Steam trains to return at Severn Beach

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Miniature steam railway to return to resort


A miniature railway ran at Severn Beach until 1976

It has been 50 years since steam trains trundled along a miniature railway at Severn Beach. But soon, a new track will be opened – thanks to the son of a man who built a miniature train for the tourist resort in South Gloucestershire in the 1960s.

Joe Nemeth will build and run the 0.25 mile (350m) Severn Beach Miniature Railway next to the seafront promenade and expects it to be open by Easter. "People are thrilled it's coming back," he said. "Severn Beach has become really popular since the pandemic and now is the time to build something for people living there."

From the 1920s to the 1970s, Severn Beach was a thriving tourist hotspot, with an outdoor swimming pool, boating lake, and a miniature railway, which ran from 1936 to 1939, and 1955 to 1976.


Joe Nemeth has been a fan of railways since he was a small boy

Mr Nemeth plans to run vintage steam engines on the line, some of which are now 90 years old. "It all starts as a kid when you have your first train set, you either play with it again or leave it, but I was hooked," he said. "I remember the [miniature] railway with a great passion."

The attraction will open in three stages, with plans for a pond, a bridge and gardens along the route. It will be staffed by volunteers.


Work has already started on clearing ground for the railway

Local business owners are enthusiastic about the railway's return.

Miriam Street, who runs Just As You Are Tea Cottage next to where the railway will run, told the BBC she was "delighted" with the plans. "It'll be such a boom for local businesses, it'll bring people from all across Bristol to visit and we'll see that in our business as well," she said.

[Timmer]

Nice to see a railway in the West Country that’s actually reopening.

[johnneyw]

More excuses for me to visit Severn Beach.  Should be nice to visit it as it develops.

[grahame]

Did I *really* hear the interview on BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) Points West hoping to have something in place for Easter?     

[Chris from Nailsea]

In South Gloucestershire, that's entirely possible. 

However, over here in North Somerset, we do have a tradition of progressing matters in a very much ... erm ... less hasty manner. 

[broadgage]

In South Gloucestershire, that's entirely possible. 

However, over here in North Somerset, we do have a tradition of progressing matters in a very much ... erm ... less hasty manner. 

And in particular a tradition of several different groups that claim to be working towards the same aim, but that actually appear to be competing.

Returning to this railway, it appears to be a very narrow track gauge, which is rather restrictive. Would it be worth installing mixed gauge track, so as to permit use of two different narrow gauges of rolling stock ?

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Miniature railway opening date postponed


One station will be named after Robert Stride, who developed Severn Beach as a tourist resort in the 1930s

The opening date for a planned miniature railway attraction in South Gloucestershire has been pushed back.

Joe Nemeth, founder of the Severn Beach Miniature Railway said the project had been "stressful" but was also now an "unstoppable force". He had originally intended to open by Easter, but is instead aiming for July.

The postponement came as a result of council delays on the railway's planning application.

For the past few months, Mr Nemeth and his team of volunteers have been preparing the site near the promenade in Severn Beach, and a shipping container has been installed for an engine shed. He has also been offered one of the locomotives and carriages which formerly ran on a railway in nearby Clevedon, and had been sitting in storage for 10 years.

Mr Nemeth eventually plans to build his own carriages for the attraction.

One of the stations will be named "Stride Halt", after Robert Stride, the entrepreneur who turned Severn Beach into a tourist resort in the 1930s, and who built the first railway there.

"Robert even built built the house I live in," Mr Nemeth said. "I'd like to think he would be delighted I'm bringing this back, the resort went downhill for many years but since the Covid pandemic, people have realised what a fantastic place it is to visit. It's the perfect time to do something like this," he added.


The railway has acquired some of the engines it plans to run from the summer

At one point, Mr Nemeth said he considered "pulling the plug" on the project because of the stress. "The delays have cost us money, and it has gobbled up the finance I raised for it. But regardless of the setback, South Gloucestershire Council are really supporting it as they can see the visitors it will bring in and the benefits to groups and young people in the area," he said.

[johnneyw]

That rather explains the lack of progress that I saw when I visited the site a month or two back.  It seems that even miniature railways have their fair share of the bureaucracy that the "big" railways enjoy.
Still, it looks like there'll be a bit more to see next time I pootle down there.