(Photo 1 © Richard Earlam, photos 2-6 © TheNewMendoza)

June 1892 saw the arrival of the Manchester Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway in Chesterfield, having built a line from its main north-south route at Staveley. Within months, a southern extension was opened to form 'the Chesterfield loop', passing immediately through a straight tunnel of 445 yards which emerged at Hollis Lane.

The through route was severed in June 1963 but the tunnel continued to serve Hydes Siding until 13th January 1964. By the summer of 1985, its northern portal had been lost beneath the Chesterfield Inner Relief Road which runs alongside the structure for much of its length.

Today, the south portal remains open, hemmed in by concrete retaining walls. The tunnel is now prone to flooding - the waters can reach depths of several feet.

Click on this icon for more of TheNewMendoza's pictures.