Birmingham and Gloucester Railway
Encyclopedia
The Birmingham and Gloucester Railway is a railway route linking Birmingham
to Gloucester
in England
.
It is one of the world's oldest main line railways and includes the famous Lickey Incline
, a 2 miles (3.2 km) dead-straight stretch of track running up the 1-in-37 (2.7%) gradient of the Lickey Ridge. The line was built to link the factories of Birmingham to Bristol
and its docks
, as well as to operate passenger services.
. There was already a horse-drawn coal railway between Bristol and Gloucestershire
, however a line running the whole distance to Birmingham was suggested. At that time, the canal journey from Birmingham to Bristol took almost a week, and the road journey, which due to expense and road quality was only really suitable for passengers, took the best part of four days.
Several surveys were completed in the ten years after 1824. Brunel in 1832 surveyed a line well to the east of its present track, but due to lack of finance the scheme was suspended and he withdrew. The line, as it is now, was surveyed by Captain W S Moorsom
. All observers recognised the challenge that the Lickey Ridge posed to the construction of the railway. Other lines, such as the C&HPR had previously been built up steeper inclines, worked by stationary steam engines or by gravity, however the Birmingham and Gloucester was a mechanised commercial railway, and was intended to be worked by steam locomotives. Both Stephenson
and Brunel
said that a general purpose steam locomotive could not work such a gradient.
Due to the Lickey problem, many investors remained sceptical and withheld funds; certain landowners asked excessive prices for land needed to construct the railway. In addition, the people of Bromsgrove
protested about the proximity of the 'iron beast' to the town. Eventually it was decided that the incline could be worked by a system of ' banking engines'. Deals were struck with recalcitrant landlords and Bromsgrove station was built almost two miles outside the town, in Aston Fields
. The line was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1836, just eleven years after the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway
.
where it joined the London and Birmingham Railway
to the latter's Curzon Street terminus
in Birmingham.
Intermediate stations were at Cheltenham
, Ashchurch, Spetchley, Droitwich
and Bromsgrove
, with halts at Bredon
, Eckington
, and Defford
. At its southern end, it joined the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway
at Cheltenham
to run on mixed gauge tracks into Gloucester, the first ever "joint line".
The line was essentially straight along its length, the average curve being 80 chains (1,609 m) radius. The ground was mainly marl and clay. Apart from the Lickey Incline, the maximum gradients were 1-in-300 (0.3%). Of the Lickey, Whishaw writes in 1840: "If this is satisfactorily effected, it will throw a new and useful light on the laying out of railways, and will save a vast original outlay in future works. We have long considered that the present system of making the 16 feet gradient the minimum, is far from desirable."
There was only one tunnel, that at Gravelly Hill
, which was a quarter mile in length, lined in brick with no invert. The largest bridge was over the Avon
at Eckington, Worcestershire
with three cast-iron segmental arches supported on two lines of iron columns.
The rails were very similar to today's flat-bottomed stock, which has become known as Vignoles rail, and weighed 56 lb/yd The line was unusual for the day in not using any stone blocks. Part of the way, longitudinal sleepers were used, and part of the way, cross sleepers.
The Act of Parliament gave the Birmingham and Gloucester the right to use any future London and Birmingham terminus in Birmingham, which meant that the later Midland Railway
had the right to share Birmingham New Street Station
when it was built by the LNWR
. This promoted the Midland to buy the Birmingham West Suburban Railway
, which had a junction with the Birmingham and Gloucester at Kings Norton
from 1876.
Notwithstanding the Bromsgrove people's reservations, the railway's maintenance shops
were built there around 1841 providing a welcome change of employment for the town's nail makers.
The original Birmingham and Gloucester company merged with the Bristol and Gloucester Railway
in 1845 to form the short-lived Birmingham and Bristol Railway
, which in turn became a part of the Midland Railway
in 1846.
's 'mainline' railway routes (indeed, the UK's longest mainline service route) (see for example Cross Country Route
), despite a series of changes in ownership. The Midland Railway
later became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway
in the rationalisation of 1923
. The LMS, along with the rest of the UK's mainline railways, became part of British Rail
ways when it was nationalised in 1948 by the Labour government. In 1995, the line was sold to Railtrack
as part of the privatisation by the Major government, and then partially returned to public ownership under Network Rail
in 2003.
Today the line is served by Arriva
CrossCountry
Voyager
services from Aberdeen
to Penzance
and their Class 170 Nottingham
to Cardiff
service, together with the London Midland
Hereford
to Birmingham New Street Class 170 local passenger service. The line is also a major freight route, featuring in particular, a weekday rolled steel slab train from the North East, routed via Gloucester to South Wales, where the steel slab is further rolled and coiled, returning the following day, for finishing into various manufacturers sheet requirements. On the return journey, these freight trains, as all loaded freight trains on the route, require banking assistance on the infamous Lickey Incline, a service which is undertaken by the freight company EWS, with one of their dedicated pool of Class 66 locomotives, dutifully waiting on call at Bromsgrove.
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
to Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
It is one of the world's oldest main line railways and includes the famous Lickey Incline
Lickey Incline
The Lickey Incline is the steepest sustained main-line railway incline in Great Britain and is situated south of Birmingham, in England. The climb is a gradient of 1-in-37.7 for a continuous distance of two miles ....
, a 2 miles (3.2 km) dead-straight stretch of track running up the 1-in-37 (2.7%) gradient of the Lickey Ridge. The line was built to link the factories of Birmingham to Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and its docks
Dock (maritime)
A dock is a human-made structure or group of structures involved in the handling of boats or ships, usually on or close to a shore.However, the exact meaning varies among different variants of the English language...
, as well as to operate passenger services.
Origins
The idea for a line had been mooted during the construction of the Stockton and Darlington RailwayStockton and Darlington Railway
The Stockton and Darlington Railway , which opened in 1825, was the world's first publicly subscribed passenger railway. It was 26 miles long, and was built in north-eastern England between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via Darlington, and connected to several collieries near Shildon...
. There was already a horse-drawn coal railway between Bristol and Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, however a line running the whole distance to Birmingham was suggested. At that time, the canal journey from Birmingham to Bristol took almost a week, and the road journey, which due to expense and road quality was only really suitable for passengers, took the best part of four days.
Several surveys were completed in the ten years after 1824. Brunel in 1832 surveyed a line well to the east of its present track, but due to lack of finance the scheme was suspended and he withdrew. The line, as it is now, was surveyed by Captain W S Moorsom
William Moorsom
Captain William Scarth Moorsom was an English soldier and engineer. He was born in Whitby to a military family, being the son of an admiral, and trained at Sandhurst, becoming a captain in the 52nd regiment...
. All observers recognised the challenge that the Lickey Ridge posed to the construction of the railway. Other lines, such as the C&HPR had previously been built up steeper inclines, worked by stationary steam engines or by gravity, however the Birmingham and Gloucester was a mechanised commercial railway, and was intended to be worked by steam locomotives. Both Stephenson
Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson FRS was an English civil engineer. He was the only son of George Stephenson, the famed locomotive builder and railway engineer; many of the achievements popularly credited to his father were actually the joint efforts of father and son.-Early life :He was born on the 16th of...
and Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
said that a general purpose steam locomotive could not work such a gradient.
Due to the Lickey problem, many investors remained sceptical and withheld funds; certain landowners asked excessive prices for land needed to construct the railway. In addition, the people of Bromsgrove
Bromsgrove
Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England. The town is about north east of Worcester and south west of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 with a small ethnic minority and is in Bromsgrove District.- History :Bromsgrove is first documented in the early 9th century...
protested about the proximity of the 'iron beast' to the town. Eventually it was decided that the incline could be worked by a system of ' banking engines'. Deals were struck with recalcitrant landlords and Bromsgrove station was built almost two miles outside the town, in Aston Fields
Aston Fields
Aston Fields is a village in the district of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, United Kingdom. It is situated to the south of Bromsgrove and is the site of Bromsgrove railway station. It was the location of Bromsgrove railway works, established in 1841, which was a maintenance facility for the Birmingham...
. The line was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1836, just eleven years after the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway
Stockton and Darlington Railway
The Stockton and Darlington Railway , which opened in 1825, was the world's first publicly subscribed passenger railway. It was 26 miles long, and was built in north-eastern England between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via Darlington, and connected to several collieries near Shildon...
.
Construction
The line was completed between Cheltenham and Bromsgrove on 24 June 1840. In 1841 it had reached as far as Camp HillCamp Hill railway station
Camp Hill railway station was a railway station in Birmingham opened by the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway in 1840 and was its first terminus.Subsequently the line extended to join the London and Birmingham Railway to the latter's Curzon Street terminus....
where it joined the London and Birmingham Railway
London and Birmingham Railway
The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....
to the latter's Curzon Street terminus
Curzon Street railway station
Curzon Street railway station was a railway station in Birmingham that was used briefly for regular scheduled passenger services between 1838 and 1854 when it acted as the terminus for both the London and Birmingham Railway and the Grand Junction Railway, with lines connecting Birmingham to London...
in Birmingham.
Intermediate stations were at Cheltenham
Cheltenham Spa railway station
Cheltenham Spa railway station is in Gloucestershire, England, on the Bristol-Birmingham main line. It is managed by First Great Western and is about one mile from the town centre.-History:...
, Ashchurch, Spetchley, Droitwich
Droitwich Spa railway station
Droitwich Spa railway station serves the town of Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire. It is located just to the south-west of Droitwich Spa Junction of the Worcester to Leamington Spa Line and the Worcester to Birmingham New Street Line...
and Bromsgrove
Bromsgrove railway station
Bromsgrove railway station serves the town of Bromsgrove in Worcestershire. It is located at the foot of the two-mile Lickey Incline which ascends at a gradient of 1-in-37.7 towards Barnt Green on the line between Birmingham and Worcester. The station opened as part of the Birmingham and Gloucester...
, with halts at Bredon
Bredon
Bredon is a large village and civil parish in Wychavon District at the southern edge of Worcestershire in England. It lies on the banks of the River Avon on the lower slopes of Bredon Hill, at “the beginning of the Cotswolds”...
, Eckington
Eckington, Worcestershire
Eckington is a small village near to the southern border of the English county of Worcestershire, according to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,202....
, and Defford
Defford
Defford is a small village in the county of Worcestershire, England, located between the towns of Pershore and Upton-upon-Severn.Defford also has a primary school, Defford cum Besford First School,and three pubs....
. At its southern end, it joined the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway
Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway
The Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Great Western Railway at Swindon, Wiltshire, with Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England...
at Cheltenham
Cheltenham
Cheltenham , also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a large spa town and borough in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds in the South-West region of England. It is the home of the flagship race of British steeplechase horse racing, the Gold Cup, the main event of the Cheltenham Festival held...
to run on mixed gauge tracks into Gloucester, the first ever "joint line".
The line was essentially straight along its length, the average curve being 80 chains (1,609 m) radius. The ground was mainly marl and clay. Apart from the Lickey Incline, the maximum gradients were 1-in-300 (0.3%). Of the Lickey, Whishaw writes in 1840: "If this is satisfactorily effected, it will throw a new and useful light on the laying out of railways, and will save a vast original outlay in future works. We have long considered that the present system of making the 16 feet gradient the minimum, is far from desirable."
There was only one tunnel, that at Gravelly Hill
Gravelly Hill
Gravelly Hill is an area of Birmingham, England.- Notability :It is best known for its motorway junction, the Gravelly Hill Interchange, popularly known as Spaghetti Junction, which provides the intersection between the A38 Aston Expressway from the centre of Birmingham to the M6 motorway. The...
, which was a quarter mile in length, lined in brick with no invert. The largest bridge was over the Avon
River Avon, Warwickshire
The River Avon or Avon is a river in or adjoining the counties of Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire in the Midlands of England...
at Eckington, Worcestershire
Eckington, Worcestershire
Eckington is a small village near to the southern border of the English county of Worcestershire, according to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,202....
with three cast-iron segmental arches supported on two lines of iron columns.
The rails were very similar to today's flat-bottomed stock, which has become known as Vignoles rail, and weighed 56 lb/yd The line was unusual for the day in not using any stone blocks. Part of the way, longitudinal sleepers were used, and part of the way, cross sleepers.
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
had the right to share Birmingham New Street Station
Birmingham New Street Station
Birmingham New Street is the main railway station serving Birmingham, England, located in the city centre. It is an important hub for the British railway system, being served by a number of important long-distance and cross-country lines, including the Birmingham loop of the West Coast Main Line,...
when it was built by the LNWR
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
. This promoted the Midland to buy the Birmingham West Suburban Railway
Birmingham West Suburban Railway
The Birmingham West Suburban Railway was a suburban railway built by the Midland Railway company. Opened in 1876, it allowed both the opening of development of central southwest suburban Birmingham south into Worcestershire, and the by-passing of railway traffic via the Birmingham and Gloucester...
, which had a junction with the Birmingham and Gloucester at Kings Norton
Kings Norton railway station
Kings Norton railway station serves the Kings Norton and Cotteridge areas of Birmingham, England. It lies on Cross-City Line from Redditch through Birmingham New Street to Lichfield. The station's main entrance is located on Pershore Road South, the A441....
from 1876.
Notwithstanding the Bromsgrove people's reservations, the railway's maintenance shops
Bromsgrove railway works
Bromsgrove railway works was established in 1841 at Aston Fields, near Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England as a maintenance facility for the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway...
were built there around 1841 providing a welcome change of employment for the town's nail makers.
The original Birmingham and Gloucester company merged with the Bristol and Gloucester Railway
Bristol and Gloucester Railway
The Bristol and Gloucester Railway opened in 1844 between Bristol and Gloucester, meeting the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway. It is now part of the main line from the North-East of England through Derby and Birmingham to the South-West.-History:...
in 1845 to form the short-lived Birmingham and Bristol Railway
Birmingham and Bristol Railway
The Birmingham and Bristol Railway was a short-lived railway company, formed in 1845 by the merger of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway and the Bristol and Gloucester Railway.-Origin:...
, which in turn became a part of the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
in 1846.
Development
The line remains part of one of the UKUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's 'mainline' railway routes (indeed, the UK's longest mainline service route) (see for example Cross Country Route
Cross Country Route (MR)
The North-East/South-West route is the major British rail route running from South West England via Bristol, Birmingham, Sheffield and Leeds to North-East England. It facilitates some of the longest inter-city rail journeys in the UK such as Penzance to Aberdeen...
), despite a series of changes in ownership. The Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
later became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
in the rationalisation of 1923
Railways Act 1921
The Railways Act 1921, also known as the Grouping Act, was an enactment by the British government of David Lloyd George intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, move the railways away from internal competition, and to retain some of the benefits which...
. The LMS, along with the rest of the UK's mainline railways, became part of British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
ways when it was nationalised in 1948 by the Labour government. In 1995, the line was sold to Railtrack
Railtrack
Railtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from its formation in April 1994 until 2002...
as part of the privatisation by the Major government, and then partially returned to public ownership under Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
in 2003.
Today the line is served by Arriva
Arriva
Arriva plc is a multinational public transport company owned by Deutsche Bahn and headquartered in Sunderland, United Kingdom. It has bus, coach, train, tram and waterbus operations in 12 countries across Europe, employs more than 47,500 people and services over 1.5 billion passenger journeys each...
CrossCountry
CrossCountry
CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...
Voyager
Bombardier Voyager family
The Voyager series is a group of express diesel-electric multiple-unit trains built by Bombardier Transportation for service on the UK railway network.-Class 220:...
services from Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
to Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
and their Class 170 Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
to Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
service, together with the London Midland
London Midland
London Midland is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. Legally named London and Birmingham Railway Ltd, it is a subsidiary of Govia, and has operated the West Midlands franchise since 11 November 2007....
Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
to Birmingham New Street Class 170 local passenger service. The line is also a major freight route, featuring in particular, a weekday rolled steel slab train from the North East, routed via Gloucester to South Wales, where the steel slab is further rolled and coiled, returning the following day, for finishing into various manufacturers sheet requirements. On the return journey, these freight trains, as all loaded freight trains on the route, require banking assistance on the infamous Lickey Incline, a service which is undertaken by the freight company EWS, with one of their dedicated pool of Class 66 locomotives, dutifully waiting on call at Bromsgrove.