Virtual Victorians || Themes Gallery || Brunel || Atmospheric Railway

The Atmospheric Railway

atmospheric pumping house design by Brunel: photo courtesy of the University of Bristol

To reduce building costs for the South Devon Railway west of Exeter, Brunel planned to use atmospheric power rather than locomotives. Trains were connected to a piston in a pipe along the middle of the track. Pumping engines every 2 to 3 miles sucked air out of the pipe drawing the train along.

Other railways using this system, patented in 1838 by Clegg and Samuda, had been built in London and Ireland. Trains were cleaner, quieter and in theory could be very fast.
Brunel proposed that atmospheric power would be used all the way to Truro in Cornwall.
Atmospheric trains started to run to Teignmouth on 13th September 1847 and to Newton Abbot on 10th January 1848.
However in practice it proved difficult to run the trains at more than 22mph maintain.
Keeping the airtight seal on the pipe was impossible because rats and the sea air damaged the leather seals.
Brunel eventually admitted defeat and recommended that the atmospheric system be abandoned. From 9th April 1849 all trains through to Plymouth were worked by steam locomotives.

Themes Gallery: Brunel

The Atmospheric Railway