for opening, Col Yolland made the Board of Trade inspection on 19 May 1864. In his report he stated that the track was of Vignoles (flat-bottom) rails spiked directly to transverse sleepers. There were two multiple-span viaducts, Backwater and Fleet, and Yolland said: The viaducts are entirely of wood with openings mostly from 20 to 22 feet [6.1 to 6.7m] and they are both very unsatisfactory structures... The calculated breaking weight of one of these beams is about 11.5 tons but it is very uncertain what weight one of the half baulks would carry. It is quite certain that they are much two weak, that the workmanship is not good; and sufficient care not being exercised defective pieces of timber have been made use of. It is very doubtful whether these viaducts will not require to be entirely reconstructed and it is not clear whether the piles will not give under the weight of an engine. He went on A Joint Committee [of the GWR and LSWR] is to be appointed to regulate the working... over the line but this has not yet been done so that it is uncertain in what manner it is proposed to work the traffic. The junction with the Wilts Somerset and Weymouth is made nearly a quarter of a mile (402m) north of the Weymouth station while on the deposited plans the distance does not exceed 200 yards (183m). Every train arriving at or departing from the Weymouth station for Portland will therefore require to be shunted over the long distance. This is an objectionable and dangerous practice... [There was no proper signalbox at Weymouth Junction, so] The signals at the junction with the Wilts Somerset and Weymouth railway require to be brought together on a properly covered-in stage at the junction – the signals to have the locking apparatus. Some of the work was attended to and Yolland paid another visit on 6 August 1864. He found that although some strengthening of the viaducts had been attempted, little else had been rectified, and no solution had been proposed to the dangerous reversal of trains from Weymouth Junction to the station. As time went on with no progress, it became plain that the local company expected the Great Western Railway to assent to the use of the Weymouth station without payment. This had never been negotiated, nor suggested at the time of getting the