Gloucester And Ledbury Branch Railway |
Hob Uid: 113567 | |
Location : Gloucestershire Forest of Dean, Tewkesbury County of Herefordshire Newent, Oxenhall, Highnam, Donnington, Dymock, Rudford and Highleadon, Tibberton, Ledbury
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Grid Ref : SO7554129072 |
Summary : The dismantled Gloucester and Ledbury Branch Railway. This branch line grew out of 2 schemes. The first was a plan to provide Ross with a route to Ledbury. It was built as far as Dymock before being abandoned. The second scheme was a route from Gloucester to Dymock, (the Newent Railway). Both lines opened on 27th July 1885, being joined at Dymock. This branch gave the GWR its shortest goods route between Birmingham and Gloucester until the opening of the Birmingham and North Warwickshire Railway. The Dymock - Ledbury section closed in 1959 and the remainder in 1964. The railway occupied the course of the Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal for part of the way. |
More information : (SO 70753865 - SO 70153500) Dismantled Railway (NAT) (1) The line ran from Ledbury to Over Junction at Gloucester. It was opened on 27th July 1885 and closed 1st June 1964. It occupied the course of the Herefordshire to Gloucestershire Canal for part of the way (see SO 64 SE 44 / UID: 112342). (2,3)
SO 8121 1981 A Post-Medieval railway cutting, visible as an earthwork, was mapped from aerial photographs taken in 1947. It was still extant in 1969 although the railway track had been removed, but the cutting had been completely filled in by 1979. The railway had been closed to passenger traffic in 1959 and closed completely in 1964. The cutting, part of the Gloucester and Ledbury Branch Railway that ran west of the site of the Vineyard to join the main South Wales line, was about 700 metres long and between 15 and 37 metres wide. A footbridge, 28 metres long and 5 metres wide, crossed the cutting (SO 8134 1968 to SO 8132 1967) and was also removed when the cutting was in-filled. (4-9)
A section of the Gloucester and Ledbury Branch Railway is visible as an earthwork on aerial photographs. The section extends for 620m, between SO 7446 2500 and SO 7500 2469, and the railway continues on adjacent map sheets SO 72 NW and SO 72 SE. The railway passes beneath a road bridge at SO 7489 2479, which has since been by-passed by the B4215. This stretch was previously recorded separately as record UID 1384999. (10) |