Plans for The Somerset & Dorset Railway at Midsomer Norton

Somerset & Dorset Railway Heritage Trust

Strategic Plan 2024

Executive Summary

Click Here to View the Full Strategic Plan

This document sets out the Strategic Plan of the SDRHT looking forward from 2024, the year in which it was produced. The Strategic Plan reflects on the current situation, including the background to how this has developed, looks at where the SDRHT, in the form of the Trustees, believes it should be heading and how reaching these objectives is envisaged to be achieved.

The Strategic Plan has drawn on previous similar documents, consultation with working members, and consideration of examples of similar documents from other relevant comparable organisations.

The SDRHT’s objectives are defined over short (12 month), medium (5 year) and longer terms. The rationale for each objective is stated and the priorities associated with each objective are also defined.

In summary, the short-term objectives are:

1. Maximising the use of and value from the existing assets of the SDRHT.
2. Completion of ongoing major railway projects to which the SDRHT is already committed:
   1. Somervale sidings;
   2. Acquisition of 9F;
   3. Acquisition of Sentinel loco (from SDRHT member), or alternative steam locomotive in running order which is:
      1. judged suitable for the SDRHT and Company’s purposes, including the maintenance and storage facilities currently available; and
      2. available for purchase; and
      3. within the SDRHT’s available funds (including those raised for the original purpose which remain available).
3. Establishment of project teams and generation of project plans (including funding plans) for principal projects to be delivered over the medium term:
   1. Tunnel Lane developments;
   2. Staged extension(s) towards Chilcompton;
   3. Restoration of 9F.
4. Rolling Stock acquisition and restoration.
5. Land purchases of track bed between leased station area and in-filled cutting.
6. Opportunistic acquisitions and other investments to support longer term objectives – as listed under the following headings.

In summary, the medium-term objectives are:

1. Railway developments within existing corridor:
   1. Tunnel Lane;
      1. Maintenance /restoration facility;
      2. Passenger halt;
   2. Running line;
   3. Station site.
2. Railway and other developments outside the existing corridor:
   1. Staged extension(s) towards Chilcompton e.g. on some or all of the “Redan curve” land acquired, including leisure path use alongside any railway reconstruction.
3. Restoration of 9F to full working order (for heritage railway operation, i.e. not to main line condition).
4. Rolling stock acquisition and restoration:
   1. Locomotives:
      1. Historically significant;
      2. For operational /maintenance purposes;
   2. Passenger carrying vehicles;
      1. Historically significant;
      2. For operational /maintenance purposes;
   3. Freight vehicles;
      1. Historically significant;
      2. For operational /maintenance purposes.
5. Opportunistic acquisitions and other investments to support longer term objectives, as listed under the following heading.

In summary, the long-term objectives are principally around extensions, primarily towards Chilcompton, following on from the corresponding item within the previous time frame. Given the scale of the challenges to be overcome before anything resembling the original railway alignment is made continuous between Midsomer Norton (MSN) and Chilcompton, it may be reasonably assumed that activities to achieve this will still be ongoing well beyond 5 years from the date of this plan (i.e. by 2029).

The Strategic Plan also recognises the likelihood of long-term objectives around developments within the existing corridor which could relate to developments associated with the running line (e.g. further double-tracking and/or installation of run-round facilities in the vicinity of the proposed Tunnel Lane Halt), or further developments to the station site which could include revisiting some of the proposals included within the Outline Planning Application previously developed. There are, at present, no specific proposals to document in this category for this long-term planning horizon.