Lyme Regis branch line

The Lyme Regis branch line was a railway branch line connecting the seaside town of Lyme Regis with the main line railway network at Axminster, running through picturesque rural countryside on the Dorset - Devon border.

It opened in 1903; penetrating difficult topography, the line was very steeply graded and sharply curved; on summer weekends high passenger levels were carried, with through carriages from London on many services. The line achieved high levels of interest among railway enthusiasts in later years because a veteran type of steam engine, the Adams 'Radial' Tank 4-4-2T locomotive, was used to handle this traffic; this engine class survived long after the type had been superseded in its original area of use in the London suburbs.

With the decline in usage of rural lines, the branch closed in 1965.

In earlier times, Lyme Regis had been a busy sea port, but as larger vessels came into use, its business declined. In the nineteenth century, railway travel gained importance, and a number of schemes to construct a railway were promoted; these included a line from Bridgwater (on the Bristol Channel) to Lyme Regis, and another connecting Bridport and Axminster or Chard Junction, serving Lyme Regis en route.

On 19 July 1860 the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) opened its main line between Yeovil and Exeter, giving the area rail transport to London; a horse bus operated between Lyme Regis and Axminster. Over the following years, a Lyme Regis Railway company got as far as cutting the first sod on 29 September 1874, but got no further due to lack of funds.

The hilly terrain and sparse population militated against the financial viability of these projects, and a petition in 1898 with 1,630 names inviting the LSWR to build a branch line to Lyme Regis prompted no result.

The Light Railway Act came into force in 1896, encouraging the development of more modest—and cheaper—railway schemes, and on 15 June 1899 local promoters, now encouraged by the LSWR obtained a Light Railway Order, and Arthur C Pain was appointed engineer of the new company, called the Axminster and Lyme Regis Light Railway.

The Act authorised a share capital of £55,000, supplemented by £24,000 in loans. A contract for the construction of the railway was let to Baldrey and Yerburgh of Westminster, for a tender price of £36,542; Arthur C Pain was appointed the company's engineer.

The LSWR subscribed £25,000 to the cost of the construction, and agreed to manage and work the line in perpetuity. It was to take up to 55% of receipts for expenses, plus 4% on the cost of works it provided; the owning company would take the balance unless that proved inadequate to pay 4% on the shareholders' £55,000, in which case the LSWR would rebate 10% on through traffic.

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