Heart of Wessex Line explained

Heart of Wessex Line
Status:	Operational
Ridership2:	2,119,070 (2017)^[1]
Linelength:	87mi 20ch (140.41 km)
Map:	(Click to expand)
Map State:	uncollapsed

The Heart of Wessex Line, also known as the Bristol to Weymouth Line, is a railway line that runs from to and Weymouth in England. It shares the Wessex Main Line as far as Westbury and then follows the course of the Reading to Taunton Line as far as .

History

See main article: Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway.

Places served

The cities, towns and villages served by this route are listed below:^[2]

• Bristol
• Keynsham
• Bath
• Freshford
• Avoncliff
• Bradford on Avon
• Trowbridge
• Westbury
• Frome
• Bruton
• Castle Cary
• Yeovil
• Thornford
• Yetminster
• Chetnole
• Maiden Newton
• Dorchester
• Upwey
• Weymouth

Operator

Passenger services on the route are operated by Great Western Railway and South Western Railway.

Most Great Western services originate from Bristol Temple Meads or . Some originate from towns and cities beyond Bristol such as, Cheltenham and .

South Western Railway operate a limited service between London Waterloo and Yeovil Junction via Castle Cary. From summer 2016 there was also a "seaside special" service between Weymouth and or Waterloo via Yeovil Junction, but this was withdrawn in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.^[3]

Rolling stock

Services are typically operated with Class 165 and Class 166 "Networker Turbo" trains. These were introduced in the late 2010s after they were released from the Thames Valley during the modernisation of the Great Western Main Line, although Class 158s are still occasionally used.^[4] South Western Railway services are operated by Class 159s and sometimes Class 158s.

Before the introduction of the Networker Turbo trains, the route was typically operated with Sprinter diesel multiple unit trains, typically of 2 or 3 coach Class 150, with some Class 158 trains.

Past rolling stock has included locomotive-hauled trains, including British Railways Mark 2 coaches hauled by Class 67 used to strengthen high-demand summer Saturday services in 2008–2010 between Bristol and the seaside resort of Weymouth.

Community rail

A Bristol to Weymouth Rail Partnership was created in 1998 so that local authorities could support the line. In 2003 this was rebranded as the Heart of Wessex partnership and line.^[5] The TransWilts community rail partnership (CRP) gained accredited status under the Department for Transport's community rail programme which began in 2005.^[6]

In 2021, although the line's branding remains the same, the responsibility for the line was divided among three CRPs: Severnside CRP from Bristol to Bradford on Avon, TransWilts CRP covering Trowbridge and Westbury in Wiltshire, and the newly created South Wessex CRP covering stations from Frome to Yeovil in Somerset and from Thornford to Weymouth in Dorset.^[7]

Accidents and incidents

• On 18 March 1849, a passenger train became divided approaching . The rear portion then ran into the front portion when the latter stopped at the station. One person was injured.^[8]
• On 20 January 1853 a luggage train was derailed near Keynsham due to an axle failure on one of the carriages.^[9]
• On 7 June 1865, a passenger train ran into the rear of another near Keynsham, and an empty stock train ran into the wreckage. At least three people were injured.^[10]

• On 4 August 1868, a passenger train collided with the buffer stops at due to poor rail conditions and driver error. Six people were injured.^[11]
• On 28 October 1873, a mail train passed a signal at danger and collided with a luggage train at .^[12]
• On 11 June 1875, a passenger train was derailed at Bathampton Junction. One person was killed and six were injured, three seriously.^{[13] [14]}
• On 2 July 1876, a freight train was derailed at Bathampton Junction.^[15]
• On 15 August 1876, a freight train was derailed at Hampton Row after a bale of cotton fell off a wagon and derailed the one behind it.^[16]
• On 24 October 1882, a passenger train was derailed near when a bridge collapsed under it due to a storm. Several people were injured, on seriously.^[17]
• On 8 August 1913, a passenger train ran into the rear of another at due to passing a signal at danger. Two people were killed and ten injured, two seriously.^[18]
• On 11 January 1966, an express passenger train ran into the rear of another at due to a signalman's error. A locomotive was then in a sidelong collision with the wreckage. Nineteen passengers were injured. Diesel-hydraulic locomotive D 1071 Western Renown was severely damaged; D 864 Zambesi was slightly damaged.^[19]
• On 25 August 1974, a passenger train was derailed at after passing a signal at danger. Eighteen people were injured.^[20]
• On 24 March 1987, a passenger train and a freight train were in a head-on collision at due to the freight train passing a signal at danger. Locomotives 33 032 and 47 202 were severely damaged. Fifteen people were injured, some seriously.^{[21] [22]}
• On 10 November 2008, a freight train was derailed at East Somerset Junction due to a signalman's error.^[23]
• On 12 November 2008, a passenger train collided with a van on a level crossing at . There were no injuries.^[24]
• On 6 December 2011, a train was derailed at .^[25]
• On 24 January 2013, a passenger train caught fire at .^[26]
• On 20 March 2017, a freight train was derailed at East Somerset Junction.^[27] The line was closed until 25 March.^[28]

Bibliography

• Book: R.V.J. Butt . The Directory of Railway Stations . Patrick Stephens Ltd. . 1995.
• Book: Robert Adley . Covering My Tracks . Patrick Stephens Ltd. . 1988. Robert Adley .
• Book: J.H. Lucking . Railways of Dorset . Railway Correspondence and Travel Society 1968 . ISBN(no ISBN)

External links

• Heart of Wessex line – The Heart of Wessex Rail Partnership

Notes and References

1. Web site: HEART OF WESSEX RAIL PARTNERSHIP - LINE PLAN. Heart of Wessex Community Rail Partnership. heartofwessex.org.uk. 29 March 2019.
2. Web site: Brighton, Portsmouth and Weymouth - Bristol, Cardiff, Gloucester and Great Malvern. National Rail Timetable. Network Rail. 2016-01-20.
3. News: Proposals unveiled for direct trains between North & South Dorset. 9 March 2016. ITV News. 15 March 2017. en.
4. Web site: How the West will win with new trains. 15 April 2015. Rail magazine. en. 15 March 2017.
5. Web site: Route Prospectus, Bristol to Weymouth Line . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160809234732/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449040/bristol-weymouth.pdf . 9 August 2016 . GOV.UK . Department for Transport.
6. Web site: Community rail . 29 April 2024 . GOV. UK . Department for Transport.
7. Web site: Community Rail . 2024-04-29 . Great Western Railway . en.
8. News: Extraordinary Railway Accident . The Bradford Observer . Bradford . 22 March 1849 . 787 . 7.
9. Accident on the Great Western Railway . 22 January 1853 . 3 . 21332 . F .
10. Accident on the Great Western Railway . 8 June 1865 . 11 . 25206 . C .
11. Web site: London and South Western Railway . Board of Trade . 21 August 1868 . 21 March 2017.
12. News: Collision on the North Western Railway . The Pall Mall Gazette . London . 29 October 1875 . 2716.
13. Railway Accident . 12 June 1875 . 13 . 28340 .
14. The Bathampton Railway Accident . 14 June 1875 . 13 . 28341 . F .
15. News: Summary of this morning's news . The Pall Mall Gazette . London . 3 July 1876 . 3548.
16. Railway Accidents . 16 August 1876 . 11 . 28709 . C-D .
17. The Storm . 25 October 1882 . 10 . 30647 . F .
18. Web site: Great Western Railway . Board of Trade . 27 August 1913 . 21 March 2017.
19. Web site: Report on the Collision that occurred on 11th January 1967 at St. Anne's Park, Bristol . Her Majestey's Stationery Office . Ministry of Transport . 28 December 1967 . 21 March 2017.
20. Web site: Report on the Derailment that occurred on 25 August 1974 at Dorchester West . Her Majesty's Stationery Office . Railway Inspectorate, Department of the Environment . 20 November 1975 . 21 March 2017.
21. Web site: Report on the Collision that occurred on 24th March 1987 at Frome . Her Majesty's Stationery Office . Department of Transport . 6 May 1988 . 21 March 2017.
22. Book: Vaughan, Adrian . Tracks to Disaster . Ian Allan . Hersham . 2003 . 2000 . 0-7110-2985-7 . 10–11 .
23. Web site: Derailment of two locomotives at East Somerset Junction 10 November 2008 . Rail Accidents Investigation Branch . 21 March 2017.
24. Web site: Train hits van on level crossing . BBC News Online . 13 November 2008 . 21 March 2017.
25. Web site: Train derails at Westbury causing rail delays . BBC News Online . 6 December 2011 . 21 March 2017.
26. Web site: Weymouth rail services delayed by fire under train . BBC News Online . 24 January 2013 . 21 March 2017.
27. Web site: Somerset freight train derailment causes '48 hour blockage' . BBC News Online . 21 March 2017.
28. Web site: Wiltshire-Somerset train services restored after derailment . BBC News Online . 25 March 2017.