Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway
Encyclopedia
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
with its main station at Chinnor
Chinnor
Chinnor is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire about southeast of Thame. The village is a Spring line settlement on the Icknield Way below the Chiltern escarpment...
on the border between Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
and Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England.
History
The heritage line forms part of the former Great Western RailwayGreat Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
branch line between Watlington and Princes Risborough
Watlington and Princes Risborough Railway
The Watlington and Princes Risborough Railway was a railway branch line between Watlington and Princes Risborough which remained operational for over 88 years between 1872 and 1961....
. British Railways
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
closed the line to passenger traffic in 1957. The section between Chinnor
Chinnor railway station
Chinnor railway station in Oxfordshire is on the Watlington and Princes Risborough Railway. It was opened in 1872.-History:The line was projected to be extended to Wallingford, where it would complete a cross-country line between Cholsey and Princes Risborough. However, due to financial...
and Princes Risborough
Princes Risborough railway station
Princes Risborough station is a railway station on the Chiltern Main Line that serves the town of Princes Risborough in Buckinghamshire, England...
then carried a freight-only cement service until 1989.
The Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway Association was formed in 1990 and began operating passenger trains between Chinnor and the site of Wainhill Halt
Wainhill Crossing Halt railway station
Wainhill Crossing Halt was a halt on the Watlington and Princes Risborough Railway which the Great Western Railway opened in 1925 to serve the Oxfordshire hamlet of Wainhill...
in 1994. The C&PRR extended its service to Horsenden Lane in 1995 and Thame Junction in 1996.
Route
It operates on standard gaugeStandard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
for a distance of 3.5 miles (5.6 km) between Chinnor and Thame Junction on the outskirts of Princes Risborough
Princes Risborough
Princes Risborough is a small town in Buckinghamshire, England, about 9 miles south of Aylesbury and 8 miles north west of High Wycombe. Bledlow lies to the west and Monks Risborough to the east. It lies at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, at the north end of a gap or pass through the Chilterns,...
. There is currently no platform at the Princes Risborough end of the line so each trip from Chinnor is a return and thus 7 miles (11.3 km) long.
Present day
An extension into Princes Risborough mainline railway stationPrinces Risborough railway station
Princes Risborough station is a railway station on the Chiltern Main Line that serves the town of Princes Risborough in Buckinghamshire, England...
is proposed and the railway is in discussions with Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
, with a view to running into Princes Risborough station. This will allow passengers to connect from Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways is a British train operating company. It was set up at the privatisation of British Rail in 1996, and operates local passenger trains from Marylebone station in London to Aylesbury and main-line trains on the Chiltern Main Line to Birmingham Snow Hill with its associated branches...
services on the Chiltern Main Line
Chiltern Main Line
The Chiltern Main Line is an inter-urban, regional and commuter railway, part of the British railway system. It links London and Birmingham on a 112-mile route via the towns of High Wycombe, Banbury, and Leamington Spa...
.
Also there's hope that the C&PRR hope to extend their heritage line services towards Aston Rowant
Aston Rowant railway station
Aston Rowant railway station was opened in 1872 and was a part of the Watlington and Princes Risborough Railway. Having closed in 1961, there have been proposals to reopen the station not only to the heritage services of the Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway, but also National Rail commuter...
within the near future.
On-Screen Appearances
Chinnor station has been used for the filming of various TV series including Miss MarpleMiss Marple (TV series)
Miss Marple is a British television series based on the Miss Marple murder mystery novels by Agatha Christie. It starred Joan Hickson in the title role, and aired from 1984 to 1992. All twelve original Miss Marple Christie novels have been dramatised. The screenplays were written by T. R...
and Midsomer Murders
Midsomer Murders
Midsomer Murders is a British television detective drama that has aired on ITV since 1997. The show is based on the books by Caroline Graham, as originally adapted by Anthony Horowitz. The lead character is DCI Tom Barnaby who works for Causton CID. When Nettles left the show in 2011 he was...
.
Steam locomotives
- GWRGreat Western RailwayThe Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
0-6-0PT 5700 ClassGWR 5700 ClassThe Great Western Railway 5700 Class is a class of 0-6-0 pannier tank steam locomotive, built between 1929 and 1950. 863 were built, making them the second most-produced British class of steam locomotive.- Overview :...
No. 9682. This locomotive remained operational until the end of the 2009 season, when its boiler certificate expired. - GWR 0-6-0PT No. 1369GWR 1366 ClassThe Great Western Railway 1366 Class was a class of 0-6-0 pannier tank steam locomotive built in 1934.-History and development:The 1366 class was one of only two pannier tank designs built by the GWR that utilised outside cylinders, although various existing engines inherited by the GWR had...
(replacement 9682 for the 2010 season). - Manning WardleManning WardleManning Wardle was a steam locomotive manufacturer based in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.- Precursor companies :The city of Leeds was one of the earliest centres of locomotive building; Matthew Murray built the first commercially successful steam locomotive, Salamanca, in Holbeck, Leeds,...
0-4-00-4-0Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-4-0 represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven...
ST 'Brill'. Currently at the Middleton RailwayMiddleton RailwayThe Middleton Railway is the world's oldest continuously working railway. It was founded in 1758 and is now a heritage railway run by volunteers from The Middleton Railway Trust Ltd...
for restoration to working order.
Diesel locomotives
- BRBritish RailBritish Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
0-6-00-6-0Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels...
Class 08British Rail Class 08The British Rail Class 08 is a class of diesel-electric shunting locomotive. From 1953 to 1962, 996 locomotives were produced, making it the most numerous of all British locomotive classes....
No. 13018 'Haversham'. Operational. - BR Bo-BoBo-BoA Bo-Bo or Bo′Bo′ is a locomotive with two independent four-wheeled bogies with all axles powered by individual traction motors...
Class 17British Rail Class 17The British Rail Class 17 was a class of 117 Bo-Bo diesel-electric locomotives built 1962–1965 by Clayton Equipment Company and their sub-contractor Beyer, Peacock & Co., for British Railways ....
No. D8568. Operational. - BR A1A-A1A Class 31British Rail Class 31The British Rail Class 31 diesel locomotives, also known as the Brush Type 2 and originally as Class 30, were built by Brush Traction from 1957-62.- Description :...
No. D5581. Operational. - BR Co-Co Class 37British Rail Class 37The British Rail Class 37 is a diesel-electric locomotive. Also known as the English Electric Type 3, the Class was ordered as part of the British Rail modernisation plan....
No. 37116. Operational. - BR Co-Co Class 37British Rail Class 37The British Rail Class 37 is a diesel-electric locomotive. Also known as the English Electric Type 3, the Class was ordered as part of the British Rail modernisation plan....
No. 37219 'Shirley Ann Smith'. Operational. - Ruston & Hornsby 0-6-0DH 459515 'IRIS'. Operational.
Diesel multiple units
- BR Class 121British Rail Class 121Sixteen Class 121 single-car driving motor vehicles were built from 1960, numbered 55020–55035. These were supplemented by ten trailer vehicles, numbered 56280–56289 . They had a top speed of 70 mph, with slam-doors, and vacuum brakes...
'bubble car' No. W55023. Operational and mainly used on summer Saturdays.