Woodhead Tunnel

The Woodhead Tunnels are three parallel trans-Pennine railway tunnels on the Woodhead Line, a former major rail link from Manchester to Sheffield in Northern England. The western portals of the tunnels are at Woodhead in Derbyshire and the eastern portals are at Dunford Bridge, near Penistone, South Yorkshire.

The first tunnel, was constructed by the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway. Work on the tunnel commenced in 1837. It was designed by the railway engineer Charles Vignoles, who was later substituted by the civil engineer Joseph Locke. When opened in 1845, was one of the world's longest railway tunnels and the first trans-Pennine tunnel.

Woodhead 2 was completed in 1853. Both tunnels were difficult to maintain because of their narrowness and heavy traffic, estimated to be around 250 trains per day in either direction. As both tunnels were too narrow to allow for electrification, it was decided to construct a third tunnel in the 1950s. opened in 1953, almost 100 years after .

Although the Hope Valley Line was recommended for closure in the Beeching Report, instead, the government decided to cease passenger services on the Woodhead line, allegedly due to the high cost of upgrading and modernising the route. In 1970, the last passenger services ran through the tunnel but the line continued to host freight trains. The last train passed through the tunnels in 1981 when the line was closed.

The tunnels are maintained and now used for other purposes. They are owned by National Grid plc, which used to carry power cables and, in 2008, controversially installed cables in , which would create difficulties in reinstating rail services and was resisted by a sizeable campaign.

History

Woodhead 1

thumb|The western portals of Woodhead 1 & 2 in the background, with Woodhead 3 under construction in the foreground, 1953

The first Woodhead Tunnel, also referred to as the south tunnel, was undertaken by the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway (SA&MR) company. Work commenced as soon as the line had obtained its act of incorporation in Parliament in 1837 and work on the tunnel commenced in October 1838, although its design was not finalised until April 1839. In January 1852, a bulge was discovered in the tunnel wall in the centre section and had to be rebuilt. Later that year, Woodhead 2 was completed. In January 2008, work started to transfer the electric cable from the north tunnel to Woodhead 3. It had cost £4.3 million (). Six people lost their lives during the work.

During 1970, the final passenger services ran through the tunnel. The last train was run in July 1981.

In 2002, the Trans-Pennine Rail Group, composed of county councils, unitary authorities, passenger transport executives (PTE) and the Peak District National Park Authority provided evidence to the Transport Select Committee that identified interest from bidders for the Trans-Pennine rail franchise in reopening the Woodhead route. In 2007 the Trans-Pennine Rail Group was dissolved and its responsibilities transferred to the Northern Way and the North West Rail Campaign.

In July 2003, the Greater Manchester Branch of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, presented evidence to a parliamentary select committee, stating that Arriva had an interest in reopening the Woodhead Line as part of a bid for the Trans-Pennine rail franchise.

In 2006, 'Translink' proposed that the tunnel be reopened as a route for rail freight. The proposal was supported by groups who were opposing the construction of the proposed Longdendale Bypass, a £180 million scheme for avoiding Mottram in Longdendale, Hollingworth and Tintwistle. The tunnel was an alternative means of handling some of the traffic and reducing the need for the bypass.

Current situation

thumb|The western portals of the Woodhead Tunnels in 2008, from the former [[Woodhead railway station. Bores 1 & 2 on left, behind platform; bore 3 on right.]]

Woodhead 1 is in poor condition and unused. For several decades, Woodhead 2 has carried electrical cables for the National Grid which by the early 2000s were coming to the end of their operational life. The National Grid proposed installing new cables in Woodhead 3 which would prevent its restoration for rail traffic. The older tunnels are unsuitable for rail traffic, because of their poor state of repair. In September 2007, the Government Office for the East Midlands indicated that it was unlikely that the route would be used for rail traffic again, and declined to intervene. On 4 December 2007, 57 MPs signed an early day motion in the Commons, brought by Manchester Blackley MP Graham Stringer, expressing concern at laying cables in a tunnel that was viable for rail traffic.

On 18 December, a written answer in the Commons stated that laying cables in the tunnel would not preclude opening the route to rail traffic. On 23 January 2008, the Department for Transport said that only the older tunnels, which were in poor condition, would be available. In December 2007, the Campaign for Better Transport (UK) campaigned to keep Woodhead 3 available for rail traffic.

On 8 January 2008, the "Northern Way", a collaboration between three Northern Regional Development Agencies: Yorkshire Forward, Northwest Regional Development Agency and One NorthEast, called for the government to ensure the potential reuse of Woodhead Tunnels for rail use in the future. The Northern Way had previously published claims that the tunnel's economic benefit could be as much as £10 billion nationally, of which £3.5 billion had been forecast to occur in the North.

On 15 January 2008, around one hundred protesters gathered at the end of the Woodhead Tunnel, protesting against its planned reuse in carrying electricity cables. Around this time, a campaign group, originally named "Save the Woodhead Tunnel", was established; it was renamed "Re-open the Woodhead Tunnel" the following year. On 24 January 2008, preparatory work on the tunnel commenced, although this did not end the objections.

In January 2012, during a debate in parliament, Angela Smith MP called for the reopening of the Woodhead route, but was informed that the line was not a priority as part of the Northern Hub because of capacity available on the Hope Valley Line.

In 2012, Balfour Beatty fitted new electricity cables through the tunnel which were individually laid in concrete and sand insulated ducts at the tunnel exit for connection to the first pylon. Old galvanised steelwork over the River Etherow was removed. The tunnel has a flat concrete floor and concrete-finished walls and ceiling. The cables run down both sides of the tunnel attached to metal framework. Six cables run along each wall, each about in diameter with thick insulation and other ducting and cables run along the floor. At the western end, the old concrete and tarmac platforms still stand.

In November 2013, it was decided to seal the Victorian tunnels, following a decision by the government not to purchase them from the National Grid. Transport Minister Stephen Hammond said a new tunnel would be a better option if the route should ever be used again for rail traffic, and that the Hope Valley route had the capacity to accommodate foreseeable growth.

References

Citations

Sources

Bain, Simon (1986) Railroaded! (Battle for Woodhead Pass), London, Faber and Faber.
Dow, G., (1959) Great Central, Volume One: The Progenitors (1813–1863) , Shepperton: Ian Allan Ltd.

External links

Heritage

The Don Valley Railway Line
The woodheadsite – has good history section
Woodhead Station on Subterranea Britannica
National on film – Woodhead Line video of train going through tunnel in 1969 from the BBC 'Nation on Film'.
Railways of Britain – Woodhead
Chris Davies MEP speaking on the future of the tunnel