The Isle of Man has a rich transport heritage and boasts the largest narrow-gauge railway network in the British Isles with several historic railways and tramways still in operation. These operate largely to what is known as "Manx Standard Gauge" ( narrow gauge)Railways in the United Kingdom and together they comprise about of Victorian railways and tramways. The Isle of Man Railway Museum in Port Erin allows people to find out more about the history of the Manx railways, and was until 1998 accompanied by a similar museum in Ramsey, which was dedicated to the history of the electric line, but this was closed and converted into a youth club. The steam railway to the south of the island, electric to the north and mountain line to the summit of Snaefell, the island's only mountain, are all government-owned, and operated under the title Isle of Man Railways, as a division of the island's Department of Infrastructure. The lines at Groudle Glen and Curraghs Wildlife Park are both privately owned but open to the public.The Manx Steam & Model Engineering Club
Lines The lines listed in the table are or have been open to the general public. Most of the major lines had/have "Manx Standard Gauge" of .
+Lines open to the general publicNameOpenedClosedGaugeLengthNotesIsle of Man Railway 1873 — Peel line closed 1969Manx Northern Railway1879 1905 Taken over by the Isle of Man Railway in 1905. Last tracks used 1969.Foxdale Railway 1886 1905 Taken over by the Isle of Man Railway in 1905.Snaefell Mountain Railway 1895 — Groudle Glen Railway 1896 — No service 1962 to 1983Manx Electric Railway 1893 — Douglas Bay Horse Tramway 1876 — Great Laxey Mine Railway 1877 2004 1929 — Former mine railway, reopened in 2004 as a tourist heritage railwayUpper Douglas Cable Tramway 1896 1929 Douglas Southern Electric Tramway or Marine Drive railway 1896 1939 Douglas Head Funicular Railway or Douglas Head Inclined RailwayThe Isle of Man Railways: The Douglas Head RailwayMarine Drive 1900 1954 Passenger incline railwayPort Soderick Cliff LiftThe Industrial Archaeology of the Isle of Man 1896 1939 First Falcon Cliff Lift sold to Port Soderick and re-erected there in 1896Laxey Browside Tramway 1890 1906 Queen's Pier Tramway, Ramsey 1882 1971 Restoration works under wayOrchid Line, Wildlife Park, Ballaugh 1992 — Various Miniature railwayFirst Falcon Cliff Lift, Douglas 1887 1896 Sold and became the Port Soderick Cliff LiftSecond Falcon Cliff Lift, DouglasFalcon CliffIsle of Man Cliff Railways 1927 1990 Track and installations still in place but overgrown.
There have been various other railways on the Isle of Man that have never been open for public transport, such as those in the various mines around the island. Among these are/were: Glenfaba Glenfaba Brickworks TramwayThe Isle of Man Railways: The Glenfaba Brickworks Tramway Knockaloe branch line, owned by the IMR, for Knockaloe Internment Camp internees and supplies Peel Harbour Tramway, construction railway, , steam locomotives, built 1864 or 1865 and dismantled 1873. Incline railway connecting to the Peel Harbour Tramway, self-acting incline. Corrin's Hill, horse-drawn construction railway connecting a stone quarry to the incline railway. Garff A second Laxey Mine tramway, , horsedrawn, on the lower washing floor, constructed around 1865 and lasted until at least 1918 Middle Douglas Breakwater Crane Railway Douglas Holiday Camp A construction railway to the Injebreck Reservoir, , built 1899, length from Hillberry to the Reservoir, worked with steam locomotives. Rushen Port Erin Breakwater Railway, a construction line for the Port Erin Breakwater. , steam traction, built 1864.
About fifty other minor tramways, in the various mines, quarries and sand pits, or on RAF gunnery lines, existed on the island.
Use in film
The BBC adaptation of The Ginger Tree in which it doubled for communist Russia using the carriage shed at Douglas, lineside scenes and (No.11 Maitland was painted matte black for this production and remained in this guise for the remainder of the 1989 season) as well as being the subject of a 1988 BBC documentary as part of the Train Now Departing... series in an episode called "Steam in the Isle of Man". Other television credits include an adaptation of The Legend of the Tamworth Two, the television movie Stiff Upper Lips and the long-running travelogue show Wish You Were Here...? which featured Sir Norman Wisdom. In more recent times Great Coastal Railway Journeys has showcased the railway as well as Oz and James's Big Wine Adventure.
See also Isle of Man List of heritage railways British narrow gauge railways Mountain railway Transport in the Isle of Man Sodor
References