Plan to reopen railway from Ironbridge to Bridgnorth

The enthusiasm for reopening long-closed railways has reached Shropshire. A plan has been published to reopen the line up the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to a station serving new housing on the site of Ironbridge power station.

According to the Shropshire Star:

The plan would create a 10-mile route, with six new stations, and ambitions to link with the Severn Valley Railway in Bridgnorth.

It could also connect to Telford, if plans from Telford Steam Railway to extend its line are developed.

You can find the full plan on the Ironbridge Railway Trust website.

From the outside, reopening the line from Bridgnorth to the industrial museums of the Ironbridge Gorge has long looked like a natural ambition for the Severn Valley Railway. But its Wikipedia entry suggests the idea was long ago written off by them as impractical,

And a link to the Birmingham to Shrewsbury line at Telford is surely vital if this scheme is to go ahead. This line existed unril recently and was used to bring coal to Ironbridge power station.