Dawlish Sea Wall collapses!

TheBandicoot

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26042990
:eek:

metrovick001

Wow, that looks bad. I walked along there many times in the 80s, great place to grice! The houses dont look like they will be there too much longer.

cbl593h

And people who must live under stones are turning for up trains as if not a drop of uisce has fallen.....

Taunton to Exeter is shut for Whiteball Tunnel maintenence for 3 weeks, all the problems are south of Exeter though.

end of the road

to me it seems it was only a matter of time before this happened

101sean

That stretch has had problems since it was built and is a maintenance nightmare for Network Rail, it's often affected by storms.

Wonder whether it will improve the case for re-opening the alternative L&SWR route via Okehampton north of Dartmoor, a parallel route that should never have been shut.

sawdoubters

sea views

corktina

101sean wrote: »

That stretch has had problems since it was built and is a maintenance nightmare for Network Rail, it's often affected by storms.

Wonder whether it will improve the case for re-opening the alternative L&SWR route via Okehampton north of Dartmoor, a parallel route that should never have been shut.

The Okehampton route isn't really parallel as it would involve a reversal at Exeter (if the trains continue to run from Paddington rather than Waterloo) and isn't that easy to work as it runs across the foothills of Dartmoor to a greater extent than the current line. The line to Newton Abbot would still have to remain for the Torbay trains, so you would be rebuilding a line solely for the benefit of Plymouth and Cornwall traffic. If I remember correctly you would have another reversal at Plymouth to reach Penzance.

bob425

The former L&SWR route & the former Teign Valley route will not be reopened. What will probably happen at great cost is a much larger reinforced wall will be built along most of the 4 miles from Dawlish Warren to Teignmouth. The passenger will see very little of the sea and the many people who walk the Sea Wall will not see a train. It would appear that part of Brunel's GWR line is about to change forever.

end of the road

bob425 wrote: »

The former L&SWR route & the former Teign Valley route will not be reopened.

its doubtful i'd agree, but i would say that reopening the L&SWR route will be looked at in the future if the situation at Dawlish Warren becomes more common even with new defences

bob425 wrote: »

What will probably happen at great cost is a much larger reinforced wall will be built along most of the 4 miles from Dawlish Warren to Teignmouth. The passenger will see very little of the sea and the many people who walk the Sea Wall will not see a train. It would appear that part of Brunel's GWR line is about to change forever.

most likely but you never know, either way interesting times ahead