Spanish Town to Ewarton railway

Spanish Town to
Ewarton railway
km
Main line to Kingston
0.0
 Spanish Town
Main line to Montego Bay
A2 road
100' contour
1.2
 St. John’s Road Halt
irrigation canal
4.8
 Angels Halt
Angels
Tunnel #1
100 m
109 yd
9.5
 Crescent Halt
viaduct
70 m
77 yd
Tunnel #2
160 m
175 yd
Tunnel #3
110 m
120 yd
Tunnel #4
665 m
727 yd
Thomas River
15 m
16 yd
14.1
 Bog Walk
Rio Cobre
40 m
44 yd
14.5
Port Antonio branch
250' contour
A1 road
16.5
 Michleton Halt
19.3
 Linstead
Rio Magno gully
85 m
93 yd
New Works branch
B13 road
A1 road
A1 road
Byndloss gully
20 m
22 yd
22.1
 Sterling Castle Halt
unnamed gully
40 m
44 yd
500' contour
23.7
Ewarton Works branch
750' contour
27.8
 Ewarton Terminus
Railroad Crossings
Gated│Ungated
A and B roads
Parochial motorable road
Unclassified road

The Spanish Town to Ewarton railway was a railway in Jamaica, built to serve the citrus growing regions in the interior of Saint Catherine, particularly those around the towns of Bog Walk, Linstead and Ewarton.[1] It operated from 1885 to 1992.

History

The 14 miles (23 km) of 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) (standard gauge) track from Spanish Town to Ewarton were completed in 1885 at a cost of approximately £93,000.[1]

The section from Linstead to Ewarton was closed in 1947.[2] It was later reopened as far as the Bauxite processing plant just east of Ewarton.

The rest of the line closed to passengers in 1992 but it remains open for Bauxite traffic.[3]

The Spanish Town to Bog Walk section reopened briefly for passenger traffic in 2009/10 while the A1 road through Bog Walk Gorge was closed for major repair work.[4]

Gradients

The line climbs 700 feet (213.4 m) in 14 miles (23 km) (average gradient 1 in 106 or 0.0094%) from Spanish Town station (just under 100 feet or 30.5 metres[5]) to its summit at Ewarton (800 feet[6]).

Stations and Halts

There were 4 stations and 5 halts on the line:[3][5]

  • Spanish Town Station (Branch Terminus)
  • St. John’s Road Halt
  • Angels Halt
  • Crescent Halt
  • Bog Walk Station
  • Michleton Halt
  • Linstead Station
  • Sterling Castle Halt
  • Ewarton Station] (Terminus)

Tunnels

There are 4 tunnels,[5] from south to north:

  • Number 1 ~100 m
  • Number 2 ~160 m
  • Number 3 ~110 m
  • Number 4 ~665 m

Bridges

There are 7 significant bridges on the line:

  • Viaduct ~70 m
  • Thomas River ~15 m
  • Rio Cobre ~40 m
  • Viaduct (not visible in satellite imagery)
  • Rio Magno Gully ~85 m
  • Byndloss Gully ~20 m
  • Unnamed Gully ~40 m

Notes and references
  1. The Jamaica Railway 1845-1945 by H R Fox, General Manager, Jamaica Government Railway in The Railway Magazine of November & December 1945.
  2. Satchell, Veront M, Sampson, Cezley (March 2003). "The rise and fall of railways in Jamaica, 1845-1975". Journal of Transport History. p. 11. Archived from the original on 10 August 2011. Retrieved 30 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. Annual Transport Statistics Report: Jamaica in Figures 2003-2004 Archived 2013-03-15 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of Transport and Works, July 2005, Table 3.5 - Mileage for JRC Stations, Halts & Sidings in relation to the Kingston Railway Terminus 2003-2004.
  4. "Jamaica Train Ride - Linstead to Spanish Town (09 AUG 2011) Pt # 2". YouTube. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  5. UK Directorate of Overseas Surveys 1:50,000 map of Jamaica Sheet L (1966).
  6. UK Directorate of Overseas Surveys 1:50,000 map of Jamaica Sheet G (1973).

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