Hereford, Ross and Gloucester Railway

The Hereford, Ross and Gloucester Railway was a railway company formed by an 1851 act of Parliament to build a line connecting Hereford and Gloucester, England, via Ross-on-Wye, which opened on 1 June 1855 and was absorbed into the Great Western Railway in 1862. Its 22.5-mile broad gauge line, originally laid to 7 feet 0.25 inches, was converted to standard gauge in 1869 by 450 men working five days from 15 to 19 August, alongside the conversion of the South Wales Main Line, and served eight main stations plus three halts; the opening in 1855 was reported at the time as a success, with six passenger trains a day from Hereford and five from Gloucester. The line declined amid automobile competition, closing to passengers on 2 November 1964 and to freight on 1 November 1965 during the Beeching cuts era.