Westbourne & Saxonbury Railway

The Westbourne & Saxonbury Railway (commonly abbreviated to **W&SR)** is a 34.12-mile long standard gauge heritage railway located in Northwest England, running from Westbourne Oak in the south to Stony Point on the northwest coast. It is the longest standard gauge heritage railway in the United Kingdom.

The line, as well as its rolling stock, is owned and managed by the **W&SR Group**, who also operates a mainline TOC known as **Westbourne Railtours**.

## History

### **Origins**

Westbourne Oak and Saxonbury, the original 2 termini of the route, had been connected by a 15-mile branch line from 1888 to 1963. The branch was part of the London, Midland & Scottish railway, and saw services between Saxonbury and London, North Wales, Liverpool and Manchester, worked primarily by LMS Royal Scot and Patriot class locomotives. Starting at Westbourne Oak, the line ran northward to South Allerton, Northwood, Westhampton, Ashfield Halt (a request stop) and finally terminated at Saxonbury. Between Northwood and Westhampton lay Spitfire Bridge, a 24-arch viaduct that spanned the River Dee.

### **Closure Of Original Line**

The line began to go downhill in the late 1950s as increased competition from the roads led to dwindling passenger numbers, and in 1963 the line was recommended for closure in the Beeching Report. The last passenger service on the branch line was a return service from Liverpool Lime Street to Saxonbury on December 29th 1963 worked by Royal Scot class no. 46122 'Royal Ulster Rifleman', a locomotive now owned by the modern-day W&SR.

The line officially closed to the public on December 30th 1963, the day after the last train ran, though British Rail decided to repurpose the branch rather than rip it up. The stations on the branch (excluding Westbourne Oak) were closed and demolished and the branch became an industrial line, servicing the coal mine located just to the north of where Saxonbury station had been. This line remained open until 1987, when the closure of the mine by the Thatcher government removed the need for the branch line, which was closed and the track pulled up. By 1991, the line was gone, though the former route of the line could be walked.

### **Restoration**

In March 2019 the W&SR Group was formed by a high-profile railway preservationist named Hugo Hatcher, with the goal of restoring the old line and reconnecting Westbourne and Saxonbury as a heritage line. They were given a £100m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund which was intended to cover the costs of laying new track, purchasing locomotives and coaching stock, and building the stations and necessary facilities on the branch. The first locomotives were purchased for a total of £14.5m in late 2019 and early 2020 and by February 2020 the line was complete to South Allerton, though the COVID-19 pandemic halted further development.

Development resumed in June 2020 after lockdown restrictions were eased and continued slowly throughout 2020 and into 2021, with the line completed to Northwood by September 2021 and Westhampton by February 2022. The line officially reached Saxonbury in June 2022 with depots at Northwood and Westhampton, a new station at Spitfire Bridge, sidings and yards at South Allerton and Saxonbury, and another branch from Saxonbury station to Rockwood, a halt on the site of the former coal mine. In total the W&SR Group had used £87.9m of the initial £100m HLF grant in the construction of the railway.

### **Reopening**

The line officially reopened to the public as the Westbourne & Saxonbury Railway on February 5th 2023, with 60103 'Flying Scotsman' working the inaugural passenger service to Saxonbury. Other locomotives that saw action on the opening day included home fleet locomotives 6122 'Royal Ulster Rifleman', 35022 'Holland America Line', 70022 'Tornado', 50024 'Vanguard' and 56134 'Blyth Power', as well as visiting locos 34072 '257 Squadron' from the Bluebell Railway and 45270 from the Northfield Steam Railway.

The W&SR fleet quickly grew from an initial 24 operational steam and diesel locomotives and 2 on static display to over 150, with some particularly high profile engines joining the fleet, including 34067 'Tangmere' 35018 'British India Line, 35028 'Clan Line', 70000 'Britannia' and even 60008 'Dwight D Eisenhower' which was reimported from the United States.

### **Extension To Winchelsea**

September-October 2022 saw a 5-mile extension of the railway up part of the old industrial branch to the seaside town of Winchelsea, which was opened on October 28th and saw the Flying Scotsman returning to the railway for the opening train into the new northern terminus, which it double headed with 6201 'Princess Elizabeth'. The extra 5 miles added to the line increased the length of the railway to 20 miles and made it Britain's second-longest standard gauge heritage railway, behind only the West Somerset Railway (22.75 miles).

### Westbourne Railtours

In November 2023 the W&SR established a new branch of itself named Westbourne Railtours, which would use its large fleet of steam, diesel and electric locomotives to run mainline railtours across the UK. Its first tour was worked by 5029 'Nunney Castle' and 37421 from London Paddington to Exeter St Davids as part of *The Great Britain*, a multi-day railtour worked by the W&SR Group as well as several other tour operators; the W&SR's first independent fixture was *The North Wales Holiday Express*, worked between Birmingham International and Crewe by 56049 and 56302, and by 6122 'Royal Ulster Rifleman' from Crewe to Holyhead and back.

### **Second Extension To Stony Point**

In January 2024, plans were greenlit for the railway to be extended by a further 14 miles to the coastal holiday resort of Stony Point, in cooperation with the Stony Point Heritage Trust. The extension saw the construction of a new station in between Saxonbury and Winchelsea named Lakeside, as well as new stations at Southwick Park (serving FC Winchelsea's home stadium), Gunners Lane, Blackwater, Abbey (serving Blackwater Abbey) and finally terminating at Stony Point. The extension was completed that month and officially opened on January 28th 2024, with 9F 92220 'Evening Star' working the inaugural service to Stony Point. The extension also increased the length of the line to 34.12 miles, exceeding the 22.75-mile length of the West Somerset Railway and officially making the W&SR the United Kingdom's undisputed longest standard gauge heritage railway.

## Fleet

The W&SR Group owns and operates a large fleet of steam, diesel and electric locomotives and multiple units, and can be observed on the following Google spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1K5r32wx4WRcnMHNVLwThjW52cdxQ4i\_z9\_A7CAULAIQ/edit#gid=373773596.

Further information about locos and coaching stock can be found here.

## Depots

The W&SR Group owns and manages 8 different depots and storage facilities around the United Kingdom:

### **W&SR Depots**

#### **Northwood Diesel Depot**

Northwood Diesel Depot is located immediately south of Northwood station on the W&SR and houses diesel locomotives owned by the W&SR Group that are either not mainline registered or not part of the standalone Westbourne Railtours fleet.

#### **Westhampton Steam Sheds**

Westhampton Steam Sheds are located immediately north of Westhampton station on the W&SR and houses steam locomotives owned by the W&SR Group that are either not mainline registered or not part of the standalone Westbourne Railtours fleet. The depot is built on the site of the original Westhampton TMD from when the branch was in regular public service.

### **Mainline Depots**

#### Birkenhead North TMD

Following Birkenhead North depot's closure by Merseyrail in January 2024, the depot was purchased by the W&SR to store and service its class 507 EMUs, also purchased from Merseyrail. The depot is joint-owned with Panda Rail Leasing

#### **Carnforth Steamtown**

Located right next to Carnforth station, Steamtown is one of two mainline depots operated by Westbourne Railtours to permanently base its steam, diesel and electric fleet, the other one being Southall Railway Centre. It was purchased from WCRC and on December 29th 2023.

#### **Craigentinny TMD**

Located just to the south of Edinburgh Waverley station, Craigentinny is the W&SR Group's primary base in Scotland. It is primarily used as a base for the group's electric fleet, as well as any steam or diesel locomotives ahead of tours operated from Scotland. Purchased from Hitachi Rail on December 23rd 2023, the W&SR Group are the official owners of the depot although they allow Yorkshire Rail Services to base their Intercity CrossCountry sets at Craigentinny overnight.

#### **Landore TMD**

Located just outside Swansea station, Landore TMD is the W&SR Group's mainline base in Wales. There are no locomotives permanently based at Landore, barring its shunter 09001, and the depot is largely used for basing steam or diesel locomotives ahead of tours operated from Wales. It was purchased from Transport For Wales on December 23rd 2023.

#### **Selhurst TMD**

Located just outside Selhurst station in London, Selhurst TMD is used by the W&SR Group to base the majority of its EMU fleet, specifically it's class 159 313, 317, 319, 321 and 365 units. Selhurst was purchased on December 26th 2023.

#### **Soho TMD**

Located just north of Birmingham New Street station, the W&SR Group purchased part of Soho TMD from West Midlands Railway on December 26th 2023 to store its class 323 units.

#### **Southall Railway Centre**

Located right next to Southall station just outside London, Southall Railway Centre is one of two mainline depots operated by Westbourne Railtours to permanently base its steam, diesel and electric fleet, the other one being Carnforth Steamtown. It was purchased from WCRC and LSL on December 21st 2023. While the depot is officially owned by the W&SR Group, Crouch Rail Leasing pay £5k per year to the W&SR Group to allow them to base parts of their steam fleet at Southall.

### **Formerly Owned Depots**

#### **Ardwick TMD**

Ardwick TMD in Manchester was purchased from Siemens on December 20th 2023 and used as its initial mainline base in the north of England. The W&SR Group sold the site back to Siemens following the acquisition of Carnforth Steamtown later in the month.

## Stations

1. Westbourne Oak (mainline connection)
2. South Allerton
3. Northwood (home to diesel depot)
4. Spitfire Bridge (only station on original route to not exist in BR times)
5. Westhampton (home to steam sheds)
6. Ashfield Halt (request stop)
7. Saxonbury (junction to Rockwood branch)
8. Rockwood
9. Lakeside
10. Winchelsea
11. Southwick Park (only served during galas and on match days)
12. Gunners Lane (request stop)
13. Blackwater
14. Abbey
15. Stony Point

## Trivia

* The W&SR is unique in the sense that its maximum speed limit is 45mph, as opposed to the usual of 25 for heritage lines. This was due to special permission granted by the Office Of Rail And Road given the length of the line