The Lost Woodhead Line Part 1 - Deepcar, Wortley, Thurgoland скачать в хорошем качестве

The Lost Woodhead Line Part 1 - Deepcar, Wortley, Thurgoland

The Lost Woodhead Line Part 1 - Deepcar, Wortley, Thurgoland Welcome to a new disused railway series. We're in South Yorkshire for one of the most famous abandoned railway lines in the UK. We're looking at what was the UKs first electrified mainline railway - the Woodhead Railway. The section we’ll be focusing on linked the large northern cities of Manchester and Sheffield, crossing the harsh Pennines. And episode (part 1) will be from Deepcar, where the disused section begins, through Wortley and Thurgoland and concluding at the Thurgoland Tunnels. We’ll start outside the former Deepcar station, now a private residence, but we can see the beautiful station building from the road. This is a still an existing railway line at this point. Until a year ago, had regular trains into the Stocksbridge Steelworks. But just beyond the station, our Woodhead line leaves the Stocksbridge line and heads up towards Wortley. It is here we can get on the trackbed. Plenty of old railway infrastructure to spot. Posts and overhead line supports to fill your boots with. The trackbed seems pretty unimpeded until it reaches the Stocksbridge bypass, which was built after the line closed. From here we are on the Trans Pennine Trail/Upper Don Trail. We soon encounter Wortley station. Platform and buildings still exist but are now private residence. The station, opened on 14 July 1845, was closed on 2 May 1955. Because of its proximity to Wortley Hall the station had a private waiting room for the use of the Earl of Wharncliffe, his family and visitors. From Wortley, the line swaps between cuttings and embankments through the South Yorkshire countryside. We soon reach the junction with the Thurgoland Coal Branch. A branch towards Hollin Moor Pit and Stanhope Silkstone Main. However we finish at Thurgoland Tunnels. Two tunnels, the original built in 1845. Double track, but proved inadequate for electrification. Therefore LNER started building a new tunnel next to the original. You’ll see the keystone dated with LNER 1947 and BR 1948. The tunnel was completed under nationalisation. The newer tunnel is now open to walk through, but you’ll need your sense of adventure to scramble through the hole into the older tunnel. The tunnels closed in 1983. The line opened in 1845, built by the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway. It became part of the Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway in 1847. In 1897 it became part of the Great Central Railway (GCR) and it’s mainline between Manchester and London (via Sheffield, Nottingham, Leicester). In 1923, it was grouped under LNER (London North Eastern Railway). Before upon nationalisation moving under British Railways in 1948. Before the outset of WW2, plans were drawn up to electrify the section of the GCR between Manchester and Wath and Sheffield. Steam hauled heavy freight trains were struggling over the steep gradients on the line at the time. The project was delayed by the war, but was completed in 1955. The overhead wires energised at 1,500 volts DC. Whilst this was tried and tested technology (and is still standard in the Netherlands), the comparatively low voltage meant that a large number of electricity substations and heavy cabling would be required. It also made regenerative braking by transfer of power from descending to ascending trains in the same section of line comparatively straightforward. Having seen major investment in the 1950s, the line was controversially closed to passenger traffic on 5 January 1970. Freight continued until 1981 when the line was mothballed. The tracks were ripped up in the following years. Buy me a coffee - https://ko-fi.com/wobblyrunner Facebook -   / wobbly.runner   Instagram -   / wobbly.runner