Bicton Woodland Railway Explained

Railroad Name:Bicton Woodland Railway
Start Year:1963
End Year:Present
Hq City:Budleigh Salterton
Locale:England

The Bicton Woodland Railway is a narrow-gauge railway running in Bicton Park Botanical Gardens in the grounds of Bicton House near Budleigh Salterton in Devon.

The line was built in 1962 as a tourist attraction for visitors to the house. Most of the rolling stock was acquired from the Royal Arsenal Railway, Woolwich, with two locomotives, Woolwich and Carnegie coming from that source, as well as seven goods wagons which were reduced to their frames and converted to passenger carriages. It opened to passengers in 1963. Originally locomotives and carriages had royal blue livery.

Additional rolling stock was acquired from the RAF Fauld railway and the internal railway of the LNWR Wolverton works.

In 1998, the Bicton Gardens were put up for sale and the railway put into hiatus. The new owners sold the line's existing stock, and in 2000 took delivery of a diesel-powered replica tank engine. The line's original equipment was purchased by the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills museum at Waltham Abbey.[1]

Locomotives

NumberNameBuilderTypeDateWorks numberNotes
1WoolwichAvonside Engine Company19161748ex-Royal Arsenal Railway. Now at the Statfold Barn Railway
2BictonRuston and Hornsby1942213839Built for the War Department storage depot at Lion Brickworks, Scalford
3CarnegieHunslet19544524ex-Royal Arsenal Railway. Now at the Statfold Barn Railway
4Sir Walter RaleighAlan Keef (steam outline)200061Custom built. First driven by Pete Cuffley in 2000.

See also

References

  1. Book: Thomas, Cliff. The Narrow Gauge in Britain & Ireland. Atlantic Publishers. 2002. 1-902827-05-8. registration.

External links

50.6674°N -3.3196°W