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The Bury–Holcombe Brook line was a single-track railway line which ran between
British Railways in 1960, The Holcombe Brook line
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bury-Holcombe Brook line Closed railway lines in North West England Rail transport in Greater Manchester Railway lines opened in 1882 Railway lines closed in 1963 Closed railway lines in Greater Manchester Rail trails in England
The Bury–Holcombe Brook line was a single-track railway line which ran between Bury Bolton Street railway station
Bury Bolton Street railway station is a heritage railway station in Bury, Greater Manchester, England. Located on the East Lancashire Railway.
History
It was formerly the main station serving the town, with links north to Ramsbottom, thence ...
and Holcombe Brook railway station via seven intermediate stations, Woodhill Road Halt, Brandlesholme Road Halt, Woolfold, Sunny Wood Halt, Tottington, Knowles Halt, and Greenmount.
History
Opened in 1882 by the Bury and Tottington District Railway the line was taken over by theLancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways. It was the third-largest railway system based in northern ...
in 1888. Initially the line had stations at Woolfold, Greenmount, Tottington and Holcombe Brook with additional halts opening at Woodhill Road, Brandlesholme Road, Sunnywood and Knowles Crossing in 1905.
Passenger services operated until 1952, while freight services continued to Holcombe Brook until 1960 and Tottington until 1963.
Electrification
In 1912 Dick, Kerr & Co.‘sPreston
Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to:
Places
England
*Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement
**The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement
**County Boro ...
factory were considering tendering for a Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
ian contract and approached the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways. It was the third-largest railway system based in northern ...
to use the branch for test purposes at Dick, Kerr's expense. The line from Bury Bolton Street Station to Holcombe Brook
Holcombe is a village in Ramsbottom ward, Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It is situated south of Haslingden, east of Edgworth, west of Ramsbottom, and north of Tottington. The name comes from the Celtic ' meaning ...
was electrified with the overhead 3.5 kV dc system, 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 can ...
was also supplied at their cost. After prolonged trials the trains entered public use on 29 July 1913. The L&Y purchased the equipment and stock on the successful completion of the trials in 1916. During 1917 work started on the branch to convert to third rail
A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway ...
to match the Manchester to Bury system. The third rail trains started to run on 29 March 1918.
Kirklees Trail
The section of the line from Greenmount to Bury town centre has been converted into a pedestrian and cycle route, the Kirklees Trail, forming part of National Cycle Route 6.Sustrans
Sustrans is a United Kingdom-based walking, wheeling and cycling charity, and the custodian of the National Cycle Network.
Its flagship project is the National Cycle Network, which has created of signed cycle routes throughout the United Ki ...
built a new long bridge over the Kirklees Valley to replace the demolished Woolfold viaduct. ''Includes photograph of new bridge'' ''Includes description of demolition of old viaduct''
See also
*LYR electric units
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (LYR) built suburban electric stock for lines in Liverpool and Manchester. The line between Liverpool to Southport began using electric multiple units (EMUs) on 22 March 1904, using a third rail 625 V DC. Addi ...
References
*Signal Boxes on Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Lines: North and West of Manchester: Part Two by Chris Littleworth (Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Society, 2014: ) *Lost Railways of Lancashire by Gordon Suggitt ()External links
British Railways in 1960, The Holcombe Brook line
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bury-Holcombe Brook line Closed railway lines in North West England Rail transport in Greater Manchester Railway lines opened in 1882 Railway lines closed in 1963 Closed railway lines in Greater Manchester Rail trails in England