Ceylon Railway Company
The Ceylon Railway Company was formed as a joint stock company in 1847 to establish and operate a railway line from Colombo to Kandy in the British colony of Ceylon (today the state of Sri Lanka), principally to facilitate the local planters. Construction commenced in 1856 but, after not a great deal of progress, concerns were voiced as to the economic viability of the enterprise (whether the 5% guaranteed return was disproportionate to the escalating cost of construction) [1]
A line of railway had been surveyed between Colombo and Kandy by the ‘Ceylon Railway Company’ in the year 1847, after which the project seems to have fallen into abeyance[2], this survey had been undertaken by a Mr Drake [3]
In Dec 1856 Captain W S Moorsom, Chief Engineer of the Corps of Royal Engineers was instructed by the Governor of Ceylon, Sir Henry George Ward, to undertake a survey and produce a Report on the provision of a rail link from Colombo]] to Kandy. This Report dated May 1857 examined six possible routes and recommended the adoption of Route No.3 via the Parnepettia Pass, with a total length of Railway line of 79 miles(126km), and a ruling gradient of one in 60, with a short Tunnel. The summit at this pass is 1,780 feet(540 mtr) above sea level.
See separate page ‘Ceylon Government Railway Survey’
The Secretary of State for the Colonies- subsequently annulled the contract and took over all the company’s assets and liabilities and the Company was dissolved in 1862. Once the government had taken over the company’s assets it set about fulfilling construction of a railway system for the island by inviting tenders from interested building contractors and taking over three existing contracts, one with Robert Stephenson & Co., locomotive engineers. [1]
Further Information
See Ceylon Government Railway(CGR)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 H.M. Government “Statute Law Repeals: Nineteenth Report : Draft Statute Law (Repeals) Bill; April 2012"; pages 121-122, paragraphs 3.29-3.31;. Retrieved on12 May 2018
- ↑ Archive.org “Report on the Ceylon Government Railway Survey” Captain W S Moorsom, Chief Engineer R.E. pages 8-24; and “Notes on the mode of executing the Survey” by Lieut. Festing, R.E. pages 25; Retrieved 12 May 2018
- ↑ Archive.org “Report on the Ceylon Government Railway Survey” Captain W S Moorsom, Chief Engineer R.E. pages 8-24; and “Notes on the mode of executing the Survey” by Lieut. Festing, R.E. page 8; Retrieved 12 May 2018
