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Monday 7 Aug 2006

YOUNG AND OLD DEFY THE RAIN AT POPPLETON RAILWAY NURSERY

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More than 40 people attended an open evening on Tuesday 1 August (Yorkshire Day) at Britain’s last surviving railway nursery in Poppleton, York. Although the site is currently disused it is hoped that enough public support can be gathered to create a community interest company aimed at preserving the site for future generations. The nursery was established during World War II to provide good quality vegetables for railway canteens. After the war it served railway hotels and the hundreds of station gardens across Yorkshire and the North East.  It had a railway with a narrow gauge of two feet, which brought the plants from the greenhouses to the distribution point. In latter years a petrol-engine locomotive would shunt wagons along a short stretch of track. Jerry Swift, account director for community rail at Network Rail, said:  “The turnout was excellent, despite the weather. There was a lot of interest, which we hope will turn into results.  With a sound proposal there could be a future for this unique piece of railway heritage." Network Rail has been working with the National Railway Museum, the Association of Community Rail Partnerships, Northern Rail and Jarvis to re-launch the nursery as a community project.  A number of ideas have been suggested, but each requires support from volunteers in order to be viable. Paul Salveson, head of community and regional strategies for Northern Rail added: “We are all delighted with the response – getting  so many people to turn out in the pouring rain was quite an achievement. The next step is to translate that interest into getting a group formally constituted to take the project forward. A meeting is planned in York for later this month.” The partners are still happy to take new expressions of interest - email Paul Salveson, Paul.salveson@northernrail.org.