Surviving UK industrial railway systems

[geoffk]

Mendip Rail (Foster Yeoman and Hanson).

 

[EyeKay]

I think Bardon Hill still has a loco and several sidings

 

[Thames99]

Are there any military sites with railway connections?

 

[cool110]

The Ribble Steam Railway is an interesting hybrid being used by Total as well as the heritage operation.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Does the quarry near Skipton (Grassington?) still have an internal railway? Recall an article in a magazine decades ago about the then owners (Tilcon) purchasing a new and rather enormous shunting loco for use on site.

 

[duffield]

I asked about Stoke Bardolph as I once visited it, back about 40 years ago. The picture shows a train on the system with the driver walking alongside. Apparently it was not a good idea to ride the loco in case of derailment. The loco could fall into something rather unpleasant!

Interesting photo, thanks!

So the railway was still running around 1985 and the relevant section of the Colwick loop road seems to have opened in 2007. I wonder when it actually closed? I found a minimal reference to it in the Wikipedia article below which says it closed "after 1989" and refers to March 1992 issue 189 of "Narrow Gauge News" so I guess I'd need to hunt down a copy to find out more (it doesn't seem easy to obtain; the actual publisher's page says the archive is currently inaccessible "due to Covid"!)

Link description: The entry for Stoke Bardolph sewage works in the "British Industrial Narrow Gauge Railways" wikipedia article.

British industrial narrow-gauge railways - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[John Webb]

Does the quarry near Skipton (Grassington?) still have an internal railway? Recall an article in a magazine decades ago about the then owners (Tilcon) purchasing a new and rather enormous shunting loco for use on site.

Yes. Basically a couple of sidings and a run-round loop, I recall. View here from 2011:
Pilot engine and hopper wagons at Swinden Quarry

© Copyright Steve Daniels and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Not clear why the photographer refers to it as a 'Pilot engine'!

 

[Scotrail84]

Are there any military sites with railway connections?

Eastriggs and Longtown are still rail connected, not sure if anything use them though.


Oxwellmains cement works has sidings on both sides of the ECML plus its own shunters (I think).

 

[lyndhurst25]

Booths scrapyard in Rotherham has shunter(s) and a possibly fake signalbox. Rail traffic comes in but AFAIK does not leave.

 

[Bill57p9]

Eastriggs and Longtown are still rail connected, not sure if anything use them though.

Eastriggs still has some exchange traffic, though I am not convinced that it is MoD related. There were a number of snowploughs parked up there in November.

MoD Kineton certainly generated traffic in 2023: RAIB investigated a runaway in May 2023: https://www.gov.uk/raib-reports/report-04-slash-2024-runaway-wagon-at-kineton

Works (such as Alstom in Derby and Arlington in Eastleigh) have small systems.

 

[Krokodil]

This brings up an interesting question of what makes something a 'system' rather than just a siding or rail-connected yard/terminal.

I would draw the line at "has internal traffic" which would rule out most of what is listed on this thread.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Yes. Basically a couple of sidings and a run-round loop, I recall. View here from 2011:
Pilot engine and hopper wagons at Swinden Quarry

© Copyright Steve Daniels and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Not clear why the photographer refers to it as a 'Pilot engine'!

That little thing is certainly not the enormous beast from the article!

Said article was in the (probably early) 1990s, that's as specific as I can recall. I think it was in Rail.

 

[Dr Hoo]

The Ribble Steam Railway is an interesting hybrid being used by Total as well as the heritage operation.

Recent reports have suggested that the long-reducing Total bitumen traffic has now switched to road.

Tata Steel also at Hardendale Quarry, Shap.

Is that still going with the closure of the blast furnaces at Port Talbot? What lime(stone) related traffic is left?

 

[Spaceflower]

Does Boulby have an underground internal system?

I know alot of the coal mines did.

 

[DelW]

I would draw the line at "has internal traffic" which would rule out most of what is listed on this thread.

Personally I'd set it a bit wider than that - I'd include any site that has at least one internal-use-only shunter in regular service. If the site is just shunted by the loco delivering or collecting wagons, then for me it's just sidings.

Others may prefer other definitions of course

 

[Western 52]

Personally I'd set it a bit wider than that - I'd include any site that has at least one internal-use-only shunter in regular service. If the site is just shunted by the loco delivering or collecting wagons, then for me it's just sidings.

Others may prefer other definitions of course

Yes that's pretty much what I was thinking about in the OP. Some sort of internal working with a privately owned loco, although this may be just to and from exchange sidings.

 

[chrisjo]

Is that still going with the closure of the blast furnaces at Port Talbot? What lime(stone) related traffic is left?

Good point. The quarry itself hasn't been active for a number of years, but the site was used for processing limestone from Shap and marshalling 6M73 / 6V71, both of which have now ceased.

 

[Meerkat]

Tata Steel also at Hardendale Quarry, Shap.

Unless my eyes are failing me that loco is on an isolated bit of track - it doesn't go into the shed.

Yes. Basically a couple of sidings and a run-round loop, I recall. View here from 2011:
Pilot engine and hopper wagons at Swinden Quarry

© Copyright Steve Daniels and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Not clear why the photographer refers to it as a 'Pilot engine'!

Has that loco got tinted windows?! Flashy....when I walked through that area there was no need for tints!

 

[StoneRoad]

The Ribble Steam Railway is an interesting hybrid being used by Total as well as the heritage operation.

Pretty sure that the bitumen traffic went road only last year [2024] sometime.
There was something about it in one of the comics - I could check if anyone is interested as I know a couple of people at the Ribble.

e2a - snap after reading further in the thread

 

[chrisjo]

Unless my eyes are failing me that loco is on an isolated bit of track - it doesn't go into the shed.

Yep, it's your eyes. The track goes through the shed and out the other side, the rails are set in concrete each side.

 

[themiller]

Workington docks had at least one shunter when I was there to watch the unloading of several Stadler products for DRS a couple of years ago.
Sellafield also have sidings at Barrow docks and Drigg but they are only worked by the train engines so can be regarded as sidings.

Edited to add photo.
Photo taken on 28-03-2017 during the unloading of DRS locos. It’s a long range shot through fine rain so not good quality.

 

[Msq71423]

Scunthorpe Steelworks is the largest industrial train system in the country. Just noticed they are also running evening rail tours later this month, details on the following link.

https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/afrps?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR08sus9yOl0S5l_NkWmlltAyX-M9ZwJJArpOvBnLcWj-rFk-gX6kA5CNgA_aem_v5ynhtM1ZpHK-XzF8AvuLw

 

[Coolzac]

Does Boulby have an underground internal system?

I know alot of the coal mines did.

I was going to say Boulby is one, a devoted industrial line meeting the passenger line just before Saltburn.

 

[billio]

I was going to say Boulby is one, a devoted industrial line meeting the passenger line just before Saltburn.

On the same line, does Skinningrove have an internal network ?. Sidings appear to enter the works.

 

[Bill57p9]

The Irvine Caledonian Paper Mill meets the “has own internal shunting locomotive“ bar and it is kept reasonably busy with regular deliveries, now from Aberdeen. I am unsure of the loco type but have seen it from the A78 through the trees.
Springburn “Caledonian“ Works have their own internal system and employ a Sentinel 0-4-0DM (works number 10012) on loan from Doon Valley Railway.

 

[DanNCL]

The Port of Middlesbrough has an internal system which is worked by 4 08s, a Baguley Drewry 0-4-0 and a Robert Stephenson Hawthorn 0-4-0, all of which are owned by AV Dawson who operate the port. A 5th 08 is there in poor condition, presumably as a parts donor.

Teesport also has an internal system worked by 3 leased shutters, a Hunslet 0-4-0 and a pair of 08s.

 

[cool110]

Another dual purpose one, Blackpool Pleasure Beach use their miniature railway to move ride parts to and from the workshop.

 

[Western 52]

Scunthorpe Steelworks is the largest industrial train system in the country. Just noticed they are also running evening rail tours later this month, details on the following link.

https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/afrps?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR08sus9yOl0S5l_NkWmlltAyX-M9ZwJJArpOvBnLcWj-rFk-gX6kA5CNgA_aem_v5ynhtM1ZpHK-XzF8AvuLw

Ah very interesting! I did a railtour of that system in 1984 with one of the impressive Hunslet locos, photo attached. Are those locos still there? Most of the other locos were Yorkshires at the time.

 

[High Dyke]

I believe it's a old us one? Or looks American. Definitely something shunter sized parked there usually with tanks. It isn't a 08 or 09 shunter though.

Looks like a Yorkshire Engine type or possibly Vanguard rebuild.

Ketton cement works has a reduced internal system. Mainly used to transfer wagons from the exchange sidings to the works, though it also previously extended throughout the site.

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

I believe it's a old us one? Or looks American. Definitely something shunter sized parked there usually with tanks. It isn't a 08 or 09 shunter though.

I have attached a screenshot to demonstrate what's used on site.
View attachment 172073

Could be a Hunslet. Looks very like the 2 that were at Fawley - Bluebird and Redwing.
Pat