TRIVIA: Hardest Rail lines to reinstate

[PeterC]

Dalston Junction - Broad Street and Hackney - Poplar
Come to that any former rail service in Doclands.

 

[RJ21]

Manchester Central to Romiley Junction, which bit of redevelopment shall we start with. West of Stockport, Decathlon & B&Q, M60, filled in tunnels, Morrison's in Bredbury, cutting being filled in for houses. Oh and the tram to East Didsbury.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I was going to mention the Leeds New Line but it's already been covered. So I'll go for the Holmfirth branch: houses on the trackbed near the junction, most of the viaduct missing, further building on much of the trackbed, terminal station demolished and a church of some sort (Jehovah's Witnesses IIRC) built on the site. A line which had it survived would be prospering today.

Another is Taunton to Barnstaple: originally had the A361 built over much of its length, though this section was later downgraded as the B3227 when the Exmoor expressway was built.

Perhaps there's a possible use for tram-trains?*


*=coats seem to be very much in fashion on this thread, so I've got mine!

 

[Cowley]

Manchester Central to Romiley Junction, which bit of redevelopment shall we start with. West of Stockport, Decathlon & B&Q, M60, filled in tunnels, Morrison's in Bredbury, cutting being filled in for houses. Oh and the tram to East Didsbury.

I think we should start by knocking the B&Q down RJ.
I’ll fetch my sledgehammer...

 

[RJ21]

No need, there'll be plenty of tools in B&Q for demolition.

 

[CyrusWuff]

Bourne End - High Wycombe

Extensive obstruction of the trackbed starting immediately opposite Bourne End station.

 

[theageofthetra]

Elmers End to Selsdon?
What's that old Cally line in Edinburgh that is now a road?

Holborn Viaduct?

 

[tsr]

Central Croydon station would be somewhat unlikely to reopen...

 

[Chris M]

Come to that any former rail service in Doclands.

Reinstating the original DLR route Mudchute to Island Gardens wouldn't be too difficult - only one building would need to come down and the viaduct extending at both ends and stations rebuilding, but the viaduct is still there. Reconnecting it to Crossharbour would be trickier but far from impossible.
Quite why anyone would want to do this though is another matter entirely.

Reconnecting North Woolwich station to the network on its original alignment wouldn't be possible, but if you're happy to bend around the Crossrail portal you could do it pretty easily in engineering terms (tram train might be necessary though).

 

[Malcolmffc]

If we’re including metros, how about the original Charing Cross Loop on the Northern Line? The tunnels were sealed off in the 1920s and were later breached by a bomb in WW2 and flooded

 

[AM9]

If we’re including metros, how about the original Charing Cross Loop on the Northern Line? The tunnels were sealed off in the 1920s and were later breached by a bomb in WW2 and flooded

... or reconnect the Metropolitain Railway link from the western end of Liverpool St. Met/Circle line platforms through the tube station ticket hall to what was the alignment of the GEML platform 9 in the mainline station. That would be a sort of subterranean version of the Waterloo to Waterloo East link.

 

[bramling]

If we’re including metros, how about the original Charing Cross Loop on the Northern Line? The tunnels were sealed off in the 1920s and were later breached by a bomb in WW2 and flooded

Plus today’s southbound tunnel cuts right through the site of the loop tunnel, just south of the southbound platform.

On a similar theme, King William Street would also be hard to reinstate. The tunnels are 10ft 2inch so are too small for today’s trains, there are various obstructions where tunnels have been constructed as part of London Bridge station, there is a sharp curve approaching King William Street station which is itself too short for today’s trains. Soon the tunnel here will be partly in filled to allow a temporary shaft to be built for the Bank extra platform tunnel- and finally the station lift shaft at King William Street is back filled and the original surface building is long gone.

 

[delt1c]

Slateford to Princess Street Stn

 

[al78]

Christs Hospital to Shoreham. I think the old line has been built over in Southwater, Partridge Green, Henfield and Steyning.

Any of the former lines which ran east and west (and possibly south) of East Grinstead.

 

[Photohunter71]

Leith to Waverley

 

[Ash Bridge]

Manchester Central to Romiley Junction, which bit of redevelopment shall we start with. West of Stockport, Decathlon & B&Q, M60, filled in tunnels, Morrison's in Bredbury, cutting being filled in for houses. Oh and the tram to East Didsbury.

To be honest RJ the current B&Q is built far from where the old CLC route passed and even Decathlon (former B&Q building) wasn't built across the former main running lines but more over the old goods yard so no real problems with those two. Coming back slightly west of there Pets At Home and Staples are sitting directly on the formation and further west still at Heaton Mersey where the embankment was taken out several industrial units have blocked the way since at least the late 1970s, agreed on the rest of what you say though.

I think we should start by knocking the B&Q down RJ.
I’ll fetch my sledgehammer...

Mr Cowley would you please keep out of this and don't give RJ any such ideas as I have several more of packs of B&Q loft panels that I need to collect from that store just yet thankyou!

 

[Cowley]

Oh alright

 

[PeterC]

... or reconnect the Metropolitain Railway link from the western end of Liverpool St. Met/Circle line platforms through the tube station ticket hall to what was the alignment of the GEML platform 9 in the mainline station. That would be a sort of subterranean version of the Waterloo to Waterloo East link.

The Met actually connected to platforms 1 and 2. Platforms 9 and 10 originally extended into a siding for delivering coal to the Great Eastern Hotel.

 

[A0wen]

The GC through Chesterfield is probably impossible - given the route is used by a main road now.

The Welwyn - Dunstable line would be pretty difficult, you've got the A1(M) in the way at Welwyn, Wheathampstead by pass, the formation into Luton and the busway all in the way.

IoW lines through Newport - all the formations there have disappeared.

 

[RichJF]

Three Bridges - Tunbridge Wells Central.

Class 700 depot on top of alignment in Three Bridges
Massive housing development built in Crawley Down on old alignment
Colas own the site at Rowfant
A22 one way system built over High Level station/track in East Grinstead.
Bridge in Forest Row demolished
Spa Valley Railway in place between High Rocks & Tunbridge Wells West.
Massive Sainsbury's built in front of Grove Tunnel.
Hastings Line intensive service & lack of paths prevent reinstatement of Grove Junction.
Not to mention nearly the entire route is a path/cycle track/bridleway & would have stiff opposition to it closing!

 

[mrcheek]

Spalding to Boston Line, Now the A15

arguably, that would be easy to reinstate, just build on the road! the same as the line to Blackpool central

 

[mrcheek]

The Somerset and Dorset. So much of the line has been built over with housing now

 

[plymothian]

Heathfield - Exeter: now under the A38, some houses, roads and a Sainsbury
Buckfastleigh - Ashburton: A38 again.
Friary - Yealmpton/Turnchapel: built on
North Road - St Budeaux via Kings Road: built on, mainly a college on Devonport Kings Road station

 

[njamescouk]

400KV in woodhead tunnel pretty daunting?

 

[njamescouk]

arguably, that would be easy to reinstate, just build on the road! the same as the line to Blackpool central

how about kind of sinking the track in the road so cars could still use it?

 

[Essan]

Evesham - Ashchurch

My house is in the way!

 

[AM9]

The Met actually connected to platforms 1 and 2. Platforms 9 and 10 originally extended into a siding for delivering coal to the Great Eastern Hotel.

OK, I didn't know that. Thanks. I do remember the stub just before the outer Circle platform so connecting to platform 1 would make the curve from the outer Circle line pretty sharp.

 

[fairysdad]

Another is Taunton to Barnstaple: originally had the A361 built over much of its length, though this section was later downgraded as the B3227 when the Exmoor expressway was built.

Not quite right - the bit downgraded to the B3227 is, with exception of the Milverton bypass, a completely separate, yet mostly parallel, alignment to the old railway line. The A361 'North Devon Link Road' was built from Tiverton to Barnstaple; the first section along a new alignment, but the section from South Molton on to Barnstaple though is built on the old railway (with the exception of the old Bremridge/Castle Hill tunnel, though using the original viaduct at the same place).

 

[Malcolmffc]

Three Bridges - Tunbridge Wells Central.

Class 700 depot on top of alignment in Three Bridges
Massive housing development built in Crawley Down on old alignment
Colas own the site at Rowfant
A22 one way system built over High Level station/track in East Grinstead.
Bridge in Forest Row demolished
Spa Valley Railway in place between High Rocks & Tunbridge Wells West.
Massive Sainsbury's built in front of Grove Tunnel.
Hastings Line intensive service & lack of paths prevent reinstatement of Grove Junction.
Not to mention nearly the entire route is a path/cycle track/bridleway & would have stiff opposition to it closing!

Shocking how hard that one has been made to reinstate given it closed relatively late on (1980s) and the mistakes of Beeching were beginning to become apparent. I’m not saying it shouldn’t have closed, to be clear

 

[yorksrob]

Shocking how hard that one has been made to reinstate given it closed relatively late on (1980s) and the mistakes of Beeching were beginning to become apparent. I’m not saying it shouldn’t have closed, to be clear

It shouldn't have though. Particularly the Tunbridge Wells Central to Eridge section that closed in the 1980's.