DavidGrain
Established Member
- Joined
- 29 Dec 2017
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I do not have a detailed historic map of the Birmingham rail network, but was watching a You Tube clip of a railtour heading into Brum via eastside and there were disused viaducts branching off all over the place only to end in demolished sections with new buildings on old footings. I think there were numerous connecting chords to various rail companies lines around Brum. There is one close to the pub where the Blues fans drink pre match.
The main viaduct near the centre of Birmingham carries the former Great Western line from Oxford into Birmingham Moor Street Station and then through a tunnel to Birmingham Snow Hill Station. Branching off this line at Bordesley there is a disused viaduct, Actually it would be more correct to say that it was a viaduct that was never used. The original plan was that the line from Oxford would run into the London North Western stations in Curzon Street. However there was a falling out so the GWR built the line to Snow Hill. The LNWR had by this time moved their main Birmingham station from Curzon Street to New Street.
Assuming that you were coming in from the east you would have seen these viaducts on your left. At Proof House Junction there is a viaduct to your right which brings the former Grand Junction line from Liverpool and Manchester into Birmingham. This line is now used mainly for local trains on the Cross City Line and the Walsall line and forms a flyover junction at Proof House. If you look closely the height of the viaduct has been increase by further arches built on top of the original viaduct to make the flyover.
So in fact the only disused viaduct is the viaduct that was never used in the first place.
On your point about Blues fans, Bordesley station now normally only has one 'parly' train per week but the stations does open when the Blues are playing at home. One evening last year I was on Kidderminster station when the announcement of the next train listed the stops and I was surprised to hear Bordesley mentioned as was on the platform departure board. I realised that there must be a match on that night. By coincidence that line also has a station called The Hawthorns where WBA play so when West Brom play Birmingham City they could visit each other by train.