2020

SO6610 : Bradley Hill tunnel, eastern portal

taken 4 years ago, near to Upper Soudley, Gloucestershire, England

Bradley Hill tunnel, eastern portal
Bradley Hill tunnel, eastern portal
Not an easy one to photograph, this: I had to walk a few hundred yards up a busy main road then wade through waist-deep nettles to get this shot! Bradley Hill tunnel was opened in 1854 when the GWR converted the Bullo Pill tramroad into a real railway. The tramroad had skirted Bradley Hill, on the route now used by the Blakeney - Cinderford road, but the railway burrowed through instead. The tunnel was not popular with steam-era loco crews, not only being on a rising gradient (east to west) of 1 in 46, but also being on a curve which restricted ventilation. Add to that the fact that trains plunged into it only a few hundred yards after exiting the much longer Haie Hill tunnel, and you have a recipe for asphyxiation. See LinkExternal link (Archive LinkExternal link ) for a fireman's account of travelling through the tunnel on a struggling steam locomotive in 1964.

Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright John Winder and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Geographical Context: Railways Derelict, Disused Area: Forest of Dean Place: Soudley Primary Subject: Tunnel other tags: Forest of Dean Railway GWR Bradley Hill Tunnel Bullo Pill Tramroad Old Railway Tunnel Click a tag, to view other nearby images.
This photo is linked from: Automatic Clusters: · Bradley Hill [12] ·
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SO6610, 85 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
John Winder   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Saturday, 13 June, 2020   (more nearby)
Submitted
Sunday, 14 June, 2020
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SO 6640 1027 [10m precision]
WGS84: 51:47.4041N 2:29.3130W
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SO 6641 1027
View Direction
West-southwest (about 247 degrees)
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Image Type (about): close look 
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