Hayfield branch

Hayfield Branch Line
Legend Hayfield Birch Vale Hope Valley Line New Mills Central Hope Valley Line

Torr Side, New Mills, where the railway crossed the River Sett.

3 x 2-car British Rail Derby Lightweight units at Low Leighton on Hayfield branch in 1967.

The Hayfield Branch was a 2.5-mile (4.0 km) single-track branch line that ran along the Sett Valley from the Hope Valley Line near New Mills Central to Hayfield via one intermediate stop, Birch Vale.

History

Opening

summer 1961 timetable - the 8am train was steam worked until 1964. Its truncated modern diesel equivalent from New Mills is slower!

The branch opened in 1868 to serve the villages along the valley of the River Sett and the local mills. Passenger numbers were high especially in the summer months as the line provided easy access to the country.

Kinder Reservoir

A short-lived continuation of the line was built in the early 20th century to convey materials and workmen during the construction of Kinder Reservoir.

Closure

After the World War II, traffic slowed and eventually the line closed in January 1970.

The site today

The line was purchased from British Rail by Derbyshire County Council in 1973 and now forms the Sett Valley Trail.^[1]

References

1. http://www.peakdistrictinformation.com/visits/settvalleytrail.php

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• Line on a 1948 OS Map