For over one hundred years, from 1869 to 1966, the rail service from Bitton to Bristol or Bath was the lifeline for passengers and for the shipment of local goods. But by 1974 the railway had reopened thanks to volunteers who preserved the line in order to operate trains for leisure and to educate, stimulate and encourage interest in railway preservation.

The Bath branch ran from the junction at Mangotsfield south-east through Warmley, swinging south-west to Oldland and then south east again to cross the Rivers Boyd and Avon beyond Bitton at Saltford. Continuing alongside the Avon, past Kelston Park, the line had to cross the river a further four times before terminating in Bath on the north bank.

From Mangotsfield the Bath branch curved sharply southwards and joined the third side of the triangle, which permitted through running from Bath to Gloucester. The railway signaled the end of life for the Dramway, which opened in 1830, connecting Coal Pit Heath with the Avon at Bitton and Londonderry wharf at Willsbridge.

Between Oldland Common and Bitton Station the line passed through a deep rock cutting. The pennant rock from this area yielded the fine building stone for most of the bridges. Nearly 250,000 cu yds had to be excavated. Also, in the cutting, the line ran over the former tramway tunnel which when bored was unlined, but was later lined for 90 ft by the Midland to bear the weight of the branch.

During the period 1933 to 1939 the whole of the line was upgraded to take the heavier axle loads of the larger locomotives then being built by the London Midland & Scottish Railways for express and freight traffic.

The line continued to flourish until the 1950s when cheaper road transport became more popular – until in July 1965 Bitton Yard was closed and notice of closure for the withdrawal of passenger services declared 3rd January 1966 as the fateful day. Difficulties with the replacement bus service delayed matters until 7th March 1966. Coal traffic to Bath Gas Works continued until July 1971, after which time the line was not used by any regular traffic.

© Science Museum Group – The ‘Withdrawal Of Railway Passenger Services’ poster supplied by BR, featuring Oldland Common Halt, the other remaining stations on the branch, and the famous Somerset & Dorset.

The local railway started life when the Midland Railway opened a branch line from Mangotsfield to Bath in 1869. Messrs. Eckersley and Bayliss of Westminster built the line, a Mr Robertson of Bristol the roadside stations and the Derby firm of Handyside were responsible for the wrought iron bridges. Bath Chronicle records the opening as “engineering features of considerable interest … and cuttings … long and deep”. The Midland Railway became part of the London, Midland, and Scottish Railway in 1923. In1948, the line became part of the newly-created “British Railways”.

In 1910, a regular through express passenger train was introduced between

Manchester and Bournemouth, later this train was given the name “The Pines Express”. The last service was in 1962. In 2012 the service between Manchester and Bournemouth was remembered with affection with an event at the Avon Valley Railway at Bitton.

Stopping trains gave local people the opportunity to commute to work in Bristol or Bath, although a number had employment at the Carsons chocolate factory at Mangotsfield. Pupils could travel by train to Warmley and walk to Kingswood Grammar School. It was considered diplomatic, if not essential, to travel at the opposite end of the train to those teachers who made the same journey.

Services that used the line were a mixture of stopping passenger trains, through goods trains conveying coal from the Somerset coalfield and other general merchandise, and stopping goods trains (usually referred to as the “pick-up”) which daily collected or delivered a few wagons to or from Warmley and Bitton. The Northbound and Southbound ”Pines Express”, which, although not stopping, gave an unusual service to the local community by its very passage The progress of the Northbound train at about 12.15pm was the signal to a significant number of mothers to dish up the meal as husbands or children would be in for lunch in a few minutes. Similarly, at about 2.45pm, the Bournemouth bound train would give parents of younger children the prompt to walk to school to collect them.

Avon Valley Railway

In 1972 a group of local people with the then local MP Robert Adley set up “The Bristol Suburban Railway Society” based at Bitton Station with the sole aim “To acquire and re-open for commuter and weekend steam use the Bristol-Mangotsfield-Bath and Mangotsfield-Yate Railway route”.

The “Society” leased from British Rail Property Board the Bitton station area only from 1972 to 1977, then leased the whole of the area from the A431 bridge northwards to the line of the dramway tunnel from the 11th March 1977.

On 15th October 1979 the Bristol Suburban Railway Society was incorporated into the Bitton Railway Co. Ltd., a company limited by guarantee and not having a share capital. The object of the company is to “preserve, operate and exhibit for the public benefit, for educational and instructional purposes, and to stimulate and encourage interest in all kinds of railway transportation systems, vehicles and equipment and to foster and support railway preservation”.

Although this was completed in 1988, the track remained unused for a number of years whilst a legal battle was fought by a small number of neighbours opposed to the opening of the Railway. The case was eventually won by the Railway, but at a cost of over £30,000 in legal and other fees – valuable money which had been intended for use on further expansion.

The increase in line length, although quite short in comparison with many preserved railways, encouraged many passengers to the Railway even though, at this stage, they were not able to alight at the other end. By the close of 1991, twice as many people had travelled on the line as in the previous year, with the high point coming from a record 5,700 passengers in one “Friends of Thomas the Tank Engine” day! This extra income went some way to paying off the debts incurred in obtaining the Light Railway Order. A new platform, complete with a run-round loop, was eventually built at Oldland Common and opened in 1999.

In the meantime, further expansion northwards had become impractical due to developments in local transport and housing. Consequently the Railway decided to concentrate on a southern extension and work began on raising money to purchase track for the push toward Bath and the River Avon.

Work on laying the track south began in 1992, giving volunteers and the public their first taste of the scenic Avon Valley. However with rail and sleepers costing some £75,000 per mile to buy and the cost of the Public Enquiry still blighted the Railways finances, progress was slow. By this time Local Authority boundary changes meant the Railway, including the line south to river, had come into the new county of South Gloucestershire.

Further Information

For more information on Avon Valley Railway please visit their website at: https://www.avrht.org/

For information of Oldland Halt/ Oldland Common Station please visit the link: Oldland Halt