Hayle Railway - Passenger Business

Passenger Business

The railway was built as a mineral line, and the terminals were simply siding groups at the mines, with an extensive siding layout at Hayle serving wharves there, and Harvey's foundry and engineering works, and wharf sidings at Portreath. At other locations siding connections were made to the railway to serve mines and factories.

There was considerable demand for the conveyance of passengers. A steam packet service had been introduced in 1831 between Hayle and Bristol, and from 1841 it was possible to continue to London by the Great Western Railway. The Hayle company's Act authorised the conveyance of passengers, although this was not considered important at first, but in 1843 a passenger service was initiated between Hayle and Redruth, starting on 22 May 1843. There may have been unofficial usage of the mineral trains by passengers before that date.

The stations (except at the termini, these were probably little more than locations where the trains stopped) were at:

• Redruth (on the Camborne road, west of the town)
• Pool
• Camborne
• Penponds
• Gwinear
• Angarrack
• Copperhouse
• Hayle Riviere, and
• Hayle (in Foundry Square).

Note: Only Oakley refers to Hayle Riviere

At first the stopping place at Hayle was at Crotch's Hotel, near Foundry Square. Oakley states that Crotch "operated the railway in the early days"; this may mean that he provided the passenger vehicles, as Anthony reports that "two railway carriages, or 'Omnibusses' as they were called, were provided by 'an individual at Hayle and fitted up at his own expense' -- evidently Mr Crotch.

The passenger operations were a great success, and this encouraged the directors to run excursion trains on Whit Monday 1843, "to enable passengers to go and return at any time of the day, visiting the beautiful bay of St Ives, the sandy beaches of Gwithian and Hayle, and Gwennap Pit, the noted scene of Wesley's labours". (John Wesley had preached at the location over a number of years in the previous century.)

By July 1844 there were three passenger services each way daily, taking an hour for the journey.

Bradshaw's Guide for 1850 shows the three return journeys mentioned above, leaving Redruth for Hayle at 9.00, 12.00 and 4.15 pm, and taking 50, 60 and 45 minutes respectively; the return journeys were at 10.00, 1.10 pm and 5.00 pm, taking 50, 50 and 60 minutes respectively. The distance is quoted as 12 miles, and the fare was 1s first class, 9d second class and 6d third class. "Omnibuses attend at Hayle and Redruth ... to convey passengers to Penzance or Truro, and for Falmouth."