Kingswinford Junction

Kingswinford Junction is a railway junction on the old Oxford-Worcester-Wolverhampton Line (OWW), which allows trains to diverge on to the Wombourne Branch Line. It is located north of Brettell Lane railway station, just before the line passes through Moor Street goods yard.

History

Both the OWW line and the Wombourne Branch Line were constructed, or overseen, by the Great Western Railway. The OWW line was a significant route between Stourbridge Junction and Wolverhampton Low Level while the Wombourne Branch was originally an important freight-only route bypassing the congested railway routes through the West Midlands conurbation. The latter was host to passenger services for just seven years between 1925 and 1932, and the OWW closed pre-Beeching in 1962. The junction's use decreased sharply with the closure of the Wombourne Branch in 1965, although the line remained open in some form as late as the 1980s.

Today

The junction remains since it also allows access to Moor Street Goods Yard. Trains rarely use this yard and it would appear the junction's use is minimal, if at all.

Signal box

The signal box that operated the junction was still used on a small scale until the late 1990s, when Moor Street's usage heavily declined. It was burnt down by arsonists in 2003. A manually operated ground frame replaced the former relic of West Midlands railways.

This ground frame must be cleared for use by Stourbridge Junction's Middle Box.