Bewdley to Woofferton

This single line railway criss crossed its way in an East/West direction through the borders of three counties; Shropshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire. It crosses the borders eight times on its journey through the unspoilt countryside of these three counties. The first section of the line opened between Woofferton and Tenbury on 1st August 1861, this being worked by the GWR. Tenbury became the terminus, with Woofferton Junction being on the Shrewsbury to Hereford Railway. However, the extension of the line was completed three years later by the Tenbury and Bewdley Railway Company, this also being worked by the GWR. This section opened on 13th August 1864. The lines two sections soon integrated into one , although some trains still only ran the Woofferton to Tenbury stretch. The history of this railway is linked to the canals; some of the line west of Newham Bridge runs along the path of the former Kington, Leominster and Stourport Canal. This ambitious stretch of waterway included three aqueducts and four tunnels, one of which was over two miles in length. Close to Newham a tunnel collapsed and a Tramway to Stourport was proposed to complete the journey; this plan though never came to fruittion.  What was left of the canal was eventually sold to the Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway Company. There are six intermediate stations on route, all covering sparsely populated areas. The only two towns on the line of any size were Tenbury and Cleobury Mortimer. The former eventually changed its name to Tenbury Wells instead of just Tenbury. Interestingly, the station is not actually in Tenbury and not even in the same county; Tenbury station is north of the river at Burford in Shropshire. Like many lines in Shropshire it declined rapidly as road traffic increased and following a brief revival in World War Two the line was shut down completely between 1961 and 1965. The remains of Dowles Bridge still stand on the River Severn today.

History