Ashby and Nuneaton Joint Railway

The Ashby and Nuneaton Joint Railway was a pre-grouping railway company in the English Midlands. Construction began in 1869 and the railway was opened in 1873.[1] The railway was built to serve the Leicestershire coalfield. It linked Moira and Coalville Town with Nuneaton.

Ashby and Nuneaton Joint Railway
Construction of the Ashby & Nuneaton joint railway near Dadlington using a Manning Wardle tank engine
Route map
Overseal and Moira
Moira
Donisthorpe
Coalville Town
Measham
Snarestone
Hugglescote
Heather and Ibstock
Shackerstone Junction
Shackerstone
Market Bosworth
Shenton
Stoke Golding
Higham on the Hill
Nuneaton
Abbey Street
Nuneaton
Hinckley

Ownership

Until the 1923 grouping the railway was jointly owned by the Midland Railway and the London and North Western Railway.[1] It then became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, which withdrew passenger services in 1931.[1] Nationalisation in 1948 made the railway part of British Railways, which closed the line to freight traffic in 1971.[1] Although the section from Measham to Overseal and Moira remained open to serve Donisthorpe Colliery until 1981, when the line closed. The section from Ashby to Moira remains open to freight traffic on the Burton - Leicester Line.

Today, the stations and their sites are:

Moira-Shackerstone section:

  • Donisthorpe - Filled in and landscaped but the trackbed towards Measham and Moira are now footpaths
  • Measham - Is now in use as a museum and was to become part of the restoration of the Ashby Canal but plans have since been shelved. The goods shed is used for commercial purposes.
  • Snarestone - Demolished but the goods shed and station master's house remain as private residences

Coalville-Shackerstone section:

  • Hugglescote - Was in use for a conveyor belt but has since been removed and is now overgrown
  • Heather and Ibstock - Demolished and now a housing estate but the station master's house remains as a private residence

Shackerstone-Nuneaton/Hinckley section:

  • Shackerstone - Now part of and the northern terminus of the Battlefield Line Railway
  • Market Bosworth - The station master's house is in private ownership but a platform is in use by the Battlefield Line Railway
  • Shenton - Demolished but in use as the southern terminus of the Battlefield Line Railway. Part of the original station is used as a pottery and the stationmasters house is in private hands.
  • Stoke Golding - Private residences but the goods shed is in use for industrial and visitors
  • Higham on the Hill - Demolished but the station master's house remains as a private residence
  • Nuneaton Abbey Street - Demolished. The station master's house remains as does the waiting shelter, although it is a ruin.
  • Hinckley - Open as part of the Birmingham - Peterborough line

Preservation

Part of the line between Shackerstone and Shenton has been re-opened as the Battlefield Line Railway, a heritage railway.

References
  1. Speller, John. "Ashby & Nuneaton Joint Railway (L&NWR/MR)". John Speller's Web Pages. Retrieved 16 January 2012.


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