Lydney Junction | |||||
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| General information | |||||
| Location | Lydney,Forest of Dean England | ||||
| Coordinates | 51°42′55″N2°31′51″W / 51.71534°N 2.53086°W /51.71534; -2.53086 | ||||
| Grid reference | SO633020 | ||||
| System | Station onheritage railway | ||||
| Operated by | Dean Forest Railway | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| History | |||||
| Original company | Severn and Wye Railway | ||||
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Lydney Junction railway station is arailway station nearLydney inGloucestershire. The station is now the southern terminus of theDean Forest Railway. It is located to the south of Lydney, near theA48 road.
The diesel department of the preserved line uses Lydney Junction as a base of operations.
Lydney Junction was the name of two separate but adjacent stations on two different railway lines. TheGreat Western Railway station, which remains open asLydney railway station, opened in 1851 on the Gloucester to Chepstow section of theSouth Wales Railway. To the west of this station, the freight-only line of theSevern and Wye Mineral Railway crossed the GWR line on its north–south route taking coal and iron from the Forest of Dean to the docks at Lydney.
In 1875, the Severn and Wye started passenger services and built a new terminus station at Lydney Junction for passenger trains to and from Drybrook, nearCinderford. Four years later, this first station was superseded by a new one as the Severn and Wye joined with theMidland Railway in building theSevern Bridge Railway, which linked Lydney across theriver Severn with the Midland'sSharpness Branch Line, enabling access for the Forest of Dean minerals to the new and more extensive docks atSharpness.
The new Lydney Junction (Severn and Wye) station was linked by a long footbridge to the GWR's station. It was built on a curve which took the line away to the east from the north–south line of the original freight railway, and there were extensive freight yards, which provided the only rail link between the Severn and Wye and the Great Western lines. The two stations worked closely together, particularly after 1894, when the Severn and Wye Railway was bought by the Great Western and the Midland. Finally, in 1955, under British Railways, the two stations were formally merged into one.[1]
Lydney Junction (Severn and Wye) was used as a through-station for passenger services to and fromBerkeley Road railway station and over theSevern Railway Bridge. These services either terminated atLydney Town railway station, which was in the centre of Lydney, or continued on northwards into the Forest of Dean to terminate atLydbrook Junction on the Ross to Monmouth line. These services ceased abruptly in October 1960[2] when theSevern Railway Bridge was damaged beyond economic repair in a shipping accident. Passenger services were officially withdrawn in November 1964.
After closure, the up platform and the station building were demolished. The down platform survived and forms the basis of the new Lydney Junction station on the heritage Dean Forest Railway. The station was reopened in 1995 when asignal box was opened to supervise alevel crossing - the flat-roofed BR timber structure came originally fromHeysham Port station in Lancashire. A row of locomotives, including73002 and08734, is on static display.
| Preceding station |  Heritage railways | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary's Halt towardsParkend | Dean Forest Railway | Terminus | ||
| Disused railways | ||||
| Lydney Town Station restored | Severn Bridge Railway Severn and Wye Railway, laterMR andGWR | Severn Bridge Station closed | ||
 National Rail | ||||
| Interchange withLydney on theGloucester–Newport line | ||||
