Rugby to Leicester MR

[dagrizz]

There is plenty of infrastructure, such as bridges etc along the old Rugby to Leicester MR line but not many buildings - to my knowledge there are just two, at Ullesthorpe and Broughton Astley.

 

I have these photos from 2011.

 

Looking down from the main road to the site of Ullesthorpe station, one can see a platform, and further back a white building. I think this was the station masters house but I'm not certain.

 

 

Without straying onto private land, this was the closest I could get to it from the other direction.

 

 

The station masters house is certainly still standing in Broughton Astley, complete with garden railway.

 

 

If anyone knows of any other surviving buildings, I'd love to hear about them.

 

Graham 

 

 

 

[Foden]

I pass over the Main Street bridge in Ullesthorpe quite often, I always have a quick glance over to the overgrown cutting that the railway once ran through, I wasn't aware any buildings still stood though, very nice indeed.

Not what this thread is about ofcourse, but the vast 11 arch viaduct just North of Rugby by Elliott's Field is also a very impressive structure to admire when passing. Listed too I believe.

[Compound2632]

The Midland Counties Railway between Wigston and Rugby must be one of the earliest-built lines to be disused (opened 1 July 1840) - the only earlier I can only think of the Birmingham & Derby Junction Railway between Whitacre and Hampton (opened 12 August 1839) though that has been disused for longer and moribund for longer still - since 1 July 1840!

[dagrizz]

I pass over the Main Street bridge in Ullesthorpe quite often, I always have a quick glance over to the overgrown cutting that the railway once ran through, I wasn't aware any buildings still stood though, very nice indeed.

 

Not what this thread is about ofcourse, but the vast 11 arch viaduct just North of Rugby by Elliott's Field is also a very impressive structure to admire when passing. Listed too I believe.

 

 

Yes, and 5 years ago they opened it up as a walkway/cycleway to provide a traffic-free route into town.

 

 

Graham

['CHARD]

Yes, and 5 years ago they opened it up as a walkway/cycleway to provide a traffic-free route into town.

 

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Graham

 

Fantastic that they haven't ruined it with unnecessary 'safety' fencing to make it resemble the access to Millwall's ground from South Bermondsey station....

[tractionman]

The Midland Counties Railway between Wigston and Rugby must be one of the earliest-built lines to be disused (opened 1 July 1840) - the only earlier I can only think of the Birmingham & Derby Junction Railway between Whitacre and Hampton (opened 12 August 1839) though that has been disused for longer and moribund for longer still - since 1 July 1840!

 

as a loco-hauled railway from the start, yes, that's an interesting observation, though earlier-built lines reliant on horses / ropes for haulage, such as the Stratford and Moreton Tramway, closed earlier still in many cases, Bertram Baxter's book, 'Stone Blocks and Iron Rails', lists those early lines that fall into this category.

 

all the best,

 

Keith

[dagrizz]

Fantastic that they haven't ruined it with unnecessary 'safety' fencing to make it resemble the access to Millwall's ground from South Bermondsey station....

 

Yes, I had similar thoughts when I first walked it. My concern was that local idiots could start lobbing things onto passing traffic, though I haven't heard of any incidents.

 

You get good views from the top.

 

 

Graham

[The Evil Bus Driver]

I sometimes take my daughter for a walk on the viaduct. Lots of blackberry bushes on the path from the footbridge so hopefully come the summer i should be able to get a good crop and make a nice crumble.

 

Does anyone know if the trackbed is obstructed in any significant way between Rugby and Leicester?

[balders]

On 16/03/2021 at 13:50, The Evil Bus Driver said:

I sometimes take my daughter for a walk on the viaduct. Lots of blackberry bushes on the path from the footbridge so hopefully come the summer i should be able to get a good crop and make a nice crumble.

 

Does anyone know if the trackbed is obstructed in any significant way between Rugby and Leicester?

Broughton Astley and Countesthorpe both have significant housing estates over the trackbed and South Wigston has an industrial park on it......

 

Regards

 

Guy

[JonKing]

On 16/03/2021 at 13:50, The Evil Bus Driver said:

I sometimes take my daughter for a walk on the viaduct. Lots of blackberry bushes on the path from the footbridge so hopefully come the summer i should be able to get a good crop and make a nice crumble.

 

Does anyone know if the trackbed is obstructed in any significant way between Rugby and Leicester?

Will have to bear the blackberry situation in mind once summer comes!. 
 

One of the consequences of the current lockdown is that we have been staying local which has given me an excuse to explore the local disused railway lines whilst taking the kids for their weekend walks. Into town via the viaduct is a particular favourite although the footbridge over the line by the new St Modwen estate can be a bit dicey with an 5 year old and 3 year old who don’t look where they walk (the amount of irresponsible dog owners who don’t pick up after their dog appears to have increased exponentially during lockdown!). It appears that the formation has been infilled to some degree in the vicinity of the former Rugby wharf sidings and signal box. I suspect the line would have crossed under Brownsover Road rather than at a level?.

 

Another pleasant walk we hadn’t done until lockdown is the former GC route as far as Newton. The section from Newton Manor Lane to Newton is great for the kids to take their bikes away from traffic.

 

[balders]

15 hours ago, JonKing said:

Will have to bear the blackberry situation in mind once summer comes!. 
 

One of the consequences of the current lockdown is that we have been staying local which has given me an excuse to explore the local disused railway lines whilst taking the kids for their weekend walks. Into town via the viaduct is a particular favourite although the footbridge over the line by the new St Modwen estate can be a bit dicey with an 5 year old and 3 year old who don’t look where they walk (the amount of irresponsible dog owners who don’t pick up after their dog appears to have increased exponentially during lockdown!). It appears that the formation has been infilled to some degree in the vicinity of the former Rugby wharf sidings and signal box. I suspect the line would have crossed under Brownsover Road rather than at a level?.

 

Another pleasant walk we hadn’t done until lockdown is the former GC route as far as Newton. The section from Newton Manor Lane to Newton is great for the kids to take their bikes away from traffic.

 

 

 

The GCR section at Newton has the road bridge arches excavated within the last few years to show what an imposing structure it really is! I'd love to know why they excavated it, as the infill previously meant access to the road was via a path up the right embankment. Looks so much better. And the nature reserve is the site of the old gravel quarry sidings that were initially opened to supply the railway during construction but later closed. Note the site of the old Newton signal box opposite, recessed into the cutting slope. 

 

Its a more difficult walk the other side of the A5.....the paths tend to parallel the railway, but you can see the scale of the embankments from the footpaths that go towards Shawell once you've gone round the quarry. You can pretty much follow the course of the line all the way to Lutterworth at a parallel. 

 

Regards 

 

Guy

Edited March 22, 2021 by balders

[The Evil Bus Driver]

On 21/03/2021 at 22:54, balders said:

 

 

The GCR section at Newton has the road bridge arches excavated within the last few years to show what an imposing structure it really is! I'd love to know why they excavated it, as the infill previously meant access to the road was via a path up the right embankment. Looks so much better. And the nature reserve is the site of the old gravel quarry sidings that were initially opened to supply the railway during construction but later closed. Note the site of the old Newton signal box opposite, recessed into the cutting slope. 

 

Its a more difficult walk the other side of the A5.....the paths tend to parallel the railway, but you can see the scale of the embankments from the footpaths that go towards Shawell once you've gone round the quarry. You can pretty much follow the course of the line all the way to Lutterworth at a parallel. 

 

Regards 

 

Guy

I drive buses past the Staveley Way section and have walked part of it. Have to go and look at those bridges, they sound excellent. Someone told me there's a signal on the section south towards Onley so I might have to go and see if I can find that too.

[dagrizz]

1 hour ago, The Evil Bus Driver said:

I drive buses past the Staveley Way section and have walked part of it. Have to go and look at those bridges, they sound excellent. Someone told me there's a signal on the section south towards Onley so I might have to go and see if I can find that too.

 

I haven't walked the section south of Onley for a number of years but the signal post is south of the prison, and not too far from the Willoughby-Barby road. Mac Hawkins has a picture of it in his book 'The Great Central Then and Now' and the map in his book suggests a grid reference of SP 522685.

 

Weather permitting, I think we might go for a walk at the weekend to see if it's still there. 

 

In terms of walking the Rugby-Leicester MR route, I did all the bits that were passable/legal about 10 years ago and have photos but I don't know what its like now. The first obstacle north of Rugby is the M6 

 

Graham   

[The Evil Bus Driver]

22 hours ago, dagrizz said:

 

I haven't walked the section south of Onley for a number of years but the signal post is south of the prison, and not too far from the Willoughby-Barby road. Mac Hawkins has a picture of it in his book 'The Great Central Then and Now' and the map in his book suggests a grid reference of SP 522685.

 

Weather permitting, I think we might go for a walk at the weekend to see if it's still there. 

 

In terms of walking the Rugby-Leicester MR route, I did all the bits that were passable/legal about 10 years ago and have photos but I don't know what its like now. The first obstacle north of Rugby is the M6 

 

Graham   

That's a great book. Mine is at my mums but she lives in Brighton. Might have to go and have a look when I have a day off.

 

Edited March 25, 2021 by The Evil Bus Driver

[dagrizz]

It is still there and hasn't deteriorated too much since Mac Hawkins took his photo in the late 80's. The trackbed is a lot more overgrown though. There's also various railway detritus lying around, fishplate, screws, telegraph pole insulators, clinker etc. 

 

 

 

It is where I said in a previous post, about 200 yards or so north of the Willoughby-Barby road.

 

Graham

[dagrizz]

In my files, I have a photo of another post which I'd labelled as 'south of Onley Lane'  and assume it's on the stretch of line (now private land) between Onley Lane and the M45, which I used to walk when the wargamers used it for their games and kept the trackbed clear of undergrowth. They don't use it anymore and last time I tried to walk it was not fun, impassable without a lot of bushwacking.

 

 

I don't know what sort of post this is.

 

Graham

[LNERGE]