Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line

Birmingham-Worcester via Kidderminster Line

Legend Birmingham Snow Hill Template:Parking symbol For Chiltern Main Line Jewellery Quarter Hockley 1854-1972 Soho and Winson Green 1854-1972 Handsworth and Smethwick 1854-1972 The Hawthorns Template:Parking symbol to Wolverhampton Low Level Smethwick Galton Bridge Template:Parking symbol For Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line Smethwick Junction Connects to RBS Line - Southbound only. Smethwick West 1872-1996 Rood End 1867-1885 Langley Green Template:Parking symbol Crosses M5 Motorway Rowley Regis Template:Parking symbol Old Hill Template:Parking symbol Cradley Heath Template:Parking symbol Lye Template:Parking symbol Stourbridge North Junction Freight Line to Round Oak Steel Terminal Stourbridge Town Branch Line Branch to Stourbridge Town railway station Stourbridge Junction Template:Parking symbol For Stourbridge Town Branch Line Limit of Centro operated area Hagley Template:Parking symbol Blakedown Kidderminster Template:Parking symbol Severn Valley Railway mainline link Line onto Severn Valley Railway Hartlebury Template:Parking symbol Droitwich Spa Junction Birmingham to Worcester via Bromsgrove Line Droitwich Spa Template:Parking symbol Worcester Triangle Worcester Shrub Hill Template:Parking symbol Worcester Foregate Street For Cotswold Line Template:Parking symbol - Centro free car parking Template:Parking symbol - Other car parking

File:Birmingham-Worcester rail routes.png

Map of the Birmingham-Worcester line. Not to scale.

The Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line is a railway line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester via Stourbridge and Kidderminster.

The line serves the following places:

• Birmingham Snow Hill
• Jewellery Quarter
• The Hawthorns
• Smethwick
• Langley Green
• Rowley Regis
• Old Hill
• Cradley Heath
• Lye
• Stourbridge
• Hagley
• Blakedown
• Kidderminster
• Hartlebury
• Droitwich Spa
• Worcester

Passenger services are provided by London Midland between Birmingham and Worcester and beyond, and by Chiltern Railways between Birmingham and Kidderminster only. The latter runs services to London Marylebone in the morning rush hour, which start from Kidderminster rather than Snow Hill, and reverse journeys during the evening.

A triangular junction at Worcester allows a variety of service patterns (see map). Some trains terminate at Shrub Hill, whereas some reverse there before going to Foregate Street. Other trains take the direct curve to Foregate Street avoiding Shrub Hill. Some trains continue beyond Foregate Street to Great Malvern or Hereford.

Trains along this route occasionally also serviced Birmingham New Street, where they terminated. This link was removed, to much local consternation.

Apart from Chiltern's occasional service, only two intercity services are timetabled to use the line each day - one CrossCountry service to Birmingham New Street (via Smethwick Junction and Galton Junction) in the morning and a reverse service in the evening. Neither of these call at any of the stations along the route. During congestion or mainly during engineering works, the line sees much more frequent service as a diversionary route. The line from Worcester Shrub Hill continues to Cheltenham Spa railway station, which is the next calling point for most Cross Country services, and thus offers a convenient alternative when the Lickey Incline is closed.

Several charter trains can often be seen on the line due to the existence of the Severn Valley Railway at Kidderminster, which has a mainline connection.

Line Speed

Between Kidderminster and Worcester, the line speed is 75 mph (top speed of the Class 150 units) except in the following places:

• Kidderminster viaduct- 65 mph
• Droitwich area - 60 mph
• Droitwich station and junction area - 40 mph
• Worcester/tunnel junction area - 25 mph
• Curve near Foregate Street station - 15 mph

External links

• Stourbridge Line User Group - guide to stations