Kirklees Light Railway

The Kirklees Light Railway is a 4 mile long 15 in (381 mm) gauge minimum gauge railway at Kirklees, West Yorkshire. It runs along part of the trackbed of the branch line from Clayton West Junction, near Shepley on the Huddersfield - Penistone railway line; the KLR runs between Skelmanthorpe and Clayton West on the disused trackbed.

History

Permission to construct the railway was granted by Kirklees Council on the 27 September, 1991. The line was originally 1 mile in length running from Clayton West station to a specially constructed stop called Cuckoos Nest. It was extended to Skelmanthorpe in 1992 and again to a station at Shelley in 1996.

The journey gives fine views of Emley Moor Radio Mast and includes the longest tunnel on any 15 in (381 mm) gauge line in Britain.

Locomotives

A feature of the line is the use of modern steam designs, which could be the future for small railways due to the lower maintenance costs.

Steam locomotives

The following are one-third scale size engines:

Name	Builder	Type	Date	Notes
Fox	Hunslet	2-6-2T	1990	Operational. Used regularly on passenger trains.
Badger		2-6-4ST	1991	Operational. Used regularly on passenger trains.
Hawk	Kitson Meyer	0-4+4-0T	1997	Used only sometimes on weekend services and special events but not regularly because it uses a lot more coal than "Fox" and "Badger".
Owl		0-4+4-0T	2000	Recently has had repairs carried out and is now used on the weekend services and special events.

Diesel locomotive

• 0-4-0DH Jay built in 1996, body shape changed in 2002. Probably the hardest working engine on the line as it is used a lot to shunt stock, it is also used occasionally on passenger trains.

Petrol locomotives

• No 7 The Tram built in 1991. The engine was originally from an invalid car, it is in use and can be seen operating footplate rides at the railway along with the occasional passenger train.

External links

• Official KLR website
• Friends Of The KLR
• KLR Train Simulator Addon