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{{Short description|Transport company}}
{{Heritage Railway |
{{Use British English|date=February 2023}}
|name = Bristol Harbour Railway |
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}
| other_name = |
{{Heritage Railway
|image = [[Image:20050319 052 bristol harbour railway.jpg|thumb|center|250px]] |
| name = Bristol Harbour Railway
| caption = Tourist train on the railway |
| other_name =
|locale = |
| image_name = Bristol Prince's Wharf - Henbury going to the Create Centre.JPG
| map = |
| caption = ''Henbury'' pulls a train near the [[Fairbairn steam crane]]
| mapsize = |
| locale = [[Bristol]]
|terminus = |
|linename = |
| map =
| mapsize =
|builtby = |
| terminus =Prince's Wharf
|originalgauge = {{RailGauge|56.5}} |
| linename =
|originalrack= |
| builtby = [[Great Western Railway]]
|originalelec= |
| originalgauge = {{Track gauge|4ft8.5in|allk=on}}
|preservedgauge = {{RailGauge|56.5}} |
| preservedgauge = {{Track gauge|4ft8.5in|allk=on}}
|preservedrack = |
| era =
|preservedelec= |
|era = |
| owned =
| operator =
|owned = |
| stations = 3
|operator = |
|stations = |
| length =
| originalopen = 1872 and 1906
|length = |
| closed = 1987
|originalopen = |
| stageyears =
|closed = |
| stage =
|stageyears = |
|stage = |
| years =
|years = |
| events =
|events = |
| years1 =
| headquarters =
|years1 = |
| headquarters= |
}}
}}
{{Bristol Harbour Railway RDT|collapse}}
The '''Bristol Harbour Railway''' <!--({{gbmapping|ST585722}})--> is a [[preserved railway]] in [[Bristol]], [[England]] operated by Bristol Museums Galleries & Archives. It runs for about a mile along the south side of [[Bristol Harbour]], starting at M Shed (the former [[Bristol Industrial Museum]] {{nowrap|({{coord|51.4483|-2.5969|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline|name=Bristol Harbour Railway (Prince Street end)}})}}), stopping at the {{SS|Great Britain}}, and ending at [[B Bond Warehouse]] (home of the [[Create Centre]]), one of the large tobacco warehouses beside [[Cumberland Basin (Bristol)|Cumberland Basin]] {{nowrap|({{coord|51.4466|-2.6213|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline|name=Bristol Harbour Railway (Cumberland Basin end)}})}}.
The '''Bristol Harbour Railway''' (known originally as the '''Harbour Railway''') <!--({{gbmapping|ST585722}})--> was a [[Standard-gauge railway|standard-gauge]] industrial railway that served the wharves and docks of [[Bristol]], England. The line, which had a network of approximately {{convert|5|mi|abbr=on}} of track, connected the [[Floating Harbour]] to the [[Great Western Railway|GWR]] mainline at [[Bristol Temple Meads]]. Freight could be transported directly by waggons to [[Paddington Station]] in London. The railway officially closed in 1964.


In 1978, a [[heritage railway]] named the Bristol Harbour Railway was opened and operated by [[Bristol Industrial Museum]]. It uses approximately {{convert|1|mi|km|abbr=}} of the preserved line that runs adjacent to the [[River Avon, Bristol|River Avon]]. The line is a very popular visitor attraction in the city.
The original Bristol Harbour Railway was a joint venture by the GWR and the Bristol and Exeter Railway, opened in 1872 between Temple Meads and the Floating Harbour. Its route included a tunnel under [[St Mary Redcliffe]] church and a steam-powered bascule bridge over the entrance locks at Bathurst Basin. In 1876 the railway was extended by 1/2 mile to Wapping Wharf. In 1906, new branches from the south via Ashton swing bridge were built to Canons Marsh on the north side of the Floating Harbour and to Wapping via a line alongside the New Cut. The Temple Meads connection was closed and the track lifted in 1964 (the bascule bridge engine survives in Bristol Museums). The Canons Marsh branch closed the following year. Canons Marsh goods shed is now the home of Explore [[At-Bristol]], a hands-on science centre. The Western Fuel Company continued to use the branch from the Portishead line and Wapping marshalling yard for commercial coal traffic until 1987.


==Industrial line==
In 1978, the preserved railway was established as an element of [[Bristol Industrial Museum]] using locomotives built in Bristol and formerly used at [[Avonmouth Docks]]. At first, it connected the Museum with the s.s. Great Britain but when commercial rail traffic ceased the museum railway expanded to use the branch alongside the New Cut. When the [[Portishead Railway]] was relaid the connection at Ashton Junction was severed. The railway operates on selected weekends on [[standard gauge]] track for half a mile. The railway is currently in use as far as [[B Bond Warehouse]] (home to the [[Create Centre]] and [[Bristol Record Office]]), a mile from the museum.
[[File:Bristol RJD 9.jpg|thumb|left|The Harbour Railway on a 1911 Bristol railway map]]
The Harbour Railway was a joint venture by the GWR and sister company the [[Bristol and Exeter Railway]]. The first part of the network opened in 1872 between Temple Meads and the Floating Harbour. The route required a tunnel under [[St Mary Redcliffe]] church and a steam-powered bascule bridge across the entrance locks at Bathurst Basin. In 1876 the line was extended by {{convert|1/2|mi}} to [[Wapping Wharf]].


In 1897 an [[act of Parliament]]{{which|date=September 2024}} gave the GWR the authorisation to make a westwards connection between the Harbour Railway and the [[Portishead Railway]]. This created the West Loop at {{stnlnk|Ashton Gate}} which permitted southerly travel towards {{rws|Taunton}} and {{rws|Exeter St Davids}}. The connection also permitted the double the rail capacity to the [[Great Western Main Line]].<ref name = macd2>{{cite book|first=E. T.|last= MacDermot|title=The Great Western Railway|volume=2|publisher= Great Western Railway, London|year= 1931}}</ref>
On the south side of the harbour the railway crosses [[Spike Island, Bristol|Spike Island]], the narrow strip of land between the Harbour and the [[River Avon, Bristol|River Avon]], and clings to the side of the river as far as the junction with the northern branch at the Cumberland Basin. Here the old railway turns and crosses the river, merging first with the [[Portishead Railway]] and then the [[Great Western main line]]. Ashton bridge is an iron swing bridge that was, before the construction of new main road nearby, a double-deck bridge carrying a road carriageway above the railway. The top deck has now been dismantled and one of the tracks lifted to make way for a [[Rail trail|footpath]] and [[cycleway]], while the other track has become overgrown.


In 1906 another authorised extension created new branches from the south via the [[Ashton Avenue Bridge|Ashton Swing Bridge]] to [[Canons Marsh]] on the north side of the Floating Harbour and to Wapping via a line alongside the New Cut.
Bristol City Council, in partnership with other local councils in the area, are currently proposing that the route of the railway should be used for a [[guided bus]] route to serve the south-west of the city, implying that, should the guided bus scheme go ahead, the railway will be closed.<ref>{{cite web
| title=Ashton Vale to Temple Meads rapid transit route consultation information
| work=West Of England Partnership website
| url=http://www.westofengland.org/transport/rapid-transit/ashton-vale---temple-meads-design-freeze-3
| accessdate=7 November 2010
}}</ref>


In 1964, the Harbour railway connection to Temple Meads was closed and the track lifted. The steam engine from the link's bascule bridge is now preserved at [[Bristol Museum & Art Gallery]]. The following year, the Canons Marsh line closed. The branch from the Portishead line and Wapping marshalling yard to the Western Fuel Company continued remained open for commercial coal traffic for another 20 years. It was officially closed in 1987.
{{Bristol Harbour Railway RDT}}
{{Bristol railway map/collapse}}


==Rolling stock==
==Heritage railway==
In 1978, the [[Bristol Industrial Museum]] reopened part of the line as preserved railway using locomotives built in Bristol and formerly used at [[Avonmouth Docks]]. At first, it connected the museum with the SS ''Great Britain'', but when commercial rail traffic ceased in 1987 on the remaining branch line, the museum railway expanded to use the branch alongside the [[New Cut (Bristol)|New Cut]]. However, when the [[Portishead Railway]] was relaid, this severed the connection to Ashton Junction.
The railway has several small [[steam locomotive]]s:
*[[Peckett and Sons]] 0-6-0ST No. 1940 ''Henbury'', 1937. (Operational)
*[[Avonside Engine Company]] 0-6-0ST No. 1764 ''Portbury'', 1917. (Operational)
*[[Fox, Walker and Company]] 0-6-0ST No. 242, 1874 (Undergoing long-term restoration.)


The line starts at M shed, following the south side of the harbour and crossing [[Spike Island, Bristol|Spike Island]], the narrow strip of land between the harbour and the [[River Avon, Bristol|River Avon]].
There is also a collection of wagons, some of which have been converted for passenger use while others are used for demonstration freight trains.
The former route east over the Swing Bridge is now the Pill Pathway [[rail trail]] and [[cycleway]].

The railway operates on selected weekends on [[standard gauge]] track over {{convert|1+1/2|mi}}. The railway runs along the south side of [[Bristol Harbour]], starting at M Shed (the former [[Bristol Industrial Museum]] {{nowrap|({{coord|51.4483|-2.5969|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline|name=Bristol Harbour Railway (Prince Street end)}})}}), stopping at the {{SS|Great Britain}}, and ending at [[B Bond Warehouse]] (home of the CREATE Centre), one of the large tobacco warehouses beside [[Cumberland Basin (Bristol)|Cumberland Basin]] {{nowrap|({{coord|51.4466|-2.6213|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline|name=Bristol Harbour Railway (Cumberland Basin end)}})}}.

In 2006, [[Bristol Industrial Museum]] was closed and the site redeveloped into [[M Shed]] Museum of Bristol. The railway continues to operate between SS Great Britain Halt and the CREATE Centre, and in 2011 the railway became part of M Shed's working exhibits.<ref>{{cite web | title=M Shed Working Exhibits | work=Official M Shed Website | url=http://www.mshed.org/ }}
</ref>

In 2010, Bristol City Council, in partnership with other local councils in the area, proposed that the route of the railway should be used for a [[bus rapid transit]] route to serve the south-west of the city.<ref>{{cite web | title=Ashton Vale to Temple Meads rapid transit route consultation information | work=West of England Partnership website | url=http://www.westofengland.org/transport/rapid-transit/ashton-vale---temple-meads-design-freeze-3 | access-date=7 November 2010}}</ref> In early 2013, a review of alternative routes recommended a route along Cumberland Road, Commercial Road and Redcliff Hill as the best alternative. This change of route means that the rapid transit buses would no longer use the railway.

Some time before March 2017{{when|date=October 2023}}, the track and platform at Butterfly Junction (by the CREATE Centre) was removed due to work on the [[MetroBus (Bristol)|Bristol MetroBus]] system. The route to the CREATE Centre was further curtailed in December by severe subsidence that closed that section of the line and the adjacent [[Chocolate Path]]. The section collapsed into the [[New Cut, Bristol|New Cut]] in January 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cork |first=Tristan |date=2020-01-24 |title=Cumberland Road closed 'for foreseeable future' |url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/river-bank-collapse-means-cumberland-3773254 |access-date=2023-01-18 |website=BristolLive}}</ref>

Since the collapse, trains from the M Shed now travel a significantly shorter route that follows Museum Street, ending at a platform near to the [[SS Great Britain]].
{{Clear}}

===Rolling stock===
{| class="wikitable"
! Number and name
! Built
! Description
! Current status
! Livery
! Image
|-
|242
| 1874
|[[Fox, Walker and Company]] {{whyte|0-6-0|ST}}
|Stored unrestored
|
|[[File:242 waiting (6224665028).jpg|175px]]
|-
|1764 ''Portbury''
| 1917
|[[Avonside Engine Company]] {{whyte|0-6-0|ST}}
|undergoing overhaul.

|IW&D grey and black
|[[File:Portbury steam loco 2013.jpg|175px]]
|-
|1940 ''Henbury''
| 1937
|[[Peckett and Sons]] {{whyte|0-6-0|ST}}
|Operational
|PBA Green
|[[File:Henbury steam loco 2013.jpg|175px]]
|-

|418792
|1959
|[[Ruston & Hornsby]] {{whyte|0-4-0|DM}}
Seabank Gas Works (Avonmouth) shunter
|Operational
|Green
|[[File:Ruston shunter Bristol 2013.jpg|175px]]
|}

The steam locomotives were formerly part of the aborted preservation scheme at {{stnlnk|Radstock North}}. There is also a collection of wagons, some of which have been converted for passenger use while others are used for demonstration goods trains.


== References ==
== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Bristol Harbour Railway}}
{{GeoGroupTemplate}}
*[http://www.bristol-city.gov.uk/ccm/content/Leisure-Culture/Museums-Galleries/bristols-industrial-museum Bristol Industrial Museum]
*[http://www.collectorcafe.com/article_archive.asp?article=600&id=1269 Note on the Railway's opening]


== Sources ==
== Sources ==
*Old version of the museum's web page, now located at {{cite web
*New page for M Shed Museum {{cite web
| title=M Shed Working Exhibits
| work=Official M Shed Website
| url=http://www.mshed.org/
}}
*Old version of the museum's web page, now located at {{cite web
| title=Bristol's Industrial Museum
| title=Bristol's Industrial Museum
| work=Bristol City Council: leisure and culture
| work=Bristol City Council: leisure and culture
| url=http://www.bristol-city.gov.uk/ccm/content/Leisure-Culture/Museums-Galleries/bristols-industrial-museum
| url=http://www.bristol-city.gov.uk/ccm/content/Leisure-Culture/Museums-Galleries/bristols-industrial-museum
| archive-url=https://archive.today/20110301015514/http://www.bristol-city.gov.uk/ccm/content/Leisure-Culture/Museums-Galleries/bristols-industrial-museum
| accessdate=2005-03-22
| url-status=dead
| archive-date=1 March 2011
| access-date=22 March 2005
}}
*Unofficial behind the scenes blog on Bristol Harbour Railway {{cite web
| title=BHR Blog
| work=Bristol Harbour Railway Blog
| url=http://www.bristolharbourrailway.wordpress.com/
}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Bristol Harbour Railway}}
{{GeoGroup}}
*[https://www.bristolmuseums.org.uk/m-shed/whats-on/train-rides/ Bristol Industrial Museum]
* {{Cite web
|title=Victoria Street Bridge, linking Temple Meads
|author=Fray Bentos
|series=1970s photographs of lost Bristol
|date=6 June 1974
|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/fray_bentos/158959502/in/set-72157594155572977/
|format=photograph
}}
* {{Cite web
|title=Victoria Street Bridge, linking Temple Meads
|author=Fray Bentos
|series=1970s photographs of lost Bristol
|date=6 June 1974
|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/fray_bentos/2365514042/in/set-72157594155572977/
|format=photograph
}}
}}


<br ><!--blank line to separate above text from navi-boxes. Please do not remove.-->
{{Heritage railways in England}}
{{Heritage railways in England}}
{{Railway lines in South West England}}
{{Railway lines in South West England}}
{{Culture in Bristol}}
{{Culture in Bristol}}

{{coord|51.4468|-2.6092|dim:1000_region:GB|display=title}}
{{coord|51.4468|-2.6092|dim:1000_region:GB|display=title}}

{{authority control}}


[[Category:Bristol Harbourside]]
[[Category:Bristol Harbourside]]
[[Category:Grade II listed buildings in Bristol]]
[[Category:Grade II listed buildings in Bristol]]
[[Category:Heritage railways in England]]
[[Category:Heritage railways in Bristol]]
[[Category:Railway museums in England]]
[[Category:Railway museums in England]]

Latest revision as of 00:22, 3 November 2024

Bristol Harbour Railway
Henbury pulls a train near the Fairbairn steam crane
LocaleBristol
TerminusPrince's Wharf
Commercial operations
Built byGreat Western Railway
Original gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Preserved operations
Stations3
Preserved gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Commercial history
Opened1872 and 1906
Closed1987
Bristol Harbour Railway
Legend
to the Southwest
Butterfly Junction
 Royal Portbury Dock
Ashton Swing Bridge
Severn Estuary
 CREATE Centre
National Rail Parson Street
Old & New Junction Locks
Vauxhall Bridge
Albion Dockyard
Cumberland Road Bridge
SS Great Britain
Malago Colliery
Canons Marsh
National Rail Bedminster
Floating Harbour
Western Fuel
Concentration Co
Princes Wharf
Pylle Hill Parcel Depot
Bathurst Basin
Redcliffe Tunnel
River Frome
River Avon
(New Cut)
Redcliffe Goods
 A4  Bath Road
(Redcliffe Viaduct)
Temple Meads
(Original station)
 A4044  Temple Way
(Victoria Street Bridge)
National Rail Bristol Temple Meads
Temple Meads Goods
River Avon
to London, Wales & the North

The Bristol Harbour Railway (known originally as the Harbour Railway) was a standard-gauge industrial railway that served the wharves and docks of Bristol, England. The line, which had a network of approximately 5 mi (8.0 km) of track, connected the Floating Harbour to the GWR mainline at Bristol Temple Meads. Freight could be transported directly by waggons to Paddington Station in London. The railway officially closed in 1964.

In 1978, a heritage railway named the Bristol Harbour Railway was opened and operated by Bristol Industrial Museum. It uses approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) of the preserved line that runs adjacent to the River Avon. The line is a very popular visitor attraction in the city.

Industrial line

[edit]
The Harbour Railway on a 1911 Bristol railway map

The Harbour Railway was a joint venture by the GWR and sister company the Bristol and Exeter Railway. The first part of the network opened in 1872 between Temple Meads and the Floating Harbour. The route required a tunnel under St Mary Redcliffe church and a steam-powered bascule bridge across the entrance locks at Bathurst Basin. In 1876 the line was extended by 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) to Wapping Wharf.

In 1897 an act of Parliament[which?] gave the GWR the authorisation to make a westwards connection between the Harbour Railway and the Portishead Railway. This created the West Loop at Ashton Gate which permitted southerly travel towards Taunton and Exeter St Davids. The connection also permitted the double the rail capacity to the Great Western Main Line.[1]

In 1906 another authorised extension created new branches from the south via the Ashton Swing Bridge to Canons Marsh on the north side of the Floating Harbour and to Wapping via a line alongside the New Cut.

In 1964, the Harbour railway connection to Temple Meads was closed and the track lifted. The steam engine from the link's bascule bridge is now preserved at Bristol Museum & Art Gallery. The following year, the Canons Marsh line closed. The branch from the Portishead line and Wapping marshalling yard to the Western Fuel Company continued remained open for commercial coal traffic for another 20 years. It was officially closed in 1987.

Heritage railway

[edit]

In 1978, the Bristol Industrial Museum reopened part of the line as preserved railway using locomotives built in Bristol and formerly used at Avonmouth Docks. At first, it connected the museum with the SS Great Britain, but when commercial rail traffic ceased in 1987 on the remaining branch line, the museum railway expanded to use the branch alongside the New Cut. However, when the Portishead Railway was relaid, this severed the connection to Ashton Junction.

The line starts at M shed, following the south side of the harbour and crossing Spike Island, the narrow strip of land between the harbour and the River Avon. The former route east over the Swing Bridge is now the Pill Pathway rail trail and cycleway.

The railway operates on selected weekends on standard gauge track over 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km). The railway runs along the south side of Bristol Harbour, starting at M Shed (the former Bristol Industrial Museum (51°26′54″N 2°35′49″W / 51.4483°N 2.5969°W / 51.4483; -2.5969 (Bristol Harbour Railway (Prince Street end)))), stopping at the SS Great Britain, and ending at B Bond Warehouse (home of the CREATE Centre), one of the large tobacco warehouses beside Cumberland Basin (51°26′48″N 2°37′17″W / 51.4466°N 2.6213°W / 51.4466; -2.6213 (Bristol Harbour Railway (Cumberland Basin end))).

In 2006, Bristol Industrial Museum was closed and the site redeveloped into M Shed Museum of Bristol. The railway continues to operate between SS Great Britain Halt and the CREATE Centre, and in 2011 the railway became part of M Shed's working exhibits.[2]

In 2010, Bristol City Council, in partnership with other local councils in the area, proposed that the route of the railway should be used for a bus rapid transit route to serve the south-west of the city.[3] In early 2013, a review of alternative routes recommended a route along Cumberland Road, Commercial Road and Redcliff Hill as the best alternative. This change of route means that the rapid transit buses would no longer use the railway.

Some time before March 2017[when?], the track and platform at Butterfly Junction (by the CREATE Centre) was removed due to work on the Bristol MetroBus system. The route to the CREATE Centre was further curtailed in December by severe subsidence that closed that section of the line and the adjacent Chocolate Path. The section collapsed into the New Cut in January 2020.[4]

Since the collapse, trains from the M Shed now travel a significantly shorter route that follows Museum Street, ending at a platform near to the SS Great Britain.

Rolling stock

[edit]
Number and name Built Description Current status Livery Image
242 1874 Fox, Walker and Company 0-6-0ST Stored unrestored
1764 Portbury 1917 Avonside Engine Company 0-6-0ST undergoing overhaul. IW&D grey and black
1940 Henbury 1937 Peckett and Sons 0-6-0ST Operational PBA Green
418792 1959 Ruston & Hornsby 0-4-0DM

Seabank Gas Works (Avonmouth) shunter

Operational Green

The steam locomotives were formerly part of the aborted preservation scheme at Radstock North. There is also a collection of wagons, some of which have been converted for passenger use while others are used for demonstration goods trains.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ MacDermot, E. T. (1931). The Great Western Railway. Vol. 2. Great Western Railway, London.
  2. ^ "M Shed Working Exhibits". Official M Shed Website.
  3. ^ "Ashton Vale to Temple Meads rapid transit route consultation information". West of England Partnership website. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  4. ^ Cork, Tristan (24 January 2020). "Cumberland Road closed 'for foreseeable future'". BristolLive. Retrieved 18 January 2023.

Sources

[edit]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bristol Harbour Railway.
Map all coordinates using OpenStreetMap

Download coordinates as:

51°26′48″N 2°36′33″W / 51.4468°N 2.6092°W / 51.4468; -2.6092

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