 The southern entrance to the tunnel | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Status | Open |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 1904 |
| Closed | 1934 (as railway tunnel) |
| Traffic | Automotive/cyclists/pedestrians |
| Technical | |
| Length | 150 m (490 ft) |
Swainsley Tunnel is a tunnel on the route of the former Leek and Manifold Light Railway, which connected the market town of Leek with Hulme End, via Waterhouses, in Staffordshire, England. It was in use as a railway tunnel between 1904 and 1934. It now forms part of the Manifold Way trail.
Swainsley Tunnel is located between Ecton and Butterton. It opened in 1904 at part of the line of the Leek and Manifold Light Railway. It was built at the insistence of Sir Thomas Wardle, a director of the L&MLR and owner of the nearby Swainsley Hall, who did not want the line to spoil the view from his house. [1] The tunnel is 164 yards long. Its bore is large for a narrow gauge railway and was designed to cater for standard gauge conveyances atop narrow gauge wagons. [2] The line closed in 1934 and the tunnel fell into disuse. [3]
The trackbed was gifted to Staffordshire County Council and reopened in 1937 as a walking and cycling trail, the Manifold Way. [4] Staffordshire Council allowed motor vehicles to use the tunnel from 1951, [5] and it remains a shared bicycle, automobile and pedestrian tunnel on the trail. [6] Because of its narrow width, there are enforced regulations on car users and a weight limit of three tons. The tunnel is a popular site for illegal street racing by both motorcyclists and motorists; Staffordshire Police have made the tunnel subject to a Section 59 Notice, which allows them to seize vehicles if drivers are found to be driving through it in an unsafe or aggressive manner. [7] [8]
The River Manifold is a river in Staffordshire, England. It is a tributary of the River Dove.
The Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway (L&MVLR) was a narrow gauge railway in Staffordshire, England that operated between 1904 and 1934. The line mainly carried milk from dairies in the region, acting as a feeder to the 4 ft 8+1⁄2 instandard gauge system. It also provided passenger services to the small villages and beauty spots along its route. The line was built to a 2 ft 6 in narrow gauge and to the light rail standards provided by the Light Railways Act 1896 to reduce construction costs.
Caldon Canal is a branch of the Trent and Mersey Canal which opened in 1779. It runs 18 miles (29 km) from Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, to Froghall, Staffordshire. The canal has 17 locks and the 76-yard (69 m) Froghall Tunnel.
The Churnet Valley Railway is a preserved standard gauge heritage railway in the Staffordshire Moorlands of Staffordshire, England. It operates along part of the former Churnet Valley Line which was opened by the North Staffordshire Railway in 1849. The line is roughly 10.5 miles (16.9 km) long from Kingsley & Froghall to Ipstones. The land from Leek Brook Junction to Ipstones was opened by Moorland & City Railways (MCR) in 2010 after they took a lease out from Network Rail. This has subsequently been purchased by the Churnet Valley Railway. The main stations along the line are Kingsley and Froghall, Consall, Cheddleton and Leek Brook.
A transporter wagon, in railway terminology, is a wagon (UIC) or railroad car (US) designed to carry other railway equipment. Normally, it is used to transport equipment of a different rail gauge. In most cases, a transporter wagon is a narrower gauge wagon for transporting a wider gauge equipment, allowing freight in a wider gauge wagons to reach destinations on the narrower gauge network without the expense and time of transshipment into a narrower gauge wagons.
Thor's Cave is a natural cavern located at SK09865496 in the Manifold Valley of the White Peak in Staffordshire, England. It is classified as a karst cave. Located in a steep limestone crag, the cave entrance, a symmetrical arch 7.5 metres wide and 10 metres high, is prominently visible from the valley bottom, around 80 metres (260 feet) below. Reached by an easy stepped path from the Manifold Way, the cave is a popular tourist spot, with views over the Manifold Valley. The second entrance is known as the "West Window", below which is a second cave, Thor's Fissure Cavern.
Beeston Tor is a limestone cliff in Staffordshire. It overlooks the confluence of the River Hamps with the River Manifold, and is a popular venue for rock climbing.
Waterhouses is a village in the south of the Staffordshire Peak District in England. It is around 8 miles from Leek and Ashbourne, being nearly the halfway point between the two towns on the A523 road, which roughly follows the southern boundary of the Peak District National Park. Waterhouses is also a civil parish, created in 1934 when the parishes of Calton, Cauldon, Waterfall and part of Ilam were merged; previously the village of Waterhouses was on the boundary of Waterfall and Cauldon parishes. The hamlet of Winkhill is also in the parish. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,134.
Ecton is a hamlet in the Staffordshire Peak District. It is on the Manifold Way, an 8-mile (13 km) walk and cycle path that follows the line of the former Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway. Population details as at the 2011 census can be found under Ilam.
The Manifold Way is a footpath and cycle way in Staffordshire, England. Some 8 miles (13 km) in length, it runs from Hulme End (53.1307°N 1.8480°W) in the north to Waterhouses (53.0480°N 1.8654°W) in the south, mostly through the Manifold Valley and the valley of its only tributary, the River Hamps, following the route of the former Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway, a 2 ft 6 in gauge line which closed in 1934 after a short life.
Sparrowlee was the name of a railway station on the Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway, a 2 ft 6 in narrow gauge line which ran for 8 miles between Hulme End and Waterhouses, in Staffordshire, and was initially operated by the North Staffordshire Railway before being taken over by the LMS.
Hulme End is a small hamlet in Staffordshire, England, in the Peak District National Park 10 miles north of Ashbourne, Derbyshire. A natural gateway to the Manifold Valley, the river crosses the road from Hartington to Warslow.
Wetton is a village in the Peak District National Park, North Staffordshire, at the top of the east side of the Manifold Valley. The population recorded in the 2001 Census was 157. At the time of the 2011 Census the population was recorded under Ilam. This article describes the location, some of the main features of the village, and a number of places of historical or general interest in or near the village. These include Long Low, Wetton, a prehistoric burial site unique to England.
Waterhouses railway station was a railway station that served the village of Waterhouses, Staffordshire. It was opened jointly by the North Staffordshire Railway (NSR) and the Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway (L&MVLR) in 1905 and closed in 1943.
The Waterhouses branch line was a railway built by the North Staffordshire Railway to link the small villages east of Leek, Staffordshire with Leek, the biggest market town in the area. The railway opened in 1905 but closed to passengers in 1935. Freight continued on the line though until 1988, when the line was mothballed as the traffic from the quarries at Caldon Low ceased.
Hulme End railway station is a disused railway station at Hulme End in Staffordshire, England.
Ecton railway station was a station on the Leek and Manifold Light Railway. It served the hamlet of Ecton, Staffordshire. It opened to the public on 29 June 1904 and was in operation for almost thirty years prior to its closure on 12 March 1934. Ecton Creamery opened in 1920 and the line was used for transporting Stilton cheese. An Ordnance Survey map published in 1922 shows a branch line running to the cheese factory. Milk was transported by road from 1932, leading to a decline in revenue for the railway. In 1937, owner London, Midland & Scottish Railway gifted the track bed to Staffordshire County Council for a public right of way, pioneering such transfers in Britain. Today, the site is part of the Manifold Way that runs between Hulme End and Waterhouses.
Butterton railway station was a station on the Leek and Manifold Light Railway. It served the village of Butterton in Staffordshire. The site is now part of the Manifold Way including the impressive Swainsley Tunnel.
Redhurst Crossing railway station was a minor station on the Leek and Manifold Light Railway, located between Wetton Mill railway station, Staffordshire and Thor's Cave railway station. Not much is documented about the halt, and the line which ran through it is now the Manifold Way.
Thor's Cave railway station was a station on the Leek and Manifold Light Railway. Serving the landmark Thor's Cave in Grindon and Wetton. The station site is now part of the Manifold Way.