2011
TG0921 : Reepham and Whitwell Railway Station
taken 13 years ago, near to Whitwell Street, Norfolk, England
Reepham and Whitwell Railway Station
The station was opened in 1882 as part of the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway's (M&GN) branch from the main line at Melton Constable to Norwich City. Whilst the route was fairly well-used, it struggled under the competition from the larger Great Eastern Railway and its more direct lines. Only one year prior to opening, the Great Eastern had inaugurated its own station at Reepham which, unlike Whitwell, was conveniently sited to the settlement it purported to serve.
The M&GN suffered in the post-war period which saw much freight transfer to road and greater car ownership, leaving the line with its summer and schools traffic. In the face of spiralling losses, British Rail made the decision to close the majority of the line, leaving Whitwell open for freight until 1964. The track through the station remained, however, down until 1985 for the purposes of concrete product movements to neighbouring Lenwade railway station. The station site itself was variously used post-closure as a tree surgery, offices, the parking of coaches and a workshop and garage. Following the lifting of the track through the station, the trackbed was reused as part of the Marriott's Way from 1993. At one point there was even a proposal to dismantle the station building and re-erect it at Holt station on the North Norfolk Railway.
In 2007 it was purchased by a local enthusiast who with the R&W railway society reopened the station in February 2009.
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