Yeovil Railway Centre - South Chord Project It has long been our wish to reroute and extend our demonstration line along the 'South Chord' at Yeovil Junction. The trackbed was dug out by the Great Western Railway around 1864 but no one has ever laid the track due to cost and the lack of benefit. At this time a Broad Gauge goods line was constructed from Clifton Maybank Junction (under the London and South Western line from Salisbury up to Yeovil Junction where a Transfer Shed was built. This building now serves as our Visitor Centre. The intention was to create a triangle. We intend to build on the legacy of the work completed by the Navvies of the GWR in 1864 to use the South Chord Track bed to extend our running line. The extension will greatly improve the visitor experience, but we need your help in order to complete it. This page will record our progress (latest at top) and we will be most grateful of donations towards the estimated cost of £100,000. Donations received will be placed into a Designated Fund for the South Chord project. All donations will help and will be gratefully received but we are offering benefits for donations of £50 and over. Please follow this link SOUTH CHORD DONATIONS if you would like to help our project financially - we would be most grateful!! Map of Yeovil Railway Centre showing South Chord area. Clicking on the map will show a larger version and details of railways around Yeovil in the 1950's. Public trains currently operate from Point A to Point Y. Once the project is complete Public trains will run from Point A to Point X (new platform) with access to the Events Field (Z)

Rails have been temporarily laid - Heart of Wessex Line in the background.

30 September 2024 Due to the low bridge access to our site, much material has to be offloaded and then brought round separately! Here, rail sections are being moved.

Limited clearance!

Safely stored until required.

9 September 2024 First sleepers on the South Chord since the trackbed was dug in 1864! Eventually will be removed whilst the top layer of ballast is laid and levelled.

More base ballast delivered.

27 August 2024 Scraping the new trackbed. Taken from the Event Field.

26 May 2024 Around 50 bullhead sleepers (recovered from Gloucester) now on site. When time and resources permit they will be moved to the South Chord area.

21 May 2024 I wonder?.

16 May 2024 First 20 tons with the new delivery of base ballast behind.

Delivery of 60 tons of foundation ballast.

24 March 2024 Much progress. Scraping back the loose soil from the bottom of the cliff face and also removing the grass from the new trackbed. The first ballast arrival is the first ever (as far as we know) laid on the Chord since it was excavated in 1864.

13 October 2023 Unloading one of the lorries delivering the Horton Road rail and other materials. (Photo courtesy John Miller)

25 June 2023 A rather lonely Buffer Stop and a line of pegs are seen at the end of the South Chord as the first visible sign that the project has started. (Photo courtesy Brian Haigh)

March 2023 Horton Road Gloucester material recovery. (Photo courtesy Neil Coultas)

March 2023 (Photo courtesy Neil Coultas)

March 2023 (Photo courtesy Neil Coultas)

March 2023 Horton Road, Gloucester. Prior to lifting track much clearance of brambles etc had to be undertaken! (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

March 2023 Inspection of the vegetation and the track beneath! (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

March 2023 (Photo courtesy Neil Coultas)

March 2023 (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

March 2023 (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

5 October 2021 Unloading the Portfield track. (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

5 October 2021 Recovered track from Portfield arriving at Yeovil.

4 October 2021 Recovering track from the old Portfield Fuel Depot siding at Chichester. (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

4 October 2021 (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

3 October 2021 (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

3 October 2021 This gate can be seen in the photos following, protecting the site from the now disconnected main line. (Photo courtesy Mike Hibberd)

The RAF fuel depot at Portfield, Chichester was built by Esso in 1938-9 as part of an Air Ministry contract for the supply and distribution of fuel to the nearby Tangmere, Westhampnett and Merston Airfields. Unlike later depots, the site didn't have a connection to the national Government Pipeline and Storage System, instead being supplied by rail. The fuel was stored in four 500-ton and two 350-ton Whessoe Foundry steel tanks covered with earth. It was then loaded into bowser lorries and taken by road to the airfields. Power to the site was provided by a six-cylinder National marine diesel engine.

As the site looked in 2009. The buffer stop had gone by the time we arrived! Many more photos HERE (Photo courtesy Richard E Flagg www.ukairfields.org.uk)

As the site looked in 2009. The curve in the distance was checkrailed (and recovered).Many more photos HERE (Photo courtesy Richard E Flagg www.ukairfields.org.uk)

As the site looked in 2009. Main line connection still in place. Many more photos HERE (Photo courtesy Richard E Flagg www.ukairfields.org.uk)

As the site looked in 2009. Many more photos HERE (Photo courtesy Richard E Flagg www.ukairfields.org.uk)

Despite being camouflaged, by 1940, the depot appeared on Luftwaffe target maps and was even mentioned in a broadcast by the infamous 'Lord Haw-Haw', William Joyce, with the chilling words "We know about the petrol dump in Chichester". Air raids were carried out by German bombers on two separate occasions, but luckily for the people of Chichester the bombs fell wide of their mark. From The Derelict Miscellany CLICK for more information and photos

9 August 2020 Fencing South Chord from cliff.

9 August 2020 Fencing South Chord from cliff.

12 February 2020 Empty South Chord trackbed apart from white markers.

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