GWR Route: North Warwickshire Line

GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

Bordesley Station: gwrbg670a

This close up of image 'gwrbg670' shows the signal box that controlled the crossovers and junction with the sidings to the west of Bordesley station. The two lines to the left of the signal box are, from left to right, 'down' and 'up' main leading to Snow Hill whilst the up and down relief lines to Moor Street are to their left and out of view the photographer.

The signal box depicted here is the Bordesley North Signal Box, which replaced a smaller signal box on Bordesley Station, when the track was quadrupling from Bordesley to Small Heath and the station layout remodelled. This Signal Box was opened on 1st September 1918 and is typical of the types then under construction. It is a Great Western Railway standard type 27C signal box of timber construction with a hipped roof, torpedo vents and a stove pipe chimney. The dimensions of this signal box were 29 feet long by 11 feet wide by 11 feet from rail height to the operating floor. It had a 47 lever, vertical tappet, three bar locking (VT3) frame with the levers set 4” between centres. There were six spare levers in the frame. This signal box closed on 26th February 1967 when the track arrangement was rationalised.

The signal in the foreground has a ring on a three foot signal arm indicating that it controlled the exit of the goods yard. This type of signal is more visible than the alternative ground signal, but these ring indications and other distinguishing marks on signals were dispensed with by British Rail post November 1947. Lower down on the same signal post is an illuminated route indicator, where the set route option would be displayed. These route indicators were commonly used where traffic speeds were low (such as exits to goods yards) and avoided the expense of multi-armed signals. In this case the three route options were; Down Main (20), Down Relief (19) or Up Goods Running Line (18).

Robert Ferris

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