The Bermuda Railway was a common carrier line that operated in

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

for a brief period (October 31, 1931 – May 1, 1948). In its 17 years of existence, the railway provided frequent passenger and freight service over its length spanning most of the

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arch ...

from St. George's in the east to Somerset,

Sandys Parish Sandys Parish ( "sands") is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. It is named for English aristocrat Sir Edwin Sandys (1561–1629), and hence there is no apostrophe in the name. It is located in the south west of the island chain, occupying the ...

, in the west. Construction and maintenance proved to be exceedingly costly, as the Bermuda Railway was built along a coastal route to minimize the amount of land acquisition needed for the right-of-way. In so doing, however, extensive trestles and bridgework were necessary. More than 10 percent of the line was elevated on 33 separate structures of timber or steel construction spanning the ocean. In addition, the proximity to the ocean made rot and corrosion a significant problem. This, along with the introduction of private automobiles to the island after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, would ultimately doom the line.

Construction

The Bermuda Railway was a single-track,

standard-gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...

line with 14 passing sidings. Construction began in 1926, two years after the Bermuda government granted a 40-year charter to the Bermuda Railway Company, but was not completed until 1931. The initial cost of construction and rolling stock purchase was about B$40 million (adjusted for inflation to dollars as of 2008), a staggering sum for such a short line with limited revenue potential. It was said to be one of the most expensive rail lines built, at a cost-per-mile of B$2 million.

Operation and equipment

Rolling stock The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles ca ...

consisted of gasoline-powered passenger coaches built by

Drewry Car Co. The Drewry Car Co was a railway locomotive and railcar manufacturer and sales organisation from 1906 to 1984. At the start and the end of its life it built its own products, for the rest of the time it sold vehicles manufactured by sub-contract ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

in 1929–1931, including eight self-propelled coaches powered by petrol engines and six first-class cars. The new venture also acquired a few freight cars and, during World War II, two diesel locomotives imported from the United States. Two classes of passenger accommodations were offered: first-class or "Pullman", with individual wicker chairs, and standard coaches, called "toast racks" because of their walkover seats (that is, the seat backs can be moved across the seat to face either direction of travel). Regular passenger service began between Hamilton and Somerset on October 31, 1931, operating from 6 a.m. to midnight at one- to two-hour intervals, depending on the time of day. Operations began between Hamilton and St George on December 19, 1931. Bermuda Railway trains were widely used in the 1930s by commuters, schoolchildren, and shoppers, as private automobiles were not allowed in Bermuda until 1946. Tourists in particular enjoyed the spectacularly scenic ride alongside the ocean's edge and through Bermuda's flower-covered hills. Special sightseeing excursions were run for cruise ship passengers. Following heavy usage by U.S. and British armed forces during World War II resulting from the influx of military personnel and the build-up of naval and air force facilities in Bermuda, the railway's fortunes rapidly declined after war's end. The large number of wooden trestles were found to have deteriorated significantly. Meanwhile, passenger volume fell by more than half between 1946 and 1947 on the "Rattle and Shake", as the line came to be known, due to patrons switching to automobile travel. The cost of infrastructure rehabilitation, combined with falling passenger levels and ever-increasing deficits, led the government to conclude that the Bermuda Railway should be abandoned in favour of bus service. After 17 years of operation, the last train ran on May 1, 1948. The rolling stock was later shipped to

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was ...

(now Guyana), where they continued to run for several more years in the 1950s.

Legacy

In 1984, of the defunct rail line's

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

were dedicated as the Bermuda Railway Trail for hiking and, on some paved portions, biking. The Bermuda Tourism Department publishes a pamphlet describing the Trail's highlights, which Frommer's travel guide calls one of its "Favorite Bermuda Experiences", extolling its "panoramic seascapes, exotic flora and fauna, and soothing sounds of the island's bird life". A small Bermuda Railway museum operated in the old Aquarium Railway Station, just east of Flatts Village. The museum closed shortly before the death of the owner in 2011. In 2015, ''

The Railway Magazine ''The Railway Magazine'' is a monthly British railway magazine, aimed at the railway enthusiast market, that has been published in London since July 1897. it was, for three years running, the railway magazine with the largest circulation ...

'' reported that two of the former Bermuda Railway freight cars still existed in

Georgetown, Guyana Georgetown is the capital and largest city of Guyana. It is situated in Demerara-Mahaica, region 4, on the Atlantic Ocean coast, at the mouth of the Demerara River. It is nicknamed the "Garden City of the Caribbean." It is the retail, adminis ...

, prompting calls for their possible restoration and future exhibit in Bermuda.

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Bermuda Railway — ''Bermuda Online''
history and photographs
Bermuda Railway Pages
history and photographs
Bermuda Dept. of Tourism
(Railway Trail page) {{Coord, 32.3590, -64.7158, region:BM, format=dms, display=title Rail trails Hiking trails in Bermuda Standard gauge railways in Bermuda Bermuda in World War II Railway lines opened in 1931 Railway lines closed in 1948