Eighteen of our members including your BLN Editor, BLN West Midlands Editor and BLN North West Editor (an edition of Editors?) gathered at The Mailbox. We met our regular NR guide Adam Turner and, at the start time of 13.50, began the short walk down Holliday Passage to Holliday St, where we accessed the old Birmingham Central Goods station site. The double track branch trackbed is now the only (private) NR makeshift access road for staff, equipment and materials to Five Ways station and the railway there.

Birmingham Central Goods station site was latterly occupied by the Mailbox (once a postal sorting office with a direct tunnel to New Street station for the transfer of mail). It is now apartments with offices, retail, entertainment accommodation and a Vodaphone switching centre. The former British Rail London Midland Region HQ building Stanier House (latterly Axis) was here too. In 2022 it was demolished and the area cleared for redevelopment. Next to a large residential building, we reached the first double track tunnel (Granville Street Goods Tunnel 234yds), where NR men Allun and Chris were waiting to open the first of seven sets of gates on the walk, allowing access to the tunnel which we then walked through. The tunnel was in very good condition but the middle has been reinforced within a metal cage, due to a previous flooding incident caused by a major leak from the nearby Worcester & Birmingham Canal!

After exiting the tunnel, we reached the site of Granville Street station where the trackbed widened. It was the passenger terminus from the south from 3 Apr 1876 until trains were diverted to New Street on 1 Jul 1885. Our group entered a deep cutting which opened up with a parapet allowing a view of the Gloucester Lines to New Street at a lower level. Noticeable at a higher level on the left, alongside the canal, was a bridge next to the tunnel, which was previously the access to a short branch known as Birmingham Corporation Siding. We walked further along the trackbed around a corner. Here the tracks used to diverge and become widely separated, with the Up line entering a short tunnel (Bath Row Goods Tunnel 108yds, brick lined, like Granville Street). The Down line curved left through a bridge. Between the two lines was a Jewish Cemetery from the 1700s, now partly occupied by student accommodation.

Our NR hosts opened the gates to the single track Bath Row Goods Tunnel, which we walked through to the far end. It was dry and in good condition but strewn with rubbish and had been utilised by rough sleepers. Beyond the tunnel the trackbed of the Up line (to Birmingham) was covered in brambles then built over, we retraced our steps through the tunnel noting a still ballasted area. Next, we followed the now paved access through the Down line overbridge along the side of the building and over the canal.









A short walk brought us to the wide characterless concrete bridge carrying the ring road (Islington Row Middleway) just prior to Five Ways station. A surprise here was the discovery of a disused astroturf pitch underneath the road bridge surrounded by mesh fencing. Continuing along the trackbed, we came alongside Five Ways station at a higher level. There was a good view of the original 1885 station buildings on the far side of the line at street level, still in good condition and now an Arabic restaurant.









Beyond the station platforms on the Down side is a remnant of a sawn-off wooden signal post, with the steel supporting base plate still in situ, over 58 years since the line closed. Needless to say, as usual, Adam produced a photo of the original (along with other old photos of the branch) on his tablet.



We continued further underneath St James Road overbridge, our walk ending about 100yds short of where the branch is level with the Gloucester lines at the former Church Road Jn. We retraced our steps and courtesy of NR had a group photo taken in front of the previously mentioned signal post remnant.






Afterwards at 15.30, the NR staff kindly opened the gate to the Down platform allowing those who wished to return by train to do so. The remaining group (the bidirectional members) retraced their tracks to Birmingham Central and dispersed. It was yet another 'I never thought I would do that' fixture. Many thanks to NR, Adam, Allun and Chris for their help on the day with the walk and the maps and old photos shown to the participants along the route to illustrate how the branch looked when operational. As a result of our fixture, £525 was donated to Dementia UK, NR's nominated charity for the occasion.



https://tinyurl.com/3jb6ww26 has many photos and maps etc, also: https://tinyurl.com/ytr893wn

From 'Warwickshire Railways' (abridged E&OE). Birmingham Central Goods station was originally known as Worcester Wharf, the name being given to reflect that it was built adjacent to the terminus of the Worcester & Birmingham Canal. The site of the depot was bordered by Holliday Street on one side, Suffolk Street at the front and Navigation Street on the other side with Holliday Passage and Worcester Wharf at the rear of the site above the tunnel. There were five sidings, two accessing the sheds with three sidings. In 1881 the Midland Railway was granted permission to extend the railway to New Street station. As soon as this work was initiated, the Midland Railway submitted another application to Parliament to compulsorily purchase property and land between Suffolk Street, Severn Street, Wharf Street and the Worcester Wharf in Birmingham. When complete, the large goods depot could accommodate 375 wagons and was wider than New Street station but only one third of its length.

Worcester Wharf goods branch and station opened for traffic on 1 Jul 1887. In 1947 and 1948 alterations were carried out at the warehouse to allow it to handle more parcels traffic which continued to grow so that by the 1960s, most of traffic was parcels related, with the balance being the delivery of white spirit in tanks. Due to competition from road hauliers, the parcel trade declined leaving the railway unable to compete. The goods station and signal box closed from 6 Mar 1967 and Church Road Jn was secured as out of use from 17 Dec 1967 pending removal. The trailing crossover (43m 48ch) remains to this day, electrified it now allows signalled turnbacks in Five Ways P1. On 7 Sep 1969, Church Road Junction signal box was closed and control of signalling passed to New Street Power Signal Box.