Birmingham Snow Hill late 1980?s into 1990.

[Bruce Depot]

Back in the late 1980´s I worked at the ´new´Snow Hill when it re-opened, In the early days there was open something of interest, so a few photos I have found while having a clear out.

 

 

40122 departing back to Tyseley Dec 1987 after bringing Santa claus to open the dislay at Lewis´s department store, was planned to go

out live on Midlands TV news but ran 30seconds early from Moor Street up the tunnel and buggered the plan up! So shown at the end

of the news i presume!

 

47534 had the job of taking the train back to Tyseley.

 

In May 1990 there was a sort of open day with different locos on display.

Dragged the rake in.

 

 

37520 came from Saltley to drag the locos back to Tyseley, A bit of shunting involving a trip to Moor Street and back with me cab riding and plenty of thrast in the tunnel off the Saltley driver! Wonder if the staff in Rackhams ever wondered what the hell the noise was! I never did work out how a Thornaby 37/5 had turned up at Saltley to start with, they where never very common to start with down here.

 

More soon.

[Trevellan]

What a view, driving towards the rail bridge. A Western and a Deltic.

 

Really interesting - thanks for posting.

[Bruce Depot]

In 1994 I was working at Saltley so a visit found the work in hand,  prior to the extention opening from Snow Hill the scrap traffic to Queens head had to be re-routed to allow work to start on the track bed at the Galton end of the new line, so a single temp track was laid off Platform 1 at Snow hill Northbound operated with a wooden staff.

Awaiting the tamper I think.

 

 

Moving on a bit more, May 1995 found all the tempy track gone and the new track in place. I got the job of taking some ops mangers for a walk from Snow Hill northbound along what would soon be the new link to Stourbridge. No Metro in those day´s.

Hockey Tunnel, note the room left for the Metro tracks.

Jewelley Quarter station being built.

About the limit of where we walked to Northbound. Dudley Road hospital was off to the left but not viewable.

[Bruce Depot]

This taken from the old Moor Street platforms in 1990 I think and shows how the track was just cut and left, would be many years before that would

change again.

For a while there where just two 150/2 knocking around, I remember when it first turned up they did not have any local destimation blinds. Was fun having a wind through seeing where you could pretend to be going instead! Think this is around 1989.

[DavidR]

Very evocative: a great set of photo's.

I spent many happy hours at the old Snow Hill in the late 50's and early 60's. It's good to see the station open again and trains running in a northerly direction toward Stourbridge and Wolverhampton and southbound toward Solihull and Leamington Spa.

[Bruce Depot]

Before changing jobs, (for the last time) a visit to Queens Head in 1998 to see the fly over for the Metro over the run round lines

for the Coopers metal train being built.

 

I will try and find some more photos of interest when next in the UK, some of the best movements at Snow Hill where

just never photoed due working as a shunter.

Once the station became a through one and the Centro service ramped up, the options for unusual movements dried up.

 

keith

[TheSignalEngineer]

Nice shots of the loco display. I didn't get there because of working on the Willesden patch at the time.

 

I was involved in everything from the diversion of services to New St in 1967, closure of the old line, the new Moor St - Snow Hill line, the re-opening to Smethwick, through to Midland Metro. There are lots of pics in my archive, so I will sort some to post.

[fishytrains]

Before the line reopend between Moor Street and Snow Hill I was one of many locals who took the opportunity to walk through the tunnel. Great experience compared to using the train !

 

Mike.