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 2022-2023
This winter the team will be focussing on one major heritage project at Blue Anchor, and several smaller but vital projects to keep the track safe for passenger trains. Funds are now available for the major project at Blue Anchor but ongoing funds are needed to ensure a continuous supply of heritage rail and ballast is available to the team.
- Renewal of the heritage points and connecting track at the Minehead end of Blue Anchor Station. Originally built in 1874, the station at Blue Anchor was enlarged by the Great Western Railway in 1904 to cater for the increasing amount of holiday traffic to Blue Anchor and Minehead. The station features several heritage installations, once common on railways but now almost completely removed. These include:
- The points at the west end allowing trains to switch between the single track and the two tracks in the station. These feature a facing point lock, which prevents the points moving under the train which risks derailment. This lock is a “fouling bar” where a long metal arm is pivoted to lock the rails by a lever in the signal box. This is believed to be as installed in 1904, and unique.
- The wheel operated level crossing. This allows traffic on the road through Blue Anchor to cross the railway, by means of wooden level crossing gates operated by a wheel from the signal box. Once common, almost all of these have been removed from railways, or replaced by power operated, automatic gates. The wooden gates were refurbished in 2021, funded by a grant from the Cultural Heritage Recovery Fund.
- The catch points at the east end of Blue Anchor. These were installed to trap and derail any vehicles running down the hill towards Blue Anchor, before they could hit the level crossing. This dates back to the time when rail traffic included unbraked, loose-coupled goods trains whose couplings could, and did part. The installation of continuous braking on all rail vehicles rendered catch points redundant, and most were removed.
- There are many smaller projects that need attention up and down the line. Your help is needed to ensure that the team has a continuous supply of rail and ballast so they can keep working to keep our trains safe. See below for an explanation of Bullhead rail.
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 materials that could be purchased with your donation The prices quoted below are correct as at October 2022 but they are changing all the time.
£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 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.
