Thornbury branch line

The line's services first consisted of two trains in each direction per day, connecting at Yate with mainline trains. Later trains appeared to be running from Thornbury down to Bristol Temple Meads, although the services were infrequent. By 1910, there were four trains in each direction every weekday. In 1944 the passenger train was run by a class 1P 0-4-4 tank with three coaches, which spent the night at Thornbury. The journey took 19 to 22 minutes. During World War 2 12-coach trains took wounded to hospital at Thornbury.

The first {{convert|1/2|mi}} was level. {{convert|1+1/2|mi}} fell at {{railway gradient|176}} to Iron Acton. The climb to Tytherington was at {{railway gradient|86}}, followed by {{railway gradient|59}} to Tytherington Tunnel and a siding to a quarry. The {{convert|224|yd|m|adj=on}} long tunnel was lined only at the ends and a fall of rock blocked the line for a week in 1956. Beyond the tunnel, railway ballast was supplied by Grovesend Quarry. From the {{convert|167|yd|m|adj=on}} Grovesend Tunnel the line fell at {{railway gradient|50}} through a limestone cutting to Thornbury.

The {{convert|1|mi|7|chain|km|adj=on}} branch to ironstone mines at Frampton Cotterell was authorised by an act of Parliament{{which|date=March 2025}} of 1865, but the mines failed, and Midland's Way & Works Committee agreed to lift the line at its 15 April 1878 meeting, though it wasn't done until 1892.Railway Magazine December 1957 pp. 866-868 Colin G. Maggs: The Thornbury Branch

On 19 June 1944, the line was closed to passenger traffic. In the 1960s, the stations were demolished, apart from {{rws|Yate}}, which was closed with other stations on the Bristol to Gloucester line in 1965 and then re-opened in 1989. The section of track from Tytherington Quarry to Thornbury was dismantled after the closure of the goods depot at Thornbury in 1966.

The rest of the line remained open to goods traffic, serving the Tytherington Quarry with very occasional freight services. Following the cessation of these services and with no near term resumption of traffic expected, the line was designated 'Out of Use (temporary)' beyond milepost 0 mi 30 ch in mid 2013.

The line returned to use in June 2017 following the reopening of the quarry by operators Hanson. An initial test run operated on 4 June 2017, with occasional loaded trains running from the quarry thereafter.

Studies into reopening the branch line have been made in a consultation report produced by Halcrow Group in 2014,{{cite web|url=http://travelwest.info/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/west-of-england-rail-studies-report-april-2014.pdf|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311170952/http://travelwest.info/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/west-of-england-rail-studies-report-april-2014.pdf|archivedate=2016-03-11|accessdate=14 March 2017|title=Final Report West of England Area Rail Studies|publisher=Halcrow}} as well as the November 2015 joint transport study report produced by The West of England Local Enterprise Partnership.{{cite web|url=https://www.jointplanningwofe.org.uk/gf2.ti/-/636578/18103781.1/PDF/-/151203_JSPTS_Key_Principles_Report_revised_final.pdf|title=West of England Joint Transport Study Key Principles Report |publisher=Atkins|accessdate=14 March 2017}} In 2013 the estimated cost of this would be £38 million.{{cite news|last1=Gardner|first1=Rachel|title=Calls made for Thornbury railway line to re-open|url=http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/calls-thornbury-railway-line-open/story-17758735-detail/story.html|accessdate=14 March 2017|work=Bristol Post|date=4 January 2013}}

Suggestion was made as part of the West of England Combined Authority (Weca) Joint Local Transport Plan to reopen the line along with others in the MetroWest project. However, in 2017 Weca found there would be several challenges in delivering this proposal,{{cite web|url=https://www.westofengland-ca.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Item-12-Joint-Transport-Study-Final-Report-with-appendixes.pdf|title=West of England Joint Transport Study - Executive Summary - October 2017|website=West of England Combined Authority|date= 30 October 2017|accessdate=26 April 2019}} as the former rail alignment into Thornbury is now occupied by an industrial estate and there is no practical routing into the town. The station would therefore have to be located on the edge of Thornbury at a significant distance from the town centre, making it less attractive to passengers. The Grovesend tunnel would also need to be reopened, with its current condition unknown, and there would be capacity constraints at Westerleigh Junction. This led to the authority deciding not to pursue reopening the line. FOSBR continue to advocate reopening the line in the future.{{cite web|url=http://fosbr.org.uk/files/newsletter/FOSBR_Newsletter_95_201710.pdf|title=October 2017 - Issue 95(V2)|website=FOSBR|date= October 2017|accessdate=25 April 2019}}

In 2020, the line was mentioned by Railway Gazette International as having potential for future funding from the Department for Transport's "Restoring Your Railway" initiative.{{cite web|url= https://www.railwaygazette.com/uk/restoring-your-railway-fund-could-provide-a-toolkit-for-town-transformation/56799.article|title=Restoring Your Railway Fund could provide a toolkit for town transformation|website=Railway Gazette International|date=23 June 2020|accessdate=23 June 2020}}

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Category:Railway lines in South West England