'Significant progress' made on Severn Valley Railway repairs
Bosses at a heritage railway line say "significant progress" has been made in repairing an embankment that collapsed almost five months ago.The land between Bridgnorth and Hampton Loade, on the Severn Valley Railway, gave way at the Mor Brook bridge on 30 January.Since then, trains have been restricted to running between Kidderminster and Hampton Loade.The heritage line said more than 2,500 tonnes of material had been excavated from the site and a temporary culvert had been installed to allow full access for machinery.
The next phase of the operation will involve the installation of concrete blocks to support the embankment and the railway said it hoped to announce a reopening date for the full line within the next week.Engineering contractors CML moved on to the site at the start of the month and the railway said the culverting work would "allow further excavation to take place around the collapsed wing wall of the bridge".
Once that is complete, more than 100 concrete blocks, each weighing 2.5 tonnes would be moved into place.After that the contractors plan to cover it with alternate layers of matting and imported aggregate, to create a stronger embankment.Finally, concrete blocks will be placed on the top of the bridge to form a base for the railway track.Antony Bartlam, the railway's project manager, said: "Progress is impressive, helped by the recent good weather."Managing Director Jonathan Dunster said "something rather special" was being planned to mark the reopening of the full line.
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BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
'Significant progress' made on Severn Valley Railway repairs
Bosses at a heritage railway line say "significant progress" has been made in repairing an embankment that collapsed almost five months land between Bridgnorth and Hampton Loade, on the Severn Valley Railway, gave way at the Mor Brook bridge on 30 then, trains have been restricted to running between Kidderminster and Hampton heritage line said more than 2,500 tonnes of material had been excavated from the site and a temporary culvert had been installed to allow full access for machinery. The next phase of the operation will involve the installation of concrete blocks to support the embankment and the railway said it hoped to announce a reopening date for the full line within the next contractors CML moved on to the site at the start of the month and the railway said the culverting work would "allow further excavation to take place around the collapsed wing wall of the bridge". Once that is complete, more than 100 concrete blocks, each weighing 2.5 tonnes would be moved into that the contractors plan to cover it with alternate layers of matting and imported aggregate, to create a stronger concrete blocks will be placed on the top of the bridge to form a base for the railway Bartlam, the railway's project manager, said: "Progress is impressive, helped by the recent good weather."Managing Director Jonathan Dunster said "something rather special" was being planned to mark the reopening of the full line. Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
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'High streets are supposed to be about 30 per cent hot-food takeaways; Sheringham is over 40 per cent already,' Ben explained. 'If the appeal is overturned, where does it end? It could be the first Domino to fall, pardon the pun… Small towns are delicate little ecosystems. They need to be nurtured and protected.' Do this… Definitely ride the Poppy Line, which takes 25 minutes to huff from Sheringham to the pretty market town of Holt. After that, head to the Little Theatre. Seating just 160, and almost entirely run by volunteers, it's small but mighty. In 2024, actress Suranne Jones – who has a holiday home nearby – became President. 'She'd started to come quite regularly,' explained Debbie Thompson, the Little's director. 'She loved that it was a true community theatre and wanted to be involved.' Jones hosts workshops and helps promote the theatre's varied programme, which includes a traditional summer rep season, music, comedy and more. Eat this… Crab. Cromer, five miles east, has sown up the marketing, but Norfolk's famed crustaceans come from Sheringham too. In CA Seafoods you can buy them neatly dressed; it also has a 150-year-old smokehouse where they hot and cold smoke all sorts of fish. However, I ate at Camellia Cottage, a postcard-pretty, brick-and-flint cafe by the clock tower. It was heaving, both inside and out in the courtyard garden. I ordered the crab sandwich and had a tense wait while the server checked with the kitchen, and nabbed the last one of the day. Steep at £12, but a local treat. But don't do this… The ancient Cromer Shoals Chalk Bed – nicknamed 'Britain's Great Barrier Reef' – is the longest in the world, and lies only a stone's skim offshore. The 46-metre-long Sheringham Snorkel Trail, which follows a disused Victorian sewage pipe, leads out to this unexpectedly colourful underwater world that teems with crab, lobsters, fish, rare sponges and anemones. But in order to experience it, you need a long period of calm to cause the North Sea's sediment to drop and turn the water clear blue – which happens for about five or six days a year. Unless you get lucky, perhaps go stand-up paddle boarding with SUP Shack instead. From a local 'Shops come and go, restaurants change – but not a lot. That's the charm of it. Sheringham is expanding out, with new houses, but the core has remained the same. It's a great little town where everyone looks out for each other.' – Chris Taylor, Sheringham-born photographer, lifeboatman and shanty-man. From a tourist 'We've made a day-trip. My mum recommended the steam train, and it fully lived up to expectations. Quite slow but nice views and friendly staff. We like the museum. 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