Kidderminster Junction signal box
Although not on SVR property, the BR(W) designed Kidderminster Junction signal box formerly controlled the main line connection to the Severn Valley Railway in conjunction with the SVR's own Kidderminster signal box.
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Kidderminster Junction
The name "Kidderminster Junction" referred to the junction between the former Oxford Worcester & Wolverhampton line and "The Loop" leading to Bewdley and the original Severn Valley line. The junction, which is shown on this extract from the 1903 OS map, was created in 1878 with the opening of the Loop (bottom left).
OS map of Kidderminster Junction in 1903
Early signal boxes
The 1903 OS map, although particularly detailed, does not show a signal box in the vicinity of the junction.
A signal box was present in the 1938 OS map, reproduced in "Western Main Lines, Worcester to Birmingham via Kidderminster" (Mitchell & Smith). It was located between the two signal posts ("SP") near the top of the extract above. Narrative in the book accompanying the OS map extract refers to "The 1924 Junction box" but provides no other information or confirmation that this was the first signal box controlling the junction.
The Signalling Record Society Website provides the additional information that "A replacement GW type 28B box was built here in December 1937".
1953 signal box
The most recent signal box was of quite a modern design, having been built in October 1953, and contained a 63 lever frame. The GWR signal box on the same site was demolished by a derailed wagon earlier in 1953, and a temporary signal box was used for a short while until the replacement was built[1][2].
In August 2012 Network Rail carried out an upgrade of signalling in the area, whereby responsibility for signalling was transferred to the West Midlands Signalling Centre (WMSC) at Saltley. Following this upgrade, Kidderminster Junction signal box was closed on 24 August 2012 and was then demolished on 22-23 September 2012. The lever frame from the box has been saved by the SVR for spares and as a possible new frame for a new Bridgnorth Signal Box.
See also
References
- ↑ Kidderminster Jcn Signal Box, Signalling Record Society Website. http://www.s-r-s.org.uk/html/gws/S2605.htm. Accessed 10/05/2015
- ↑ Stourbridge Line Signal Boxes - Kidderminster Junction | Martin's Railway Ramblings. http://martincreese.blogspot.com/2012/07/stourbridge-line-signal-boxes.html. Accessed 10/05/2015