Ventnor West Branch

The Ventnor West Branch was the final addition to the Isle of Wight railway network, and used an earlier scheme to run a railway from Shanklin to the railwayless south-west part of the island.^[1]

v t e Ventnor West Branch
Legend
IWCR northward Merstone IWCR toward Sandown Godshill Whitwell St. Lawrence Ventnor West

History

Newport, Godshill, and St. Lawrence Railway Act 1889
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to authorise the Shanklin and Chale Railway Company to make a railway from the Newport Junction Railway at Merston to St. Lawrence in the Isle of Wight; and to abandon certain authorised railways; and for other purposes.
Citation	52 & 53 Vict. c. cli
Dates
Royal assent	12 August 1889
Text of statute as originally enacted

Newport, Godshill and St. Lawrence Railway Act 1892
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to authorise the Newport Godshill and St. Lawrence Railway Company to extend their Railway towards Ventnor and for other purposes.
Citation	55 & 56 Vict. c. ccxl
Dates
Royal assent	28 June 1892

Newport, Godshill, and St. Lawrence Railway Act 1896
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to authorise the Newport Godshill and St. Lawrence Railway Company to further improve and extend their Railway towards Ventnor and for other purposes.
Citation	59 & 60 Vict. c. xlvii
Dates
Royal assent	2 July 1896
Text of statute as originally enacted

Isle of Wight Central Railway (Godshill Transfer) Act 1913
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for transferring to and vesting in the Isle of Wight Central Railway Company the undertaking of the Newport Godshill and St. Lawrence Railway Company to confer further powers on the Isle of Wight Central Railway Company and for other purposes.
Citation	3 & 4 Geo. 5. c. xiii
Dates
Royal assent	4 July 1913
Text of statute as originally enacted

The branch was opened as the Newport, Godshill and St Lawrence Railway the between Merstone and St. Lawrence on 20 July 1897.^[2] From the day of opening, the branch was operated by the Isle of Wight Central Railway. A temporary terminus was provided at St Lawrence until the extension was opened to Ventnor Town on 1 June 1900.^[3] The terminus was renamed Ventnor West by the Southern Railway.

East end of St Lawrence Tunnel in 1954

In the days prior to the Grouping of the railways in 1923, the line struggled to make financial ends meet. However, after 1923 the services did improve and some of the increasing competition from road transport was lessened. An extensive programme of modernisation was undertaken by the Southern Railway, albeit with secondhand equipment from the mainland. Some economies were made on the branch by the Southern Railway, most notably the removal of the passing loop and signal box at Whitwell in 1928. The footbridge at Dean level crossing on the outskirts of Whitwell was also removed around this time. The footbridge was re-erected at Wroxall.

Nationalisation in 1948 brought the British Railways emblem to the locomotives but few other significant operational changes. The passenger numbers remained low and the branch continued to lose revenue to more convenient bus services. It was no surprise when closure was announced for 15 September 1952.^[4][5] The branch was visited by a large number of enthusiasts in its final months.

Today all the station buildings are in residential use.

The route described

From the junction at Merstone, the line turned south and continued through farmland to cross the main Newport-Shanklin road. The line then continued through farmland to Godshill.

From Godshill the line again traversed farmland on a large stretch of embankment that ran to the small hamlet of Southford on the outskirts of Whitwell.

From Whitwell the line climbed up to the northern portal of St. Lawrence tunnel, crossing the B3327 road at Dean level crossing before reaching the tunnel itself.

The line entered the tunnel and began a long descent to St Lawrence and the terminus at Ventnor West.

Stations

• Merstone
• Godshill
• Whitwell
• St Lawrence
• Ventnor West