The Centurion Way - Chichester to Singleton

Starting Point - Chichester Station. Finishing Point - Weald and Downland Museum. Distance 8 Miles.

CHICHESTER

Rail Map Online 

1934 Map (Top Left of map)

Below - In the 1950s Chichester saw its station modernised, the current buildings opened in 1951.

Below - On the north side of the London / Brighton bound platform the remains of two west facing bay platforms can be seen. A branch service to Midhurst operated from 1881 but the route was never elevated above a rural backwater and closed to passengers as early as 1935.

Today the route has been converted to a foot and cycle path as far as Singleton. Singleton also happens to be the home of the Weald and Dowland Living Museum so it is ideal for combining a visit to the museum with a railway walk from Chichester. The path, known as the Centurion Way after the Roman history of the area (more later), can be picked up off Westgate at the site of the former junction with the main line and the Midhurst branch.

Below -  Archway marking the start of the Centurion Way.

The line continued in goods use until a train derailed into a washed out culvert south of Midhurst in 1951. Singleton and Cocking goods sheds were closed in 1957 with just seasonal sugar beet traffic to Lavant continuing until 1970. From 1972 Lavant was reopened for gravel traffic which continued until 1992 so the section between Chichester and Lavant has seen more recent use and more remnants of the railway can be seen.

Below - Heading north from Chichester. Quite a few telegraph poles remain.

Below - A former access bridge for fields either side of the line.

Below - Newlands Lane bridge, formally Salthill Lane bridge.

Below - A change of gradient sign still in situ.

1934 Map

Below - Old Broyle Road bridge.

BRANDY HOLE

A halt was proposed here to serve the nearby Chichester Barracks Infantry site just east of here but was never built. The area is covered with earthworks dating back to the arrival of the Romans in the area.

Below - A roman mound and trench defensive system. Caves in the area were said to have been used by smugglers.

Below - Information board provided at Brandy Hole (click to enlarge)

Below - Brandy Hole Lane bridge.

Below - The trackbed widens at the site of the gravel sidings in use until 1992.

Below - Art installations along the Centurion Way around the site of the gravel sidings using some bits of old railway materials. A forerunner of the 1970s gravel scheme in the form of a branch heading off to gravel pits to the east of the railway can be seen on the above 1934 map.

Below - Hunters Race bridge.

1912 Map

Below - Footpath bridge.

Below - Lavant Road bridge with the former Lavant station site beyond.

LAVANT

Below - The former Lavant station, now turned in to housing. The London Brighton & South Coast Railway Co clearly had great expectations for the station with such a grand station building but the passenger numbers never materialised.

Below - The road approach to the station which was at first floor level.

North of the station site the housing developed has built over the site of the railway but the Centurion Way path can be picked up again off the corner of Lavant Down Road.

1912 Map

Below - Information board in Lavant (click to enlarge)

Below - Bridge over the River Lavant.

Below - Footpath bridge.

1912 Map

Below - Another information board provided along the route.

Below - Another crossing of the River Lavant.

Below - Bridge over a footpath.

Below - Tunnel under the A286.

1912 Map

Below - Bridge over Hylters Lane. For me this was the end of the line, the path exits on to Hylters Lane and I continued along the parallel A286. A matter of weeks later the extension of the path through to the former Singleton station was opened. Just beyond the gate at the then end of the path the line went in to West Dean Tunnel.

Below - The bridge over Hylters Lane.

Below - Bridge over the road to Crouches Bank.

SINGLETON

Below - The former station approach at Singleton, the station survives as a private house and couldn't be visited at the time of my visit. The platforms have been cleared of vegetation and restored as part of the reopening of the former line as a path.

BBC News article about the extension of the Centurion Way to Singleton station. This includes photos of the station site today.

From the station approach at Singleton it was a short walk to the Weald & Downland Museum.

Below - The museum has a modern Introductory Gallery building and a cafe (the cafe opens about half and hour before the museum which was great timing as my early departure from Chichester gave me time for a coffee and pastry before the museum opened). Before the modern entrance buildings were built this rebuilt toll house served as the entrance to the site in the museum's earlier years.

Below - The most famous building in the museum is the barn used in the Repair Shop TV series.

Below - Titchfield Market Hall and other Tudor town buildings.

Below - Bayleaf Farmstead.

Below - Anglo Saxon Hall House.

 Whilst visiting the museum it started raining heavily. Fortunately it had been my plan anyway to return to Chichester using the frequent number 60 bus from the centre of Singleton.

The Wylam Waggonway

Starting Point - Newcastle Central Station. Finishing Point - Former Wylam North Station. 

Distance 10 Miles

Above - Former Wylam Waggonway engine Puffing Billy in the Science Museum in London. A working replica can be seen in operation at the Beamish open air museum.

Rail Map Online

Google Maps

The origins of the railway route between Newcastle and Wylam along the north of the River Tyne date back to a 1748 built waggonway between Wylam Colliery and coal staithes on the river at Lemington, though the area was covered in early waggonways serving several mines. The mine owner requested that steam locomotives be introduced on the line in 1812 and the first "Puffing Billy" was delivered in 1813 followed by a second "Wylam Dilly." These ran until 1862 and are both preserved, being the two oldest locomotives in preservation. Wylam Colliery closed in 1868 and the waggonway route was reused shortly after as a conventional railway connecting the Carlisle - Newcastle route which followed the south bank of the river through Wylam with the industries on the north bank of the Tyne. The route closed between Scotswood and North Wylam in 1966 and between Newcastle, Scotswood and the connection to the Carlisle route south of the river at Blaydon in 1982 when the route was diverted to reach Newcastle from the south side of the Tyne via the High Level Bridge and a new station at the Metro Centre shopping centre. Much of the route has been turned in to a foot and cycle route. I cycled the route from Newcastle station.

More about the early history of the line can be found on the Heddon on the Wall Local History Society page

1919 Map

Just west of Newcastle station the line diverged close to what was the main goods yard for the centre of Newcastle. Part of the goods yard site is still occupied by engineers sidings.

NEWCASTLE RAILWAY STREET

Around the site of the goods yards were a couple of short lived early terminus stations serving Newcastle before the current Central station was constructed, from 1839 to 1847 at Railway Street (or Shot Tower) and from 1847 to 1851 at Forth, closer to the surviving Newcastle Central station. More information about these early stations can be found on the Disused Stations website.

Below - The arches beneath the former goods yards along Railway Street.

Below - Redheugh Bridge road (formerly Shot Factory Lane) passing under the goods yards site.

Below - Tyneside Road passing through the goods yard site with some walls from the former goods yards.

Below - The bridge over Dunn Street, from here I crossed under the railway to follow it on Railway Terrace along the south side of the railway.

Below - The bridge over Water Street. From here I crossed under the railway again. The section of trackbed in use for the engineers sidings ends somewhere around here, although it is all overgrown this far down. The trackbed is severed just west of here by William Armstrong Drive and obliterated by subsequent redevelopment meaning a stretch of cycling along Scotswood Road.

1939 Map

ELSWICK

Around the site of Elswick station the area has been thoroughly redeveloped. A bit of retaining wall between Scotswood Road and the railway trackbed survives but can't be seen for the overgrowth. More information can be found on the Disused Stations website.

Below - An information board close to the site of Elswick station (click to enlarge).

Crossing to the north side of Scotswood Road close to the junction with Whitehouse Road, Cycle Route 72 diverges from the road to follow a path on the former railway route.

1939 Map

SCOTSWOOD WORKS HALT

Between Scotswood and the river stood the huge complex of William Armstrong's factory. A small halt was provided to serve the factory. At this point the path runs along the course of the former railway. More information about the halt can be found on the Disused Stations website.

Below - Remains of the footbridge over the railway to Coanwood Road on the old map, now redeveloped with more modern housing as Willowford Place.

Below - View along the former railway at the site of Scotswood Works Halt, the trackbed is quite wide as there were four tracks up to Scotswood Junction as well as sidings.

Below - Remains of the footbridge at Scotswood Junction.

1895 Map

SCOTSWOOD

At Scotswood was the junction with the line heading across the river to connect with the Carlisle line at Blaydon. Until 1982 this was the route Newcastle - Carlisle trains took. There was a quite extensive station with platforms on both routes and there are a few remains of the station to be seen. More information about Scotswood station can be found on the Disused Stations website.

Below - Bridge taking the line towards the river over the approach road for the station.

Below - Looking north from the above bridge showing the bridge carrying the North Wylam line. On the bottom right of the shot the bricked up entrance to the steps to the North Wylam bound platform can be seen.

Below looking across a gap where the road bridge has been removed to the bridge over the river. This route remained in use until 1982 when Newcastle - Carlisle services were diverted to enter Newcastle from the south side of the River Tyne via the new station at the Metro Centre shopping centre.

Below - The station approach road on the north side of the North Wylam line.

Below - View north from the Wylam line bridge and steps up to Whitfield road (the other side of the retaining wall) from the station approach road can be seen.

Below - View south from the Wylam line bridge showing the bridge carrying the line over the river. On the left the bricked up stairway to the Wylam bound platform can be seen. Towards the right steps up to the Blaydon to Newcastle bound platform are hidden by vegetation. 

Below - Looking towards Newcastle from the site of the Wylam - Newcastle bound track. The Newcastle bound platform and station buildings would have been between the railway and road where the retaining wall can be seen.

Below - Stairway up to Whitfield Road.

Below - Just beyond Scotswood station the line entered a tunnel, the bricked up east portal of which can still be seen.

The filled in tunnel necessitated a diversion via Scotswood Road again, picking up the former railway again of Neptune Road. On satellite images the west portal of the tunnel looks to survive in vegetation around the slip roads from the A1.

Below - View of the disused Scotswood railway bridge. Maintenance issues with this bridge were a factor in the route being diverted via Metro Centre and the High Level Bridge at Newcastle in 1982.

1939 Map

Below - What looks to be remains of a brickworks next to the roundabout of Scotswood Road.

LEMINGTON

The cycle path is picked up again off Neptune Street.

Below - Information board at the start of the cycle route. (Click to enlarge).

Below - The site of Lemington station, the former station master's house survives on the right beyond the trees and a fence. More information about the station can be found on the Disused Stations website.

Below - Bridge carrying Scotswood Road over the former railway.

Below - Bridge carrying Northumberland Road over the former railway.

1898 Map

The site of Wallbottle Colliery and the houses at the junction with the North Wallbottle Waggonway have been cleared and landscaped. The North Wallbottle Waggonway is for much of its length now a footpath, though with no sign of its waggonway origins.

Below - Bridge carrying the former railway over Lemington Road.

NEWBURN

1895 Map

The cycle path emerges on to the approach to Newburn Bridge opposite Water Row. A footpath (not designated a cycle path but it is possible to cycle, though a bit of a squeeze through the vegetation) follows the course of the railway at the back of the Boathouse pub. Newburn station was located at the back of the pub. More information about the station can be found on the Disused Stations website

Below - On the wall of the Boathouse pub is a plaque mentions a George Stephenson connection with the area.

Below - The site of Newburn station.

Below - What looks like a bit of old platform wall at the Wylam end of the station.

1894 Map (line on upper part of page.)

A widened roadway at Blayney Row follows the course of the railway with the cottages shown on the old map still there. The route becomes a cycleway again after the cottages.

Farm building occupy the site shown as Heddon Haugh on the old map, now shown as Heddon Haugh Farm on the current maps.

HEDDON ON THE WALL

Below - The site of Heddon on the Wall station, the station was infact some distance from the village. More information about the station can be found on the Disused Stations website.

Below - Information board about the Wylam Waggonway (click to enlarge).

1894 Map (line on upper part of map)

Below - George Stephenson's birthplace was in a cottage alongside the waggonway. George Stephenson's first steam locomotive emerged in 1814, a year after those at Wylam. The house survives to this day and is now a National Trust property, though not currently open to the public apart from special events.

WYLAM NORTH

Disused Stations page about Wylam North

Below - A small bit of retaining wall at the back of the platform of the former Wylam North station. A car park has been built on the station site, making a handy access point for people arriving by car to visit the route. It is also a short walk across the river bridge to the surviving Wylam railway station.

The path continues beyond Wylam North station site up to the site of the junction with the Carlisle line.

Below - Bridge taking Main Road over the former railway.

Below - Bridge taking Chapel Lane over the railway.

1919 Map

Below - The bridge taking the railway over the RIver Tyne.

Once on the south bank of the river the path emerges on to a nearby road next to the site of West Wylam Junction, the former junction with the active railway towards Carlisle.

From here I returned to the Wylam North station site and cycled on to Heddon on the Wall to visit part of the route of Hadrian's wall.