Route
From Bristol Temple Meads, the line heads east, diverging from the Great Western Main Line, Wessex Main Line and Heart of Wessex Line at Bristol East Junction. The line curves to the north, passing under the A4320 and then joining with a chord from the Great Western Main Line at Dr Days Junction. At this point there are four tracks, but this narrows to two before Lawrence Hill. Continuing north, the line passes under the old Midland Railway Bristol to Gloucester Line, passes through Stapleton Road, then diverges west from the Cross Country Route at Narroways Hill Junction. The line from here is single track, passing through some woodlands and circling the St Werburghs area, passing under the B4052 (Ashley Hill) before reaching Montpelier. The line then passes over the A38 Gloucester Road on a viaduct known as "The Arches", before reaching Redland and passing along a straight cutting through Cotham before reaching Clifton Down. This is the line's main passing point, as it is one of the few remaining places with double track. The line then enters the mile-long Clifton Down Tunnel, reappearing in the Avon Gorge. The line follows the river, passing through Sea Mills before heading inland to Shirehampton, past the Portway Park and Ride, under the M5 Avonmouth Bridge and through an industrial estate before reaching Avonmouth. Avonmouth has a passing loop, but is not often used as a passing place. Beyond Avonmouth, the line passes through a small residential area before reaching Avonmouth Docks. A freight yard is to the east of the line here, used for coal trains. St Andrews Road is within the yard, and to the north the Henbury Loop Line diverges to the east. The Severn Beach Line continues north along the banks of the River Severn to the terminus at Severn Beach.
Beyond Severn Beach, the line used to continue north through the town and along the banks of the Severn, meeting the Bristol and South Wales Union Railway's line near New Passage Pier. It then joined with the South Wales Main Line at Pilning.
The line has been listed among Thomas Cook's most favoured attractions for its scenic route along the River Avon and River Severn.
Read more about this topic: Severn Beach Line
Famous quotes containing the word route:
“By a route obscure and lonely,
Haunted by ill angels only,
Where an eidolon, named Night,
On a black throne reigns upright,
I have reached these lands but newly
From an ultimate dim Thule—
From a wild weird clime that lieth, sublime,
Out of space—out of time.”
—Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849)
“A Route of Evanescence
With a revolving Wheel—”
—Emily Dickinson (1830–1886)
“A route differs from a road not only because it is solely intended for vehicles, but also because it is merely a line that connects one point with another. A route has no meaning in itself; its meaning derives entirely from the two points that it connects. A road is a tribute to space. Every stretch of road has meaning in itself and invites us to stop. A route is the triumphant devaluation of space, which thanks to it has been reduced to a mere obstacle to human movement and a waste of time.”
—Milan Kundera (b. 1929)