GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

GWR Route: North Warwickshire Line

Tyseley Station: gwrt1039

Looking south from Wharfedale Road bridge towards Tyseley South Signal Box and the junction with the North Warwickshire Railway during track simplification works on 17th August 1969. The relief lines had been taken out of use between Tyseley and Solihull on 5th July 1968 and Tyseley South Signal Box was closed on 1st September 1969, shortly after this work was completed.

Tyseley South Signal Box was built to control the junction on the Birmingham to Paddington Main Line with the North Warwickshire Line when this opened on 9th December 1907. The cast iron name plate for this Signal Box was ordered (No 252) on 20th March 1906 together with that for Tyseley North Signal Box. At this stage the Signal Box was a Great Western Railway standard type 27c of timber construction with a hipped slate tile roof. Approximately 200 of this 27c signal box type were constructed between 1905 and 1921. There were torpedo vents on the roof ridge and two stove pipes can be seen (probably due to the length of the building). The Signal Box was seventy feet long by thirteen feet wide and the operating floor was eleven feet above rail level. An internal staircase was provided. The operating floor windows were the three up - two down pane arrangement that is typically associated with the Great Western Railway and these surrounded the operating floor on all sides except where the two stoves were located. The Signal Box contained a GW horizontal tappet frame with 136 levers at 5¼ inch centres.

On 10th April 1940 the Signal Boxes at Tyseley South and Small Heath were both damaged by bombs during a night-time air-raid by the German Luftwaffe and the ground floor lock room was subsequently rebuilt with substantial red brick walls and without any windows, to provide better protection. Concrete lintels were provided over the entrance door and switch rodding openings. The upper operating floor appears to have been retained.

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