The London and Southampton Railway was first proposed in 1831 and the bill approved by Parliament in 1834 at a cost of £900,000. The section between Basingstoke and Winchester opened on 11 May 1840 – and was the final part of the London and Southampton Railway to be completed. Prior to its construction, all of the traffic between London and Southampton was carried by eight stage coaches, four wagons per week, and one barge weekly on the Basingstoke Canal!
The London and Southampton Railway was first proposed in 1831 and the bill approved by Parliament in 1834 at a cost of £900,000. The section between Basingstoke and Winchester opened on 11 May 1840 – and was the final part of the London and Southampton Railway to be completed. Prior to its construction, all of the traffic between London and Southampton was carried by eight stage coaches, four wagons per week, and one barge weekly on the Basingstoke Canal!
The London and Southampton Railway was first proposed in 1831 and the bill approved by Parliament in 1834 at a cost of £900,000. The section between Basingstoke and Winchester opened on 11 May 1840 – and was the final part of the London and Southampton Railway to be completed. Prior to its construction, all of the traffic between London and Southampton was carried by eight stage coaches, four wagons per week, and one barge weekly on the Basingstoke Canal!
Station Adoption Group Micheldever Station
In anticipation of our Micheldever Station 180th Celebration we explored the possibility of establishing a Station Adoption Group.
Contact information
In preparation for the Micheldever Station 180thCelebration we explored the possibility of establishing a Station Adoption Group, in conjunction with Community Rail Partnership, which relates to South Western Railway.
This proved to be a useful exercise and we achieved a sympathetic and constructive rapport with the railway authorities. We were so glad that Network Rail had commissioned some refurbishing of the built environment and the subway was repainted in time for the celebrations. Representatives of South Western Railway joined us on 8th May 2022
Unfortunately, this work was merely superficial, but, by this time, we had gained a ‘listening ear’. The first downpour of rain saw the green/black mould reappearing on the brick walls of the stairways and cascades of water poured onto the subway floor where drainage downpipes were blocked with rubble and rusted from years of non-maintenance.
Smartphone images proved a convincing backup to our requests for a more realistic approach to the problem. The long hot summer was ideal for drying out the bricks, the soil they retain, and the platform areas. Incredibly, overnight work of replacing worn-out guttering, renewing drainage, mending porous sections of platform was complete before this most recent autumnal deluge. These testing weather conditions have again identified shortcomings in the repair work. But it is improving! We recognise it is ‘work in progress’.
Users of the station will see the colourful planter that greets you at the top of the stairs as you arrive at the platforms. We have The Dove Inn to thank for this. A labour of love indeed, to keep the colourful assortment of flowers alive and thriving throughout the drought and scorching sunshine of July and August.
What a relief when we heard that the endeavours of our many Councillors had impressed upon SO-Recycle the need to apply through the normal planning process if they intend to run a business from the railway sidings.
Our small group, at present, is made up purely of residents of Micheldever Station but if anyone from further afield would care to join us, or just touch base with ideas, we would love to hear from you.
We can be contacted on: stationadoptiongroupmicst@gmail.com
