Colin Green Photography: Holmefield

Saturday, 28 November 2020

Exploring the Legacy of the Queensbury Railway

I first wrote about the Queensbury Tunnel in December 2017. Unfortunately, many of the photos from that original post have since been lost. I recently revisited my archives to recover and repost them. You can find the complete collection on Clickasnap. I've also compiled some of the images into a video, available on my website and YouTube. Please consider subscribing to my channel!

This video takes you on a journey along the historic Queensbury railway line, featuring a blend of modern and vintage images captured from Strines Cutting to the former site of Queensbury Station. All historical images and those taken inside the tunnel that are not my own are used under Creative Commons licenses or are of unknown copyright, with credits provided where possible.

Strines Cutting: A Feat of Engineering

Strines Cutting, a formidable railway cutting, marked the approach to the southern portal of Queensbury Tunnel. Approximately 1,030 feet long and 59 feet deep, it was carved directly through solid rock. An impressive aqueduct once carried the Strines/Ovenden Beck over the railway, and remarkably, this bridge still stands today. However, the ground beneath has since been infilled, transforming its appearance into what now resembles a wall across disused land. The majority of the cutting itself has been filled in, with only a short, often flooded section remaining near the tunnel entrance due to persistent drainage issues.

Queensbury Tunnel: A Challenging Construction

The Queensbury Tunnel was a vital link built by the Great Northern Railway, connecting Holmefield Station in Halifax to Queensbury Station, and extending onward to Bradford and Keighley. Construction began in May 1874 and spanned over three challenging years, finally opening to goods traffic on October 14, 1878. Passenger services commenced later, in December 1879, once Queensbury Station was complete. The final stretch to Keighley, however, took another five years to open due to financial setbacks.

Upon its completion, the tunnel stretched an impressive 7,503 feet, making it the longest on the Great Northern Railway and one of the deepest in the country. Original plans for eight air shafts were revised down to seven, and finally to just five, largely due to significant water ingress – a persistent drainage problem that plagued both the tunnel and the cutting. The deepest completed shaft reached a depth of 379 feet, while shaft number five would have extended to 414 feet had it been finished. Around 700 men toiled on its construction, and tragically, at least 10 are believed to have died, with many more suffering injuries.

Decline and a Hope for Revival

The tunnel remained operational until the 1950s. While passenger numbers declined, freight traffic remained busy until after the Second World War. The substantial maintenance costs of the tunnel and cutting made it an early target for closure during post-war economic austerity, leading to what many now view as a shortsighted decision. Passenger services were withdrawn on May 23, 1955, followed by goods traffic on May 28, 1956. The line through the tunnel was then mothballed until 1963 when the tracks were finally removed.

Today, there's an active campaign to reopen the tunnel as part of a cycleway connecting Bradford with Halifax. This initiative faces opposition from engineers proposing a scheme to abandon and fill the tunnel with concrete. I'm hopeful that the campaigners fighting to save this significant piece of railway heritage will be successful in their efforts. To find out more please take a moment to view the site at http://www.queensburytunnel.org.uk/

Strines / Ovenden Beck Aqueduct. Strines cutting used to run to a depth of approx 59ft beneath where I was stood to take the picture.

The southern portal of Queensbury Tunnel after it had been drained to allow engineers to asses the damage inside. The entrance rocks are what remains of Strines Cutting.

This is what the entrance to Queensbury Tunnel normally looks like.

Taken on the former Queensbury - Thornton - Keighley track bed looking towards the former site of Queensbury Station. Opened in 1879 the station was triangular in shape, when opened being one of only 4 shaped that way in England. The station had connections with Bradford, Halifax, Keighley and beyond. The station was 400ft lower than the town and closed to passengers in 1955, and goods, excursion traffic in 1963, other than track bed nothing of the station now remains.

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Monday, 2 January 2017

The Rise and Fall of Halifax's High Level Railway: A Victorian Dream Unfulfilled Pictured February 2014

The Halifax High Level Railway, a testament to Victorian engineering ambition, once carved a dramatic path across the Halifax landscape. Originally conceived as part of a grand scheme by the Hull and Barnsley Railway to link Holmfield with Huddersfield and beyond, and culminating in a grand new central station at George Square, Halifax, the project ultimately fell short of its initial vision. Though construction began in 1884, the ambitious plan was abandoned just two years later. The line, however, did open to Halifax St. Paul's Station on September 5th, 1890, a truncated version of the original dream.

The construction of the High Level Railway was a significant feat of engineering. The line boasted a 740-metre tunnel, the impressive 10-arch Wheatley Viaduct, and substantial cuttings on either side of the tunnel. Large goods yards at Pellon and St. Paul's stations further underscored the scale of the undertaking.

Despite the impressive infrastructure, the High Level Railway never captured the hearts of local passengers. Its indirect route, often requiring a change at Holmfield Station onto the Queensbury Line to reach the center of Halifax, proved inconvenient. The line's true calling became freight transport, serving the numerous mills that dotted the northern and western reaches of Halifax. Passenger services were withdrawn in 1916, a mere 26 years after opening, and the line was quickly singled, with signaling removed. Freight traffic continued to rumble along the High Level until June 27th, 1960, before finally succumbing to changing economic realities.

Today, the remnants of this once-bustling railway offer a glimpse into a bygone era. The Wheatley Viaduct still stands, a majestic, if now inaccessible and abandoned, monument to Victorian ingenuity. The Wheatley Tunnel also remains, although its eastern portal has been filled in, and a housing estate now occupies the land above. Further along the route, Wood Lane, Brackenbed, and Pellon Lane bridges stand in remarkably similar condition to their operational days, bearing silent witness to the trains that once passed beneath and above them. The substantial stone-walled embankment at Pellon, too, endures, as do many of the bridges towards King Cross, though many of the latter have been infilled over time.

The echoes of the High Level Railway can still be found in the modern landscape. The site of Pellon Station is now part of an industrial estate known as High Level Way, a subtle nod to the area's past. The grand Halifax St. Paul's Station, once a gateway to the town, has been transformed into a retail park, erasing almost all traces of its railway heritage. For many years, a car dealership and petrol station occupied the site, but recent redevelopment has further reshaped the landscape. While the High Level Railway may be gone, its legacy, both visible and hidden, continues to shape the character of Halifax.