When I was a teenager in the mid-80s I spent a lot of time going up and down between Coventry and Birmingham.
I did it this afternoon for the first time in probably 25 years and found an awful lot has changed.
For a start, the level crossings at Canley and Tile Hill have been replaced with bridges / road realignment, and the approaches to Birmingham seem not too dissimilar from a railway point of view, but everything else looks shiny and new. And of course HS2 work is going on.
The stub siding at Berkswell is also no more. We were told as kids that sometimes the royal train stopped there overnight. Who knows, but we were impressed
But something is baffling me. I remember - or at least I think I remember - there was a short loop on the down side in between Tile Hill and the tunnel. No sign of it today though, and no real evidence it was ever there.
So:
- am I dreaming, or was it once there and then removed?
- if so, roughly when?
I did it this afternoon for the first time in probably 25 years and found an awful lot has changed.
For a start, the level crossings at Canley and Tile Hill have been replaced with bridges / road realignment, and the approaches to Birmingham seem not too dissimilar from a railway point of view, but everything else looks shiny and new. And of course HS2 work is going on.
The stub siding at Berkswell is also no more. We were told as kids that sometimes the royal train stopped there overnight. Who knows, but we were impressed
But something is baffling me. I remember - or at least I think I remember - there was a short loop on the down side in between Tile Hill and the tunnel. No sign of it today though, and no real evidence it was ever there.
So:
- am I dreaming, or was it once there and then removed?
- if so, roughly when?