NORFOLK’S NARROW GAUGE

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: february 2018 :: RMTnews 26 The Bure Valley Railway (BVR) is a delightful narrow gauge heritage railway which provides an 18-mile round trip through North Norfolk’s pretty countryside following the River Bure through meadowland and ancient pasture. Along the line, within The Broads National Park, are halts serving the picturesque Broadland villages of Brampton, Buxton and Coltishall where you can hop off and explore by foot. Hop back on and continue your journey by train by waving down the driver to stop. Built on the trackbed of the original standard gauge 19th century East Norfolk Railway, the 15 inch narrow gauge line came back to life in 1991 to allow new generations to marvel at the Victorian engineering that takes the line through deep cuttings and over man-made dykes across the valley floor. Operational manager Neil Cummings oversees the maintenance of over nine miles of Permanent-Way and knows the line inside out as well as the effort involved in building the line. “There are 17 bridges, including a 105-foot long girder bridge over the River Bure in Buxton as well as Norfolk's only operational railway tunnel. “The Aylsham tunnel carries the railway under the Aylsham bypass replacing the original standard gauge level crossing,” he says. The restored station at Aylsham, which acts as headquarters, also houses the engine sheds where fitter Mike Turner lovingly keeps the railway’s specially-built loco engines rolling. He explains that working on NORFOLK’S NARROW GAUGE The Bure Valley Railway meanders for miles through the heart of the Norfolk Broads