Southport Pier

For the Southport Pier in Australia, see Southport Pier, Gold Coast.

Coordinates: 53°39′11″N 3°01′01″W / 53.653°N 3.017°W / 53.653; -3.017

Southport Pier
Southport Pier

Southport Pier is a Grade II listed building in Southport, Merseyside, England. At 1,216 yards (1,112 m) it is the second longest in Great Britain after Southend Pier.[1] It was listed at Grade II on 18 August 1975.[2] The Southport Pier Tramway ran from Southport Promenade to the pier head (the far end of the pier) at various times in the pier's history, most recently from August 2005 until June 2015.[3]

Structure

The pier, stretching over a kilometre out to sea
The modern pier pavilion

Recent modernisation and repair of the pier formed part of a wider redevelopment strategy, including the new Marine Drive sea wall, landscaping around the pier and the new tram route, and the new £23m Ocean Plaza shopping centre - which presents a blank back wall on the seaward side. Completion was in 2002.[4]

The pier is a completely open structure, with modern railings on an older base, and a deck made of hardwood slats, affording a partial view of the sea below. Plans to restore the Victorian shelters along its length remain just plans.

The modern structure at the pier head, the Pavilion, was designed by Liverpool architects Shed KM. The building houses a cafeteria with airport style floor to ceiling windows overlooking the beach and until mid-May 2012, a collection of vintage mechanical amusement machines, re-creating a traditional pier-end penny arcade. The former exhibition of Edwardian and Victorian machines operated on pre-decimalisation pennies, which were available to purchase on-site (£1 bought 10 old pennies) and proved very popular with locals and tourists alike.

Tramway

The pier tram

The first tramway on Southport Pier was a line for carrying baggage that opened in 1863. The line was upgraded to cable operation in 1865. The line was re-laid in 1893, and electrified in 1905. Southport Corporation took over operation in 1936, and rebuilt the tramway's rolling stock. The pier was closed during the Second World War and when it reopened the tram did not reopen with it. When it finally reopened in 1950, the line had moved to the side of the pier from its previous central position, the gauge had been changed from 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) narrow gauge to 1 ft 11 1⁄2 in (597 mm) narrow gauge, and the line was now diesel operated with two new trains, known as the Silver Belle, built by local engineer Harry Barlow, owner of the Lakeside Miniature Railway.

In 1973 the train was replaced with English Rose, a new model built by Severn Lamb, and seen several times in the 1985 movie Mr. Love, which was filmed largely in Southport.[5][6] The Silver Belle stock was unused and increasingly derelict at Steamport for some years, then at the West Lancashire Light Railway.

The pier was closed for safety reasons in 1998, however the Southport Pier Trust had been formed in 1991 to campaign for the pier's restoration and, by 1999, Sefton Council and the Pier Trust had raised funds to commence the restoration of the pier. The first phase of this restoration was completed in 2002 and included providing a new 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) narrow gauge tram track in the centre of a widened deck.

On 1 August 2005, a new twin-section articulated, battery powered tram car started service on this track.[7][8] The tram car was manufactured by UK Loco Ltd. and offered a passenger capacity of 74 on the length of 24 yards (22 m) and the width of 7.9 feet (2.4 m).[9] The tram ran every day of the year except Christmas Day, and provided a half-hourly service in both directions. The operating hours varied depending on the time of year and the day of the week.[10]

In June 2015, the Southport Pier tram service was scrapped due to rising maintenance costs and council cost-cutting measures. It has been replaced by an extension of a preexisting smaller land train.[3]

Awards

See also

References

  1. ↑
  2. ↑ Historic England, "Southport Pier (1379746)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 28 August 2013
  3. 1 2 "End of the line for iconic Pier Tram after rising maintenance costs". Champion. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
  4. ↑ CABE case study
  5. ↑ "History of Southport Pier". National Piers Society. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
  6. ↑ "Southport Pier". the-pier.co.uk. 2008-08-31. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
  7. ↑ "Southport Pier tram arrives". Light Rail Transit Association. 2005-08-06. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
  8. ↑ "Tourist and Enthusiast Railways - North West". Glyn Williams. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
  9. ↑ "Battery Electric Tram". uk192.com. Retrieved 2011-07-11.
  10. ↑ "Southport Pier". www.visitsouthport.com. Sefton Borough Council Tourism Department. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
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