Severn and Wye Railway

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The Severn and Wye Railway was built in west Gloucestershire 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 canal in 1810. In 1868 the tramway was converted to broad gauge, and then to standard gauge in 1872. Upon bankruptcy in 1893 it was purchased jointly by the Midland Railway and Great Western Railway.[1]

The 'Main Line' ran from Sharpness across the Severn Railway Bridge to Cinderford where trains reversed to continue to Lydbrook Junction on the GWR line from Ross-on-Wye to Monmouth. There were many branches : to Coleford and various collieries and a 'Mineral Loop' line was built to avoid reversal at Cinderford and the steep gradient from Speech House Road to Serridge Junction. Apart from the bridge over the Severn, the only major engineering features were a tunnel at Mierystock (now blocked) and a viaduct at Lydbrook (now demolished).

The railway mostly closed in the 1960s but a short stretch lives on as the Dean Forest Railway. Many of the other parts of the route have been converted into cycleways.

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