Rediscovering the Stour Valley Railway | Cambridge to Sudbury, via Haverhill
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ส.ค. 2024
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Marking fifty years since the end of rail services between Cambridge, Haverhill and Sudbury, this film explores what remains and what there is to be rediscovered of this railway since its closure.
CONTACT
rediscoveringlostrailways@protonmail.com
Photo Credits:
www.disused-stations.org.uk - This remarkable website should be in everyone's 'favourites'
Music Credits:
Bedřich Smetana, 'Die Moldau' from Ma Vlast.
Links:
www.railhaverhi... - A website campaigning for the reopening of the Cambridge - Haverhill section of the line
stourline.co.uk... - Featuring photographs and documents of and related to the Stour Valley line
Brilliant video. I love that part of Suffolk. This has inspired me to drive up there at the weekend so I can cycle that route. In my opinion, it's just tragic that all that infrastructure was lost in the Beeching cuts. Just imagine how good our transport system would be if all those branch lines has a modern light rail service now.
Thank you and enjoy yourself! There's still so much of the railway left to find 🙂
This lost line once passed alongside what is (since 1989) my back garden in Haverhill. The former track bed now forms a wonderful nature walk through to Sturmer and beyond as well illustrated in this superb video. Further sections of the trail pass through the lovely Clare country park and the stretch entering Sudbury is quite beautiful. Much of the original alignment was still intact in 1989, although some of the cuttings had been filled in and bridges demolished. The great pity is that the area's population has increased many-fold since closure and Haverhill itself is now one of the largest towns in the country with no railway access. The congestion on the roads is appalling and much of it is people driving to their work in Cambridge.
I think that there's a strong case for some sort of rail system between Haverhill and Cambridge!
I live in haverhill and ive recently been facinated by the old line that went between cambridge and haverhill and even from bartlow to saffron walden as my work takes me around all different villages and im constantly going past old bridges. A friend sent me this video and its inspired me to walk/bike the line myself. love all the old picutre comparisons!
Glad you enjoyed the film - there's still so much to see!
Just visited the bartlow signal box. It's in a much worse state now unfortunately. 3/4 walls have fallen in and it just looks like a pile of scrap wood 😞
Thank you! I have many happy memories living in Clare as a child/teen/adult
My pleasure!
Hi, Thank you, Been to Long Melford many times, (and missed the railway!!) As people said before, thanks for the memory, All the Best Brian 🤗😎
My pleasure, glad to hear you enjoyed the film 🙂
Excellent ... I have walked part of this route, between Clare and Sudbury. Please keep up your good work! Regards, John.
Very kind of you to say so, it's a lovely walk to undertake and so much of the railway still to see. Glad you are enjoying my films!
Smetana - wonderful music. This film evokes many many memories for me as I lived in this area for over 10 years in the 1970s/80s. What a marvellous video. So many stations again have been preserved and renovated and are now peoples homes. Thank you again for making a 72 year old very happy
My pleasure, Michael. Yes, quite spoilt for railway buildings and structures on this trip - I thought that since the piece of music is about a river, it was appropriate for a railway which broadly follows a river's course.
A great film enhanced by " Ma Vlast". I travelled this line from 1962 to closure visiting family in Colchester then we had to go via the Bury line seeing more of Haughley Jct disappear with each journey. Recently there has been a proposal to re-connect Haverhill to Cambridge by light rail . So Long Melford to Bury and the Colne Valley line to be visited and filmed . Very good series and so nostalgic for those who remember them in their last years of service .
Thank you for your comment and sharing your memories of this line. When researching the film I came across a very recent article saying that a guided busway between Haverhill and Cambridge is also being considered - given the problems they had with the existing one in Cambridge, I hope this idea will be dismissed in favour of light rail. I'm glad you enjoy this series. My next film is already being researched and may even be ready in the next month.
Another brilliant video! I believe with approximately 27k Haverhill is the largest town in Suffolk without a railway station. I'd never heard of Clare before but it looks lovely with the castle beside the railway station!
Clare is the jewel in the crown of that line for sure. Yes, Haverhill - a lot of hot air is released about building a light rail link or a bus way to Cambridge once more, but these stories seem to come and go!
Having grown up in Clare i can confirm that it is lovely and definitely worth a visit! Many happy memories from my childhood.
Thank you so very much. This is one of the finest videos I have seen, beautifully put together with an excellent choice of music, Smetana's "Vltava". I am not familiar with Suffolk, but recently visited a friend in the Sudbury area. I knew that the railway station there must have seen better days. This video has gladdened my heart.
Thank you for your very kind words concerning my film, I'm glad it was thoroughly enjoyed. Do subscribe if you've not already done so and enjoy my other films in the series.
Just stumbled across your film. Brings back memories. Lived in Clare as a child and remember waving at the steam trains from what is now the county park and travelling on the last train from Cambridge to Sudbury. Fantastic work.
Thank you ever so much! Do subscribe and watch my other films in the series.
Super video production. Thank you for sharing. Good to know that many traces remain for a future visit.
My pleasure 🙏
Recently moved into the area and knew of the old railways that ran through but seeing this video is amazing. Where the old stations were and what they looked like.
Such a shame they are gone though. We could really use a train service in this part of Suffolk
Really glad you enjoyed the film. Some fine relics of this line still to be found! Do subscribe if you've not already done so and enjoy my other films in the series.
So Good well done. Didn't know of alot of the smaller stations so have definitely learned something there.
Many thanks.
Really glad you enjoyed the film! Do subscribe if you've not already done so as a major film of mine is being released on Thursday concerning the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway!
Absolutely brilliant. My mother used the Linton- Cambridge line in the 1920's
Dick Andrews Thank you for your comment. Do subscribe and enjoy my other films in this series. I imagine residents of Linton would be glad of a railway connection to Cambridge nearly 100 years since your mother used it!
Another great video, I never knew this line existed as said there was talk about opening a light railway between Haverhill and Cambridge. No forsight in this country. Thanks for another great video.
Very kind of you, sir. Yes, there has been talk of some sort of re-establishing a connection between Haverhill and Cambridge - last time I saw anything, another guided busway was mentioned...make of that what you will! May I ask if you've subscribed? If not, please do - many more films coming out in the months to follow!
Yes I have subscribied, I found your videos last sunday. As the old mildenhall line ran at the bottom of my road in the village where I grew up...
Michael Matthews tell me what the lottery numbers will on Easter Saturday next year? You can't, can you. Well, how do you expect anyone else to know what will happen in 10, 20 or 50 years? Please remember the parlous state of the country's finances in the 1960s after about a decade of political mismanagement by the Conservative Party as they tried to artificially keep full employment in the UK with an ecomony that couldn't sustain it. This lead to a devaluation of 14% against the US$ in 1967. The railways bore a large portion of the cuts along with the military, as it was political suicide to make cuts to the NHS, education or welfare state.
Yes, a line from Haverhill would be a good thing as it would free up road capacity and reduce our need to build more roads and also cut our green house gas emmissions. There are many such lines we could re-instate and should re-instate.
@@michaelmatthews8171 No transportation foresight in the United States either. Now we have the new-red greenies screaming about "man-made global warming" and how we must get rid of the internal-combustion engine, yet not a one proposes with what do we replace the automobile/truck.
This is utterly wonderful.. thanks for posting this, enjoyed it alot
Thank you! Do subscribe and watch my other films in the series!
Smetana this time 'der Moldau', wonderful, thank you.
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Another line which would have been useful to avoid congestion in and around Cambridge and would have helped with the rise in housing in Suffolk with the current traffic issues on the road
Yes, I agree - there's talk of a light rail system being introduced by Cambridge and Haverhill, but I think it is just the usual pie in the sky stuff!
My Dads family had Long Milford connections. I think I only visited once as a child but I recall seeing a train apparently crossing a field nearby. As a London boy this seemed unusual as I’m sure there was no fencing.
There probably wasn't! Thanks so much for sharing your memories 🙂
I do like ellipse bridge arches and there are some fine examples here!!
Yes, some very fine remains on this railway!
Thanks again for another interesting `Lost Railway` video...great stuff.
Thanks for your comment - it was a delight to make this film. I've got a 'to-do' list of railways to work through and I have a strong idea about which one to make next. Expect one in December!
The many train drivers at March Depot used to refer to this route as Over the Alps, as they used to work trains from Whitemoor to Colchester, probably coal trains, at the time i did not even know what route they took to get to Colchester. I first discovered Sudbury in 1976.
That's interesting - because they thought the route had some steep gradients, I take it?
@@RediscoveringLostRailways possibly, I never heard why they called it that..
Fantastic film yet again.
NODDING CAT CHANNEL Thank you very much! More to come nearer Christmas...
Delightful well researched film. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it! This is one of my older ones now - great memories of making it!
Another superb production
Thank you for your comment - I'm glad you enjoyed it.
How soon can we knock down Tescos?
I wonder if the people of Haverhill would prefer a supermarket or a station?
@@RediscoveringLostRailways The price of everything (down Tescos) and the value of nothing. It shouldn't have been one or t'other. And BTW, I forgot to add what a great video this is. I'm always looking at the old embankments and bridges and dreaming of what could be.
@@grahambennett8151 really glad you enjoyed the film. Do subscribe if you've not already done so and enjoy my other films in the series!
My Grandmother lived in Lavenham,Long Melford and Glemsford and is buried in Glemsford Churchyard along with my Grandfather
The picture of the railway engine wheels remind me of what used to be Horwich railway station as they have something similar.
Yes, I've also seen this in a few other former stations/railway sites - there's certainly one in Highbridge on the former Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
Thank you for a fascinating film. It must be quite a challenge looking for clues where the line once ran.
Hi Andrew - yes, but it'll come as no surprise that this is part of the fun. I knew that Bartlow Junction signal box was there, somewhere, but it was a thrill to come across it even in its dilapidated condition. As you've come to expect I'm already planning my next film, which I hope to have done in December.
Great Videos
Thanks!
very good video as always. The fiercely patriotic Czech music for what is a very English scene is a bit of a surprise though!
Haha! Yes, it is a bit of a dubious connection, but I had the River Stour in mind and I thought "yes! the Moldau from Ma Vlast!"
At 12:41 where the dirt path turns the corner along the trackbed you can still find remains of the old Sudbury platform ramp with bricks and concrete still in place, the old sleepers were used as a boundary fence too just along the path. The drain grids just to the right of the camera in the car park apparently mark the edge of what was once platform 2 . The current platform was once the goods handling bay. Recently an enamel totem sign has been installed (as shown) and a BR black and white running in & information board has also been installed
Long melford station platforms have been fully restored with cleaning, old enamel signs etc... The trackbed has been filled in though to make it flush with the platform edge.
Glemsford goods shed and I believe signalbox still survive, modified in residential use.
I once found about a half foot of bull head rail in the river stour being dropped from the bridge departing Clare that you filmed. Also the white block on the bridge departing Clare was for the section signal departing the station :) sad to say but trains will never ever be able to connect with the existing Sudbury station as the leisure centre has, once again expanded over the trackbed :( so if the line were to reopen in some form you'd have two Sudbury stations
I wish I had been armed (or just done some better research!) with this information when making the film. Thank you very much indeed - very illuminating.
@@RediscoveringLostRailways this series of films are brilliant and really well made though. They're fascinating to watch
@@Faulty720 Very kind of you to say so, I'm glad you enjoy them!
Great video, being from the area I'm sat here imagining it here today with one of the new Stadler Class 755s blasting down the line.. would've been a great journey to work in Cambridge
Yes, those are great looking trains and I could see them making this trip! Glad to hear you enjoyed the film.
Must have missed this one brilliant as per norm.
Thank you! Many more films to come, so stay tuned!
so glad I found this channel - great stuff - will you ever be venturing north to do some lost railway vids ?
MrMoley55 Welcome! Do make sure you subscribe. I do hope so - I realise that most of the films are currently located within reasonable distance and I hope to venture further afield. I'm always grateful for suggestions. Do subscribe and welcome once again!
Great video but surprisingly you didnt show the impressive Sturmer Arches .
Next time!
Poor old Bartlow Junction signal box.......
It's a shame, for certain.
Great footage and as always wonderful music. I was wondering if you rode a bike on the walk trail parts? The camera seems very steady.
Yes, I cycled the last part. Thank goodness the camera automatically steadies the image too!
These lines should never have closed. Too many cars and fraight on the roads now, that should be on the rails.
Thanks for your comment and subscription - there are certainly some cases where their closure has been very short sighted. I'm certain that commuters between Cambridge and Haverhill would like to have their railway reinstated.
Rediscovering Lost Railways totally agree mate. Same thing wth the Hadleigh (Suffolk) line. How many people now have to drive to Ipswich or further for work, when they'd love to jump on the train. Crazy.
Marcus Nixon they closed because the public were travelling by road in the cars they had bought to give them freedom of movement as their living standards went up. Businesses sent there goods by road because roads were cheaper, more reliable (fewer strikes), went door to door and were as fast if not faster than the railways. Levels of freight by road has been increasing since 1918. Yes, the railways offer door to door services, but the road haulers were cheaper.
I have a feeling that that's not the original location of Sudbury station. It was moved at one point.
Yes, that's my understanding too...
Yes the current location is the third move, initially Sudbury was a terminus that was located near what is now the "Roys of Sudbury supermarket, then it was relocated to the curve to the west to a spot that is now the Kingfisher leisure centre, the original station then became part of the extensive goods yard. Finally in the early 80s (or thereabouts)it was moved into a freight siding which is its current location.
Very nicely done! Do you do all your own editing?
peebee143 Yes, I research, film and edit them all. It is very enjoyable hobby!
I guess that must keep you busy. What do you do for a living? (If you don't mind me being so nosey.)
It does, which is why I only make them every couple of months. Put it this way - my work has nothing to do with amateur filming and railways!
would be interesting if you could discover whats left of the kelvedon to tollesbury light railway
I'll certainly add it to my to do list - thanks for the recommendation!
If only they could have kept the routes as public spaces for walking, cycling and horse riding etc.
Yes, agreed!
I wish we would get this back, not in the form of BRT
It would be a useful route into Cambridge for sure!
Why didn't it continue right thru to MARKS TEY?
The focus is on disused railways, rather than operational ones, which is why this does not feature.
Great video, I have recreated this railway in Train simulator and here are a couple of "cab rides" along the route. Shelford to Long Melford th-cam.com/video/yA8qjQvb_u8/w-d-xo.html and Marks Tey to Bury St Edmunds th-cam.com/video/DJtNGqoRMgw/w-d-xo.html
Thank you - I've managed to have a brief look at the first video and it is most impressive! I don't know anything about train simulators, but I would like to try one!
50% lost railway and only working now 50%