IT could be the end of the line for the disused Weymouth Tramway following proposals to remove the 'hazardous' tracks.

Councillors are set to discuss the future of the Weymouth Harbour Branch Line at a Weymouth and Portland Borough Council Management Committee Meeting tomorrow.

No regular services have run on the line since 1990, and the last movements on the line were special trains on April 1 1995 and May 2 1999. 

The line was classified as ‘temporarily out of use’ until 2015 under Network Rail’s ‘Network Change’ process, an extension to a previous
temporary out-of-use status that ran out in 2013. 

Network Rail is currently reviewing this situation and proposes to begin the process of taking the tramway to a permanently out-of-use status. 

The preparation of the Weymouth Town Centre Masterplan included exploring the potential to bring the line back into use. However, the final Weymouth Town Centre Masterplan does not propose this and highlights it as a "constraint on development".

The report said removal of the rails would have a highway safety benefit, in keeping with the Local Transport Plan’s emphasis on highway safety, particularly for pedestrians and cyclists.

Chair of the Management Committee, Ian Bruce, described the disused tramway as a "hazard". 

He said: "We have a lot of rail enthusiasts getting in contact with us about restoring the tramway. We've had suggestions of a hand driven carriage, this would cost thousands to get the track in any sort of state to be used and I am pretty certain it would no longer comply with our safety standards.

"When we last have special trains on the line, the removal of cars that were parked there just so we could run it was horrendous. We have had a change to the road traffic system since then - we would have to close Kings Street, the system is just not designed to do it.

"We want to work with rail enthusiasts and I would love them to work with
the Swanage Railway."

More than 2,200 campaigners have signed a petition to revamp the disused Weymouth Tramway into a unique heritage railway and attraction.

Campaigners argue that maintaining a heritage branch in Weymouth would bring many visitors to the town and would be a fantastic tourist attraction given its uniqueness.

The harbour tramway has been the centre of a lot of controversy and has been blamed for causing multiple accidents – including a horrendous crash which critically injured policewoman Alison Palmer and left her with life-changing injuries.

The mother of triplets was left with severe brain damage after her patrol car slid on wet railway lines in Commercial Road and hit a wall. Mrs Palmer was in a coma for more than seven weeks.

Motorcyclists have also blamed the rails for accidents and argued that the redundant line should be scrapped as it poses a danger to road users.