24-695: The Oldbury Branch Railway was a short branch line which ran from Langley Green on the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line to the town of Oldbury . It also served the Oldbury Division of the manufacturing company, Albright and Wilson . It was owned and operated by the Great Western Railway . The Dudley and Oldbury Junction Railway was incorporated on 21 July 1873 for a line from Langley Green, Dudley to Halesowen; there were also to be two branches. The company entered into
48-609: 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 . The line is one of two railway routes between Birmingham and Worcester, the other route runs via Bromsgrove . The line was used mostly by GWR trains from Snow Hill, but some London and North Western Railway and Midland Railway trains from Birmingham New Street to Worcester and Hereford via Galton Junction also used
72-468: A variety of service patterns (see map). Some trains terminate at Shrub Hill, whereas some reverse there before going to Foregate Street. Other trains take the direct curve to Foregate Street avoiding Shrub Hill. Some trains continue beyond Foregate Street to Malvern Link and Great Malvern . Chiltern Railways run services to London Marylebone in the morning rush hour, which start from Stourbridge Junction rather than Moor Street, and reverse journeys during
96-526: A working agreement with the Great Western Railway (GWR) in 1876, and on 11 August 1881 the name was altered to the Oldbury Railway. The line was opened for goods in 1884, and to passengers the following year; services were operated by the GWR under the working agreement of 1876. The Oldbury Railway was fully absorbed by the GWR following an act of Parliament of 31 July 1894. The line was built in 1885 by
120-768: Is also no return Chiltern service from London to Stourbridge. West Midlands Railway also provide the majority of the services on the lower-level platforms. A half-hourly local stopping service between Birmingham New Street and Wolverhampton operated by Class 350 or Class 730 EMUs, calls at all stops between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, with most trains continuing to Walsall after Birmingham New Street. An hourly long-distance service to/from Liverpool Lime Street via Runcorn run by London Northwestern Railway also calls, originating at Birmingham New Street operated by Class 350 EMUs. A service to and from Shrewsbury via Telford Central also calls operated by Class 196 DMUs , hourly off-peak with 2tph at peak times. Southbound
144-557: Is at a point where two railways' lines cross on two levels. It has platforms on both lines, allowing interchange between them. The two low-level platforms serve the Birmingham New Street to Wolverhampton Line , while the two high-level platforms serve the Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester Line . The high level line passes over the low level line at a right angle on a bridge. West Midlands Railway manages
168-642: Is the next calling point for most CrossCountry services, and thus offers a convenient alternative when the Lickey Incline is closed. Several charter trains can often be seen on the line due to the existence of the Severn Valley Railway which has a mainline connection at Kidderminster. Smethwick Galton Bridge railway station Smethwick Galton Bridge is a split-level railway station in Smethwick , West Midlands , England . It
192-690: The Chiltern Main Line . A return journey operates on weekdays in the other direction in the evening, usually terminating at Stourbridge Junction . They formerly terminated at Kidderminster before the service to Kidderminster was withdrawn in the May 2023 timetable changes. There is no Chiltern service stopping at the station on Saturdays. On Sundays, the level of service drops to 1tph between Dorridge and Stourbridge Junction and another tph between Stratford-Upon-Avon (via Whitlocks End) and Worcester stations, providing 2tph for Smethwick Galton Bridge between Birmingham Snow Hill and Stourbridge Junction. On Sundays there
216-472: The Great Western Railway and was built on a short stub of line near the present day, Halesowen Street. There was also a goods yard on an embankment via a bridge on Seven Stars Road, a short distance north of the station. The station at Oldbury had a very short lifespan, closing in 1916 as a result of the first world war and never reopened, although the line remained in use for goods traffic to
240-586: The Midland Metro between Snow Hill and New Street, or change at Smethwick Galton Bridge. This did however add much needed extra capacity to the Stour Valley Line into Birmingham New Street and free up platform space there. This service took the connection between Galton and Smethwick Junctions near Smethwick West. Services were once hourly from Worcester to Birmingham New Street via Stourbridge. Two CrossCountry services are timetabled to use
264-470: The evening. Before the reopening of Snow Hill, trains along this route ran into Birmingham New Street, where they terminated. Even after the Snow Hill reopening a lower level of service to New Street was maintained, but this link was axed altogether at the May 2004 timetable change, to much local consternation. Passengers for New Street must now either walk between Moor Street and New Street stations, use
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#1732801015599288-565: The former Oldbury Platforms at Langley Green although still extant. Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line 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
312-567: The former goods yard and the station site is now a Mecca Bingo hall. The trackbed to Tat Bank Road near the former Albright and Wilson Oldbury Division has been blocked by the M5 viaduct and the section built on by both housing and road realignments. There is still quite a lot of track still in situ around the former sidings at Albright and Wilson Oldbury Division and the bridge over the Titford Canal. The track has been dismantled and fenced off at
336-507: The line each day — one service from Birmingham New Street (via Smethwick Junction and Galton Junction ) in the early morning and a pair of reverse services in the evening. None of these call at any of the stations along the line and are scheduled to ensure drivers retain knowledge of the route. During congestion or mainly during engineering works, the line sees much more frequent service as a diversionary route. The line from Worcester Shrub Hill continues to Cheltenham Spa railway station , which
360-447: The line, until 1917, when all trains on the line ran into Snow Hill. In the late 1960s, services to Snow Hill were run down. In 1967 most services on the line were diverted to Birmingham New Street. However a skeleton service of four trains per day, was retained between Snow Hill and Langley Green until March 1972, when Snow Hill station, along with the line to Smethwick West was closed to passengers. A single line as far as Handsworth
384-586: The lines to Worcester and Hereford with those to Stratford-upon-Avon and Leamington Spa ". The line serves the following places: Passenger services are provided by West Midlands Trains between Birmingham and Worcester and beyond, and by Chiltern Railways between Birmingham and Kidderminster only. The local service provided by West Midlands Trains comprises: All local services continue beyond Birmingham to either Dorridge , Whitlocks End or Stratford-upon-Avon , with some peak hour trains running to Leamington Spa . A triangular junction at Worcester allows
408-472: The local factories until 1960s when the section from Albright and Wilson Oldbury Division to the site of Oldbury was severed by the building of the M5 Motorway . This meant the stub north had been closed but the section near Langley Green remained open for freight traffic until 1996 when the entire line was put out of use. Today, the station site at Oldbury has been redeveloped for both industrial use near
432-403: The nearby Smethwick West station became redundant and was closed soon after. An opening ceremony took place on 24 May 1995 to mark the completion of the new station. There are four platforms at Smethwick Galton Bridge. Platforms 1 & 2 are on the Birmingham – Worcester line , whilst Platforms 3 & 4 are on the Birmingham – Wolverhampton line . West Midlands Railway provide most of
456-609: The passenger services, on the high level platforms they offer 4 tph (trains per hour) between Birmingham Snow Hill and Kidderminster using their Class 172 Turbostar DMUs, of these, 2tph continue past Kidderminster to either Worcester Shrub Hill and/or Worcester Foregate Street , with some services continuing to Great Malvern . In the opposite direction, 2tph extend beyond Snow Hill to Dorridge and 2tph Whitlocks End , with 1tph each from Dorridge and Whitlocks End extending to Stratford-Upon-Avon . Chiltern Railways also offers an early morning peak service to London Marylebone on
480-691: The restored route: Smethwick Galton Bridge , The Hawthorns and Jewellery Quarter . Smethwick Galton Bridge station was built as a two-level interchange with trains on the Birmingham New Street-Wolverhampton Line , and it replaced the nearby Smethwick West station which closed soon after. The reopening cost £28.5 million in 1995 prices, with the majority of the funding coming from Centro . It allowed cross-city rail services to operate through Snow Hill, and freed up much needed capacity at New Street station. According to Centro, it created "a third cross city line linking
504-598: The service calls at Birmingham New Street only. On Sunday, the level of service drops to an hourly local service between Walsall and Wolverhampton, stopping at all stations on the line, an hourly service to/from Liverpool Lime Street and an hourly service to/from Shrewsbury. The Transport for Wales calls were withdrawn and moved to Sandwell & Dudley in the December 2022 timetable change. The majority of people who travel towards Smethwick Galton Bridge travel via bus. The buses that travel to Smethwick Galton Bridge are
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#1732801015599528-547: The station and operates most of its services, with others provided by Chiltern Railways and London Northwestern Railway . Running parallel to the low-level line is the Birmingham New Main Line canal . The high-level platform extends over the canal, and the line Northbound quickly passes over a surviving section of the higher Old Main Line. It is an important interchange; over 600,000 people changed trains at
552-581: The station during 2019/20. The station was opened in September 1995 at a cost of £4 million as part of the £28.5 million Jewellery Line scheme to reopen the line between Smethwick and Birmingham Snow Hill station . It was built as an interchange station with the Birmingham New Street-Wolverhampton line, and the platforms on both lines opened at the same time. It is named after the adjacent Galton Bridge . Upon opening,
576-462: Was kept open for freight traffic (cement & scrap metals). Snow Hill station was reopened to services from the south in October 1987. In 1993, as part of the project to restore services through Snow Hill, work began on reopening the 4 miles (6 km) of line between Smethwick and Snow Hill as the "Jewellery Line"; the line was reopened on 24 September 1995. Three new stations were opened on
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