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词条 Avon Valley Railway
释义

  1. History

  2. Incidents

  3. Preservation

  4. Motive power

     Steam locomotives  Diesel locomotives/DMUs  Visiting locomotives 

  5. References

  6. External links

{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2013}}{{Infobox heritage railway
| name = Avon Valley Railway
| image = |
| caption = Bitton railway station and yards from a level crossing with the Bristol & Bath Railway Path
| locale = Gloucestershire
| map =
| mapsize =
| terminus =
| linename = Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line
| builtby =
| originalgauge = {{Track gauge|56.5 in|allk=on}}
| originalrack =
| originalelec =
| preservedgauge = {{Track gauge|56.5 in}}
| preservedrack =
| preservedelec =
| era =
| owned =
| operator =
| stations =
| length = {{convert|3|mi|km|1}}
| originalopen =
| closed = 1966
| stageyears =
| stage =
| years = 1977
| events = Reopened
| years1 = 1991
| events1 = Oldand Common re-opens, line extended
| years2 = 2004
| events2 = Avon Riverside opens to the public, line extended
| headquarters = Bitton
}}

The Avon Valley Railway (AVR) is a three-mile-long heritage railway based at Bitton station in South Gloucestershire, England, not far from Bristol and is run by a local group: The Avon Valley Railway Company Ltd. The railway follows the Avon Valley south-east from Oldland Common, through Bitton and alongside the River Avon towards Kelston and Bath. The railway shares its route with the Sustrans cycleway and footpath, the Bristol & Bath Railway Path.

History

{{Location map |Gloucestershire |lat=51.436962 |long=-2.482723 |width=180 |float=left |caption=Avon Valley Railway shown within Gloucestershire
({{gbmapping|ST664710}})}}{{main|Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line}}

The railway is part of the otherwise-dismantled Midland Railway Mangotsfield and Bath branch line, which was closed in 1966 as a result of the Beeching cuts, due mainly to the Great Western Railway, which also connected Bristol and Bath, being just a few miles to the south.[1]

The railway is perhaps best known for connecting the former Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway (S&DJR), whose northern terminus was at Bath Green Park station, with the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS). The Midland Railway lines along the Avon Valley thus opened up the S&D lines to travellers from the British industrial Midlands. This was particularly so during summer Saturdays when families flocked south to the beaches of Dorset and the English south coast. Many extra trains thus had to be added to the schedule to accommodate this increased demand.[2][3] Although owned and run by the Midland Railway, many S&D locomotives were often seen working trains along this line.

After the lines were removed, from 2000 the northern section from Mangotsfield to Warmley was used to build a dual carriage development of the A4174 road, although both station sites currently still exist. The remainder of the line was passed from the British Railways Board to Sustrans, who in co-operation with the local councils developed the Bristol and Bath Railway Path.[4] Further development of the heritage railway is wholly dependent on a usage agreement with Sustrans.

Incidents

On 24 July 2018, during a shunting operation at Bitton station, two empty coaches ran away for 40 metres on a down gradient until they collided with a level crossing gate closed across the track. The coaches, which had no handbrakes, overrode chocks placed against two wheels. There were no injuries.[5]

Preservation

{{Avon Valley Railway}}

Bitton station and its yard, including some trackbed, was leased from British Railways Board by the Bristol Suburban Railway Society, a group of local volunteers intent on restoring commuter and weekend steam use to the Bristol-Mangotsfield-Bath and Mangotsfield-Yate railway routes.

Work progressed slowly over the years restoring the heavily vandalised buildings and laying track north towards Oldland Common and Warmley. Weekend steam-hauled 'brake van' train rides progressed to proper passenger services along the ever-lengthening line in restored 1950s British Railways Mark 1 carriages.

In 1979, the Bristol Suburban Railway Society was incorporated into the Bitton Railway Co. Ltd. and the laid track reached Oldland Common in 1988. By 1992 however, the city of Bristol had expanded greatly with houses encroaching upon the former railway line and expansion north to Warmley and Mangotsfield was no longer considered practical.[6] The line thus began to expand south out into the valley of the River Avon. By 2004, it had crossed the Avon and a new station was built to service the Avon Valley Country Park — a large picnic and recreation site — along with a river wharf to provide visitors with connections to river barges and river boat trips.

Building of a new buffet and toilets facility at Bitton station began in 2007 to replace the current buffet and toilets and to increase space for the railway's gift shop.[7]

Work continues to potentially extend the railway south-east towards Bath (as far as Newbridge).[8]

As a tourist attraction, the Avon Valley Railway now handles 80,000 visitors per year. The AVR provides round trip steam train travel from Bitton Station north to Oldland Common then south to Avon Riverside station. The line is open to travellers on most weekends.

{{clear}}

Motive power

Steam locomotives

Number & Name Description Current Status Livery Image
No. 4015 "Karel"TKh49 0-6-0TOperational, boiler ticket expires in 2026.Polish State Railways Green
No. 132 "Sapper"Hunslet Austerity 0-6-0STOperational.WD Green
No. 44123LMS Fowler 4F 0-6-0Currently being restored from Barry scrapyard condition.N/A
No. 7151RSH 0-6-0TMajor overhaul underway. It is hoped that it will mainly be completed by volunteers to reduce the overall cost.Black
No. 2018 "Littleton No.5"Manning Wardle 0-6-0STStored, awaiting overhaulDark Blue
No. 1798 "Edwin Hulse"Avonside 0-6-0STUndergoing restorationN/A
No. 7492Sentinel Waggon Works 4wdUndergoing restoration. Its boiler was successfully steam tested on 4 October 2018. This gives it its first 10-year certificate in preservation as it was last steamed in the 1960s.Dark Blue

Diesel locomotives/DMUs

Number & Name Description Current Status Livery Image
No. 446 "Kingswood"Andrew Barclay Sons & Co. 0-4-0 shunterOperationalGreen
No. 610 "General Lord Robertson"Sentinel 0-8-0 shunter, ex-ArmyUndergoing restorationBlue
WD No. 70043 "Grumpy"Andrew Barclay 0-4-0 ShunterOperationalBlack
MOD No. 429 "River Annan" a.k.a. "Salty"Ruston and Hornsby LSSH 0-6-0DH shunterOperationalRed
No. 07010British Rail Class 07Awaiting repairsBR Blue
No. 31130 "Calder Hall Power Station"British Rail Class 31Undergoing bodywork repairsCoal sector grey
No. 5518 (31101)British Rail Class 31OperationalBR Blue
No. 08202British Rail Class 08OperationalBR Blue
Cars Sc52006 + Sc52025British Rail Class 107OperationalBR Green

Visiting locomotives

Number & Name Description Current Status Livery Image
No.1742 'Millom'Hudswell Clarke 0-4-0STOperationalGreenhttps://c1.staticflickr.com/7/6176/6186168718_015146172a_b.jpg;

References

1. ^{{cite book|last1=Holland|first1=Julian|title=Dr Beeching's Axe: 50 Years on : Illustrated Memories of Britain's Lost Railways|date=2013|publisher=David & Charles|isbn=9781446302675|page=27|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=zfJZcibqOa4C&pg=PA27&lpg=PA27&dq=Mangotsfield+and+Bath+Branch+Line+closure&source=bl&ots=MOvhDwQsG8&sig=RcokjqQfBy6qxG98cCEYYPLYIDU&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CEAQ6AEwBWoVChMIxp2bj9CPyQIVBFIUCh0lugvC#v=onepage&q=Mangotsfield%20and%20Bath%20Branch%20Line%20closure&f=false}}
2. ^{{cite book|last1=Maggs|first1=Colin|title=The Mangotsfield to Bath Line: Including the Story of Green Park Station (Locomotion Papers)|date=2005|publisher=Oakwood Press|isbn=978-0853616344}}
3. ^{{cite web|title=Bath Green Park|url=http://www.sdjr.net/locations/bath_history.html|publisher=Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway|accessdate=14 November 2015}}
4. ^{{cite web|title=Welcome|url=http://www.bristolbathrailwaypath.org.uk/plan-about.shtml|publisher=Bristol & Bath Railway Path|accessdate=14 November 2015}}
5. ^{{cite web |title=Runaway of two coaches at Bitton, Avon Valley Railway, 25 July 2018 |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safety-digest-122018-bitton/runaway-of-two-coaches-at-bitton-avon-valley-railway-25-july-2018 |publisher=Rail Accident Investigation Branch |accessdate=22 October 2018 |language=en}}
6. ^{{cite web|title=Avon Valley Railway|url=http://www.steamrailwaylines.co.uk/avon_valley_railway.htm|publisher=Steam Railway Lines|accessdate=14 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117014432/http://www.steamrailwaylines.co.uk/avon_valley_railway.htm|archive-date=17 November 2015|dead-url=yes|df=dmy-all}}
7. ^Avon Valley Railway – Railway News Article {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071005213030/http://www.avonvalleyrailway.org/cgi-bin/index.pl?page_tid=nag&action=view&article_id=62 |date=5 October 2007 }}
8. ^{{cite web|title=Avon Valley Railway looks forward|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/bristol/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8016000/8016640.stm|publisher=BBC|accessdate=11 October 2015}}

External links

{{Commons category|Avon Valley Railway|
Avon Valley Railway}}
  • Avon Valley Railway — Official site
  • London Midland Society, restoring LMS 4F No. 4123
{{Heritage railways in England}}{{Railway lines in South West England}}{{Coord|51.43699|-2.48477|type:landmark_region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(ST664710)|display=title}}

3 : Rail transport in Bristol|Heritage railways in South Gloucestershire District|Winners of the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service

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