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List of preservation railway's expansion plans in future

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Gostav

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In last year there are have good post to talk about GCR to shows the good work for bridging the Gap.
What about other preservation railways? They have any expansion that have started or near start?
I hear Heaton Park tramway want built more track on the park but not find any detail.
Wiki shows Bluebell Railway want expansion to Lewes but it just "they want".
East Lancashire Railway have plan to run trains through to Castleton with National Rail services but also not start or there are indication to start.
 
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Belperpete

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I think that you need to be clear here: do you mean expansion in general (e.g. build a new loco shed or such like), or are you specifically talking about extensions to the running line?
 
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The temptation is for such projects to come at the expense of looking after what has already been achieved.
 
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I think the next plan for the Bluebell Railway is to extend it to Haywards Heath via Ardingly (and who knows how many years away that will be). I imagine that any extension to Lewes would only happen after this.
 

Journeyman

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The temptation is for such projects to come at the expense of looking after what has already been achieved.

I've often thought this, especially when you get attempts to open new preserved lines in decidedly unattractive areas - they often end up being weed-strewn linear scrapyards with nothing but some grotty industrial rolling stock that has very limited appeal.
 

duffield

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View attachment 57847 The Mid Norfolk Railway are currently installing a long loop plus sidings (details in previous thread linked below) and a storage/restoration shed has just been erected in Dereham yard (the next job for the hard-working PW gang is to lay track into it)

https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...-rolling-stock-on-mid-norfolk-railway.166542/

The MNR is also in the process of extending by about 6 Miles from Dereham to the station they already own at County School, last time I looked the limit of running (e.g. for special services) was around the B1145 crossing at North Elmham.
 

Llanigraham

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The Corris Railway have well advanced plans to extend down the bank to the first level crossing off the main road, at Pont Efans
Planning permission has been granted and work started on a small deviation off the old trackbed, and a short length of track has been laid below the carriageshed junction, down the Extension.
 

Ploughman

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I think the next plan for the Bluebell Railway is to extend it to Haywards Heath via Ardingly (and who knows how many years away that will be). I imagine that any extension to Lewes would only happen after this.
I believe that the Bluebell have stated that Ardingley is a possibility but that there is a near zero chance of any extension Southwards.
I think the statement is buried on the website somewhere.
 

Gostav

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I've often thought this, especially when you get attempts to open new preserved lines in decidedly unattractive areas - they often end up being weed-strewn linear scrapyards with nothing but some grotty industrial rolling stock that has very limited appeal.

Well, l believe Mountsorrel Branch Line is not a linear scrapyard, although GCR's through train is very limited.
 

341o2

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The Shiullingstone project is in the process of becoming an operational railway including steam, rather than a station site - pity I missed their loco in steam at the Dorset steam fair, while I believe the Chinnor & PR have long term plans to extend southwards as far as the M40
 
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Well, l believe Mountsorrel Branch Line is not a linear scrapyard, although GCR's through train is very limited.
I think you're missing Journeyman's point.

There is, of course, the KESR / RVR's determined attempt to link up.
 

tomatwark

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I believe that the Bluebell have stated that Ardingley is a possibility but that there is a near zero chance of any extension Southwards.
I think the statement is buried on the website somewhere.

It is in the FAQ section, they make an interesting point about the Southwards extension, in that if they did ever do it, it may make the railway to large for them to maintain.

I guess this is something all preserved lines need to think about, and not let their thoughts of reopening a line because they can, over rule the fact that it will need to maintained once they have done so and will possibly not attract a lot more visitors.

Some members of my family went from Whitby to Pickering and back on the NYMR, they enjoyed it, but did say with a young child it was a bit of a long day once the excitement of going on a steam train had worn off, if they were doing it again they would only have done part of the journey.
 

xotGD

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Embsay and Bolton Abbey certainly has an aspiration to extend to Skipton but I don't know if it is any more than wishful thinking.
 

Meerkat

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So what is the ideal practical and commercial length for a preserved line, assuming that the far end is not a destination (ie a tourist site in itself or transport connection)?
People will pay more for a proper ride rather than a station length of track, but presumably past a certain distance the punters won’t pay more but the costs increase. What is the minimum distance needed for a dining train?
Some extensions just seem to be for the sake of it, and likely to be a negative for cashflow. The railway would be better off tidying up their storage so it looked less like a scrapyard and was more accessible to the public.
 

CarltonA

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I believe the Chinnor & PR have long term plans to extend southwards as far as the M40

The A40 near Aston Rowant is the realistic limit. There would be no practical way of crossing the A road as the bridge has gone and the road level lowered. Beyond there is just a field where the track bed has been obliterated and then the motorway.
 

Bensonby

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I think preserved lines need to be careful of expansion “just because” (though emotionally, I’d love any and all expansion projects!) The project would have to serve a purpose: normally meaning a link up to the Nationals Rail network, a centre of population, or a tourist attraction. The most important being the first of those: think of the East Grinstead expansion on the Bluebell, it massively increased their passenger numbers.

To that end I think the Bolton Abbey - Embsay link to Skipton would transform the line for the better. The obvious costs and complications of sharing Grassington Branch being the barriers.
 

xotGD

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I think preserved lines need to be careful of expansion “just because” (though emotionally, I’d love any and all expansion projects!) The project would have to serve a purpose: normally meaning a link up to the Nationals Rail network, a centre of population, or a tourist attraction. The most important being the first of those: think of the East Grinstead expansion on the Bluebell, it massively increased their passenger numbers.

To that end I think the Bolton Abbey - Embsay link to Skipton would transform the line for the better. The obvious costs and complications of sharing Grassington Branch being the barriers.
You'd actually get the chance of some decent thrash up the bank from Skipton to Embsay too. Plus opportunities for through rail tours, visiting locomotives to arrive by rail and through ticketing like on the KWVR. So plenty of plus points.
 
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In Devon, plans are well advanced to extend the Lynton and Barnstaple southwards to Wistlandpound Reservoir. In the longer term it is intended to reach both Barnstaple and Lynton - with the proposed station in Lynton being more convenient for the town than the original. It is a highly scenic line, with charismatic locos and rolling-stock, so it is an enticing prospect.

In Cornwall, the Bodmin and Wenford Railway still aim to reach Wadebridge, but advocates of the 'Camel Trail' cycle-path are very vociferous in their opposition. Padstow would almost be impossible now, with the difficulty of threading through the centre of Wadebridge. The Helston Railway has also suffered from well-organised NIMBYs, but has recently extended to Truthall Platform - where an excellent GWR 'Pagoda' has been recreated. The next aim is to reach Helston, although it will be on the outskirts as the original station site has been redeveloped. About half of the route is now in their ownership.
 

JoeGJ1984

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I wonder if there would be potential in extending the Severn Valley Railway to Ironbridge. I say this becuase of the tourist potential (would be nice to arrive at all of ironbridge's tourist attractions by steam train).
 

Elwyn

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I think what’s quite important is to have things to see at the end of the journey. People are happy to pay a significant fare to take the Jacobite from Fort William to Mallaig because of the scenery, the Glenfinnan viaduct and because Mallaig is worth going to. (Not a lot to do but quite good fish and chips etc, and enough for the 90 minutes you are there). That’s well over an hour and half. What they don’t mostly want is a journey from nowhere to nowhere. So it’s not just about the ideal journey length.
 
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The important thing is to look at these issues like "normals" rather than gricers. The former generate most of the revenue and are very unlikely to care two hoots about mainline connections, rail tours etc. However they are likely to want the carriages to be in a decent condition, the windows clean enough to see out of and the cost of travel to be reasonable.
 

Llanigraham

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I wonder if there would be potential in extending the Severn Valley Railway to Ironbridge. I say this becuase of the tourist potential (would be nice to arrive at all of ironbridge's tourist attractions by steam train).

That may clash with recent suggestions from the Telford Railway to extend that way, including building a 2' NG line actually towards the Museum site.
 

Llanigraham

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I think what’s quite important is to have things to see at the end of the journey. People are happy to pay a significant fare to take the Jacobite from Fort William to Mallaig because of the scenery, the Glenfinnan viaduct and because Mallaig is worth going to. (Not a lot to do but quite good fish and chips etc, and enough for the 90 minutes you are there). That’s well over an hour and half. What they don’t mostly want is a journey from nowhere to nowhere. So it’s not just about the ideal journey length.

Another example of that is the Welsh Highland Railway between Porthmadog and Caernarfon. They seem to get plenty of bums on expensive seats
 

Meerkat

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The important thing is to look at these issues like "normals" rather than gricers. The former generate most of the revenue and are very unlikely to care two hoots about mainline connections

Why wouldn’t normals be interested in a mainline connection which means they can travel to the heritage railway by train?
 

Cowley

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I wonder if there would be potential in extending the Severn Valley Railway to Ironbridge. I say this becuase of the tourist potential (would be nice to arrive at all of ironbridge's tourist attractions by steam train).
I don't think this'll ever happen now.
The SVR is pretty much perfect in its current form - It's a decent long run though very pleasant surroundings, it goes from somewhere to somewhere, it's connected to the railway network and has the UKs second city within a short train ride, and it has an amazing collection of stock (I could go on but I won't).
No point blowing millions of pounds extending to Ironbridge - It doesn't need to for the above reasons.
The planned rebuilding of Bridgenorth as a terminus suitable for one of the UKs top three preserved railways shows that the railway is happy to sit on and improve what they already have.
I think they're correct to stick with what they have, despite what my Fantasy Preserved Railway thinking wants me to imagine...
 
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Why wouldn’t normals be interested in a mainline connection which means they can travel to the heritage railway by train?
Because, for them, these lines are a visitor attraction and how they get there, like any other form of visitor attraction, is largely a matter of convenience and cost. Certainly they won't be obsessed by the means of getting there.
 
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E100

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The Aln Valley line is currently expanding towards Alnmouth station from just outside Alnwick.
 

Meerkat

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Because, for them, these lines are a visitor attraction and how they get there, like any other form of visitor attraction, is largely a matter of convenience and cost. Certainly they won't be obsessed by the means of getting there.

Exactly - so if they can get there by train there are more options and those without cars can get there (which must be a fairly significant market at the top end of the age spectrum of heritage railway customers....)
 
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... those without cars can get there (which must be a fairly significant market at the top end of the age spectrum of heritage railway customers....)
Catered for by motor coach excursions which are a great source of business for a number of tourist railways. Apart from coach parking facilities there are no capital or revenue implications which is in direct contrast with extensions and, in particular, main line connections. It's just one of a number of things which railway enthusiasts need to "get real" about
 
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