Isle of Wight Railway
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| Isle of Wight Railway |
| Original Stations (from north to south) Ryde Pier Head |
The Isle of Wight Railway (IWR) was opened on 23 August 1864. It had a total length of 14.5 miles from Ryde to Ventnor and a branch line from Brading to Bembridge. It had junctions with the Isle of Wight Central Railway (IoWCR) at Smallbrook Junction and Sandown. The section between Ryde St John's Road and Ryde Pier Head was built and owned by the London and South Western Railway and the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, but was operated for them by the IWR and IWCR.
The IWR headquarters was at Sandown. The was the most successful railway on the Isle of Wight, with heavy summer passenger traffic from the mainland.
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Under the Railways Act 1921 the new Southern Railway took over all railways on the Isle of Wight. During the 20th century the main line was increased to double track between Brading and Sandown. British Railways closed the Bembridge branch in the 1950's and the Shanklin - Ventnor part of the IWR main line in 1966.
The line from Ryde to Shanklin was electrified in 1967. In 1987 a new station was opened at Lake. It is between Sandown and Shanklin, on the site of a halt that existed earlier in the 20th century. In 1991 another new station was opened at Smallbrook Junction. It provides a connection with the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, a heritage line operating part of the former IoWCR between Smallbrook Junction and Wootton.
The surviving part of the IWR is now operated by the Island Line franchise.
