Camp Hill line | |||
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A non-stop CrossCountry passenger service powers along the Camp Hill line to bypass the University branch A 1913 map showing the Birmingham West Suburban Railway (left) and the Camp Hill line (right) between Kings Norton and Birmingham New Street | |||
Overview | |||
Status | Operational | ||
Owner | Network Rail | ||
Locale | Birmingham | ||
Termini | |||
Service | |||
Type | Heavy rail | ||
System | National Rail | ||
Operator(s) | CrossCountry West Midlands Trains | ||
Rolling stock | Class 170 "Turbostar" Class 172 "Turbostar" Class 220 "Voyager" Class 221 "Super Voyager" | ||
History | |||
Opened | 1840-41 | ||
Technical | |||
Number of tracks | 2 | ||
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge | ||
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The Camp Hill line is a railway line in Birmingham between Kings Norton on the Cross-City Line and Birmingham New Street via Grand Junction on the main lines from Derby and Coventry. The line was once the terminal approach of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway to Curzon Street before it was incorporated into the Midland Railway.
The expansion of the Birmingham West Suburban Railway resulted in its usurping of the line as the service's main line, at which point it became known as the Camp Hill line after its original terminus. Local passenger services on the line ended in the 1940s and the intermediate stations on the line were closed. Since then it has been used primarily by freight trains and some longer-distance passenger trains only.
It is hoped to resume local services on the route by the end of 2024 after a break of nearly 84 years. Expansion of these services via new chords connecting the line to Birmingham Moor Street are currently[ when? ] in the early planning stage.
It opened as the northernmost stretch of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway (B&GR) in December 1840 and ran from Gloucester to a temporary terminus at Camp Hill. The line was extended into Curzon Street – the main station in Birmingham at that time – in August the following year; with the original Camp Hill terminus being split into a smaller passenger station and a goods station, the latter of which remained open until 1966. The B&GR itself was incorporated into the Midland Railway in 1845. [1] The terminus then later switched from Curzon Street to Birmingham New Street station upon its opening in 1854. [2]
In 1861 a junction was constructed at Bordesley, creating a north to south-east connection from the Camp Hill line to the Great Western Railway's mainline to Oxford and London (which remains in use as the Chiltern Main Line), and allows trains from Oxford and beyond to run into Birmingham New Street via the Camp Hill line. [3]
In 1864 a 'direct' line was opened between St Andrews and Landor Street Junctions at the north end of the Camp Hill line, connecting it to the Midland Railway's line to Derby. From this date Midland expresses from Derby to Bristol by-passed New Street, and ran via this route to Camp Hill station, where portions of the train bound for Birmingham New Street would be detached or attached from the train. As both the Midland Railway lines from Derby and Bristol approached New Street from the east, this arrangement avoided the need for them to reverse at New Street and thus save time. This arrangement was unsatisfactory, but it persisted until 1885 when the Midland Railway extended the Birmingham West Suburban Railway (BWSR) into New Street from the west, allowing Derby to Bristol trains to run directly through New Street without reversing and rejoin the B&GR route at Kings Norton railway station. [4] With the BWSR in effect replacing the former B&GR mainline as the express route to Birmingham New Street, the route became known as the Camp Hill line.
In 1892, the Lifford Curve opened, creating a north-facing connection between the Camp Hill line and the Birmingham West Suburban Railway, allowing a circular service to operate from New Street via the Camp Hill line and returning via the BWSR (or vice versa). Local passenger services and all six passenger stations along the Camp Hill line were closed as a wartime rationalisation of the network in 1941 and were confirmed as permanently closed in 1946. All station buildings were subsequently demolished.
Since then the line has been used by freight trains and some longer distance passenger trains only. [4]
The reinstatement of local rail services to the former Camp Hill line has been a long term aspiration of the city, [5] and during 2007, Birmingham City Council announced that they were looking into the possibility of reopening the line between Kings Norton and Birmingham Moor Street via the construction of a railway viaduct from Sparkbrook to Bordesley, where trains would be taken into Birmingham Moor Street station. In October 2007, a 1,500-name petition was handed in to the council asking for the line to be re-opened. [6] In 2013 the proposal was shelved indefinitely. [7] The 2007 proposed station sites were Moseley, Kings Heath, and Hazelwell.
In 2016, the newly created West Midlands Combined Authority revived the plans to restore local passenger services to the line, and declared it one of their priority transport schemes to be delivered by 2025. [8] [9]
In 2017, the newly elected Mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, pledged to get work started on restoring services to the line by 2020. Officials were said to be investigating the business case for a fourth station at Balsall Heath (previously called Brighton Road). [10] This would mean Lifford and Camp Hill would be the only stations not to be reopened.
In August 2017, West Midlands Trains announced plans as part of their franchise deal that the line would reopen by December 2019 as part of a £1 billion investment in the West Midlands. This included a new station at Moseley. [11]
In February 2018, Street, said that the viaduct would not immediately be needed to open the line. Hereford to Birmingham New Street trains – currently routed via University Station – would be diverted along the Camp Hill line to serve the three new stations, meaning that extra capacity at Birmingham New Street would not be required. [12] This would also facilitate through train operation toward Shrewsbury.
In September 2018, the designs of the new stations – Kings Heath, Pineapple Road, and Moseley Village – were revealed and were planned for reopening by 2021 with a frequency of two trains per hour. [13] In March 2021 it was announced that funding had been found for the project, with an opening date expected in 2023. [14] In June 2022, West Midlands Rail Executive announced that following on from a public consultation, the three stations would be named Moseley Village, Kings Heath and Pineapple Road. [15] An investigation into the business case for reopening Brighton Road as Balsall Heath railway station has since[ when? ] been awarded funding.[ citation needed ]
This line was identified by Campaign for Better Transport in 2019 as a priority 1 candidate for reopening. [16]
The reopening has been hit by a series of delays, with the West Midlands Combined Authority is now aiming to reopen the line for passenger use by the end of 2025, with incumbent West Midlands mayor, Richard Parker, labelling overpromising by his predecessor, Andy Street, as the reason for the delays. [17] [18] [19]
In July 2018 the Midlands Rail Hub proposal was unveiled, which included the reopening of Moseley, Kings Heath, and Hazelwell stations, and the building of set of chords (short connecting curves of track) on new viaducts near Bordesley station known as the Bordesley Chords.
Although the new Camp Hill line services will initially run on existing track into New Street, the long-term aim is to divert them into Moor Street via their construction.[ clarification needed ] Currently the Camp Hill line – already extensively connected to the Cross-City Line, Cross Country Route, and WCML – passes over the Chiltern Main Line, and they are only connected by a junction to the east of the crossing. The new chords would be constructed to the north and west of the crossing, known as the 'East Chord' and 'West Chord' respectively, connecting Moor Street to Kings Norton to the southwest and Water Orton to the northeast. [20] The chords would also allow a number of services from East Midlands destinations, such as Derby and Leicester, to be diverted into Moor Street.
In conjunction with the construction of the chords, one of the currently derelict terminus platforms at Moor Street would be reopened (Platform 5) and a new through platform to Snow Hill constructed (Platform 0) in order to accommodate the new services.[ citation needed ] There is also the potential for a new terminus platform (Platform 6) to be opened and another through platform (Platform −1) added depending on funding and engineering limitations.[ citation needed ]
Furthermore, construction of the chords would necessitate the closure and demolition of the semi-operational Bordesley station. [21] There is an option to relocate Bordesley station either east or west of its current location as part of the chords' construction. [22] Rerouting of the up/down Snow Hill lines between Moor Street and the chords would also be required.
Birmingham Snow Hill, also known as Snow Hill station, is a railway station in Birmingham City Centre. It is one of the three main city-centre stations in Birmingham, along with Birmingham New Street and Birmingham Moor Street.
The West Midlands Metro is a light-rail/tram system in the county of West Midlands, England. The network has 33 stops with a total of 14 miles (23 km) of track; it currently consists of a single route, Line 1, which operates between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via the towns of Bilston, West Bromwich and Wednesbury, on a mixture of former railway lines and urban on-street running. The system is owned by the public body Transport for West Midlands, and operated by Midland Metro Limited, a company wholly owned by the West Midlands Combined Authority.
Birmingham is a major transport hub, due in part to its location in central England. The city is well connected by rail, road, and water. Public transport and key highways in the city are overseen by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM).
The Chiltern Main Line is a railway line which links London (Marylebone) and Birmingham on a 112-mile (180 km) route via High Wycombe, Bicester, Banbury, Leamington Spa and Solihull in England.
The Cross-City Line is a suburban rail line in the West Midlands region of England. It runs for 32 mi (51 km) from Redditch and Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, its two southern termini, to Lichfield, Staffordshire, its northern terminus, via Birmingham New Street, connecting the suburbs of Birmingham in between. Services are operated by West Midlands Trains.
The Birmingham and Gloucester Railway (B&GR) was the first name of the railway linking the cities in its name and of the company which pioneered and developed it; the line opened in stages in 1840, using a terminus at Camp Hill in Birmingham. It linked with the Bristol and Gloucester Railway in Gloucester, but at first that company's line was broad gauge, and Gloucester was a point of the necessary but inconvenient transhipment of goods and passengers onto 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in gauge that became the national standard. Nearly all of the original main line remains active as a "trunk" route, also known as an arterial route or line.
Five Ways railway station is a railway station serving the Five Ways and Lee Bank areas of Birmingham, England. It is situated on the Cross-City Line.
Walsall railway station is the principal railway station of Walsall, West Midlands, England and situated in the heart of the town. It is operated by West Midlands Trains, with services provided by West Midlands Railway. The main entrance is situated inside the Saddlers Shopping Centre.
Birmingham Moor Street, also known as Moor Street station, is one of three main railway stations in the city centre of Birmingham, England, along with Birmingham New Street and Birmingham Snow Hill.
Kings Norton Railway Station serves the Kings Norton and Cotteridge areas of Birmingham, England. It lies on the Cross-City Line from Redditch and Bromsgrove through Birmingham New Street to Lichfield. The station's main entrance is located on Pershore Road South, the A441.
The Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line is a railway line which runs from Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester via Stourbridge and Kidderminster in the West Midlands, England. It is one of the Snow Hill Lines, with trains operated by West Midlands Trains and Chiltern Railways using a variety of rolling stock including Class 172 and Class 168 diesel units. It is a future aspiration of Network Rail to electrify the entire line, as well as the Chiltern Main Line to London Marylebone.
Bordesley railway station is a small railway station serving the area of Bordesley in Birmingham, England located between Birmingham Moor Street and Small Heath stations. The current minimal level of service at the station is provided by West Midlands Trains services between Whitlocks End and Kidderminster via Birmingham Snow Hill. The station is the least used in the West Midlands county with only 9,088 passengers using it annually.
Adderley Park railway station serves the Adderley Park area in the east of Birmingham, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by West Midlands Trains. It was threatened with closure in 2004, but was given a reprieve. The station will become the main railway station for the proposed City of Birmingham Stadium, if that is constructed.
Cradley Heath railway station serves the town of Cradley Heath in the West Midlands of England. It is on the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line. The station is managed by West Midlands Railway, who provide the majority of train services; there are also occasional services provided by Chiltern Railways.
Moseley Village railway station is a railway station under construction in Moseley, Birmingham. It was first opened in 1867 and closed in 1941.
The Snow Hill Lines is the collective name for the railway lines running through Birmingham Snow Hill, and Birmingham Moor Street stations in Birmingham, United Kingdom. They form an important part of the suburban rail network of Birmingham, Warwickshire and Worcestershire. All other lines to/through Birmingham use Birmingham New Street station. The Snow Hill lines carry around 20% of the daily rail services into Birmingham; the remainder use New Street.
Camp Hill railway station refers to a series of disused railway stations in Camp Hill, Birmingham.
Kings Heath railway station is a railway station under construction in Kings Heath, Birmingham. It was originally opened in 1840 before being closed to passengers in 1941.
The Birmingham West Suburban Railway was a suburban railway built by the Midland Railway company. Opened in stages between 1876 and 1885, 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 Railway into central Birmingham. Today, it forms a major section of the Cross-City Line, running from Lichfield to Redditch. It also forms an important part of the Cross Country Route.
Brighton Road railway station is a former railway station in Balsall Heath, Birmingham. It was originally opened in 1875 before being closed to passengers in 1941.
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