As part of its drive to restore passenger train services to Redmire in North Yorkshire, the Wensleydale Railway has launched a fundraising appeal.

No services have run between Leyburn and Redmire village since 2020 because of the deteriorating condition of the track & infrastructure, some of which is life-expired and dates back to before the First World War.

In 2022, a fundraising appeal raised £50,000, which enabled the line to be surveyed from Leyburn to Redmire, the defects noted, and an action plan produced to restore the line to passenger standards.

West of Leyburn, part of the line is in a deep cutting, and over the years earth on the north side has gradually drifted down onto the track and needed to be dug out and shored up to prevent a recurrence. The drainage in this section is also very poor.

Last year, work started to remove trees, repair earthworks, and replace sleepers. Approximately 260m of concrete U-tube drainage channel was dug out, so that damaged pipes containing asbestos could be removed.

The new appeal is to raise sufficient funds to slew a 0.75-mile section of track close to Wensley Station away from the embankment edge; Wensley is approximately halfway between Leyburn and Redmire.

The work is required as earthworks that carried the railway along the foot of the cliffs below Leyburn Shawl have eroded with material falling into the adjacent fields, and some sleeper ends have been left exposed and unsupported.

A Civil Engineer has surveyed this section of track and plans made to slew the track away from the embankment edge onto what was once part of the quarry sidings.

Approximately 1,000 tons of ballast will be required, which will cost about £25,000. Further expenditure will be needed to hire machinery and qualified operators, works trains and the railway’s operating staff, and permanent way engineers to approve the work. A tamping unit will also need to be hired, at a cost of around £10,000.

As part of the work to reopen the line to Redmire, last year a new set of level crossing gates were installed at Crakehall station near Bedale.

To enable the line to reopen to Wensley, a short section of track just east of Wensley crossing requires attention, following which attention will focus on the line to the west, especially Preston Bank, on the approach to Redmire Station.

Donations to fund reopening the line to Redmire can be made online at https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/redmirenextsteps

The Leyburn to Redmire section of our railway has some of the finest scenery & views in the Yorkshire Dales and we’re committed to re-opening this part of our line. Our goal is to restore passenger services to Redmire station by September 2025. This will coincide with the 200th anniversary celebrations of the World’s first passenger service on the Stockton & Darlington Railway in 1825.

Richard Leathley, Chairman of The Wensleydale Railway Association (Trust) Limited

We have made great progress with our plans to restore passenger services to Redmire. However, the work is challenging, time-consuming and costly. Funds raised from this appeal will allow us to tackle a problematic section of trackwork that is impeding progress and bring us significantly closer to our goal of re-opening services to Redmire by 2025. We need your help and I urge people to support us.

Nick Keegan, Wensleydale Railway Fundraising and Marketing Manager