(All pics copyright Steve Sainsbury/Rail Thing)
Padstow was once the furthest point you could reach on the Southern Railway/Region from London - 259 and a quarter miles. You can still see the milepost if you know where to look in Padstow, but not at its original location.
Padstow had two lines, one from Bodmin Road on the GWR Cornwall Main Line and the other via Okehampton and Halwill Junction on the North Cornwall line. Both lines were closed in 1967, just before the summer season. I have read that Padstow couldn't wait to lose its railway, but I suspect this is apocryphal!
Today Padstow is a huge tourist draw, we were down there for a week in June, The location is fantastic and as someone used to the crowds in the various Disney parks around the world I didn't find the crowds too daunting!
But today you can't reach Padstow by train. It is ridiculous. A railway to Padstow would take many cars and lorries off the road and would be an attraction in itself. It will also make both Padstow and Wadebridge resilient to transport problems as the energy crisis deepens. The sad thing is that much of the route is still there, tantalisingly close, ending in a field somewhere to the east of Wadebridge. The Bodmin and Wenford Railway run heritage trains on the line, and it's a very nice set up.
Wadebridge is the other issue. A large town for Cornwall with no modern transport link. It needs one. The line would run from Bodmin Road through Bodmin and Wadebridge to Padstow. Ideally it would offer a cheap transport option for passengers and freight, with premium rate heritage trains in the summer. Incredibly street running has already been proposed for the section through Wadebridge, which would link the line to the east to the existing and fully preserved for future rail use stretch to the west of Wadebridge which currently serves as a cycleway.
It seems odd that Padstow lost its trains while other smaller, or similar sized, resorts kept theirs. St Ives, Newquay, Falmouth and Looe now have thriving branch lines. I suspect the reason was regional rivalry plus the odd operating set up on the lines at Bodmin with two termini rather than a single through station. It could be that Bodmin needs a new through station to make the journey quicker.
The whole issue underlying this is that many lines were closed in haste, and would never close now. In the 60s we thought road traffic would last for ever, we are a lot wiser now! All year railways are needed in many parts of the UK, some routes are already partially or even completely restored by heritage groups. Swanage is now operating both heritage and Network trains, the line has become 'real' again and Swanage is thriving because of it. Elsewhere some Network lines have heritage aspects to them, the Looe line for example.
Padstow is a honeypot just waiting to be reopened. What are we waiting for?
Quite agree. Padstow and Wadebridge must have their rail links re-instated!
ReplyDeleteThere are many more old railway routes and lines that could and should be resurrected. With the country almost on its knees with cars and heavy lorries surely this is the ideal solution.
ReplyDeleteYou’ve mentioned freight. What would be the freight use of the line if it re-opened?
ReplyDeleteWho knows what freight flows would be available in a road-free future? Most of the ones that currently exist, plus new ones we haven't yet thought of. I'm a rail enthusiast, not Nostradamus, sadly!
DeleteI certainly agree that there are too many cars on the road and that with modern efficient rolling stock, signalling and ticketing this line and many others would be viable. Reopened lines in Scotland have been a great success.
ReplyDeleteThe rail route to Padstow must be restored,
ReplyDeleteLike the Great Central the Padstow line should never have been closed.
ReplyDelete