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Charlton Marshall
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S&D magazine article
- Patronage & Finances
An article I submitted
to the S&DRT's 'Pines Express' magazine was published
in the Autumn 2009 issue (no. 254).
There is a vast number of books, DVDs, etc, relating to the line with new titles being added every year - but how
many people actually travelled in those carriages? The line, with superb scenery, closed because it made a loss,
but how much?
The article seeks to answer these questions based on information contained within the comprehensive range of original
documents in the S&DRT archive.
Featured is a table of footfall
for every station, and the maximum/average loading of every train, bar the Pines Express, based on analysis of
the summer 1962 passenger census.
Concluding the article, the
situation with the nearby 'Castleman's Corkscrew' route in the 1960s is contrasted with the proposal by the Association
of Train Operating Companies to reinstate part of that line.
Another patronage article has
since been completed.
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Shillingstone
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Shillingstone Station seen in August 2009
with work under way rebuilding part of one of the platform edges. More photos from Shillingstone.
The station (postcode DT11 0SA) is currently open from 10 - 4 on Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday with snacks and
refreshments available.
Although only a village station, the rapport with the local community was such that for S&D service patronage
in 1962, Shillingstone ranked 11th out of the 35 stations from Bath to Bournemouth and Evercreech Junction to Highbridge.
The patronage was about 40% of that at Blandford, and was well above both Radstock and Midsomer Norton. In addition,
there was a large increase in patronage at Shillingstone and other stations in the following year. More details
in the magazine article referred to above. |
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Views from the
Trailway
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| The River Stour and Fiddleford Mill, as
seen from Fiddleford Bridge in March 2009. |
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| The River Stour seen from the trailway just
south of Shillingstone station in November 2007. |
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Fiddleford Bridge
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The official opening of Fiddleford Bridge,
on 21st April 2007. Sitting on the foundations of the old railway bridge, this £202,000 project now enables
users of the North Dorset Trailway to cross the River Stour south of Sturminster Newton.
Here, Mrs. Anthony Pitt-Rivers, H.M. Lord-Lieutenant of Dorset, cuts the opening ribbon on the 75 metre long bridge.
Mrs. Pitt-Rivers said that she hoped to see further expansion of the Trailway, and Giles Nicholson of the Dorset
Countryside department confirmed that this would indeed be happening. Further stretches would open over the next
year. |
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Bath Road Viaduct,
Shepton Mallet
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| The Bath Road Viaduct in Shepton Mallet,
a Grade II listed structure, has 'SAD 81' painted on one of the piers. This structure number indicates it's continuing
ownership by British Railways Board (Residuary) Ltd. Above is the viaduct's listing on the BRB website. Of course,
SAD stands for Somerset & Dorset, though some might find BRB's abbreviated form truly ironic. |
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Midsomer Norton
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Midsummer at Midsomer - Midsomer Norton
South on 21st June 2009. The S&DRHT now has planning permission and materials to extend in the direction of
Chilcompton. Pictures taken from video footage.
The station site as it was in December 2001 can be seen in this picture by Chris Nevard. See also Chris Nevard's photo gallery. |
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Bailey Gate
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| Not much left of Bailey Gate Station in
this 1980 view. |
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| A gradient post south of Charlton Marshall,
indicating a maximum incline barely perceptible to the modern day walker! |
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