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Capturing a piece of railway heritage before it's lost forever

By Philip Halling

Driving along the A38 into Tewkesbury on Thursday afternoon, crossing the Mythe causeway I was aware of something was different. It was one of those moments when something you are familiar with is different but you’re not sure exactly what, you know the feeling, something is missing.
To my left the railway embankment between the Mythe Tunnel and the River Avon looked very different; it had been cleared of trees. Later that day I asked a friend “What’s happening to the railway embankment in Tewkesbury?” He replied “It’s going to be removed, they’ve cut down the trees and then the embankment is going to be removed”. He then said it’s been very controversial with many people being opposed to its removal. The plan proposed by Severn Trent Water and supported by the Environment Agency has been passed by the borough council, the theory being its removal will lower the level of flooding slightly.

I have been familiar with this embankment all my life, in fact I am just old enough to remember steam trains and I remember them using this line. The line between Tewkesbury and Upton-upon-Severn closed to passengers in August 1961 and freight in 1964. I thought the first opportunity I got I would record this piece of railway heritage before it is lost for ever! I had photographed it two weeks ago before I realised it was soon to be removed.
SO8933 : Railway embankment reflected in floodwater by Philip Halling
Here is how it looked back in 2009 before work began to remove it SO8933 : Railway embankment at Tewkesbury by Philip Halling and a similar view today SO8933 : Disused railway embankment by Philip Halling with the embankment cleared of trees SO8933 : Railway embankment at Tewkesbury by Philip Halling. The bridge was removed years ago leaving the blue brick parapets SO8933 : Bridge parapet of a dismantled railway by Philip Halling SO8933 : Bridge parapets on a disused railway by Philip Halling again here’s a similar view back in 2009 SO8933 : Dismantled railway bridge, Tewkesbury by Philip Halling. Standing on the embankment offered open views not possible for many years SO8933 : View along a disused railway embankment  by Philip Halling SO8933 : On a disused railway embankment by Philip Halling SO8933 : Former railway embankment at Tewkesbury by Philip Halling SO8933 : View along railway embankment to Tewkesbury by Philip Halling SO8933 : View towards Tewkesbury along a disused railway embankment by Philip Halling SO8933 : Former railway embankment at Tewkesbury by Philip Halling
The railway embankment also includes two brick-built arch bridges SO8933 : Old railway bridge by Philip Halling SO8933 : Railway embankment by Philip Halling and a three arched bridge SO8933 : Disused railway bridge, Tewkesbury by Philip Halling pictured in 2009, and in 2013 SO8933 : Former railway bridge, Tewkesbury by Philip Halling SO8933 : Former railway bridge at Tewkesbury by Philip Halling

Here are pictures taken on the embankment in January 2009
SO8933 : Disused railway embankment by Philip Halling SO8933 : Disused railway embankment, Tewkesbury by Philip Halling
Last year another part of this railway was dismantled, the railway bridge crossing the M50 motorway near Ripple SO8737 : Former railway bridge over the M50 by Philip Halling SO8737 : Former railway bridge over the M50 by Philip Halling SO8737 : Former railway bridge over the M50 by Philip Halling

Ben Brooksbank captured some historic pictures of this line back in the 1950s and early 1960s when this line was still in use. In this picture of flooding in 1929, it is possible to see the railway embankment on the right SO8933 : Tewkesbury Floods by Honor Sharman, née Brooksbank as well as the southern portal to the Mythe Tunnel. Ben also captured some pictures of this railway a little further up the line SO8933 : Ashchurch - Great Malvern railway by Ben Brooksbank SO8835 : LMS Stanier 3MT 2-6-2T on Ashchurch - Great Malvern line by Ben Brooksbank SO8835 : Ashchurch - Great Malvern railway by Ben Brooksbank SO8737 : M50 Motorway under construction: railway overbridge by Ben Brooksbank SO8737 : Ripple Station by Ben Brooksbank SO8540 : Upton-on-Severn Station, with train by Ben Brooksbank SO8540 : Great Malvern - Ashchurch train at Upton-on-Severn by Ben Brooksbank

As a later addition to this blog (June 2016) in revisiting it I have been reminded that an edition of Michael Portillo's 'Great British Railway Journeys' which was first broadcast 24 January 2014 featured this bit of railway with him walking along it, or what remained of it, while it was partially removed. The following evening I saw him at Worcester's Huntingdon Hall where he did a most entertaining talk about his life in politics and in the media. After the show whilst book signing I briefly had a chat with him, in particular about the controversy among Tewkesbury residents of the removal of this railway embankment.


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Sun, 3 Mar 2013 at 11:29
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