LMS Route: Rugby to Wolverhampton

LMS Route: Birmingham New Street to Lichfield

LMS Route: Birmingham New Street to Soho and Perry Barr

Curzon Street Shed: lnwrcs2167

Plan of the approach and layout of Curzon Street station's train shed and its Engine House as seen in 1846. A number of changes has occurred in just a few years. The most obvious being the construction of the Grand Junction Railway's arrival and departure platforms. A tranship shed has been built on the Birmingham Canal with an access siding leading off at right angles from the turntables on the roads leading into the arrival and departure lines. In addition, the arrival of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway meant that their trains needed to be accommodated too. This was achieved by building a bay platform adjacent to the L&BR departure platform. Access to the Birmingham Canal was still only available via the L&BR Tranship shed with the Grand Junction wharf yet to be created. The purpose of the siding located at 90° adjacent to the Grand Junction station's departure platform is unknown. As seen above, the Grand Junction Railway had its own access from Curzon Street into the station yard which led to booking office and departure platform. The two turntables set into the platform would have been used for either to load or off-load road vehicles that has been transported by rail. An example of this type of feature can be seen in image 'lnwrcov1282d' at Coventry station. To accommodate the Birmingham & Gloucester Railway's trains the L&BR station's departure platform was extended forwarded with a dedicated line (marked 'C') being installed on what could be described as a bay platform. The extension to the departure platform (marked 'A') was built the London side of the siding to the tranship shed (seen departing at 90° to the running lines). Both L&BR and B&GR trains would depart from the departure platform. The Grand Junction Railway's arrival platform is visible bottom left accessed by separate gates entering this dedicated yard.

While the difficult and time-consuming process of land purchase and property demolition in the New Street area got under way, construction work began on the approach lines in order to give access to the site. First to be completed was the bridge over the Birmingham Canal. Rather than just provide a donble-track bridge for the new lines, the whole length of canal between the New Street lines and the existing Curzon Street bridge (a length of about 183ft) was covered over adding to the 127ft of the original bridge. This allowed the L&BR engine shed to be extended across the canal bridge; the new building was rectangular in shape, measuring about 100ft by 70ft. The original L&BR carriage shed, to the east of its departure station and accessible only by means of turntables, became inadequate shortly after passenger services began. A new, single-road carriage shed about 300ft long was therefore constructed on the south side of the main line between Lawley Street viaduct and the canal bridge. This shed was rather inconveniently sited in relation to the new lines to New Street station. As soon as the embankment for the new lines had been completed, a new two-road carriage shed was erected further to the south, where it would stand on the south side of the running lines to New Street. Again, it was situated between Lawley Street and the canal; the old shed was then demolished. While the old carriage shed had been accessible at the west end, the new shed had its entrance at the east end.

Richard Foster

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