DOUGAL ON TOUR

Despite problematic beginnings, Hythe Pier, along with Hythe Pier Railway and the Hythe Ferry, continues to provide an important link between the port city of Southampton and the village of Hythe.

The Hythe Ferry docking, about to put another boat load of passengers ashore. Image: David Henshall

To have a river feeding into the top of a coastal estuary is hardly unusual, but for Southampton, already known for the helpful double high tides, the main part of the city is squeezed between two major rivers.

As Southampton developed into a modern trading port in the late Middle Ages, the villages on the surrounding shorelines would be developed, although being ‘across the water’ meant that they maintained their own individual identities. Yet, at the same time, that very separation helped create a long last legacy of local ferries that plied their trade to and from the city.

In more recent times the eastern suburbs have been linked by the towering span of the Itchen Bridge, but to the west, Hythe is still served by the almost iconic Hythe Ferry, which motors on the 10 minutes, crossing from Southampton’s Town Quay to the end of Hythe Pier.

Even once they reach the pierhead, the journey is still far from complete as Hythe Pier, at over 600m long, is the seventh longest pier in the UK. This is not too bad for those who have taken their pushbikes with them, but for the pedestrians, this can be a wet walk when the weather is inclement.

Pier transport After the fi rst attempt to legislate for the building of a pier at Hythe in the early 1870s failed, when the plans were fi nally agreed at the end of the decade a tramway was also included, so that when the pier was completed and open for business in 1881 the Victorian era passengers could travel into Hythe in some comfort.

Unfortunately, this would cause some structural problems for the pier, so by 1909 the tramway had been replaced by a narrow-gauge railway, served by ‘hand-propelled’ carriages.

The next move was to mechanise the

Hythe Pier may not score highly in a list of ‘pretty piers’, but it is highly functional and is standing up well to the demands being put on it. Image: David Henshall

It is pretty much a line of sight from the end of Hythe Pier to the destination point on the Royal Pier. A short, but for many people, an essential journey on a twice daily basis. Image: David Henshall

line, but here a grim reminder of the horrors of the First World War would be reused for happier and more peaceful purposes. In response to the German gas attacks on the Western Front, the UK had created its own mustard gas production unit at Avonmouth on the Bristol Channel. Once the chemicals had been mixed, the gas was moved in tanks along a short distance of narrowgauge railway, pulled by battery powered electric engines.

With the return to peace, these engines were sent to Hythe, their batteries removed as they were converted to a more normal electric operation, with power supplied by a third rail. These new engines were in place by 1922, meaning that in July of this year the trains celebrated their centenary, making Hythe Pier Railway the oldest continuously operating anywhere in the world.

The engines are complemented by a collection of little carriages and a fl atbed car for freight, plus the railway has a small fuel tank that can be used for refuelling the Hythe Ferry boats.

Together the pier, the railway and the ferry provide an essential connection between Hythe and the centre of Southampton without the inconvenience of the 10 mile plus alternative trip by road. Yet for many years there have been questions raised about the continued viability of the operation and, despite all the indicators being that public transport will in future be given a raised priority, operation of the railway, the pier and the ferry have lacked a clear future.

Hitting misfortune It has to be an accepted part of building a pier out into what is quite a challenging environment, even in the fairly benign conditions of Southampton Water, that almost by defi nition piers are ‘high maintenance’. Jutting out almost to the edge of one of the busiest commercial waterways in the UK brings an added risk as in pre-radar and GPS days ships which wandered out of the buoyed channel could easily run into the pier.

There had already been three such incidents since the early days of the pier’s operation, with varying degrees of damage done, but nothing would compare to the carnage caused early evening on 1 November 2003. Luckily, this was a Saturday, but even so, a group of football supporters, who had been at the big game in Southampton, had just taken the train home to Hythe when the Donald Redford, a large dredger, crashed right through the pier, leaving a 150ft gap in the middle. Thankfully there were no casualties, but the pier was out of action for the busy three-month period over Christmas and the New Year.

The show goes on With the pier repaired and back in service, the very viability of the operation was once again in question, but with some help from the County Council at Hampshire, the pier and ferry looked towards a new future in the hands of the Hythe Pier Heritage Association.

However, more recently, the prospects for the Southampton to Hythe service have taken a sharp upward turn, as the demolition of the old Fawley Power Station suggest that there will be a great deal of new development on the western side of Southampton Water. At the same time, with the city attracting freeport status, the pressures on jobs and on housing will drive demand for easy and speedy commuting across the short stretch of water.

The Hythe Pier Railway might be 100-years-old, but this is anything but an ‘End of the Pier’ show!

How things looked back in 1933: the rolling stock, which has its own history, remains the same through to today. Image: Hythe Pier Heritage