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 was converted to 7 ft 0 ¹⁄₄ in (2,140 mm) 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. The railway officially became a joint venture on 1 July 1894 and became known as the Severn and Wye Joint Railway (S&WJR). At its largest extent the railway consisted of 39 miles (63 km) of track. Lydney Canal was opened in 1813 and closed in 1977.

History

The Severn and Wye Railway was authorized by parliament in 1809 as the Lydney & Lydbrook Railway. It changed its title to the Severn and Wye Railway and Canal Company in the following year. The railway was opened in 1810 between Lydney and Lydbrook via Serridge Junction (near Serridge Platform), as a tramway operated by horses. In 1865 five locomotives were purchased by the line, the railway was largely converted into broad gauge in 1868-9, two more engines were added in 1872 and later that year the railway was converted to standard gauge. The Mineral Loop was opened in 1872 and a branch to Coleford from Parkend opened in 1876. The first passenger train ran on 23 September 1875 between Lydney and Lydbrook. When the Severn Railway Bridge opened in 1879, the Severn Bridge Railway was amalgamated with the Severn and Wye Railway, becoming the Severn and Wye and Severn Bridge Railway. This then became the Severn and Wye Joint Railway when the Great Western Railway and Midland Railway bought the company in 1894. An extension to Cinderford was opened in 1900.

The 'Main Line' ran from Sharpness on the southeastern bank of the River Severn across the river via the Severn Railway Bridge to Lydney on the northwestern bank and then on to Cinderford. Here trains reversed to continue to Lydbrook Junction on the GWR line from Ross-on-Wye to Monmouth (the Ross and Monmouth Railway). There were many branches to 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. A short branch to Coleford, which had a small station at Milkwall was opened and it connected with the Coleford Railway and Wye Valley Railway. At one point you could then catch a train on to Monmouth station. When the Coleford Railway closed in 1917 the railway took over the short stretch to Whitecliff Quarry. The quarry closed in 1976.^[1] Apart from the bridge over the Severn, the only major engineering features were a tunnel at Mierystock (now blocked) and Lower Lydbrook Viaduct (now demolished).

Regular passenger services north of Lydney Town stopped in 1929; however, the Berkeley Road - Lydney Town service was only halted by the collapse of the Severn Railway Bridge in 1960. Freight services on the line lasted much longer than passenger; the Lydbrook arm closed completely in 1956, (the line had been near dormant for several years before), the branch to Coleford and Whitecliff Quarry closed in 1967 and the section to Parkend finally closed in 1976.

The stretch between Parkend and Lydney is now restored and open as the Dean Forest Railway. Many of the other parts of the route have been converted into cycleways. The Sharpness Branch Line is still open to serve the surviving industry in Sharpness Docks. The signal box at Coleford Station (S&WR) has now been turned into a museum highlighting the activities of the Great Western Railway.

See also

• Bicslade Tramroad - S&W Railway branch line
• Forest of Dean Central Railway

References

• Cowdrey, John. "Historical Lydney", The Environment Agency. Accessed September 13, 2007.