The Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway (RH&DR) is a gauge light railway in Kent, England, operating steam and internal combustion locomotives. The line runs from the Cinque Port of Hythe via Dymchurch, St. Mary's Bay, New Romney and Romney Sands to Dungeness, close to the Dungeness nuclear power stations and Dungeness Lighthouse. The line is double track north of New Romney and single track south.

History Planning

The railway was the dream of millionaire racing drivers Captain John Edwards Presgrave ("Jack") Howey and Count Louis Zborowski. The latter had constructed a railway at Higham Park, his home at Bridge, Kent, and agreed to donate the rolling stock and infrastructure to the project. However, he was killed in a motor racing accident at the Monza Grand Prix on 19 October 1924 before the Romney Marsh site was chosen, and Howey continued the project alone.

After Howey had unsuccessfully attempted to buy the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway and extend it, he investigated a greenfield site between Burnham-on-Sea and Weston-super-Mare in Somerset and offered to buy the Hundred of Manhood and Selsey Tramway in Sussex, Henry Greenly drew Howey's attention to the potential for a 15-inch gauge line between New Romney and Hythe. Howey first visited New Romney on 8 September 1925 and decided there and then that it was an ideal location for his proposed railway.

The railway would cross public highways, and would need to acquire land from a number of different owners. Thus a light railway order under the Light Railways Act 1896 was necessary and was applied for in November 1925. A public inquiry was held by the Light Railway Commissioners in the Assembly Rooms at New Romney on 15 and 16 January 1926. The Minister of Transport indicated his intention to approve the application on 19 February 1926 and the (SR&O 1926/741) was made on 26 May. This incorporated the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Light Railway Company as a statutory public utility undertaking, gave it powers to construct and work the proposed railway and also included compulsory purchase powers over the land required (which ultimately had to be used to acquire six plots of land on the proposed route).

During construction, the Duke of York (later King George VI) visited the railway on 5 August 1926 and drove Northern Chief, hauling a train with about 100 passengers from Jesson Halt to New Romney and back.

Opening The railway was opened on 16 July 1927 by Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp. The locomotives were designed by Henry Greenly who was commissioned by Howey to work on the construction of the entire railwaySteel & Steel (1973) and became the railway's first chief engineer until his abrupt resignation in March 1929. Mountain Class Hercules hauled the inaugural train from Hythe to New Romney, with guests including the mayors of the two towns and General Sir Ivor Maxse.

Howey was not satisfied with just of track from Hythe to New Romney and plans were in hand for an extension even before the original section had opened. The line was to be extended from New Romney to Dungeness, double-tracked throughout apart from a balloon loop on which the station at Dungeness was sited. A light railway order for this extension was applied for and, following a public inquiry on 18 April 1928, the (SR&O 1928/613) was granted on 12 July 1928. Ahead of this the line between New Romney and The Pilot had actually opened on 24 May 1928 and the rest of the line through to Dungeness opened on 3 August 1928. Since it was laid directly onto the shingle forming the Dungeness peninsula it has been suggested that the extension was the most cheaply constructed railway in the world.Davies (1988)

Second World War

In 1940 the railway was taken over by the military during World War II, and a miniature armoured train was used on the line. It was also used by the Department of Petroleum Warfare in the construction of PLUTO ("Pipe Line Under The Ocean") intended to supply fuel to the Allied forces after the D-Day Normandy landings. During the latter stages of the construction of PLUTO considerable damage was caused to the track on the extension when, to speed up the work, lengths of pipe were dragged along the trackbed by bulldozers, resulting in its reduction to a single track after the war.

Post war

The line re-opened between Hythe and New Romney in 1946, the New Romney to Dungeness section following with a formal opening by Laurel and Hardy on 21 March 1947. Regular services started on 29 March 1947.

In June 1947 the Duke of Westminster's railway from Eaton Hall, Cheshire was transported by the Great Western Railway and Southern Railway from Balderton, Cheshire to New Romney in Kent. It comprised an engine, nine coaches and trucks, and track totalling 222 tons.

In 1949, Captain Howey bought the Duke of Sutherland's private train including engine Dunrobin and coach for the museum at New Romney. It was transported there in 1950 and displayed until sold in 1963.

From 7 September 1977 until 24 July 2015, the railway provided school trains to transport children to and from the Marsh Academy in New Romney. The service was finally withdrawn due to falling usage.

The railway's role as part of the local public transport network was extended when Warren Halt re-opened in 2009, providing a link to the Romney Marsh Visitor Centre. Further discussions with local councils took place regarding the possible expansion of Burmarsh Road and the provision of a new station at the gravel pits in West Hythe, in connection with both the proposed extensive new housing construction and the need to provide alternative transport to the A259 coast road.

The railway, which carries over 150,000 passengers each year,Company's annual report and accounts 2014, p6 celebrated its 95th birthday in 2022 with a 2-day steam and diesel gala.

Smallest public railway in the world From 1926 to 1978, the RH&DR held the title of the "Smallest public railway in the world" (in terms of track gauge). The title was lost to the gauge Réseau Guerlédan in France in 1978 and regained in 1979 when that line closed. It was lost again in 1982 when the gauge Wells and Walsingham Light Railway opened.

The railway has featured in several television and radio shows including an episode of the BBC series The Inspector Lynley Mysteries in 2006, Harry Secombe's Highway on 8 September 1991, Michael Bentine's It's a Square World in 1964, - includes a 6-minute 14 second video of the broadcast BBC's Multicoloured Swapshop (filmed on 20 February 1978)The Marshlander, issue 121 (Winter 1997) and children's show Rainbow.

The Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway Association

Formed in 1967 as a supporters association, and regarded with some suspicion by the railway's management of the time, the association has become a significant contributor to the railway's continuance and refurbishment. It is now the largest single shareholder in the railway and its members provide a significant input of voluntary labour on both operating and maintenance work. It became a registered charity on 23 January 2009. At 31 December 2015 its membership stood at 3,355.Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway Association, Annual Report and Accounts 2015 p 3

Stations

Stations currently open

Stations in full or limited use: Hythe Burmarsh Road (usually special services only) Dymchurch St Mary's Bay Warren Halt (usually visitor centre shuttle trains only) New Romney Romney Sands Dungeness

Stations closed Those shown as 'halt' never had a higher status; all stations below became halts prior to their closure. Prince of Wales Halt (closed 1928) Botolph's Bridge Halt (closed 1939) Golden Sands Halt (closed 1990s) Greatstone (closed 1983) War Department Halt (closed 1945) Lade (closed 1983) The Pilot Inn (closed 1983) Britannia Points Halt (closed 1930)

Stations proposed Stations which never existed but were at one time proposed by the directors or are currently under consideration: Hythe (Red Lion Square): Was first mentioned at the January 1928 meeting of Hythe Chamber of Commerce by Charles Duruz, a local nurseryman, who had contacted the railway company and who indicated they were quite willing to build this extension. Nothing came of the proposal however.Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Herald, 14 January 1928 In 1946 the possibility of extending the railway to Red Lion Square, Hythe was investigated again, but the East Kent Road Car Co Ltd agreed to extend their bus service from Folkestone to terminate at the original Hythe station and the extension idea was dropped.Morris, 1946 Sandling Junction: Suggested by objectors to the railway's original light railway order in 1926 as more useful than a terminus on the outskirts of Hythe, but demonstrated by Greenly to be impracticable because of the difference in levels between Hythe and Sandling which would have necessitated severe gradients. The idea was revived in the late 1980s to connect with the main line at Sandling but again came to nothing, although detailed survey work had been undertaken. Sandling Park: A proposal was made for a station to serve this estate at Pedlinge on the abortive 1980s Sandling extension. Nickolls Quarry: A proposal for a station to serve a new housing development at the West Hythe site of Nickolls Quarry has been formally included in a planning application to Folkestone and Hythe District Council.Details from newspaper.

Way and works

Permanent way The line was originally laid using second-hand First World War surplus rail. Most was material rolled in the US, the rest was rolled in Belgium when the country was under German occupation.Snell, 1993 In the late 1960s and early 1970s the railway managed to obtain supplies of good second-hand rail on the closure of the Sierra Leone Government Railway; these are the oldest rails on the line, some of which date from the 1890s.

During the mid-1980s the company began obtaining brand new 25 lb/yd rail from Luxembourg before switching to 30 lb/yd material produced British Steel Track Products in Scunthorpe and later obtained further supplies of the same from South Africa. The present standard rail for relaying work is obtained from a manufacturer in Spain.

The original sleepers were creosoted Baltic fir spaced at centres. These have now been entirely replaced by second-hand standard gauge sleepers cut into thirds, creosoted douglas fir, or jarrah and karri (Australian hardwoods from the eucalyptus family).

The railway has a permanent way team, with a full-time staff of platelayers. It forms part of the larger Engineering Department. Some platelayers work all year round, whilst others are diverted to other seasonal employment within the engineering department, for example as summer drivers, when more drivers are required than during the out of season periods. Additionally, the permanent way team is strengthened on many days of the year, especially in the winter months, by volunteer workers.

Way and works data The longest underline bridge is Collins Bridge, with a span of approximately . The summit of the line is above Ordnance Datum, located between Hull Road and Taylor Road, Lydd-on–Sea.Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer sheet 125 and The Marshlander, issue 90 (Spring 1990) p10 The ruling gradient is 1 in 75 at the Dungeness end of New Romney Station rising from the Littlestone Road Tunnels.The Marshlander, issue 90 (Spring 1990) p10 The tightest curve measures radius and is at the Hythe end of 'The Deviation', a dogleg section of track at Pennypot on the outskirts of Hythe.The Marshlander, issue 90 (Spring 1990) p15