Looking back at the Moorswater Cement flow

John Vaughan summarises the Moorswater cement traffic, which came to an end in later November 2020.

John Vaughan summarises the Moorswater cement traffic,

which came to an end in early December 2020.

Citing commercial reasons, the Tarmac company decided to close the Moorswater cement distribution depot and offices in mid-December 2020, which resulted in the cessation of cement deliveries by rail. This resulted in an important loss to West Country freight, adding to the very many payloads lost over recent decades. The last full length train ran on November 18/19, 2020 and some of the wagons used were taken off lease shortly afterwards. Some reduced load workings worked to Moorswater before the final train ran on November 25/26, although it had been planned for December 2.

The line from Coombe Jn on the Liskeard to Looe branch to Moorswater has its origins with the Liskeard and Caradon Railway and dates back to 1844. The original line extended into the hills of South Caradon and Cheesewring Quarry, with granite being the main payload. The line was eventually extended to Looe in 1860 but a link with the main line at Liskeard was not added until 1901. The mineral business crumbled and all lines beyond Moorswater closed in 1916. In the meantime, in 1904, the St Neot’s China Clay Company opened a clay drying plant at Moorswater, with the china clay being brought down from Parson’s Park on Bodmin Moor.

Initially most of the dried china clay was shipped from Looe, but that situation was short lived and until the Moorswater installation was closed by the English China Clays company in 1997, outgoing loads used the Looe branch only to climb up to the main line at Liskeard and then onwards to Lostwithiel and Fowey for shipment from the docks. The freight-only line from Coombe Jn to Moorswater was then mothballed until Blue Circle Cement opened a distribution depot on the china clay driers’ site in 1999. Its plans included rail freight using the old Moorswater siding from Coombe Junction. Although traffic was erratic, inbound loads of cement were carried by rail at various times from Earles Sidings in Derbyshire and Westbury in Wiltshire. In recent years inbound loads have come from the Aberthaw Cement Works in South Wales. Cement

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traffic was erratic but at times trains ran either once or twice per week. In recent years the frequency was weekly, with the inbound working arriving on Wednesdays and the empties returning to Aberthaw the following day. One interesting curio, depending on train length and therefore load, was that the train sometimes worked to Liskeard where the loco would run round, but on other occasions the cement wagons would travel all the way down to Lostwithiel to run round before returning to Liskeard and gaining access to the Looe branch line.

In the early days the freight operator was English, Welsh & Scottish Railways, later DB Schenker, now DB Cargo. That company was superseded by Freightliner, a company that has also changed corporate hands. In more recent times the weekly working was handled by Colas Rail locos, usually Class 70s and train crews. Latterly, inbound loads have been entirely liquid cement products contained in PCA tank wagons, but in the early part of the current century bagged cement was also delivered.

There were many corporate changes, with Lafarge Cement UK acquiring Blue Circle Cement in 2001. Tarmac, which latterly ran the Moorswater cement depot, was formed in March 2013 by a merger of the Anglo-American company’s UK tarmac business and Lafarge’s UK business. Tarmac is now a CRH company.

The sight of a General Electric Class 70 crossing Cornwall’s viaducts was a unique experience and an aesthetic delight. As was the sight of it creeping onto the Looe branch before descending to the rural delights of Coombe Jn, running round its train under the impressive Moorswater viaduct (which carries the main line through Cornwall) and then propelling its train across an ungated road crossing and through the trees and bushes into the compact depot. The service will be sorely missed.

MAIN PICTURE: Colas Class 70 70802 on the single-track siding from Coombe Jn on the Looe branch to the Moorswater depot. The train is the 1300 Moorswater to Aberthaw empty PCA tank wagons on April 6, 2017. Over the years the timings of the weekly working have changed on several occasions. In the background is the 151ft high Moorswater Viaduct that carries the Plymouth to Penzance main line over the valley. (All photos author unless stated)

LEFT: Having travelled from Earles Sidings in the Hope Valley of Derbyshire down to Lostwithiel to run round its train, EWS Class 66 66226 arrives back at Liskeard in order to gain direct access onto the Looe branch line in September 2001. In later years such workings would originate first at Westbury and then at Aberthaw in South Wales. ABOVE: At times Freightliner Heavy Haul Class 66/6s were used on the Moorswater cement working. Freightliner’s 66613 is looking powerful as the returning cement train empties climb into Bodmin Parkway on the Cornish main line in September 2004. Note that in addition to tank wagons the consist included bogie Cargowaggons, which on the down run contained bagged cement.

RIGHT: This magnificent view of the Cornish main line, albeit single track at this point, was taken on May 15, 2019 with Colas Class 70 70802 crossing the impressive St Pinnock Viaduct between Liskeard and Bodmin Parkway while powering the 0250 Aberthaw Cement Works to Moorswater. The train was booked to travel to Lostwithiel to run round, but on this occasion it ran round at Liskeard.

ABOVE: After arriving at the Moorswater Tarmac Cement distribution depot, running round its train and propelling the loaded PCA tank wagons into the sidings, Colas Class 70 70802 spent the night of April 5, 2017 at Moorswater before returning the empties to Aberthaw Cement Works the following day.

RIGHT: Moorswater level crossing on November 25, 2020 with Colas Rail Class 70 70 810 propelling the final 6C36 0852 Aberthaw Tarmac to its destination. (Bernard Mills)