Isle of Wight Central Railway
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| Isle of Wight Central Railway |
| Main Line Stations From Ryde trains used the Isle of Wight Railway tracks to Smallbrook Junction |
Contents |
[edit] The Railway
The Isle of Wight Central Railway (IoWCR) came into being when, by Act of Parliament on 1st of July 1887, the following railways were amalgamated:
- Cowes & Newport Railway, incorporated on 8th August 1859.
- Isle of Wight (Newport Junction) Railway IoW(NJ)R, incorporated 31st July 1868.
- Ryde & Newport Railway, incorporated on 25th July 1872.
| Freshwater, Yarmouth & Newport Railway |
| Freshwater line Stations Newport |
[edit] Managed & worked railways
In addition the following two railways were managed and worked by the IoWCR:
- Freshwater, Yarmouth & Newport Railway (FYNR). Absorbed by IoWCR on 1st January 1913.
- With some backing from the London and South Western Railway the FYNR, 12 miles in length, opened for goods on 10th September 1888 and for passengers on the 20th July 1889. From the beginning, its trains were worked by locomotives and rolling stock supplied by the IoWCR. The Railway had its own platform at Newport station. It was eventually closed to all traffic on 21 September 1953.
- (Notes taken from Railway Magazine May/June 1947 issue)
- With some backing from the London and South Western Railway the FYNR, 12 miles in length, opened for goods on 10th September 1888 and for passengers on the 20th July 1889. From the beginning, its trains were worked by locomotives and rolling stock supplied by the IoWCR. The Railway had its own platform at Newport station. It was eventually closed to all traffic on 21 September 1953.
| Newport, Godshill & St Lawrence Railway |
| St Lawrence line Stations Newport Shide |
- Newport, Godshill & St Lawrence Railway (NGStLR. Absorbed by IoWCR on 8th April 1913.
- The NGStLR, 6.75 miles in length, opened in two stages:
- Merstone Junction - St Lawrence, 20 July 1897
- St Lawrence - Ventnor Town, 1 June 1900. The delay was caused by the building of a tunnel
- (Notes taken from The Railway Year Book 1912)
- The NGStLR, 6.75 miles in length, opened in two stages:
Isle of Wight Central Railway absorbed into the Southern Railway on 1st January 1923.
By this means the Railway served the major part of the Island. The route down the eastern coast was worked by the Isle of Wight Railway.
[edit] Map
The map below shows all the lines on the island. 
[edit] Later history
Under the Railways Act 1921 the new Southern Railway took over all railways on the Isle of Wight. Developments under the SR included the construction of a short freight-only branch from the Cowes and Newport line to Medina Wharf. British Railways closed the FYNR, IW(NJ)R and NGStLR in the 1950's, and remaining IoWCR lines in 1966.
[edit] The IoWCR today
The Isle of Wight Steam Railway operates part of the former Ryde & Newport railway between Smallbrook Junction and Wootton. A station built at Smallbrook Junction in 1991 provides cross-platform interchange with the Island Line.
The increasing population of the Isle of Wight and increasing traffic on its small roads has led to repeated discussion of whether it would be viable to reopen the Ryde & Newport and Cowes & Newport lines. Newport now has 24,000 inhabitants. Cowes has 17,000 and also handles busy ferry traffic to and from Southampton. Road and property developments now cover part of the line through Newport. This has led the Island's local council to consider the possibility of a tramway rather than a statutory railway.
[edit] External links
- "Isle of Wight". Platform 14 Ltd. Along These Lines. ITV Meridian. 2008-06-15. No. 8, season 1.
