in 1864 the midland railway obtained parliamentary authority to build a branch line from mangotsfield to bath. at first a proposal involved acquiring the alignment of part of the a&gr and using it for the new line, but this was not pursued. the revised route ran close to the alignment of the a&gr as far as oldand common. near siston common, the route of the a&gr was altered at the expense of the midland railway to avoid the need for the new line to cross the a&gr twice. the a&gr alignment was chosen to avoid earthworks, and the midland railway was compelled to provide a cutting to accommodate the old line. oldland common tunnel was strengthened in the centre portion where the new line crossed it. williams describes the extension of the midland railway to bitton and bath over this tunnel, which had to be lined for at mr expense to strengthen it. the midland railway line opened in 1869. the last entry in the a&gr account book had been in january 1867, so it may be that the new alignment never saw traffic.