A speaker event you won’t want to miss, told by one of our own gifted volunteers. Tessa Leeds explores the fascinating history of our much loved local line using some images that have only rarely been seen before. It’s a story that started in 1845 when the first attempts were made to find both a route and funding. Over the next 60 years, the railway pioneers of the time failed on both fronts until finally a change in Government policy facilitated a much less expensive ‘light railway’.
However, building it on the cheap created serious handicaps. Bedevilled by serious geographical challenges, the line suffered steep inclines, tight curves and a dodgy viaduct that together necessitated a 25mph speed limit. Such were the problems that the operators spent ten years trying to find locos that didn’t damage both the track and themselves. Finally, they turned to hand-me-downs that managed to work the line for the next 50 years. But even they couldn’t win the constant battle for financial survival.