Ashley Hill : Ashley Down (3)

An Explore Before ...

Frankly, there was little to see of Ashley Hill station once the site had been cleared post the 1964 closure. Above is a general shot before the Filton Bank route reverted to four tracks.

Fortunately, Google Streetview and/or Google Earth sites have not been well updated to record the building of the new Ashley Down station which opened last Saturday 28th Sepember. So we can explore on-line, if not on the ground.

At the bottom of the hill, Station Road veers sharp right to a dead end (with the fence, remember?). Here the ever probing eye of the Google satellite shows a pathway leading direct to the logo for the new station.

It doesn't!

The path leads to a tunnel under the tracks, but before plunging into the dark and dismal depths, you have a choice of a right hand or left hand turn. 

This is the junction with the nobly named Concorde Way, not yet labelled when the Google noddy car nodded past.

It is a series of linked footpaths and side roads which leads, eventually, to the development on Filton Airfield, the one-time home of Concorde. The start of the route is at the top of Hopetoun Road, itself accessed by the graffiti tunnel on Mina Road "visited" by fbb yesterday.

Part of Concorde Way runs alongside the new Ashley Down station ...

... just as the pathway ran alongside the old Ashley Hill Station.

It has been upgraded with dire warnings about mowing down passengers entering and leaving the new station.

The station entrance/exit is next to the pathway under the tunnel but now much more spectacular.

Quite a motorway style junction!

The hi-vis suits are actually at the gate to the station.

The good news for troglodyte rail explorers is that the tunnel still remains, seen below from the non-station side.

Access from the east is via Station Lane ...

... which is not the most inviting approach to the new station.

The route was signposted even before the station arrived ...

... with a wider aerial view showing all sorts of pathways and tracks in the area.

Whether at least one of these led up to an eastern entrance to the old station before the Filton route went four track, is not certain - wll not to fbb, anyay.

And The New Station

Like most of these new-built "halts" (because that is how the real GWR would have named them) ...

... there is nothing much there except a very expensive accessible footbridge costing millions.

Would it not have been better to use the existing foot tunnel, well refurbished, and provide good quality ramps? It would have saved a lot of cash and might have made it possible to have a proper shelter or two on the platforms (see below).

There are several videos on-line of the first train, but fbb will refrain from showing any of them. They are mostly made by over excitable rail enthusiasts (aren't they all?).

But the crowds at Ashley Down station were massive ...

... some of whom actually travelled all the way (just one stop) to Filton Abbey Wood ...

... which really exposed the farce of this reopening. One day, somewhere over the rainbow, this station will be part of a half hourly service between Bristol and Henbury. 

But until then these trains are a very nominal hourly shuttle between Filton and Temple Meads.

It's called Strategic Planning!

As far as "facilities" are concerned, the station has display screens, one of which was showing this for much of the opening day:-

It reads "No services from this platform."

It has a timetable poster ...

... but no staff, no toilets, no maps and no information for, say, connecting trains at Filton.

`

Maybe you might be honest and strive to buy a ticket?

Fair enough, but the machine does not take cash, so really great for those without bank cards, on line bank acounts or apps for crypto currency!

It is called Customer Service!

However, the residents of Ashley Down have gained one bonus from the opening of their station. The Concorde Way path has re-opened (at last) after four years of closure and a very inconvenient set of diversions.

Closed bits are in RED, the lengthy diversion via some busy roads ...

... shown in BLUE.

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 1 Day to Go 

 Next Future Vision blog : Thurs 3rd Oct 

Ashley Hill : Ashley Down (2)

 Let The Train Take The Strain

The map above shows the current state of play for trains in the Bristol area. The BLUE lines currently carry passngers, the RED lines still have track in place and in use.

The line through Yate (upper right) was part of the Midland Railway and originally ran via Mangotsfield, Staple Hill and Fishponds into The St Phillips terminus. 

St Phillips in terminal decline -1 962

There was a link across to Montpelier (shown as "2" on the map above) which carries freight to/from Avonmouth docks. St Phillips was closed with services transferred to Temple Meads; then the route from Yate southbound was closed with all trains from Birmingham diverted via Bristol Parkway and the Filton Bank.

Filton Bank, the hill up from Temple Meads to Filton, has a tale to tell.

Originally, in the very early days of Ashley Hill station, the "bank" was double track, subsequently widened to a four track route.

The track off to the right is the now singled route to Montpellier, Avonmouth and Severn Beach.

In 1984 the main line was reduced to a two track route ...

... then in 2018 it was back to a four track layout.

It is called "strategic planning": or maybe short termism?

The junction was called Narroways.

Either way, Ashley Hill station was on the westerly two tracks, usually defined as the "slow" lines. The above OS extract shows the link line from Montpelier (upper left) crossing over the Filton Bank tracks and joining the Midland lines at Mangotsfield where the station had already closed as (not) shown above.

Below is the junction near Montpelier.

... with a train approaching from Mangotsfield. Both diverging routes were double track back then with the right hand lines, as we look eastwards, curving round to Narroways Junction and on to Temple Meads.

The Junction waa provided with a brand new signal box ...

... which opened a couple of years before the line to Mangotsfield was closed completely.

It is called "strategic planning": Again!

Just to confuse us all, this junction was called Ashley Hill Junction although it had no connection whatsoever with Ashley Hill Station on the Filton Bank line.

Confused.com?

Here is an annotated map.

It shows the main locations referred to in the blog (so fat?). Just spotted a typo - should be "ManGotsfield'!

The line between Ashley Hill Junction and Mangotsfield is long gone, but Google Earth reveals some of the route ...

... and the site of the bridge over the Filton Bank line.

Mona Road, which probably predated the railway, passes under Ashley Hill Junction ...

... and continues the theme of "community adornment" as seen at Montpelier station. Here we proceed north ...

...through the tunnel ...

... and look back southbound.

Some people have the audacity to call it "art"!

We return to Ashley Hill Station for a couple of (undated) old pictures. Here a typical GWR train at the up platform (to Temple Meads) ...

... and much the same again - but with a different set of coaches.

In this case, please note the footpath running alongside the western edge of the line. This will feature in tomorrow's blog. There seems to be a surprising number of trainspotters - might this have been the very first train from the station. The public footpath looks new or refurbished even though it is outside of the station boundary.

Interestingly, there are no pictures on-line of Ashley Hill station in BR (steam or possible early diesel) days. The closure in 1964 went almost announced.

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13 more alphabetical fruits, but only 12 to answer as fbb took pity on his "congregation" and gave the a freebie for "X". It is a type of water melon with yellow flesh. So there!

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 2 Days to Go 

 Next Ashley Down blog : Weds 2nd Oct 

Ashley Hill : Ashley Down (1)

The Victorian Suburb

Come with fbb on a virtual ride on First Bristol's Route 70.

It has probably had three different liveries since the above was pictured!

The route will take you past Montpelier station (on the line to Severn Beach) which is unstaffed and, in recent years, has not looked its best.

It didn't look that good when it did look its best!

As you continue along Ashton Down Road, get ready to alight at the Sefton Park Road stop which fbb guesses would be known as "Muller Homes" to many an aged Bristolian.

That is because, opposite the stop, you will find the former orphanage developed by legendary Christian and Philanthropic George Muller.

His work was huge amongst the poor and deprived of Bristol.

Whilst the idea of massive orphanage buildings is no longer the modern way, the building still stands.

As you would expect from that far off age, the children were segregated, wore uniform and were highly disciplined.

His work was pioneering in its day.

But now you walk forward in the direction of the bus and you will soon spot a right hand turn  ...

Turn here and you would be walking down Station Road, which, surprise surprise, led to a railway station. But it was not called Ashley Down. Until 1964 you would find Ashley Hill station.

Notice that, in its early days, on the far (eastern) side of the station there is just countryside.

Of course, the building of this station contributed enormously to the development of its surrounding suburbs as it provided a quick ride into Bristol.

So housing was developed down Station Road with the left hand side of the thoroughfare being unchanged today.

Below, we see the development on the western side of the station seen from the platform.

The concept of "Express GWR Station" might have been a bit optimistic, but (above right) it did have a "Station Hotel".

The building is still there but now divided into flats.

It stood at the bottom of Lilstock Avenue.

Opposite the hotel, the station had two platforms, substantial station buildings and gained a footbridge.

In the above shot, the Station Hotel etc is off shot to the right and the fence (top right) is on the edge of the cul-de-sac end of Station Road.

There's still a fence there but undergrowth precludes a view of the line.

But it is there, honest.

And below are some of the girls from the orphanage awaiting a train to take them on an exciting excursion, perhaps to Weston-super-Mud, changing at Bristol Temple Meads.

Hmmm? Maybe not ideal beach wear, but perhaps they had their voluminous cozzies in their bags.

Tomorrow, fbb aims to put Ashley Hill station into its railway context.

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With their fellowship meetings coming up in a week, here is part one of the quiz pages. The leaflet takes a glance at the somewhat obscure clean and unclean designation of the various animals as outlined in the Old Testament. The rules may seem obscure, but in the context of, say, 1200BC, they were a remarkably prescient guide to healthy eating.

The quiz is simple - just identify the alphabetical (and not necessarily biblical!) fruit and veg.

13 more tomorrow.

Puzzle Picture

Above are the platforms on the flyover at Bletchley. These platforms will open when the Oxford to Bedford via Bletchley service starts. The bus that accompanied the puzzle Picture was a United Counties VR terminating at Stony Stratford, a small town on the A5 which was originally far more important than the obscure village of Bletchley

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 3 Days to Go 

 Next Ashley Down blog : Tues 1st Oct