PARTY

 Dear Member/ Volunteer, I am going up to the station on Sunday, and hope that you can join me. I hope to be there between 10:00 and 11:00am. This will be the last organised work party of 2012, and would like to see some new faces up there.
 Would you let me know if you can make it and come up to help.

Best regards,
Dean

avoiding project drift

It should sometimes be restated - the New S&D is committed to restoring the WHOLE S&D, not just Bournemouth to Bath but also the branches, plus the Bristol-Pensford-Radstock and Bailey Gate-Wimborne-Ringwood lines, plus the Ringwood to Brockenhurst line if not already restored by the Network when we reach Ringwood.

This doesn't mean that a few hundred mainly railway enthusiasts are going to raise the 1-2 billion pounds needed to restore these routes, rebuild the infrastructure and provide the locos and rolling stock. It doesn't mean that some time in the next five to ten years we will be running trains to all these destinations.

What it does mean is that constitutionally we exist to promote the S&D in its entirety, will encourage and support other groups restoring sections of the route (as at Shillingstone, Midsomer Norton and Gartell), will purchase sections of trackbed etc as they become available to protect them for railway use in perpetuity, and operate sections of the route as they become economocally viable. Full reinstatement may well be by the network, by a consortium of businesses or by emergency government decree. Or we may be so sharp that we manage to do this by ourselves by raising the money on the stock exchange and/or through local and regional share issues.

Whilst discussion about restoring tiny sections for narrow gauge etc are welcome we need to avoid project drift. We need to always state what we are about, and always keep our eyes on the bigger picture.

Whilst I doubt anyone would question the need for and viability of the Midsomer Norton/Shepton to Bath and Blandford-Poole sections we need to remember that the S&D is a network, not two branches, and that we'll have far greater flexibility (and profitability) as a through route with additional connections to the Network wherever we pass by it ie at Templecombe, Bruton etc.

Whilst local passenger and freight traffic will be the lifeblood of the route we also expect that much traffic will originate and/or terminate away from our metals. This is pretty much the same situation as the old S&D but of course the New S&D will, eventually, be far busier than the Old S&D was, even on summer Saturdays in the 1950s.

hs2 and sd2

So that's it, HS2 will happen. It all seemed so easy.

Of course in the real world what we need is massive investment in new railways and tramways in the UK, bringing a sustainable and modern transport system into every corner of the UK, far surpassing the rather sparse network bequeathed by the Victorians and dimished even further by the misguided idiot Beeching.

But we have to work in the world we have, not the one we want, so we're stuck with this expensive if essential piece of infrastructure, the cost of which would have rebuilt sixteen S&Ds - and brought modern transport to people that needed it, not those that already have it!

As for SD2 as it's now becoming known? Well the fact that governments are now seeing rail as the default future transport system can only be a good thing. In truth of course this has been a process that's been happening for some time, from the building of the Channel Tunnel. The 'road lobby' is now a distant memory, and HS2 will also do its bit to bring the early end of air travel, despite the rather daft idea that HS2 will link to Heathrow - as if it will still be operating in 2026, when HS2 is due to begin services.

And what about its effect on SD2? I suspect that once HS2 is finished other parts of the UK will be clamouring for a high speed link and I suspect a priority will be London to Bristol to Cardiff/Plymouth, which suggests an SD2 link at Bristol (via the Radstock-Pensford-Bristol line, part of our remit). Imagine - Shepton to Paris in 3 and a half hours! Of course the Bath line will be no less important - at least 95% of travellers on SD2 will be local passengers.

So HS2 is going to cause a lot of controversy. You can't blame residents for fighting it if they can't actually use the trains. Perhaps bundling it with a package of conventional rail reopenings, particularly in the area through which it will run, will sweeten the pill somewhat?

It's clear that our economy will be a purely rail-based one within a few decades. HS2 is a step in that process. But it needs to be presented as a small part in a  much bigger plan, the roll back of Beeching, the building of thousands of miles of new railways and tramways, the linking of industries, farms etc to the network, the creation of super-efficient, fully sustainable locomotives and, most of all, the complete reorientating of our industry and commerce to not merely be sustainable but to continue to develop into the post oil age.

bristol starts to stir

As many of you know I live in the tramway and railway desert of south Bristol. We were supposed to be the terminus of one of Bristol's tram routes but this scheme was sunk (for a while) by Dawn Primorolo, who thankfully is stepping down as an MP at the next election.

Bristol is at last about to get an electrified route to London, and the commuter network in waiting (including the Bristol to Radstock route which will form part of the New S&D and WILL serve parts of south Bristol) is beginning to stir. The following report is basically good news but where's the Portishead route, and where are our trams?? It's a start, but only that ...

Bristol Rail Commuters Put On Fast Track

• News Home
• More from Bristol's News

Tuesday, November 15th 2011 12:00

Longer platforms, faster journey times and more services promised as Network Rail sets up new Bristol and WestCountry unit.

Network Rail has today announced a new unit to control improvements across Bristol and the WestCountry.

It says "Network Rail Western", has been created as part it's drive to give local management the power to make independent funding decisions - to reduce costs and raise value for money, so that the savings could be reinvested in the area.

NRW has cited Bristol as one of THE highest forecast growth in rail passenger demand in the UK, at around 44% by the end of the decade - up from a previous 41% after taking into consideration the future electrification to London - cutting journey times from Bristol to the Capital by around 22minutes.

Part of the plan sees potential redevelopment of land around Temple Meads for more platforms, better car parking and an integrated transport hub. There's also plans to enhance the railway to and from Temple Meads and Filton Abbey Wood to improving journey times.

By the end of 2014, Network Rail Western also sets to achieve at least 93% in punctuality, by tackling cable thefts and implement a robust 7-day railway strategy to minimise disruption during major improvement work.

Network Rail Western will be spending around £400m by 2013 to operate, renew and enhance the 995miles of railway in the new Western region.

Priority schemes over the next two years include:

* £300m to modernise life-expired signalling equipment including those around Bristol so that the infrastructure is compatible with an electrified railway to London.

* £55m to build and design a unique factory train to install electrify the railway.

* £8m to improve journey time between Bristol and Birmingham

* Improvements to journey times between Bristol and Bridgwater, and potentially Plymouth, by enhancing line speeds

* Reducing congestion at Bristol Temple Meads, where around 8.9m passengers enter and exit per year

* Boosting capacity between Dr Days to Filton Abbey Wood by providing a four track railway

* An extra down line platform and passenger area to enable additional fast trains per hour to operate between Bristol and Paddington and also to Parkway after electrification

* The West of England Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has recently announced their new Enterprise Zone, known as Temple Quarter, which includes the area of land alongside the former Royal Mail post office site and the large area of disused land leading down to the former Bath Road diesel depot.

The area covers 70 hectares of land with initial estimates suggesting the potential to accommodate over 250 businesses and 17,000 new jobs over a 25-year period. The focus is on creative and digital industries with retail opportunities as part of a wider mixed use development.

The Temple Quarter site is seen as a major gateway that has huge potential to generate jobs and investment for the area that is highly attractive to businesses looking to relocate, demand for transport services from Bristol Temple Meads will significantly increase.

portishead - bristol continues it's bid for least green city in briatin award!

The Portishead branch possibly has the best case for any line reopening in Britain. Yet still we have to wait, having to endure an average car journey time of 1 hour for the eight or nine miles (sometimes up to three!) against the 17 minutes on the train.

What is the problem? Is it that the government and local authorities don't want to be seen to be giving the green light to what will be the first of hundreds or even thousands of rail reopenings in the UK?

Most of the line is in situ. It already carries heavy freight trains, yet there are plenty of paths for passenger trains. Portishead is a large town with no modern transport link. Everyone wants the railway back. It even has space for a station at Ashton Gate, allowing football fans to come to the matches at Bristol City without using their cars. It would also be easy to build a second route into Bristol alongside the Create Centre and terminating at the M Shed, or even continuing tram style into the centre, giving huge flexibility. Portishead could have two trains an hour and trams in between! It would push house prices up, bring new businesses in and just make life a lot easier for everyone.

Bristol is probably Britain's least Green city - it doesn't even seem to understand what it means! Or why it's needed. We still don't have trams!!!! The city is an embarrassment to be honest. So let's start with the Portishead line, then a revival of the Weston route from Portishead, then a proper tram network throughout the city with interurban routes into the suburbs, then full support for the Bristol to Radstock line as part of the S&D revival, followed by restoration of the old Midland route from Bristol into Bath. We could become a showpiece city for a green future, rather than a running joke.

Back in cloud cuckoo land here is today's report about the lack of funding for the tiny Portishead revival.

PLANS to reopen Portishead’s desperately needed rail link have received a major blow – after a bid for £43 million of government funding for the project was turned down.
North Somerset Council learned this week that its multi-million-pound bid to the government’s Regional Growth Fund for cash to open the defunct rail link had been refused.
It had been hoped – if the bid was successful – to get passenger trains running out of Portishead from as early as 2015.
Council leaders have said that, although the news the bid had been unsuccessful was a blow, it in no way meant the end of the road for the railway reopening project.
And they said they still plan to bid for cash for the scheme from future Major Transport Programmes or any replacement programmes promoted by the government.
The authority will continue to work with Network Rail on its Guide to Rail Investment Project (GRIP) studies on the feasibility of reopening the railway and look at other possible funding streams. North Somerset Council deputy leader Councillor Elfan Ap Rees said: “Admittedly this is a blow to our plans to reopen the rail link. But it is a setback and it is certainly not the end of the road.
“We knew it was only an outside chance of us getting the funding from the growth fund. If we had been successful it would have meant we could have got rail services running out of Portishead more quickly.
“However we will be continuing to work with Network Rail to look at alternative funding streams.
“The local transport fund is currently fully subscribed and we will be looking to make a bid for funding at the next round of allocations, which will probably take place next year with the money possibly coming available around 2014.
“As a council we are still very much committed to reopening the Portishead rail link.”
It is estimated that the total cost of reopening the rail link would be around £50 million.
A further £4.8 million needed for the project would be funded from council resources and planning agreement money earmarked from developments in Portishead.
Studies have revealed that if the line was to open, trains could travel between Portishead and Temple Meads in Bristol in 17 minutes – slashing the current journey time by car.
Members of the Gordano Councils Transport Group, which was set up to campaign for the reopening of the railway, said they were ‘deeply disappointed’ at the news.
Group founder and Portishead councillor David Pasley said: “I am deeply disappointed this bid for funding has been turned down.
“Portishead has grown massively over the years and is due to grow by a further 40 per cent by 2015.
“Good transport in and out of the town are essential and should have been put in place before all the new developments were allowed.
“It is now important that all other funding streams are explored for this project.
“There is strong public and commercial support for the reopening of the rail link out of Portishead.”
The work to reopen the railway would include re-laying the three miles of redundant track between Portishead and Portbury and building a new station.
A new road bridge would be built over the railway at Quays Avenue in Portishead and a station would have to be built on land already earmarked at Harbour Road.
Money would also have to be spent on upgrading the six-mile section of the track between Portbury Dock as currently it is not of a good enough standard to run passenger services.
The track is currently only used by freight trains which carry coal and cars from Royal Portbury Dock to locations around the country.
The track, which was reopened in the 1990s, is capable of taking trains at speeds of up to 30mph, while passenger trains operate at speeds of up to 60mph.
The existing track could be used, but major realignment work would be needed and some new lines would have to be laid.
Further work is also needed at Pill tunnel to improve the drainage and lines to allow passenger trains through there safely.
The reopening of the railway would mean an end to the gridlock often seen on the Portbury Hundred – the main route out of Portishead.
Brunel first proposed the line in 1839 but it was actually built by the Bristol and Portishead Pier and Railway Company and opened on April 18 1867.
It was laid as a single line broad gauge branch running from Bristol to Portishead.
The line was closed to passenger traffic in September 1964 and freight in 1981 and lay unused apart from the occasional steam specials.
Among the funding options for further exploration are the re-letting of the Great Western franchise from 2013 and the proposed recently announced Local Transport Consortiums. The council will make the case for the scheme with the Department for Transport to identify a funding package to take the scheme forward.
The next major milestones for the scheme are to compile a detailed scheme business case, to commence GRIP stage 4 with Network Rail and to pursue planning consents to build and operate the rail line. 

bath green park

(Photo courtesy Jim Type, copyright R E Toop)

The S&D was lucky in having a terminus at each end, though Bath Green Park was always a little cramped! As well as the S&D it also served the Mangotsfield line and points beyond via the east to west curve there.

This other route did an excellent job of taking pressure off the Bath to Bristol GWR main line, as well as serving places that the GW never reached. Part of this route is preserved as the Avon Valley Railway, which is hoping to extend closer in towards Bath. The original intention of the group that became the Avon Valley Railway was to operate a commuter route with a heritage aspect. This idea was probably about thirty years' ahead of its time, but the rest of the world has now just about caught up with those early visionaries!

As the S&D pushes up from Midford we intend to restore right into Bath, with connections to the network at both Limpley Stoke and in Bath itself - each single track carrying traffic in one direction only.

But of course Bath Green Park really needs to become the ultimate destination. This will increase capacity and flexibility, and form an excellent headquarters for both the S&D and a booming AVR. Of course parts of this roiute have been encroached on slightly, and there is even now possible future development near the route, but none of this will be a problem in an energy-poor future. On the other side of the equation the station and its roof have been wonderfully preserved - the platform area is currently a car park, so only has a limited lifespan in that capacity.

We also intend to restore the Bristol to Radstock via Pensford route, to give even greater capacity and flexibility at the northern end of our line.

binegar

(Photo courtesy Jim Type)

This is a nice pre-nationalisation shot of an LMS loco and train running through Binegar.

Binegar is the next station south of Chilcompton. It is one of the locations that is likely to see trains again sooner rather than later, as it lies just a few miles from Midsomer Norton. Almost all the route between Shepton Mallet and Radstock is clear of obstructions, though sadly two of the worst are found at each end of Midsomer Norton's running line. There is an infilled cutting between Midsomer Norton and Chilcompton, and a missing road bridge immediately north of Midsomer Norton station. However these are both obstacles that can be overcome, and once passed the line opens up wonderfully either side. Binegar lies high up in the Mendips so is rather bleak, but on the plus side land values are low!

midford musings

We had a visitor from Marlborough on Wednesday who simply couldn't understand why the S&D wasn't preserved as a prime tourist attraction in the south west. I suspect that will be a question that comes to the fore regularly over the next few years! What were they thinking? Not only would the S&D have been a tourist attraction in its own right, but would also LINK dozens of tourist facilities up and down the route, from the superb Georgian city of Bath, through the magnificent Lyncombe Vale and Midford Valley (surely the finest scenery in England?), the Mining Museum at Radstock, Shepton Mallet, Wincanton racecourse, the villages of the Stour Valley and the UK's finest seaside resort at Bournemouth, as well as dozens of other little gems en route.

And he was also amazed that this tiny thread of land through the station could easily carry 14 coach expresses and long freights, keeping traffic off the roads. In the fifties, on busy summer Saturdays, the stretch of single line through Midford up to Bath saw an endless succession of trains. The S&D was a superb piece of engineering - I think it's only problem was that it was a century ahead of its time!

Of course all this is now changing and within a few decades the S&D WILL become the leading tourist attraction in the south west as well as providing a superb freight and passenger service to the people and businesses and towns and villages along its route.

The S&D is clearly a line whose time has come!

shoscombe

(Photo courtesy Jim Type, copyright C L Caddy Collection)

Shoscombe and Single Hill Halt lay between Wellow and Radstock and was, surprisingly, one of the busiest stations on the S&D. The reason for this was that roads to the village of Shoscombe were difficult to negotiate, a problem to this day.

This was one of the hardest stations to find any photos of, this is aparticularly nice example!

This section of line was double track and always busy (at least up to 1958!) There is already some support for the line to return in Shoscombe but we haven't had any real look at the area yet. Of course with Radstock to Bath being a stage one reinstatement (along with Blandford-Poole) the people of Shoscombe shouldn't have too much longer to wait for their trains to return, a day I suspect will be long remembered in the village as they are reconnected to the outside world by a form of transpport that DOES have a future!

remember 1972?

This is an interesting shot just acquired by the Rail Thing. It shows loco 210479 at Radstock back in 1972.

This is the first copyright picture I've acquired of any of the previous preservation attempts on our line. The Somerset and Dorset Circle had an excellent plan to restore the Radstock to Writhlington section of the S&D main line in the seveties, but it was killed off by a very shortsighted council. Imagine if the Mining Museum at Radstock could offer a steam trip up to Writhington with more mining exhibits there! Imagine the extra jobs and money it would bring to the community. Perhaps a revival of this scheme could be a next step for the New S&D? It would give us a working length of railway with a purpose and fill in one more gap on the strategic Radstock to Bath route. And bring all those jobs and money into Radstock ....

what a difference a year makes!

(Waiting to take the Pines Forward 24.9.1960. Photo by C J Martin, ©  Ian C Martin)

I had great fun reading through a year old National Preservation Forum thread on Clutton (link in the previous post) which degenerated (with no input from any New S&D member) into a New S&D-bashing thread, including claims that I was behind Clutton (I wasn't!) and, the best one, that Peak Oil was 'contentious'.

Peak Oil's not contentious, that much is clear. Oil is a finite resource and is already getting scarcer, and nothing and no amount of wishful thinking, will change that. The only thing that observers don't agree on is the actual timing of the peak. Some say as long ago as 2005, some very optimistic types think it may still be a decade off. Either way the long term view is bleak for road transport, diesel transport by rail, food production, plastic manufacturer and many other things. Some things will be substituted, though only of course by more expensive options, otherwise we'd be using them now. But whatever way you look at it road transport is doomed, the first signs of this process are already clearly visible. Clearly what needs to happen is a big switch to rail beginning now - and this is happening in most parts of the world (including the UK) already. This doesn't mean simply HS lines, but reversals of most if not all of the Beeching cuts, together with a huge expansion in light rail, tramways and industrial and agricultural lines. How anyone could, in all seriousness, exclude the S&D in this process is beyond me! Yet just a year ago we were getting vile flack from a group of heritage steamy types who were clearly mired in the 60s mindset.

Another nasty jibe was that the S&D ran through an empty wilderness with no villages, let alone towns, en route. This particular moron clearly knew nothing about this part of the world! Putting to one side the fact that where a railway runs through is not particularly relevant, it's the purpose it serves and the places beyond the particular line that it connects that are important, this buffoon failed to understand that Blandford, Radstock, Shepton Mallet, Midsomer Norton, Wells, Glastonbury, Wimborne and Ringwood are quite sizeable places which will generate a large amount of freight and passenger traffic. And of course overlooked that we have Britain's only World Heritage City at one end of the line and Britain's premier seaside resort at the other!

But the thing that pissed me off the most was the idiot who boldly announced that he didn't own a car and travelled everywhere by train but didn't understand why the S&D needed to return - that it would be a meandering branch line where the porters doffed their caps at every station and halt! He's clearly been on some very strong and peculiar drugs. So he was happy to use a modern railway because he was lucky enough to live near an open station - but the near two million living along the S&D should not have this opportunity.

I assume that a year on, with petrol approaching £1.50 a litre and Peak Oil on everybody's lips (it's even mentioned in the current issue of Rail magazine) they are beginning to see the light. They may even have joined us in the meantime ...

 

more rails close to the New S&D

This is the Hunters Rest Miniature Railway near Pensford. It may well be the only pub miniature railway in the UK! It's a mile or two from Pensford, which had (and will of course have again) a station on the Radstock to Bristol line. The line runs for about a third of a mile through woods and alongside the pub car park.

We went to the pub today but only photographed the line - I think my riding days of lines this small are over! It has combined track for both 7 1/4" and 5" guage trains. There are a couple of steam locos used on this line but today they were using this Hymek-style freelance diesel, pulling a single carriage.

The Bristol to Radstock route (which of course continues to Frome) closed in 1968 after damage to the magnificent (and still extant) Pensford viaduct in the massive July 1968 flood. The New S&D plans to reopen this route to ease capacity limits on the Radstock to Bath section of the S&D. Part of this route is now a cycleway between Radstock and Midsomer Norton, there is also the (moribund?) Clutton station revival with (at least a few years ago) a mark one standard gauge coach and a narrow gauge diesel alongside but unconnected to the Clutton scheme, plus this tiny line about a mile from the route between Pensford and Clutton. All worth a visit of course!

compromise

I was pointed in the direction of the National Preservation Forum the other day. The name gives away the fact that this is basically a site for rail preservationists - or 'puffer lovers' as they are sometimes cruelly called. It's amazing that in many cases the contributors want to not only preserve the rail infrastructure of the sixties but also the dinosaur attitudes!

The one thing that really upset me was the poster who reckoned all the S&D groups should combine (something we support 100%) but then only build a ten mile stretch of line with an intermediate station (I suspect they mean Radstock to Shepton) and leave it at that - forever!

Now our constitution, and that of the SDRHT at Midsomer Norton, commit us to restore and/or support restoration of the whole S&D. One of the first acts of the New S&D was to enshrine this - forever - into our constitution.

Any curtailed section of the S&D will never survive in the post-oil world. ALL 'heritage' railways will have to adapt to very changed circumstances. Coal burners will have to convert to wood, diesels will vanish entirely and many routes will adopt various forms of electrification. But, and most importantly, ALL the lines will have to serve a useful purpose, for passengers and freight. ALL of these lines will have to have a network connection, or some form of rail connection, otherwise little if any visitors will be able to reach the line.
A totally restored S&D will solve all these problems for the future.

We have always worked on the first principal that the S&D WILL be restored, whatever the circumstances. Even without Peak Oil eventually the line will be needed to relieve pressure on network routes. With Peak Oil its restoration is essential even sooner. What we are trying to do is ensure that when restoration comes it needs to be sympathetic both to the history of the route and to the countryside it runs through. This is why all S&D fans should support and join the New S&D, in addition to joining their local S&D heritage group. Because without us the future of the S&D will be a busy but basic route that doesn't offer employment opportunities, a high standard of station facilities or marketing that makes it a superb asset and investment. With us we can excert the leverage and pressure that ensures that it is our vision for the S&D which prevails.

Put simply - no compromise!

working together - the first project?

It's been suggested through the S&D Facebook group that all supporters of the S&D should work towards rebuilding the bridge at Midsomer Norton which would leave the way clear to the Midsomer Norton group running trains into Radstock and, via a link with the Frome line, onto the network. This would also connect with our route from Bath heading south in the longer term.

This is a no-brainer and one of the best things to come out of such a scheme would be that at least two of the S&D groups would then be able to work closely together.

I'd welcome comments from you all as to whether you think this is a good use of New S&D resources.

radstock future?

These shots, courtesy of David Bailey, show the way that the new link line at Sheringham fits so snugly into the pre-existing environment. You would hardly know the railway was there, and note that it is unfenced! This is far more in keeping with continental European or tramway practice. In tandem with the tramway section through Porthmadog on the Welsh Highland Railway, it does show that the UK is beginning to catch up. This may well be a model for parts of the New S&D, I'm thinking of Radstock in particular. It may mean in a few places the trains are reduced to 5mph or so, but only over very short stretches. There again in Switzerland on some street running sections trains run at 20mph or so and can have as many as ten carriages!

strength in numbers

I've been hearing some disconcerting stuff about various S&D groups and I think it's time all the various parties stepped back from their tiny agendas and take time to set what they are doing in the wider perspective of UK rail renewal. The New S&D is committed to unifying the disparate strands in the S&D 'community', in fact it's enshrined in our constitution. As far as I'm concerned all the groups working to restore and preserve the S&D should commit to eventually combining their resources so that reinstatement of the entire S&D happens sooner rather than later.

The collection at Washford needs to come home at some time, it's out on a limb over at Washford and is only there due to ancient history - 1970s lack of appreciation of railways as an asset. Blame the council at Radstock, not the preservationists at Washford. But we're thirty years on from all that and S&D material belongs on the S&D.

Midsomer Norton and Shillingstone are doing wonders restoring their stations but I'm sure there is far more opportunity to work together on various projects. And the New S&D hopes that Washford, Shillingstone and Midsomer Norton members come along to help when the actual job of rebuilding, at Spetisbury and Midford for starters, begins in earnest.

We should make a point of having an annual joint event at each site in turn with all groups represented, everyone getting together for a social, and show the world the the old, friendly and cool image of the S&D didn't die in 1966 but is alive and well and stronger than ever. I'm up for it - are you?

literary radstock ...

The Five arches, where the former Somerset and Dorset Railway crossed the Great Western Railway at Radstock, features on the front cover of a new children's book, Kitty's Bicycle, written by local author and railway enthusiast Andy Lunness. The book, which uses the familiar childhood experience of learning to ride a bicycle, was written to teach children about money and savings. It is one in a series of books with a financial theme based on the author's own family. The story ends with a bicycle ride along the former Great Western line, now a cycle route. The book is available on-line direct from MALT Publishing at malt-publishing.co.uk, where a 63-piece jigsaw of the Five Arches illustration by Mark Trewren is also available.

'we are approaching midford'

Great news is that the agreement for the New S&D taking over Midford is now in the post. All we have to do is sign and we will get access to Midford and begin the rebuilding of the station. We will be paying £100 per month for just over 40 years to buy the freehold of the station and the trackbed as far as the southern end of the Long Arch bridge, about a quarter of a mile.

The intention is to rebuild the station building, signal box and associated infrastructure and lineside furniture. It is possible that track will be relaid for cosmetic purposes but no rolling stock will be sited here until the line is reinstated for real trains from Radstock to Bath. The station building, once reconstructed, will serve as an office, information centre and shop for the northern section of the route.

This will be a big step for us and should raise our profile enormously. We will put out an appeal for funds to rebuild the station as soon as we have taken the site over.

S&D developments

Yesterday's meeting at Blandford was superb. A very good turnout, great fun and a lot of ground covered. And two new people have joined the committee, which will strengthen us enormously.

Andy Thompson, who has created the hugely successful Steamtube site has agreed to begin contributing to this blog, and has also set up a New S&D Twitter account. This will be an ideal way to keep up with what's going on, and wil help build the S&D community.

I still feel that this blog needs more direct contributors, particularly from Midsomer Norton, Shillingstone, Gartell and Washford, who can keep our readers up to date with developments on site. You'll have full posting rights for both text and photographs. Please contact me to start posting!

At the meeting we spent some time discussing both Midford and Spetisbury. Both stations will be restored and will then act as information and sales points for the whole route. The stations will be restored to their peak BR glory and other buildings such as signalboxes etc will be rebuilt, to get a real railway atmosphere. Having had sight of the lease agreement at Midford between the current owner and Sustrans there is a codicil which requires Sustrans to move the cycleway from the trackbed and allow a single track railway to be reinstated. We will never bring in rolling stock or locos to Midford as a discrete restored station, but only when it is a part of a longer route (probably Radstock-Bath) - but track at Midford will be a real possibility to create the desired cosmetic effect.

Purchase of Midford proceeds apace, with paperwork (going back to 1895!) now in our hands.

2010 is going to be a fantastic year for the S&D!