Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway

Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway
Locale England
Dates of operation 1960–1985
Track gauge 2 ft (610 mm)
Headquarters Humberston

The Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway was a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge heritage railway built in 1958 using equipment from the Nocton Potato Estate railway. It was located at Humberston, near Cleethorpes, and operated until 1985. The equipment was used to create a new railway at Skegness which opened in 3rd May 2009.

History

The railway was built by a group of railway enthusiasts who wished to preserve the stock and atmosphere of the Lincolnshire area potato railways. The land for the railway was leased from Grimsby Rural District Council and opened in 1960 using a Motor Rail "Simplex" locomotive and a single open bogie carriage. In 1961 a second Motor Rail locomotive was added, and the railway's first steam locomotive, Jurassic arrived. Additional equipment in the form of the passenger coach from the Sand Hutton Light Railway (closed to passengers in 1930) and two vehicles that had formerly run on the Ashover Light Railway was brought to the railway and restored, entering service in 1967 and 1962-3 respectively. Less positively, midweek carryings were adversely affected by the 1962 extension of Grimsby-Cleethorpes Transport bus service to serve the Fitties holiday camp, but weekend and Bank Holiday traffic remained strong, and by 1964 the line was carrying 60,000 passengers a year.

In 1966 the railway was rebuilt on a new alignment, and extended. The line saw considerable success in the late 1960s, and another steam locomotive, Elin, arrived, although it was too heavy for the lightly laid track, which limited axle loadings to approximate 2.5 tonnes. Trains operated push-pull for many years, but an accident resulted in Railway Inspectorate requiring the installation of run-round loops so that the locomotive would always be at the head of the train, and air brakes.

The railway also became home to a number of ex-GNR items including the somersault signals used to control movements at North Sea Lane station, railings, and other platform furniture from stations on the East Lincolnshire Railway many of whose minor stations were closed in 1963.

In the early 1980s the railway carried heavy passenger traffic to and from a large Car Boot Sale held at Humberston Fitties on Sundays. Traffic was so heavy that at times all three covered carriages were in use simultaneously. However, midweek fraffic outside of the brief summer season, had dwindled to almost nothing. Other issues arose that made it impractical to continue on the Humberston site. Firstly, the 1984 miners' strike considerably reduced the number of holiday makers using the Fitties, and this further decreased traffic on the line. Also, as a condition on renewing the lease on the site, the council insisted on the installation of 6-foot-high (1.8 m) fences on both sides of the railway, which would have created an unpleasant cage like environment for passengers using the railway's low slung coaches. In 1985, faced with a series of obstacles, the railway closed at the end of the summer season in September, and the track was lifted shortly afterwards.

The Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway Historic Vehicles Trust was formed in 1983 with the intention of restoring and preserving some of the ex-Nocton Great War era vehicles that were to be disposed of by the LCLR Company. Certain items, including a WW1 Ambulance Van were lent to the Museum of Army Transport at Beverley in the East Riding until that ran into financial difficulties in the mid-1990s. The Trusts' stock was moved to a private site until it was re-united with the rest of the railway at the Water Leisure Park.

The rest of the railway stayed together and was put into storage, initially at the (now closed) Lincolnshire Railway Museum at Burgh-le-Marsh, and subsequently at the Skegness Water Leisure Park. A revived Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway was built on the Skegness site,[1] and opened on 3 May 2009.[2]

In 2014 a bid was made by the Trust to re-build the open coach, converted in 1962 from one of the ex Nocton Class D wagons, into a disabled friendly passenger vehicle. After winning a vote in the 'Peoples Millions' competition run by ITV the Trust was awarded £43,400 to do the work, and the project was completed by the end of 2015. The 'D' class bogie wagon has been returned to its original appearance apart from the addition of a safety rail above the sides and ends of the vehicle, and the inclusion of a small door in one of the drop sides of the wagon for the loading and unloading of passengers and wheelchairs. Seating is provided in the form of boxes resembling WW1 ammunition boxes secured around the sides of the vehicle. The platform at Wall's Lane (former Lakeview) station has also been extended and upgraded to accommodate a two coach train, and provide disabled access to the trains. A water tank has been installed in anticipation of the return of Jurassic to traffic in the near future.

The Trust has also started work on restoring the Peckett 'Jurassic' with a 'Back to Steam' appeal.

Locomotives

LCLR No Name Builder Type Date Works number Notes
2 Jurassic Peckett and Sons 0-6-0ST 1903 1008 ex-Southam Limeworks railway
Elin Hunslet 0-4-0ST 1899 705 ex-Penrhyn Quarry, went to Yaxham Light Railway now at the Richmond Light Railway
3 Ruston and Hornsby 4wDM 1933 168439 Scrapped in 1968
1 Paul Motor Rail 4wDM 1926 3995 ex-Nocton Estate Light Railway
4 Wilton Motor Rail 4wDM 1940 7481 ex-Humberston Brickworks
7 Nocton Motor Rail 4wDM 1920 1935 ex-Nocton Estate Light Railway
5 Major Motor Rail 4wDM 1944 8622
6 No 6 Motor Rail 4wDM 1944 8874
8 Motor rail 4wDM 1947 9264 Ex Skegness brickworks
9 Sark Motor Rail 4wDM 1943 8825 Ex Sinclair, Bolton fell

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Welcome". Lincs Coast Light Railway. Retrieved 2012-05-22.
  2. ↑ "Lincs Coast Light Railway official reopening". Daves Rail Pics. Retrieved 2012-05-22.

Bibliography

  • Thomas, Cliff (2002). The Narrow Gauge in Britain & Ireland. Atlantic Publishers. ISBN 1-902827-05-8. 

Further reading

External links

Coordinates: 53°10′38″N 0°20′35″E / 53.17731°N 0.34315°E / 53.17731; 0.34315

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