Once upon a time, the Bermuda Railway rattled and shook its way along a single track that stretched from St. George’s through Hamilton to Somerset. The train followed the north shoreline and crossed some 33 trestles and bridges sometimes over open sea, thus giving passengers breathtaking views. From 1931 to 1947, it was an important part of Bermudian life. Its 41 scheduled stops meant the island became so much more accessible than was previously possible.
No longer was a trip from Hamilton to St. George’s necessarily a day’s journey by horse and carriage. You could get there in one hour flat for just three shillings and fourpence. If you couldn’t be bothered to go to town, you could ask stores such as Smith’s to put packages on the train to be collected at the appropriate station. Before the Second World War, tourists could enjoy it and would take their pedal bikes on the train as well, so that they could continue their island explorations. And during the war many a uniformed soldier from the base or from Prospect would be seen travelling the track in search of night life on the town.
Once the war was over, the railway was no longer economically viable. Its private investors eventually sold the company to the Bermuda government who, in turn, in 1948 sold the stock and track to what was then British Guyana. In 1946, cars, buses, trucks and bikes became the motorised road traffic of Bermuda. After decades of indecision, in February 1985 it was announced the land left by the railway company outside the city should be used as a public footpath, to be used by pedal bike cyclists and pedestrians. And so, the Bermuda Railway Trail officially came into being. Footbridges were made at Shelly Bay in the mid-2000s while by 2014 Friends of the Bermuda Railway Trail were fundraising and working to reconnect portions of the trail long separated by the loss of the old bridges and trestles. They added new footbridges at Store Hill and Bailey’s Bay as well as one at Flatts, which has yet to be completed.
Since then, the Railway Trail has become a much-loved free attraction for locals and tourists alike. Its sections stretching some 18 miles from St. George’s to Somerset are easy to access and offer a rural retreat from the bustle of motorised travel. They also allow entry to public beaches, parks and attractions. Views of the shoreline can be spectacular, but they can also give tourists an opportunity to see how Bermudians “really live” by letting them peek into people’s backyards. And of course, the trail gives us an idea of what fun it was to ride on our historic train, the “Old Rattle and Shake.”
