Different bell codes in one signal box

[Chris White]

My question is as per the topic description, "Can one signal box employ different bell codes for distinct routes?".

 

I'm thinking of two possible situations:

 

A route where some non standard bell codes are employed for special situations;

 

An interchange between two different companies which employ different bell codes (I'm assuming that once BR came into existence bell codes were standardised across the network).

[iands]

The Bell Codes were 'standardised' in 1884 (Railway Clearing House). Not sure there were any 'non-standard/non-authorised' bell codes used (i.e. companies devising their own codes), but there may have been some special codes used between a select few boxes that were rarely used elsewhere, but I stand to be corrected on this.

[bécasse]

The Bell Codes were 'standardised' in 1884 (Railway Clearing House). Not sure there were any 'non-standard/non-authorised' bell codes used (i.e. companies devising their own codes), but there may have been some special codes used between a select few boxes that were rarely used elsewhere, but I stand to be corrected on this.

 

Urr. Yes and no. The Southern companies (and later Region) continued to use their own bell codes as late as 1971, they weren't totally dissimilar to the 'standard' but they were sufficiently different to make bell signals in a Southern box distinctive. Even when the codes were finally standardised in 1972, there were still differences on the Southern, electric trains weren't differentiated for example. What makes this really odd was that this was one of the few things where someone other than the GWR was the odd man out.

 

Fringe boxes would have used one set of codes in one direction and the other set in the other - although fringe boxes often had a good few special codes, usually related to routing, as well.

[The Stationmaster]

Urr. Yes and no. The Southern companies (and later Region) continued to use their own bell codes as late as 1971, they weren't totally dissimilar to the 'standard' but they were sufficiently different to make bell signals in a Southern box distinctive. Even when the codes were finally standardised in 1972, there were still differences on the Southern, electric trains weren't differentiated for example. What makes this really odd was that this was one of the few things where someone other than the GWR was the odd man out.

 

Fringe boxes would have used one set of codes in one direction and the other set in the other - although fringe boxes often had a good few special codes, usually related to routing, as well.

 

There were a number of (G)WR bell codes which remained in use until full standardisation in 1972 and there is (from the last I heard) still one in use today although now, and for a long time since, it is only published in Signalbox Special Instructions and no longer carries the numbering of the Block Regulation. (for those interested it is former GWR Regulation 4A 'Line Clear to Clearing Point Only', 2-2-2 bell code, which continued as Regulation 4A in the 1960 WR edition of the Block Regulations lasting until 1972).  Note  it is not be confused Regulation 4 Clause a, written also as Regulation 4(a); it's a situation where the capitalisation conveyed a specific meaning.

 

WR Permissive Block regulations, and relevant bell code(s) were also different until 1966 when they were brought into line with the standard.

 

To answer the OP's opening question the answer is a resounding 'yes' but normally it was done by adding a supplementary code to the standard 'Is Line Clear for ...?' bell code (although I have been told that there were cases where the route describing code was sent as a supplementary code to the 'Train entering Section' bell code).   Examples of these 'route describing' bell codes were numerous and were all devisedand published locally by the Rules & Regulations Office responsible for the area in which the codes were used.  However when I finally managed to get some adopted in the area where I worked in the west country in the 1970s they were codes which I chose and asked the relevant office to authorise in the Signalbox Special Instructions.  Because they were published locally the same code could therefore be found meaning completely different things on different railways/BR Regions or even in relatively close parts of the network in the same BR Region.  For example when I worked on the Cardiff Valleys in the early 1970s a train for the Maerdy branch was 'Is Line Clear for ....?' plus 5-4, thus  the bell code for a Class 9 train to Maerdy was 1-4-5-4

[TheSignalEngineer]

Routing bell code 'suffixes' were also used at LM boxes. Some I experienced used the standard code when offering a train for the straight route and a pause-2 or similar added on for the branch train.