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Volk's Electric Railway (VER) is a
narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...
that runs along a length of the seafront of the English
seaside resort A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germa ...
of
Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
. It was built by Magnus Volk, the first section being completed in August 1883, and is the oldest operational
electric railway A railway electrification system supplies electric power to Rail transport, railway trains and trams without an on-board Prime mover (locomotive), prime mover or local fuel supply. Electric railways use either electric locomotives (hauling pa ...
in the world, though it was not the first electric railway to be built. It was preceded by electrification of Miller's line in 1875, Werner von Siemens' 1879 demonstration line in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
and by the
Gross-Lichterfelde Tramway The Gross Lichterfelde Tramway was one of the world's first electric tramways ( Miller's line was electrified in 1875). It was built by the Siemens & Halske company in Lichterfelde, a suburb of Berlin, and went in service on 16 May 1881. Ove ...
of 1881, although none of these remain in operation. Operated as an historical seafront tourist attraction, the railway does not usually run during the winter months, and its service is also liable to occasional suspension due to severe weather or maintenance issues.


History


Volk family

On 3 August 1883 Magnus Volk opened a electric railway running for between Swimming Arch (opposite the main entrance to Brighton Aquarium, and adjacent to the site of the future
Palace Pier The Brighton Palace Pier, commonly known as Brighton Pier or the Palace Pier, is a Grade II* listed pleasure pier in Brighton, England, located in the city centre opposite the Old Steine. Established in 1899, it was the third pier to be const ...
) and Chain Pier. Electrical power at 50 V DC was supplied to the small car using the two running rails. On 4 April 1884 the line was extended a further beyond the Chain Pier to Paston Place (now known as Halfway), and regauged to . The electrical supply was increased to 160 V DC and the power plant was installed in the arch built into the cliff face at Paston Place. In 1886 an off-set third rail was added to minimise current leakage.Volk's Electric Railway '' Railway Gazette'' 10 May 1940 page 662 In 1896 the unusual
Brighton and Rottingdean Seashore Electric Railway The Brighton and Rottingdean Seashore Electric Railway was a unique coastline railway in Brighton, England, that ran through the shallow coastal waters of the English Channel between 1896 and 1901. It was designed by Magnus Volk to extend ...
was built by Volk. Due to problems concerning the construction of lengthened groynes to the east of Paston Place this closed in 1901, although it was not finally dismantled until 1910. Following the closure Volk's original electric railway was extended from Paston Place (today's Halfway) to Black Rock on 21 February 1901. Paston Place was also the home of Volk's Seaplane Station, which was used by Volk's son George Herbert Volk. In 1930 the line was cut back from
Palace Pier The Brighton Palace Pier, commonly known as Brighton Pier or the Palace Pier, is a Grade II* listed pleasure pier in Brighton, England, located in the city centre opposite the Old Steine. Established in 1899, it was the third pier to be const ...
to its present terminus, still known as Aquarium. In 1935 a lido was built at Black Rock, and the line was shortened by around to accommodate it. In 1937 a new Black Rock station was opened at the end of the shortened line.


Brighton Corporation

In April 1940, Brighton Corporation took control of the line. On 2 July 1940,
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
defensive preparations resulted in the line closing. After the war, starting in 1947, the corporation rebuilt the line using rail for the running line and mounted on insulators for the
third rail A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway ...
. At Black Rock a new station was built to replace the 1937 building which had suffered badly during the war. The line reopened for passengers in 1948. Winter operation ceased from 1954, although the line did reopen temporarily in the winter of 1980 to cash in on the large numbers of sightseers who had come to look at the '' Athina B'', a freighter that had beached near the Palace Pier. Two-car multiple operation was introduced in 1964. In recent years there has been a decline in visitor numbers due to
package holiday A package tour, package vacation, or package holiday comprises transport and accommodation advertised and sold together by a vendor known as a tour operator. Other services may be provided such as a rental car, activities or outings during the ho ...
s abroad. In 1995 the Volk's Electric Railway Association was formed to help the operator of the line (Brighton & Hove City Council) promote and operate the line. In 2003 the Volks Railway Institute of Science and Technology was formed to promote the educational and science side of the Victorian railway to schools and special interest groups. In the late 1990s the Black Rock end of the line was shortened by 211 feet to permit a storm water storage scheme to be built in the marina area. The 1948 station was demolished and replaced by a new single platform station, which opened in 1998 and shares a building with a new Southern Water pumping station.


Lottery funding

In 2014 it was announced that the railway had been awarded a grant of £1.6 million by the
Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...
, a sum which had to be spent by March 2017. The work funded included: the provision of a new visitor centre and ticket office at the Aquarium station; a new five-road depot (4 stock roads and one through running line) with engineering facilities, inspection pit, and public viewing gallery at Halfway; the restoration of cars 4, 6, and 10 from a semi-derelict state to full working order; and the provision of new educational materials about the railway.


Route


Overview

Today the line runs between terminal stations at Aquarium (a short distance from the
Palace Pier The Brighton Palace Pier, commonly known as Brighton Pier or the Palace Pier, is a Grade II* listed pleasure pier in Brighton, England, located in the city centre opposite the Old Steine. Established in 1899, it was the third pier to be const ...
) and Black Rock (at Black Rock, not far from Brighton Marina), with an intermediate station and depot at Halfway. The line has a
narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
, is electrified at 110 V DC using a
third rail A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway ...
, and is long. There are no branch lines, although there was originally a branch at Paston Place (now Halfway), with a line running across Madeira Drive and into the railway's workshops, which were located (with Magnus Volk's office) inside the cliff on the landward side of the road.


Stations

''Palace Pier'' was the original terminus of 1883 in the centre of Brighton. Named ''Aquarium'' at the original opening, it was renamed ''Palace Pier'' in 1899 when the
pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...
of that name was opened to the public. The station was closed in 1930 when the western end of the railway was shortened to allow the widening of Madeira Drive. ''Aquarium'' station opened in 1930, as the new western terminus of the line following its shortening. As the new station was closer to the old Brighton Aquarium than the Palace Pier, the new station revived the old ''Aquarium'' name. It remains the western terminus. Originally provided with two platforms, one was closed in the 1960s, and the tracks were later taken up, leaving today's station as single-platform. The station was completely rebuilt in 2016-2017 and now has toilets, a cafeteria, staff rooms, a ticket office, and an exhibition centre. ''Halfway'' station is located in the middle of the railway, and has previously been known as ''Paston Place'', ''Children's Playground'', and ''Peter Pan's Playground''. The original station opened in 1884 when the line was extended, and was both the eastern terminus and the depot. Volk also built his own offices at this location, inland from the station. The original station was located on the same site as the depot, and remained there until the station remodelling just after the second world war, when the new station platforms and passenger shelters were constructed about 50 yards further west than the original site. The station has two platform faces, on a single central island platform, in the centre of a
passing loop A passing loop (UK usage) or passing siding (North America) (also called a crossing loop, crossing place, refuge loop or, colloquially, a hole) is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at or near a station, where trains or ...
. There is a public viewing gallery in the neighbouring railway depot and workshop. ''Black Rock'' station opened in 1901 when the railway was extended eastwards. The original station, with two platforms, a ticket office, and a waiting room, was situated in an isolated location. Subsequently, a Corporation swimming pool gave further purpose to the location, and today it is close to the thriving Brighton Marina. The original station was replaced in 1911 with a much larger bungalow-style building. This was in turn closed and demolished in the winter of 1936-1937 when the line was shortened to allow for the construction of the Black Rock swimming pool. The new ''Black Rock'' station opened in May 1937, still with two platforms. The station building was again rebuilt in 1948 in
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...
style, still with two platforms, although from the mid-1960s the south platform was abandoned. In the 1980s the second (south) platform was restored and used for special school visits trains, operating around the timetabled service. This was short-lived, and in 1989 the south platform track was lifted. The station was briefly renamed ''Marina Station'' in the early 1990s, but was in turn demolished in the mid-1990s during a storm drain project, with a new
Regency style Regency architecture encompasses classical buildings built in the United Kingdom during the Regency era in the early 19th century when George IV was Prince Regent, and also to earlier and later buildings following the same style. The period co ...
station building opened in 1998. This new station, which reverted to the original ''Black Rock'' name, was provided with only one platform (plus ticket office and toilets), and remains in current use. No other stations are in current use, although there have been halts associated with intermediate passing loops. Former intermediate passing loop halts have been known as ''Sussex Square'' (or ''Lift''), and ''Kemp Town''. There was also a temporary ''Black Rock'' station constructed, with platform and booking office, during the storm drain project of the mid-1990s.


Signalling

The line is single throughout, with three passing loops - one at Halfway station (previously known as Paston Place and Peter Pan's Playground), and two others roughly midway between each terminal station and Halfway. The passing loops are equipped with spring loaded turnouts. These are set so that trains entering a loop are routed to the left track. Trains can exit the loop by pushing the switch blade to the appropriate position. In normal service two trains operate from end to end, passing at Halfway station, and there is generally only one train on each single track section at any one time. This is sufficient to provide a 15-minute interval service. Drivers are now equipped with radios which allow communication between themselves, stations, and control. Nevertheless, the line is operated using single track tokens. There are four colour coded tokens, one each for the sections between Aquarium and the first passing loop (red token), the passing loop and Halfway (yellow token), Halfway to the next passing loop (blue token), and the passing loop to Black Rock (white token). In practice, the two pairs of tokens (for the two sections west of Halfway, and for the two sections east of Halfway) are permanently combined into a single dual token, marked with two colours, as full operation of the line as four block sections is very rare. Due to the low line speed, multiple trains are able to operate in each section, but the token must be carried on the train furthest from Halfway. There are warning lights at pedestrian crossing points to the beach with a warbling siren to warn of the approach of a train. A following train is required to signal its approach to a pedestrian crossing point by sounding its klaxon horn. One such crossing provides the only external access to Halfway station.


Rolling Stock

The numbering of cars can cause some confusion as numbers were duplicated when new cars replaced scrapped vehicles. In 1948 cars nos. 8, 9 and 10 were renumbered 5, 2 and 1 respectively after the cars bearing those numbers were scrapped. All cars reverted to their original numbers in the year 2000. The cars were often built in pairs. Currently, there are seven electric cars and one diesel locomotive in operation on the line with an additional two electric cars on static display elsewhere. The railway also has a few service wagons that are used with the diesel locomotive. A highly detailed model of Volks carriage No. 6 is on show in the foyer of the
Brighton Toy and Model Museum Brighton Toy and Model Museum (sometimes referred to as Brighton Toy Museum) is an independent toy museum situated in Brighton, East Sussex (registered charity no. 1001560). Its collection focuses on toys and models produced in the UK and ...
, donated by
Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational conglomerate corporation and the largest industrial manufacturing company in Europe headquartered in Munich with branch offices abroad. The principal divisions of the corporation are ''Industry'', ''E ...
who provided much of the electrical equipment used on the railway.


Volk's Electric Railway Association (VERA)

At the invitation of the Council and the management of the railway a supporters association, 'The Volk's Electric Railway Association' was formed in 1995. Members of the Association provide practical and promotional help to the railway, including operation and maintenance tasks. The Association also attends various exhibitions with a large operating model of the railway as it was in the 1950s. Membership is open to all with an interest in the railway. Members receive a quarterly magazine, reduced rate travel on the railway and free admission to a series of winter meetings held in Brighton. The Association also acts as a collector for Volk's memorabilia and ephemera, some of which can be seen at the South Downs Heritage Centre in Hassocks. The largest object now in the care of the Association is the ex Southend Car which, between 1950 and 2000, carried the Volk's fleet number 9. Car 3 will become a two-year joint restoration project if the temporary restoration shed gains consent during spring 2014.


References


Bibliography

* * * *


External links


Volk's Electric Railway websiteVolks Railway information at Brighton & Hove City Council websiteVolk's Electric Railway AssociationVolks Railway Institute of Science and Technology
* illustrated description of the railway *Map sources for: ** ** ** {{Heritage railways in England Heritage railways in East Sussex Transport in Brighton and Hove Tourist attractions in Brighton and Hove 2 ft gauge railways in England 2 ft 8½ in gauge railways in England Railway lines opened in 1883 1883 establishments in England