DEVELOPMENT – BIG PIT BRANCH AND VISITOR CENTRE (STEP 1.5)

First uploaded 3 May 2009

Modified 4 Amy 2009

The Big Pit branch and visitor centre scheme is a big one, with a total bill estimated at about £1.15million, and, not surprisingly, it has already become rather complicated, in part this is because it would be entirely unreasonable to expect to fund it in one chunk, or indeed, from one source. The scheme naturally breaks into two roughly equal parts

· Big Pit branch

· Visitor Centre

As if that were not enough, bound up in the Big Pit scheme are some left-overs from previous steps that can justifiably be wrapped up in the scheme – more of that in a second

Visitor Centre

The Visitor Centre scheme itself breaks into two halves because physically the Visitor Centre is planned to appear in two buildings. The two buildings whilst physically separate, will be joined by a network of paths, and both will be connected to the rail netwrk. The one building will concentrate on rolling stock and visitors will be admitted. The other, larger, building will concentrate on visitors, but rolling stock will be admitted! If that sounds a little strange an explanation of two-part notion is perhaps called for. The first building will allow a variety of stock to be wheeled in, upon which volunteers will work. This is likely to be a noisy, dusty place, where volunteers will be actively engaged on maintaining and restoring rolling stock, and where visitors will be admitted, and who may talk, nay, be encouraged to talk to our volunteers. The other, probably larger building will be biased towards the visitor, but this will be more in the nature of a conventional museum. The rolling stock will be still, and visitors may inspect them in detail in relative silence. Facilities for tea, and perhaps more elaborate refreshments will be on offer. This will be the place perhaps for the more dedicated student, who needs calm to absorb the details of railway engineering. . A first application has gone to the Heritage Lottery Fund to fund the Visitor Centre, and seems to have been cautiously, but well received. Further meetings, and hopefully progress will happen over the next few months, but for the moment, there is nothing to see and little to report on this venture. We’ll report as soon as we can

Big Pit branch

This is the main subject of this page, which will doubtless grow to several pages as the work unfolds. This page has been launched to coincide with the formal notification, received from HoV via TCBC that the Big Pit Branch is to receive funding. Although this is brilliant news for PBR, it is clouded by a degree of confusion, since it differs in some detail from what we agreed (or think we agreed) back in mid December 2008. We hope to resolve the confusion very shortly. The Big Pit branch will be a short branch line which will run from our main station at Furnace Sidings round to a small station to Big Pit. Here a small station will be built, next to Big Pit’s overflow car park. When the weather is fair, we plan to operate the branch with a little ‘collier’s train’ consisting of a couple of wagons or vans, pushed by a suitably small engine. The main steps in the Big Pit branch are, at present, basically :

Step 1.5.1 Visitor centre

Step 1.5.2 Trackwork

Step 1.5.3 Station

Step 1.5.4 Train

Step 1.5.5 Engine

Step 1.5.6 Safe walking route for visitors over Br 12

Step 1.5.7 improvements to Old Pit road under Br 13 to connect to cycleway NCN46

Step 1.5.8 Train shed

Note that only those items shown in bold ‘belong’ to the Big Pit scheme. The remainder belong to the Visitor Centre scheme. We spoke of the ‘left-overs’ from previous projects, and the funding bid was written to include these. . In planning to open a branch line we were aware that the main line and the branch would work at very different service frequencies, so that in order to avoid congestion and confusion we would work them during the day as two effectively separate railways. This would avoid the cost of a complicated signalling system. In order to do this Furnace Sidings would need two platforms. This has already been built under Step 1.3.1, (see HERE) and no funds were sought for its completion. But passengers having arrived at the new platform would need to get to the original main-line platform, and for this, they would need a footbridge. This is described as Step 1.3.2, (see HERE) and while reconstruction was proceeding well enough, progress was nevertheless rather slow, and a small injection of funds would allow us to accelerate matters. Of course, passengers, having arrived at Platform 1 would be disappointed at the extremely modest waiting facilities there, and so substantial funds were sought to complete a brand new Station Building – step 1.3.3, (see HERE). Finally, there is also another important element in the ‘left-overs’ and this is rebuilding of the rail-over-rail bridge (Bridge 12) to carry trains over it – step 1.2.6.2, (see HERE). Both TCBC and HoV had long agreed that Bridge 12 was central to the Big Pit Branch and agreement was established late in 2008 that work could begin. As a result quotations were sought, and, by 21 January, a contract for the work was let to an outside contractor.

Map of the area south of Furnace Sidings station. Each square on the map has sides 100m long, so a journey to or from Big Pit Halt is only about 600m Key: RED-main line, CYAN – Big Pit branch and platform, GREEN – Big Pit overflow car park, YELLOW – footpath network, MAUVE (outline) rolling stock shed, BLUE(outline) – visitor centre, ORANGE – connection to cycleway NCN 46.

So what is there to see at present?

Well, to be honest, not much. But there has been progress as we start to amass materials for the project. To summarise, of the calculated 495 sleepers, 100 have arrived and are stacked up in the ‘arena’ at Furnace Sidings with another 480 to follow. Yes, we know this appears to be too much , but for a variety of reasons we have ordered an excess. All the four turnouts along the branch where it runs parallel to the main line need new timbers, and these are all ready, stored safely in our compound. New track needs several small parts, and to this end some 2000 key clips and 6000 ferrules (which go in the chairs) are standing by, and these will make substantial inroads into the total. The main item missing is rail. At present we are spoilt for choice, but orders are likely to be placed within the month for something like 4500ft of rail. As soon as the PWay team come to a halt on the Blaenavon extension work, even temporarily, then we are likely to see some progress. We also need to do some relatively hefty earth moving, and, once again, we are just waiting for the machinery and manpower to be released from other projects, similarly, the Blaenavon (High Level) team, need only the smallest excuse to turn their attention to building their third platform within a few years.

This massive brick abutment once formed part of a railway route that connected to coke ovens at Big Pit, long since gone. It will from a dramatic backdrop to the proposed site of the new platform, which will be built almost immediately below it. The platform will lie immediately below Big Pit’s overflow car park, only a few steps from Big Pit itself.

The route from Big Pit passes through the site of the what was the so-called Up Exchange Sidings. The heaviest willows and gorse have already been cut back, but the heather remains to be cleared, and new willow growth will also need to be cleared before we start laying ballast and sleepers. Although ther track was lifted years ago, the points remain in place.

A passenger looking back from his train from Big Pit would see the main line climbing up to meet him on the right hand side. The rail-over-rail bridge, invisible from Furnace Sidings, is clear to see in this view. Another line from Big Pit halt travels over the bridge and into the yard, but there are no plans to carry passenger trains over the bridge.

Click HERE to return to Main Development page

First uploaded 24 October 2008