Padstow Lannwedhenek | |
---|---|
General information | |
Location | Padstow, Cornwall England |
Coordinates | 50°32′19″N4°56′10″W / 50.538738°N 4.936037°W Coordinates: 50°32′19″N4°56′10″W / 50.538738°N 4.936037°W |
Platforms | 1 |
Other information | |
Status | Disused |
History | |
Pre-grouping | London and South Western Railway |
Post-grouping | Southern Railway Western Region of British Railways |
Key dates | |
27 March 1899 | Opened |
7 September 1964 | Closed to freight |
30 January 1967 | Closed to passengers |
Padstow railway station (Cornish : Lannwedhenek) was the western terminus of the North Cornwall Railway. It was opened in 1899 by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to serve the port of Padstow. It closed in 1967 having been proposed for closure in the Beeching Report. [1]
Although the LSWR obtained parliamentary authorisation to construct a line from Halwill & Beaworthy to Padstow in 1882 and opened the line as far as Wadebridge in 1894, it was to be a further five years before the line reached Padstow. The delay came about because of discussions within the LSWR in 1894 as to whether the line should in fact terminate at Truro rather than Padstow. Around the same time, the time period specified by Parliament within which the North Cornwall Line was to be constructed lapsed and it became necessary to apply for fresh authorisation. Under pressure from by local residents, the LSWR obtained new approval in the form of the North Cornwall Railway Act 1896 (c.clvi) which authorised the extension west over the main road in Wadebridge where a level crossing was to be installed. The line finally arrived in Padstow on 23 March 1899 and the station opened to traffic four days later. The line's opening was celebrated by crowds of local residents who gathered at the station to greet the first train. A brass band was also on hand and played "See The Conquering Hero Comes". [2] [3]
Upon its opening the station consisted of a single platform 100 yards (91 m) in length, a run-around loop, a siding leading down to a fish shed and platform by the harbour where fish consignments were loaded, and a small goods shed on the Down side with canopies over the loading points on each side. The station incorporated the stationmaster's residence and was constructed of local stone. A platform canopy decorated with saw-tooth valancing was also added. Finally, a stone 18-lever signal box was situated near the platform. The first changes occurred in 1900 when a turntable was installed. Around 1910 a carriage siding was added to next to the run-round loop, followed by the construction of the South Jetty served by two long sidings. [4]
The station's heyday was around the time of the railway grouping when it saw substantial passenger traffic in the form of holidaymakers and daytrippers to the coast, with many guests staying at the nearby Metropole Hotel. Outward-bound fish was the main freight traffic, which often reached 1,000 wagonloads during a Spring season. The station was served by the famous Atlantic Coast Express, a direct service from London Waterloo. The Southern Railway took over responsibility of the North Cornwall Line and stations and decided, given the levels of traffic at Padstow, to rebuild the fish platform in the early 1930s. Further modifications came after the Second World War when the turntable was resited and enlarged to accommodate the Bulleid Pacifics. [4]
In August 1940, the station master was charged with displaying lights at 1.00am on 31 July during the blackout. The light was caused by burning embers from a locomotive. He was found guilty and fined £5 [5] (equivalent to £290in 2021). [6]
Following nationalisation in 1948, Padstow station became part of the Southern Region of British Railways. Rationalisation meant that the competing lines of the Western Region and Southern Region in Devon and Cornwall could not survive indefinitely. Declining fish traffic in the 1950s saw the severing of the siding serving the fish station in 1959 and the removal of the canopy on the rail side of the goods shed. The cutbacks were deliberately accelerated once the station was transferred to the Western Region of British Railways in January 1963.
The Beeching Report proposed the closure of Padstow station and the lines serving it. Goods traffic ended in 1964, followed by most of the through passenger trains to London Waterloo (including the Atlantic Coast Express). All through services ceased in September 1966 followed a month later by the closure of the North Cornwall Line; this meant that Padstow could only be reached by changing at Bodmin Road on the Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway.
The line from Padstow to Wadebridge was closed on 30 January 1967 and the track was lifted shortly afterwards.
The station building is extant and was used as a cycle hire shop but now, it houses the offices of Padstow Town Council. The cycle hire shop has been moved to a new building on the other side of the car park. [1] The trackbed leading into Padstow now forms part of the Camel Trail, a recreational route for walkers, cyclists and horse riders.
In September 2007, the Bodmin and Wenford Railway announced plans to rebuild the North Cornwall Line from Bodmin Road (now known as Bodmin Parkway, the nearest railway station to Padstow now) as far as Wadebridge, following the line of the Camel Trail. [15] The plans have raised speculation as to whether, if realised, they could lead to a further connection to Padstow. [16]
Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Terminus | British Rail Western Region North Cornwall Line | Wadebridge | ||
British Rail Western Region Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway |
Padstow is a town, civil parish and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England. The town is situated on the west bank of the River Camel estuary approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) northwest of Wadebridge, 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Bodmin and 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Newquay. The population of Padstow civil parish was 3,162 in the 2001 census, reducing to 2,993 at the 2011 census. In addition an electoral ward with the same name exists but extends as far as Trevose Head. The population for this ward is 4,434
The Bodmin and Wenford Railway is a 6 miles 12 chains (9.9 km) heritage railway at Bodmin in Cornwall, England. Its headquarters are at Bodmin General railway station and it connects with the national rail network at Bodmin Parkway.
Wadebridge is a town and civil parish in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town straddles the River Camel five miles upstream from Padstow. The permanent population was 6,222 in the census of 2001, increasing to 7,900 in the 2011 census. There are two electoral wards in the town. Their total population is 8,272.
The Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway was a railway line opened in 1834 in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It linked the quays at Wadebridge with the town of Bodmin and also to quarries at Wenfordbridge. Its intended traffic was minerals to the port at Wadebridge and sea sand, used to improve agricultural land, inwards. Passengers were also carried on part of the line.
Axminster railway station serves the town of Axminster in Devon, England. It is operated by South Western Railway and is situated on the West of England Main Line. It is 144 miles 41 chains (232.6 km) down the line from London Waterloo.
Plymouth railway station serves the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. It is on the northern edge of the city centre, close to the North Cross roundabout. It Is the second busiest station in the county of Devon, and is the largest of the six surviving stations in Plymouth.
Okehampton railway station is a terminus railway station on the Dartmoor line serving the town of Okehampton in Devon, England. The station closed to regular traffic in 1972, but heritage and occasional mainline services ran from 1997 to 2019. Regular railway services resumed in November 2021.
Bodmin Parkway railway station is on the Cornish Main Line that serves the nearby town of Bodmin and other parts of mid-Cornwall, England. It is situated 3 miles (4.8 km) south-east of the town of Bodmin in the civil parish of St Winnow, 274 miles 3 chains from London Paddington measured via Box and Plymouth Millbay.
Lostwithiel railway station serves the town of Lostwithiel in Cornwall, England. It is 277 miles (446 km) from London Paddington via Bristol Temple Meads. Great Western Railway operates the station along with every other station in Cornwall.
St Austell station is a Grade II listed station which serves the town of St Austell, Cornwall, England. It is 286 miles (460 km) from London Paddington via Bristol Temple Meads. The station is operated by Great Western Railway, as is every other station in Cornwall.
The Camel Trail is a permissive cycleway in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, that provides a recreational route for walkers, runners, cyclists and horse riders. The trail is flat ; running from Padstow to Wenford Bridge via Wadebridge and Bodmin, it is 17.3 miles (27.8 km) long and used by an estimated 400,000 users each year generating an income of approximately £3 million a year.
The North Cornwall Railway was a railway line running from Halwill in Devon to Padstow in Cornwall via Launceston, Camelford and Wadebridge, a distance of 49 miles 67 chains. Opened in the last decade of the nineteenth century, it was part of a drive by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to develop holiday traffic to Cornwall. The LSWR had opened a line connecting Exeter with Holsworthy in 1879, and by encouraging the North Cornwall Railway it planned to create railway access to previously inaccessible parts of the northern coastal area.
Wadebridge railway station was a railway station that served the town of Wadebridge in Cornwall, England. It was on the Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway.
There are eight disused railway stations between Wadebridge and Bodmin North on the former Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway in Cornwall, in the United Kingdom, with ten other closed sidings on the branches to Ruthern Bridge and Wenfordbridge. The section from Boscarne Junction to Bodmin General is currently part of the Bodmin and Wenford Steam Railway; the line from Wadebridge to Wenfordbridge is now part of the Camel Trail, and the line to Ruthern Bridge can be followed for much of its length as it runs parallel to a public road.
Bodmin General railway station, located in Bodmin, Cornwall, United Kingdom, was the terminus of the Great Western Railway's Bodmin branch line, and is now the principal railway station of the heritage Bodmin & Wenford Railway.
Halwill Junction Railway Station was a railway station in Halwill Junction, near the villages of Halwill and Beaworthy in Devon, England. It opened in 1879 and formed an important junction between the now-closed Bude Branch and North Cornwall line. It closed in 1966 along with the lines which it served, a casualty of the Beeching Report.
The evolution of transport in Cornwall has been shaped by the county's strong maritime, mining and industrial traditions and much of the transport infrastructure reflects this heritage.
Boscarne Junction railway station is a railway station on the Bodmin and Wenford Railway in Cornwall, United Kingdom, and is its current terminus of the railway. It is adjacent to the Camel Trail, a long-distance footpath and cycle trail.
Wenfordbridge, or Wenford Bridge, is a hamlet some 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Bodmin and on the western flank of Bodmin Moor, in Cornwall, England. It takes its name from an old granite bridge over the River Camel, and lies on the border between the parishes of St Breward and St Tudy.