Ponsandane Yard
Mick House
Mick House
I had another trip down to Penzance today (25/04-2023), this time I was given the opportunity to go into the worksite that will become the new Ponsandane sidings to see the Tamper DR 73907 in action. On my arrival 57 602 Restormel Castle was taking the Night Riviera sleeper into Long Rock depot from Penzance after its run down from Paddington.
On my arrival 57 602 Restormel Castle was taking the Night Riviera sleeper into Long Rock depot from Penzance after its run down from Paddington. Copyright Mick House
DR 73907 stands on one of the new sidings ready to start work Copyright Mick House
DR 73907 stands on one of the new sidings ready to start work. Copyright Mick House
DR 73907 stands on one of the new sidings ready to start work and class 158 957 passes heading in to Penzance. Copyright Mick House
DR 73907 at work tamping tines up and down. Castle set with 43 194 at the rear passes the site on its way into Penzance, with the tamper working hard to the left. Copyright Mick House
DR 73907 at work (Photos 5 & 6) tamping tines up and down. Castle set with 43 194 at the rear passes the site on its way into Penzance, with the tamper working hard to the left. Copyright Mick House
Castle set with 43 194 at the rear passes the site on its way into Penzance, with the tamper working hard to the left. Copyright Mick House
A closer view of the tamper in operation The tines are fully adjustable for working over strait track or points. Copyright Mick House
A closer view of the tamper in operation The tines are fully adjustable for working over strait track or points. Copyright Mick House
DR 73907, has just passed me and is near the end of the first siding. Copyright Mick House
I would like to give a big thank you to the NetworkRail team for giving me the opportunity of visiting the site and the Colas team for the tamping display, the majority of the time this would only happen at night.
Thanks very much Mick
Three Visits to Portreath in 1965, 1968, and 1996.
Michael Bussell
Michael Bussell
With the aid of nearly fifty photographs Michael Bussell brings to us views of Portreath, its harbour and the incline. These were taken durng three visits to the port in the sixties and nineties.
1965 - from Tregea Hill road looking north.The railway tracks have been lifted but many of the buildings remain. 1965. Copyright Michael Bussell.
1965 - a view again from the road at Tregea Hill this time looking a little further east. Copyright Michael Bussell.
1965. The earthworks and lofty embankment wall are seen in this view of the incline. Copyright Michael Bussell.
1965 in this view one over the upper section of the incline one can see the line passed through a deep cutting. The village at the foot can be seen in the distance. Copyright Michael Bussell.
1965 The bridge over road at Glenfeadon Terrace which still remains as a monument to the okld railway. Copyright Michael Bussell.
Click here for the Appendix which features all of Michaels collection of Portreath photographs and click here for our general coverage of the two lines to Portreath.
Many thanks to Michael allowing us to publish his collection and associated notes.
1962 Part 16
Michael L. Roach.
Michael L. Roach.
Penzance Viaduct
The railway line we see today between Penzance and Truro was built as a single track by the Hayle Railway and the West Conwall Railway and later doubled by the Great Western Railway. The Hayle and West Cornwall Railways were both slightly quirky with a rich history which can be read on Wikipedia. There are eight railway viaducts in the 26 miles of track between the two towns but there were once nine. Despite this number of viaducts there are two deep valleys crossed by huge embankments, and I wonder why ?
The two large embankments are located in the villages of Brea and Carn Brea between Camborne and Redruth and are both around 20 to 25 metres high. When they were built in the 1830s any compaction of the fill material forming the embankments would have been primitive at best – perhaps a granite roller pulled by two horses; at worst no compaction at all. I think the reason for building embankments rather than viaducts are the long cuttings on both sides in an endeavour to make a reasonably level route through this mining district. It would have been very convenient to use the excavated material from the cuttings in the valleys and to balance the cut and fill. The material is likely to have been end-tipped into the valley leading to settlement for a number of years under self weight and the weight of the trains. The track would have to be packed up regularly to avoid a dip in the vertical alignment. These two embankments could be among the highest railway ones in Britain.
At the other end of the spectrum from the huge embankments mentioned above was the ninth viaduct which was dispensed with long ago. It was located just outside Penzance Station and was 347 yards long, which was the the longest between Penzance and Truro. Penzance Viaduct was just a few yards above ground level which was the foreshore of the beach with the tide coming and going beneath the viaduct. The viaduct was originally a timber trestle carrying a single line. This construction of a timber trestle across a beach was not unique but was quite rare in Britain. It is thought that all examples have been replaced. Maintenance costs were high due to regular damage by gales, so when the Cornish main line was being doubled it was quite natural to replace the viaduct with a stone-faced rubble embankment. The work was carried out between 1919 and 1921. In the last photograph of the attached article note what appears to be concrete fence posts which was most unusual for the time.
SCANS
7056-8 Scans of an article which appeared in the Great Western Railway Magazine for June 1922
MLR / 21 April 2023
The railway line we see today between Penzance and Truro was built as a single track by the Hayle Railway and the West Conwall Railway and later doubled by the Great Western Railway. The Hayle and West Cornwall Railways were both slightly quirky with a rich history which can be read on Wikipedia. There are eight railway viaducts in the 26 miles of track between the two towns but there were once nine. Despite this number of viaducts there are two deep valleys crossed by huge embankments, and I wonder why ?
The two large embankments are located in the villages of Brea and Carn Brea between Camborne and Redruth and are both around 20 to 25 metres high. When they were built in the 1830s any compaction of the fill material forming the embankments would have been primitive at best – perhaps a granite roller pulled by two horses; at worst no compaction at all. I think the reason for building embankments rather than viaducts are the long cuttings on both sides in an endeavour to make a reasonably level route through this mining district. It would have been very convenient to use the excavated material from the cuttings in the valleys and to balance the cut and fill. The material is likely to have been end-tipped into the valley leading to settlement for a number of years under self weight and the weight of the trains. The track would have to be packed up regularly to avoid a dip in the vertical alignment. These two embankments could be among the highest railway ones in Britain.
At the other end of the spectrum from the huge embankments mentioned above was the ninth viaduct which was dispensed with long ago. It was located just outside Penzance Station and was 347 yards long, which was the the longest between Penzance and Truro. Penzance Viaduct was just a few yards above ground level which was the foreshore of the beach with the tide coming and going beneath the viaduct. The viaduct was originally a timber trestle carrying a single line. This construction of a timber trestle across a beach was not unique but was quite rare in Britain. It is thought that all examples have been replaced. Maintenance costs were high due to regular damage by gales, so when the Cornish main line was being doubled it was quite natural to replace the viaduct with a stone-faced rubble embankment. The work was carried out between 1919 and 1921. In the last photograph of the attached article note what appears to be concrete fence posts which was most unusual for the time.
SCANS
7056-8 Scans of an article which appeared in the Great Western Railway Magazine for June 1922
MLR / 21 April 2023
Many thanks Michael for collecting and forwarding the above extremely interesting material.