branch line

American  

noun

1. a rail line, directly or indirectly connected with a main line, having its own stations and service.

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branch line British  

noun

1. railways a secondary route to a place or places not served by a main line

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Etymology

Origin of branch line

First recorded in 1840–50

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

branch line

A 3.3-mile stretch of a branch line to be re-laid in Portishead, southwest England, required 79,187 pages of planning documents.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

National Rail said water had risen above the tracks between Clifton Down in Bristol and Severn Beach, meaning trains could not run on the branch line.

From BBC ● Apr. 9, 2024

When a branch line was built from Goshen to Visalia in 1874, people had high hopes that it would lead to prosperity for the town, but the boom never arrived.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2023

The car was so close to being struck by the Northern service that the camera angle only captured its roof as it drove straight over the tracks on the Windermere branch line at Burneside.

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2021

“Och, no, not to Aberdeen. The next train’s the branch line to Castle Craig.”

From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein

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