Mid-Hants Railway
Watercress Line
Watercress line steam train at Ropley station
Locale	Hampshire,United Kingdom
Connections	Network Rail track at Alton
Commercial operations
Name	Mid-Hants Railway
Built by	Alton, Alresford and Winchester Railway Company
Original gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge etc
Preserved operations
Operated by	Mid-Hants Railway Ltd
Stations	4
Length	10 miles (16 km)
Preserved gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge
Commercial history
Opened	2 October 1865
Closed	5 February 1973
Preservation history
1975	Line purchased from British Rail
1977	Re-opened betweenAlresford andRopley
1983	Re-opened toMedstead and Four Marks
1985	Re-opened toAlton
Headquarters	Alresford
Website
www.watercressline.co.uk

v t e Watercress Line
Legend
Alton line toBrookwood Alton Meon Valley Passing loop Basingstoke & Alton Light Railway toBasingstoke Meon Valley Railway toFareham Boyneswood Bridge (summit of line) Medstead and Four Marks Ropleymotive power depot Ropley Alresford Alresford sidings (end of line) Itchen Abbas M3 built over trackbed Winchester South West Main Line toLondon Waterloo &Weymouth Didcot, Newbury & Southampton Railway toNewbury

TheWatercress Line is the marketing name of theMid-Hants Railway, aheritage railway inHampshire,England, running 10 miles (16 km) fromNew Alresford toAlton where it connects to theNational Rail network. The line gained its popular name in the days when it was used to transport locally grownwatercress to markets inLondon. The railway currently operates regular scheduled services, along with dining trains,real ale trains and numerous special events throughout the year.

In 1861, the Alton, Alresford and Winchester Railway Company was authorised to build a new railway to connect to the existingLondon & South Western Railway lines at Alton and Winchester. It was opened on 2 October 1865 as the Mid-Hants Railway. Trains were operated by theLondon & South Western Railway which eventually purchased the Mid-Hants Railway Company in 1884.^[1]

Stations were initially constructed atItchen Abbas,Ropley andAlresford. The station atAlton was already in existence. The station atMedstead and Four Marks was added in 1868. Just outside this station, the line is at its highest point (652 feet or 199 metres above sea level) having risen from Alresford (263 feet or 80 metres above sea level) and descending to Alton (339 feet or 103 metres above sea level). The section of line became known as "the Alps", due to the steep gradients that exist there.^[1]

The line provided an alternative route between London andSouthampton and, besides transporting locally producedwatercress, was particularly important for military traffic between the army town ofAldershot and the military embarkation port at Southampton.^[1]

With the development of motorised transport, the line declined during theinter-war andpost-war periods of the 20th century and was further compromised by the closures of theBasingstoke and Alton Light Railway in 1932 and theMeon Valley Railway in 1955. Electrification of the line from London to Alton in 1937 meant that the Watercress Line was no longer part of a through route; it became necessary to change at Alton.^[1] Electrification of the line from London to Southampton occurred in 1967,^[2] which further affected the economics of the Mid-Hants route.

The line became part of theSouthern Railway in 1923 and then part of theSouthern Region of British Railways in 1948. It survived theBeeching Axe in 1963, but was eventually closed byBritish Railways in February 1973.^[1] During final years of operation under British Rail, passenger train services were operated byClass 205 ("2H") two carriage diesel-electric multiple units.

In 1941, prototypeMerchant Navy Class 21C1Channel Packet travelled as far as Alresford after the naming ceremony at Southampton for a trial run with press and dignitaries.

The section of line from Alresford to Alton that can be seen today was purchased from British Rail in November 1975. Reconstruction of the line subsequently progressed in stages. The section between Alresford and Ropley re-opened on 30 April 1977. To provide engineering and maintenance facilities, the main locomotive shed and workshops were constructed atRopley. The extension to Medstead & Four Marks opened on 28 May 1983 and the final section to Alton opened on 25 May 1985.^[1]

On 12 June 1982, a replica ofSans Pareil visited the Watercress Line, running successfully under its own power from Ropley to Alresford.^[3]

Some of the structures that can be seen on the line today were not part of the original railwayinfrastructure;^[3] they have been added to make the line serviceable again and to recreate the feel of a fully operational steam railway. The line is now maintained by a small base of paid staff (mostly in administrative duties) and a core of over 400 volunteers.

The railway is aregistered charity.^[4]

The Mid-Hants Railway plays host to a large collection of steam and diesel locomotives, passenger carriages and restored wagons, most of which are from the 1920s to 1960s period. Steam locomotives operated include Bulleid Pacifics of theMerchant Navy andWest Country,SR Lord Nelson class,Schools Class,S15,BR Standard Class 4,BR Standard Class 9F,LMS Ivatt Tank, and aBlack 5. Operated alongside these are a number of diesel locomotives includingClass 33s, aClass 47, aClass 50, aClass 03 shunter,Class 08 shunters, aClass 11 shunter, and aClass 205 "Hampshire" multiple unit.

The Watercress Line has four stations on the site of formerBritish Rail stations. Each features a passing loop, allowing trains to pass one another, or locomotives to run round trains for a change of direction of travel. Alton station has three platforms, platforms 1 and 2 being operated by the national rail network, and platform 3 by the Watercress Line. The other three stations each have two platforms with connecting footbridges.

• Alton – at the north-east end of the line. Alton has one passenger platform (two others are assigned toSouth Western Railway), with a cross-platform connection to the town and onward services toLondon Waterloo. Alton has two passing loops, one within station limits, and another just outside, allowing trains to pass outside the station, thus reducing the impact of the single platform during intensive operations. There are several additionalsidings.
• Medstead and Four Marks – the highest station in Hampshire, fully restored in the style of a quiet 1940sSouthern Railway station. The line's Signal and Telegraph department,Permanent Way group, and Building department are all located here, in and around the station yard. There are several sidings. This is where the greatest number of trains pass each other on standard running days.
• Ropley – the engineering centre of the line and the location of the locomotive maintenance and running sheds. The station has flower beds andtopiary, and the largest of the line's foursignal boxes, controlling movements through the station, as well as much shunting to and from the locomotive yard.
• Alresford – at the southern end of the line is the top visitor station and has the most passenger facilities, including a museum, buffet and two shops. Most of the carriage stock is stored at this station, with Alresford Train Care performing day-to-day maintenance and cleaning of the carriages.^[5]

• Alton signal box – A newsignalling installation has been commissioned at Alton.^[6] It is a colour-light system, running from thesignal box control panel; this contrasts with the mechanicalsemaphore signals used on the rest of the line. The new system allows a more intensive train service, making use of theloop, and allows shunting within the station, operations which the previous manual flag signalling did not allow. The new installation makes use oftrack circuits to detect where the train is situated and can change points and signals accordingly. It can run fully automatically, so there is no need for asignalman, unlike the other signal boxes on the line. When there is no signalman, all Signal Post Telephones are diverted toMedstead & Four Marks signal box. It works on a system where a member of the locomotive crew inserts thetoken into a token switch, to allow the system to take the next steps.
• Ropley signal box – Phase One of the Ropley re-signalling project, construction of the new signal box, has been completed. Phase Two was expected to be completed in 2012. Phase Two will include installation of working distant signals, in place of the existing fixed distant signals. The new signals will be motorised semaphore signals as they are too far from the signal box to be operated mechanically without considerable physical effort by the signalman. The scheme will also include installing Advanced Starting and Outer Home signals in both directions.
• AWS (Automatic Warning System) – The Watercress Line is currently the only heritage railway with a completeAWS system.^{[citation needed]} It is used on all distant signals on the line and at all signals in the Alton colour light area, until an AWS gap is reached before the Meon Loop due to the large number of signals. Almost all of the locomotives and multiple units are fitted with it, apart from a couple of steam locomotives.^{[citation needed]}
• Train Protection & Warning System –TPWS is not used by the Watercress Line, however theClass 205 Hampshire Unit has TPWS fitted.

Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) awards enabled the Old Goods Shed at Alresford to be restored and opened in 2000; and for thewheel drop shed at Ropley to be built in 2005.^[11]

Upon bidding, in October 2008 the Mid Hants Railway received £550,000 from the HLF for improvement projects.^[11]

A new two-track carriage and wagon workshop has been built at Ropley, capable of holding four carriages under cover. The workshop is intended to meet the particular needs for the restoration of wooden vehicles with woodworking machinery, a retained carpenter and apprentice/trainee carpenters.^[11]

Extensions to the locomotive workshop are a small machine shop, stores area and a set of volunteers' refreshment and changing facilities. Viewing platforms for visitors take in the locomotive and carriage workshops and the boiler workshop. Materials and displays for interpretation and overview are provided to educate visitors in the work and trades used to maintain and improve a largely manually-maintained, bespoke set of rolling stock.^[11]

A historic signal box assisted by a grant from the Railway Heritage Trust is installed at Medstead. It provides a hands-on signalling experience for visitors together with space for an exhibition ofStrowger telephone equipment.^[11]

The cost of this round of projects exceeded £1m, assisted by funds within the railway and by additional volunteer labour.^[11]

Before its closure, the railway joined theSouth West Main Line atWinchester Junction,^[1] two miles (3 km) north of Winchester. The cheapest viable proposals to reinstate the tracks to rejoin Winchester, calling for platforms, embankments, earth cuttings and/or tunnels, have proven too expensive to submit to government or large charities. The track would need to cross theM3 motorway and replace or tunnel underneath houses and gardens^[quantify] built across theright-of-way between the former other junction of the railway (with electrified railways) andItchen Abbas.

There have been some incidents at the Watercress Line over its history. Most incidents are confined to mechanical failure of railway systems. On 26 July 2010, a fire broke out in the newly constructed Carriage and Wagon workshop at Ropley station.

• Hardingham, Roger (28 September 1995).The Mid-Hants Railway: From Construction to Closure (1st ed.). Runpast Publishing.ISBN 978-1-870754-29-3.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toWatercress Line.

• Mid Hants Railway –"The Watercress Line" official website.

• Watercress Line
• Heritage railways in Hampshire
• Alton, Hampshire

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