Hayling Seaside Railway

Hayling Seaside Railway
'Emmet' in steam at the Hayling Seaside Railway (photo by Chris Rogers)
Dates of operation 2003–Present
Track gauge 2 ft (610 mm)
Length 1.1 miles (1.8 km) (roughly)
Website Hayling Railway Official Website

The Hayling Seaside Railway, formerly East Hayling Light Railway, is a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railway on Hayling Island, Hampshire, England. It is mainly a diesel operated railway, though from time to time the railway hires steam locomotives from other narrow gauge railways. It operates passenger trains between Beachlands and Eastoke Corner.

History

The Hayling Seaside Railway began life as the East Hayling Light Railway (EHLR), formed by Bob Haddock, a member of the society who in the mid-1980s attempted to reinstate the "Hayling Billy" Line.

Havant Borough Council had already decided to turn the disused railway line into a cycle-way and footpath which precluded any chance of rebuilding the line as standard gauge, the option preferred by the committee of the society[1]. Some members including Haddock decided to create their own railway elsewhere on Hayling Island and after numerous setbacks, a site was found within the Mill Rythe Holiday Camp where the EHLR was constructed and ran successfully for many years.[2]

Perhaps inspired by the success of the EHLR, Havant Council took the step of including a railway in their draft plan for Hayling's popular Pleasure Beach. Haddock submitted a plan for a narrow gauge railway to meet the Council's criteria, but the council refused planning permission. After a campaign lasting over 12 years, permission to build the railway was granted, but only after the Council's decision was overturned by the Department of the Environment.

Following closure of the EHLR at Mill Rythe, work started in October 2001 on the building of Beachlands Station on land leased from the neighbouring Funland Amusement Park. Work continued through 2002 and into 2003 and the line finally opened to passengers on 5 July 2003, re-christened as "The Hayling Seaside Railway". As of 2006 there was a mile of track in place and it was planned to extend it to the ferry terminal connecting the island with Portsmouth so providing a useful transport link. However, in 2015 the Portsmouth to Hayling ferry was withdrawn from operation due to the owners becoming bankrupt so this extension looks doubtful.

In the early part of 2015 after a lengthy period of campaigning to the local authority work started on a new depot at Eastoke Corner[3] as the lease on the depot at Beachlands had run out.

As of February 2018, the railway is now running out of the new Eastoke Corner depot with the Beachlands one, completely gone.

Stock List

Here's a loco and stock list of what currently around the railway

Locos

Identity Other
Number(s)		 Builder Works
Number		 Built Wheel
Arrange­ment		 Notes Image
1 Motor Rail 7199 4wDH Alan B [4]
3 Alan Keef 23 0-4-0DH(so) JACK [4]
4 Ruston & Hornsby 201970 4wDM Alistair [4]
At Hampshire Narrow Gauge Railway Trust
5 Ruston & Hornsby 7002-0967-5 4wDM Edwin [4]

Alistair was previously based on the Gartell Light Railway and before that Ffestiniog Railway

Coaches

1 L Class coach named Lisa

3 M Class coaches named Mavis, Michelle & Marilyn

Wagons

2 tippers
3 open sided 3-5 plank wagons
1 tanker
1 brakevan

Train times

No service Christmas Day

Other days

Please contact the railway via its website at http://www.haylingrailway.com/ for details

See also

British narrow gauge railways

References

  1. ↑ Benn, Don (2017-05-19). Biography of British Train Travel: A Journey Behind Steam and Modern Traction. Pen and Sword. ISBN 9781473858466.
  2. ↑ "Hayling Seaside Railway in Hayling Island , - 07775 696912 Communication - Other". local.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-09-18.
  3. ↑ "New railway depot will be celebrated with a fanfare". Retrieved 2018-09-18.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Industrial Railway Society (2015). Industrial Locomotives (17EL). Industrial Railway Society. ISBN 978 1 901556 88 9.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.