The Ventnor West Branch was the final addition to the Isle of Wight railway network, and used an earlier scheme to run a railway from Shanklin to the railwayless south-west part of the island.[1]
An Act for transferring to and vesting in the Isle of Wight Central Railway Company the undertaking of the Newport Godshill and St. Lawrence Railway Company to confer further powers on the Isle of Wight Central Railway Company and for other purposes.
The branch was opened by the T between Merstone and St. Lawrence on 20 July 1897.[2] From the day of opening, the branch was operated by the Isle of Wight Central Railway. A temporary terminus was provided at St Lawrence until the extension was opened to Ventnor Town on 1 June 1900.[3] The terminus was renamed Ventnor West by the Southern Railway.
East end of St Lawrence Tunnel in 1954
In the days prior to the Grouping of the railways in 1923, the line struggled to make financial ends meet. However, after 1923 the services did improve and some of the increasing competition from road transport was lessened. An extensive programme of modernisation was undertaken by the Southern Railway, albeit with secondhand equipment from the mainland. Some economies were made on the branch by the Southern Railway, most notably the removal of the passing loop and signal box at Whitwell in 1928. The footbridge at Dean level crossing on the outskirts of Whitwell was also removed around this time. The footbridge was re-erected at Wroxall.
Nationalisation in 1948 brought the British Railways emblem to the locomotives but few other significant operational changes. The passenger numbers remained low and the branch continued to lose revenue to more convenient bus services. It was no surprise when closure was announced for 15 September 1952.[4][5] The branch was visited by a large number of enthusiasts in its final months.
Today all the station buildings are in residential use.
The route describededit
From the junction at Merstone, the line turned south and continued through farmland to cross the main Newport-Shanklin road. The line then continued through farmland to Godshill.
From Godshill the line again traversed farmland on a large stretch of embankment that ran to the small hamlet of Southford on the outskirts of Whitwell.
From Whitwell the line climbed up to the northern portal of St. Lawrence tunnel, crossing the B3327 road at Dean level crossing before reaching the tunnel itself.
The line entered the tunnel and began a long descent to St Lawrence and the terminus at Ventnor West.
Allen, Sir Peter; MacLeod, A. B. (1986). Rails in the Isle of Wight (2nd ed.). David & Charles. ISBN978-0-7153-8701-6.
Paye, Peter (1992). The Ventnor West Branch. Didcot: Wild Swan. ISBN978-1-874103-02-8.
Further readingedit
A. Britton, ed. (1994). Once upon a line (Vol 4). Oxford OPC. ISBN0-86093-513-2. OCLC 1221980683.
Peter Hay (1988). Steaming Through the Isle of Wight. Middleton. ISBN978-0-906520-56-7.
Colin Pomeroy (1996). Isle of Wight Railways. Oxford: Silver Link. ISBN0-947971-62-9.
April 16, 2024
ventnor, west, branch, vtelegendiwcr, northwardmerstoneiwcr, toward, sandowngodshillwhitwellst, lawrenceventnor, westthe, final, addition, isle, wight, railway, network, used, earlier, scheme, railway, from, shanklin, railwayless, south, west, part, island, co. vteVentnor West BranchLegendIWCR northwardMerstoneIWCR toward SandownGodshillWhitwellSt LawrenceVentnor WestThe Ventnor West Branch was the final addition to the Isle of Wight railway network and used an earlier scheme to run a railway from Shanklin to the railwayless south west part of the island 1 Contents 1 History 2 The route described 3 Stations 4 Notes 5 Bibliography 6 Further readingHistory editNewport Godshill and St Lawrence Railway Act 1889Act of Parliament nbsp Parliament of the United KingdomIsle of Wight Central Railway Godshill Transfer Act 1913Act of Parliament nbsp Parliament of the United KingdomLong titleAn Act for transferring to and vesting in the Isle of Wight Central Railway Company the undertaking of the Newport Godshill and St Lawrence Railway Company to confer further powers on the Isle of Wight Central Railway Company and for other purposes Citation3 amp 4 Geo 5 c xiiiDatesRoyal assent4 July 1913Text of statute as originally enactedThe branch was opened by the T between Merstone and St Lawrence on 20 July 1897 2 From the day of opening the branch was operated by the Isle of Wight Central Railway A temporary terminus was provided at St Lawrence until the extension was opened to Ventnor Town on 1 June 1900 3 The terminus was renamed Ventnor West by the Southern Railway nbsp East end of St Lawrence Tunnel in 1954In the days prior to the Grouping of the railways in 1923 the line struggled to make financial ends meet However after 1923 the services did improve and some of the increasing competition from road transport was lessened An extensive programme of modernisation was undertaken by the Southern Railway albeit with secondhand equipment from the mainland Some economies were made on the branch by the Southern Railway most notably the removal of the passing loop and signal box at Whitwell in 1928 The footbridge at Dean level crossing on the outskirts of Whitwell was also removed around this time The footbridge was re erected at Wroxall Nationalisation in 1948 brought the British Railways emblem to the locomotives but few other significant operational changes The passenger numbers remained low and the branch continued to lose revenue to more convenient bus services It was no surprise when closure was announced for 15 September 1952 4 5 The branch was visited by a large number of enthusiasts in its final months Today all the station buildings are in residential use The route described editFrom the junction at Merstone the line turned south and continued through farmland to cross the main Newport Shanklin road The line then continued through farmland to Godshill From Godshill the line again traversed farmland on a large stretch of embankment that ran to the small hamlet of Southford on the outskirts of Whitwell From Whitwell the line climbed up to the northern portal of St Lawrence tunnel crossing the B3327 road at Dean level crossing before reaching the tunnel itself The line entered the tunnel and began a long descent to St Lawrence and the terminus at Ventnor West Stations editMerstone Godshill Whitwell St Lawrence Ventnor WestNotes edit Paye 1992 pp 1 4 Paye 1992 p 15 Paye 1992 p 24 Paye 1992 p 121 Allen amp MacLeod 1986 p 81Bibliography editAllen Sir Peter MacLeod A B 1986 Rails in the Isle of Wight 2nd ed David amp Charles ISBN 978 0 7153 8701 6 Paye Peter 1992 The Ventnor West Branch Didcot Wild Swan ISBN 978 1 874103 02 8 Further reading editA Britton ed 1994 Once upon a line Vol 4 Oxford OPC ISBN 0 86093 513 2 OCLC 1221980683 Peter Hay 1988 Steaming Through the Isle of Wight Middleton ISBN 978 0 906520 56 7 Colin Pomeroy 1996 Isle of Wight Railways Oxford Silver Link ISBN 0 947971 62 9 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ventnor West Branch amp oldid 1198326051, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
