The Wantage Tramway Company was a two-mile tramway that carried passengers and freight between the Oxfordshire town of

Wantage Wantage () is a historic market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. Although within the boundaries of the historic county of Berkshire, it has been administered as part of the Vale of White Horse district of Oxfordshire since 1974. T ...

and Wantage Road Station on the Great Western Main Line in England. Formed in 1873 to link Wantage Road station with its terminus at Mill Street, Wantage the line was cheaply built parallel to what was then the ''Besselsleigh Turnpike'', and now the A338. The tramway closed to passengers in 1925 and to goods traffic in 1945.

Opening

The line was opened for goods on 1 October 1875, and to passengers on 11 October. The tramway junction was to the east of Wantage Road station; interchange passengers walked under the bridge to reach the tramway yard, where the westernmost siding (parallel to the road) was reserved for passenger tramcars.

Rolling stock

Built as a standard gauge line, and first run using horse drawn rolling stock, the line became the first to adopt mechanical traction when a steam-powered tramcar, designed by John Grantham, was tried out in the summer of 1875, entering regular service from 1 August 1876. In November that year the first steam locomotive arrived for trials, and the line was converted to steam traction in the late 1870s. ;Locomotives Two

Mekarski system The Mekarski system was a compressed-air propulsion system for trams invented by Louis Mékarski or Louis Mékarsky (the correct spelling is uncertain) in the 1870s. He worked in France, was born in 1843 in Clermont-Ferrand (center of France) ...

compressed air trams were tried out in 1880 but were not a success as the fuel consumption was much higher than for steam locomotives. Several other steam locomotives were used for short periods, including GWR no. 1329 ''Raven'' (

Avonside Engine Company The Avonside Engine Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Avon Street, St. Philip's, Bristol, England between 1864 and 1934. However the business originated with an earlier enterprise Henry Stothert and Company. Origins The firm was original ...

0-4-0ST 1052/1874), GWR no. 1359 ''Wye'' ( Fletcher, Jennings & Co. 0-4-0T 153/1876) and ex-

Royal Arsenal Railway The Royal Arsenal Railway was a private military railway which operated inside the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, southeast London. Introduction The earliest parts of this railway system proper were constructed to standard gauge from 1859 onwards to r ...

''Driver'' (

Manning Wardle Manning Wardle was a steam locomotive manufacturer based in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Precursor companies The city of Leeds was one of the earliest centres of locomotive building; Matthew Murray built the first commercially s ...

0-4-0ST 515/1875).

Operation

For most of its operation the line was well used and profitable but the advent of popular road transport saw a steady decline in passengers and freight. The tramway closed to passengers on 1 August 1925, and to goods on 22 December 1945.Wantage Museum
/ref> The line remained independent throughout its existence, and its range of unusual and often outdated equipment attracted attention from railway historians. It ultimately closed after the track was damaged by heavy lorries during the Second World War, by which time repair would have been unaffordable.

Preservation

WTC Locomotive No 5 known on the tramway as 'Jane' but more recently named 'Shannon' and formerly of the Sandy and Potton Railway in

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

, survives and can be found at the Great Western Society's Railway Centre at

Didcot Didcot ( ) is a railway town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Oxfordshire and the Historic counties of England, historic county of Berkshire. Didcot is south of Oxford, eas ...

in Oxfordshire.

Notes

{{Authority control Rail transport in Oxfordshire Tram transport in England Closed railway lines in South East England Railway companies established in 1873 Railway lines opened in 1875 Railway lines closed in 1945