GWR Route: Hatton to Bearley and Alcester Branch

Great Alne Station: gwrga800a

Close up of image 'gwrga800' showing the goods yard showing the wooden gangers hut in the distance and the standard GWR rail-built loading gauge. To be effective loading gauges had to be placed on a straight section of track, which explains its position in this yard. Loading gauges were a convenient way of ascertaining if the load on a wagon exceeded the safe size to travel. The maximum height allowed above the rail level was 13’6”, but this maximum only extended 9” either side of the track centre line. The extreme width of 9’8” was only available between 4’3” and 9’10” above the rail level.

Long loads require additional clearance, so the standard gauge was limited to loads under 40’. Longer loads such as lengths of timber must not exceed 9’ wide if between 40’ and 50’ long or 5’ wide if between 50’ and 60’ long. In Great Alne’s heyday goods traffic had included locally felled lengths of round timber, which was loaded onto timber bolster wagons (telegraphic code name MACAW) using a portable crane. The crane had to be brought to Great Alne from Hartlebury when timber loading was required. When this photograph was taken in 1949 the only traffic was the occasional sugar beet special.

Robert Ferris

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