(Pictures 7-12 © Mike Elliott)

This tunnel through the Wolds is 140 yards longer than originally planned, falling short of a mile by just 14 yards. Construction started in 1847 with the sinking of three shafts but, in a little over a year, only 150 yards had been cut. Difficulties were experienced with flooding and chalkfalls, but the greatest obstacle was financial. Work on the line stopped when the Malton & Driffield Junction Railway teetered on the brink of bankruptcy.

Intended to form part of a mainline from Newcastle to Hull, the route was eventually resurrected on a more modest scale. Burdale's southern portal, which had already been built for two tracks, only ever hosted one. The bore shrinks 30 yards beyond the entrance but opens out again at several locations.

The tunnel's operational history was chequered. On 21st August 1866, a labourer fell from a carriage as it headed south through the bore. He survived, albeit with serious injuries to his face, head and elbow. After receiving pain relief in Malton, he was taken to Driffield Cottage Hospital where doctors amputated his arm. And a guard smashed his head on a bridge at the northern end whilst riding on the tender.