I spent my 2012 summer holiday on the Isle of Wight, and although I normally used buses to travel around the island, I spent one day using the Island Line, the only electric railway line on the island, which runs from Ryde in the north to Shanklin in the east. Here are my thoughts. ***A Brief History*** The line from Ryde to Shanklin was opened in 1964, and was later extended south to Ventnor and north to Ryde Pier Head. The railways were nationalised in 1948 and the Shanklin-Ventnor section later closed. The line was electrified in 1967 and was later named the Island Line, a name it still retains even though it is now part of South West ...  Read the complete review

Aside from the tourist steam train, the Island Line is the only train service on the Isle of Wight. Using former tube trains from the London Underground, the Island Line stretches from the end of Ryde Pier (very handy if you are arriving by ferry) down the east coast to Shanklin, passing through Brading and Sandown. It previously used to extend down to Ventnor (south east of the Island) but apparently this was closed down due to lack of use. It's also worth noting that the train only covers the east of the Island. The central and western areas are completely neglected, with the only public transport being the Island's excellent bus ...  Read the complete review

Little trains! 'Island Line' is the company that runs the train service of the Isle of Wight. The Island has a limited stretch of rail-track which runs from the end of Ryde Pier in the North of the Island, to Sandown on the South-East coast. This actually represents quite a limited route, and doesn't even reach capital town Newport, which is in the centre of the Island. Island Line won the franchise to operate the trains from 1996, and since that time have official become been "Britain's most reliable and punctual train company". This claim may seem impressive, but the shortness of the route (8.5 miles) is probably the reason for the ...  Read the complete review

Island Line...... The Island Line is the only Isle of Wight Railway line and you can bet that the trains are pretty much always on time. The line runs from the top of Ryde pier head all the way along into the town of Shanklin. The stops are as follows. Ryde Pier Head Ryde Esplanade Ryde St Johns Havenstreet Brading Sandown Lake Shanklin. If you were to take the train from the pier head at Ryde all the way into Shanklin the entire trip would take you a little over half an hour but cost you around £5. The trains themselves that operate on the Isle of Wight are in fact old London underground ...  Read the complete review

Island line really doesn't deserve to be classed in the same category as other mainland operators. The Isle of Wight depends on trade from tourism and visits from people around the world make up for a lot of business here. Unfortunately, if you are coming to the Isle of Wight from Portsmouth and you arrive at the end of Ryde Pier, the first thing that you encounter is the worst excuse for a train that there ever was. It's actually worse than the 'Dotto Train', an imitation train that runs on the road - and thats orange! Island Line operates a service that runs from Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin and is in fact the only 'proper' trainline left on the ...  Read the complete review