WSR Rail Renewal
Bullhead rail has now been almost completely replaced by flat-bottom rail on British railways, although it survives on the national rail system in some sidings or branch lines.
As a Heritage Railway, the West Somerset Railway would like to keep Bullhead rail demonstrated in the station surrounds and other areas where it can be observed and understood. The unseen parts of the railway will use the more cost-effective flat-bottomed rail, similar to that used on the mainline.
Rail Renewal Project Plan & Appeal Winter 2024-2025
In December of 2021 a large ingress of water and soil from an adjoinging field to the line near Tribble Bridge caused a devastating embankment slip and ballast contamination. WSRA immediately launched a fundraising appeal support repairs. A total of £50,000 was raised, including £25,000 of match funding from WSRA’s reserve funds.
In January of 2023 the embankment repairs took place, the majority of which was covered by the railway’s insurance company with WSRA supplying the remainder. The landowner (from where the ingress originated) also carried out improvement works, and we are confident the risk has now been removed and the relay to remove the ballast contamination can now take place. The scope of the work is to replace the contaminated ballast between Tribble bridge and Combe Florey Bridge. The team have identified that the majority of track components are fit for further use, therefore this work focuses mainly around removing the contaminated ballast. This work is booked for February 2025 and due to the project difficulties and insurance constraints must be undertaken by external contractors. The quote for this work, as approved by the insurers, is for £142,000 0f which the insurance company are willing to fund £30,000 this leaving an outstanding amount of £112,000.
WSRA will release the remaining funds held from the original appeal for this work and has also pledged to cover the whole of the cost not covered by the insurance company to enable the project to go ahead. This means releasing an additional £69,000 from reserves to cover this work.
The line is in need of full line tamping. In order to maintain the running line tamping needs to take place every year. Due to historic ad hoc visits a full line tamp is required to provide best results. This will then mean annual maintenance visits can take place on a much smaller scale.
The benefits of a tamper is it improves the top and line of the track, which improves ride quality, reduces maintenance costs for broken springs and broken fishplates. The work a tamper can carry out isn’t achievable using manual methods.
The scope of work is to have the tamper visit various sites along the line where we know we are suffering with poor alignment and ride issues and will take place over 10 days. WSRA has committed £35,000 to fund the Tamper at the end of the winter works programme in March 2025.
Other works planned for this winter, include completing the planned work at Blue Anchor, which WSRA is holding funds to pay for, and many smaller projects that need attention up and down the line. The big additional item for this winter is ballast so the team can keep working to keep our trains safe.
Bullhead Rail
Bullhead rail was the standard for the British railway system from the mid-19th until the mid-20th century. One of the first British Standards, BS 9, was for bullhead rail – it was originally published in 1905 and revised in 1924.
Bullhead rail is similar to double-headed rail except that the profile of the head of the rail is not the same as that of the foot. Bullhead rail evolved from double-headed rail but, because it did not have a symmetrical profile, it was never possible to flip it over and use the foot as the head. Therefore, because the rail no longer had the originally-perceived benefit of reusability, it was a very expensive method of laying track. Heavy cast iron chairs are needed to support the rail, which is secured in the chairs by wedges or “keys” which require regular attention.
Here are some examples of the costs of materials for maintaining the track. The prices quoted below were correct as at October 2022 and will be updated shortly.
£5,473 buys a full 60ft panel of bullhead track including all fittings (50 years life)
£6,550 buys a full 60ft panel of flat bottom track including all fittings (100 years life)
£1335 buys a length of bullhead rail
£1325 buys a length of flat bottom rail
£117 buys a durable wooden sleeper with serviceable chairs and keys
£40 buys a serviceable second hand concrete bullhead sleeper with 2 new steel keys
During November 2022 the WSRA supported the WSR with a purchase of 28 lengths of bullhead rail at a cost of £35,800, but more are always needed to keep our track safe for passenger trains.
The need for fresh ballast is ongoing. Please visit our Buy a Bag of Ballast fundraising campaign and support the team.
The Rail Renewal Project Purpose
is to provide support for ongoing maintenance and renewal of the heritage West Somerset Railway track and provide for the safe running of trains and display of heritage carriages and locomotives.
Please help
Give a one-off donation towards our Rail Renewal fund or set up a regular payment. Alternatively why not buy us a bag of ballast for just £12.00. You will be re-directed to the JustGiving Checkout to make your donation and the WSRA will receive 100% of your donation. You may be asked to make a contribution to the checkout costs, which is discretionary.
