Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway
Encyclopedia : P : PA : PAI : Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway
Situated in Devon and arguably one of the most picturesque lines in England, the standard gauge Paignton & Dartmouth Steam Railway operates from Paignton to Kingswear along the former Great Western Railway line.
Route
Starting adjacent to Paignton main line station, the steam railway runs for about 7 miles in a south-westerly direction. The first half of the journey (from Paignton to Churston) is up-hill along the rocky Devon coastline. The line crosses Broadsands viaduct, and the larger Hookhills viaduct before reaching it's summit at Churston. From Churston the line turns inland, cuts through Greenway Tunnel, descending along the Dart valley until it reaches Kingswear. From Kingswear, one can cross the Dart to the old town of Dartmouth by ferry. Dartmouth Station in unique in that it has never seen a train. In GWR days, passengers would arrive at the station by means of the ferry from Kingswear. The line was originally laid to Brunel's Broad Gauge, but reverted to standard gauge in May 1892Observations
- Due to location of this line - at the heart of the English Riviera - it is essentially run as a profit making business attracting summer tourists. Steam & Diesel gala weekends stopped in the late '90s, and with that the enthusiast interest was lost. But the livery of rolling stock is almost authentic GWR.
- In 1973 and 1993 the steam locomotive The Flying Scotsman hauled regular service trains on this line.
- In more recent times the line has seen regular visits during the summer season from LNER A4 No 60009 Union of South Africa and GWR King No. 6024 King Edward I on the Torbay Express excursions from Bristol
- The line uses (amongst others) an ex-BR Standard 4MT No. 75014 'Braveheart', GWR 2-8-0T No. 5239 'Goliath' and newly overhauled GWR 4-6-0 No. 7827 'Lydham Manor'
- The branch from Churston to Brixham is disused and is not a part of this line.
External links
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