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The Faringdon branch was a 3+1⁄2-mile-long branch line from Uffington Station to Faringdon in the Vale of White Horse, in Oxfordshire.
History
editOpening
editThe line was authorised by the Faringdon Railway Act 1860 (23 & 24 Vict. c. cxcvi) and opened in 1864, between Faringdon and the Great Western Railway (GWR) at Uffington, with construction funded by a consortium of local businessmen called the Faringdon Railway Company, which was bought outright by the GWR under the Great Western Railway Act 1886 (49 & 50 Vict. c. cvi).[1]
The line was inspected on 13 April 1864 by Capt. F. H. Rich R.E., who found numerous faults that prevented the line's opening, including weak bridges. Rich re-inspected the line on 13 May and passed the line for opening, which was done on 1 June 1864.[2]
Gauge conversion
editConstructed as a broad gauge line, it was converted to standard gauge in 1878.
Decline and closure
editPassenger traffic peaked in 1913, but later declined to such an extent that the passenger service was withdrawn in 1951. Freight traffic continued to use the line until the Beeching cuts of 1964.
Reopening proposal
editFaringdon Town Council proposed in 2005 to reopen the line,[3] but it remains closed.
References
edit- ^ [1] Archived 8 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Vaughan, Adrian (27 August 2013). The Faringdon Branch and Uffington Station. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 9781445624181. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
- ^ "Faringdon Advanced Broadgauge Railway". 18 October 2005. Retrieved 30 August 2013.