Broad Gauge Heritage Railway

[LYRobert]

I have asked posed this question before, but a long time ago.
How possible would it be to set up and operate a full-size broad gauge heritage railway?
There would be a lot of interest, I guess (no more than that) it would be well visited.

 

[simonw]

I have asked posed this question before, but a long time ago.
How possible would it be to set up and operate a full-size broad gauge heritage railway?
There would be a lot of interest, I guess (no more than that) it would be well visited.

The GWS Didcot railway centre has a broad gauge demonstration line and locos and a transhipment shed, although I'm not sure if any broad gauge loco is in ticket.

Details here

Brunel's Broad Gauge Railway | Didcot Railway Centre

Living Museum Of The Great Western Railway

didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk

 

[Gloster]

I have asked posed this question before, but a long time ago.
How possible would it be to set up and operate a full-size broad gauge heritage railway?
There would be a lot of interest, I guess (no more than that) it would be well visited.

Who from? There might be a broad (pun intended) range of railway enthusiasts, but how many of them would come again and again? To the general public it would just be one of a large number of things to do, usually only once. It would have the additional small disadvantage of not even being like the trains that grandad remembers.

 

[A S Leib]

There's already one in the UK (Downpatrick and County Down), and more elsewhere, but I'm guessing you mean in Great Britain.

It would have the additional small disadvantage of not even being like the trains that grandad remembers.

What proportion of groups of passengers have people old enough to remember regular steam service?

 

[Egg Centric]

Just go to India, half the network is a broad gauge heritage railway!

 

[Bornin1980s]

I have asked posed this question before, but a long time ago.
How possible would it be to set up and operate a full-size broad gauge heritage railway?
There would be a lot of interest, I guess (no more than that) it would be well visited.

Do you mean GWR 7ft?

 

[EbbwJunction1]

The GWS Didcot railway centre has a broad gauge demonstration line and locos and a transhipment shed, although I'm not sure if any broad gauge loco is in ticket.

Details here

Brunel's Broad Gauge Railway | Didcot Railway Centre

Living Museum Of The Great Western Railway

didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk

Neither of the locos on the broad gauge demonstration line at Didcot are currently working. There are plans to refurbish them, but when this will be done, I don't know.

 

[Mollman]

I have asked posed this question before, but a long time ago.
How possible would it be to set up and operate a full-size broad gauge heritage railway?
There would be a lot of interest, I guess (no more than that) it would be well visited.

It is always possible but very expensive and a very week business case.

Some key questions to answer: Where would you build it? How long would it be? What else is there for people to visit on the railway and in the local area?

You would need to build everything from scratch including at least two steam locos and a couple of carriages. It would be difficult to do galas which bring in the enthusiasts as there would be no guest locos to bring in.

 

[74A]

I often thought the branch line from Kemble to Cirencester would be a good location. 5 miles long would be about right.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Best left to Didcot and their demonstration line. You would need a whole fleet of new build coaches and locomotives. There is enough trouble getting tourists to visit standard gauge lines without adding an essentially brand new attraction. There is only one original broad gauge loco left and that is Tiny at Buckfastleigh.

 

[D Williams]

To be really authentic a few miles of bridge section rail laid on longitudinal beams will also be required. A fund to return one of the replicas at Didcot to working condition would be more use.

 

[TTTB]

If the GCR were to adjust their 6 foot to a more standard “7 foot” on a double track section perhaps longer distance Broad gauge running could be accomplished? Obviously a full line occupation would be needed of any standard gauge operations. There is enough evidence at Didcot of interlaced trackwork which similar construction could overcome the access to and from the 7 foot infrastructure?

 

[duffield]

If the GCR were to adjust their 6 foot to a more standard “7 foot” on a double track section perhaps longer distance Broad gauge running could be accomplished? Obviously a full line occupation would be needed of any standard gauge operations. There is enough evidence at Didcot of interlaced trackwork which similar construction could overcome the access to and from the 7 foot infrastructure?

I'm sure the GCR will get right on it, once they've finished the re-unification project, double tracked to Leicester North, built a museum there and sorted out the track arrangement at Ruddington!

 

[43096]

If the GCR were to adjust their 6 foot to a more standard “7 foot” on a double track section perhaps longer distance Broad gauge running could be accomplished? Obviously a full line occupation would be needed of any standard gauge operations.

There’s a very obvious issue. There are no trains available to run on the broad gauge. Without that it is utterly pointless.

 

[John Luxton]

Best left to Didcot and their demonstration line. You would need a whole fleet of new build coaches and locomotives. There is enough trouble getting tourists to visit standard gauge lines without adding an essentially brand new attraction. There is only one original broad gauge loco left and that is Tiny at Buckfastleigh.

Yes best solution. I visited Didcot for the first time in nearly 40 years in summer 2022 and was disappointed that the broad gauge display looked a bit run down. I knew the locos were not running.

On my previous two visits to Didoct in 1982/3 they were just getting started with the broad gauge project track work thus I missed seeing anything run.

 

[edwin_m]

If the GCR were to adjust their 6 foot to a more standard “7 foot” on a double track section perhaps longer distance Broad gauge running could be accomplished? Obviously a full line occupation would be needed of any standard gauge operations. There is enough evidence at Didcot of interlaced trackwork which similar construction could overcome the access to and from the 7 foot infrastructure?

The island platforms would be something of a problem...