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77-679: The Evesham branch line is a mostly disused English railway line running from Barnt Green via Redditch , Alcester and Evesham to Ashchurch . It was sometimes known as the Gloucester loop line of the Midland Railway. It opened in stages between 1859 and 1868, built by the Redditch Railway , the Midland Railway and the Evesham and Redditch Railway . All these sections were affiliated to

154-534: A Survey of production —an up-to-date compendium of detailed statistics necessary for regulating specific industries. In 1906, the Merchant Shipping Act upgraded the minimum working conditions, and the safety protections for both British sailors, and crews of foreign ships that used British ports. In 1907, the Patents and Design Act gave financial protection to British designs to stop unfair foreign copies. In

231-528: A direct connection to Birmingham, and they supported a proposed Evesham and Redditch Railway. The line was to be 17 miles in length. The Evesham and Redditch Railway was incorporated by the Evesham and Redditch Railway Act of 13 July 1863; authorised capital was £189,600. The company was leased to the Midland Railway on incorporation. Part of the line, from Evesham to Alcester, a distance of nearly ten miles, opened to goods traffic on 16 June 1866. Colonel Yolland for

308-458: A distance of about 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles. Authorised capital was £35,000 in £10 shares, with the usual addition of loans of £11,500. The line opened to passengers on 19 September 1859, and to goods traffic on 1 October of the same year. There was no other station, until Alvechurch was opened in November 1859. The line was leased and worked from the outset by the Midland Railway. The take-up of

385-680: A diverse range of functions, including regulation of domestic and foreign commerce, the development, implementation and interpretation of the Acts of Trade and Navigation , and the review and acceptance of legislation passed in the colonies. Between 1696 and 1782 the Board of Trade, in partnership with the various secretaries of state over that time, held responsibility for colonial affairs, particularly in British America . The newly created office of Home Secretary then held colonial responsibility until 1801, when

462-575: A new Committee of Council on Trade and Plantations (later known as 'the First Committee') was established by William Pitt the Younger . Initially mandated by an Order in Council on 5 March 1784, the committee was reconstructed and strengthened by a second order, on 23 August 1786, under which it operated for the rest of its existence. The committee has been known as the Board of Trade since 1786, but this name

539-562: A reputation as a conciliator. In Cabinet, he worked with Lloyd George to champion social reform . He promoted what he called a "network of State intervention and regulation" akin to that in Germany. Churchill's main achievements came in 1909. First was the Labour Exchanges Bill . It set up over 200 labour exchanges with William Beveridge in charge. The unemployed would come in and be assisted in finding employment. He also promoted

616-464: A separate body. The board carried on this work but also had long periods of inactivity, devolving into chaos after 1761 and dissolved in 1782 by an act of Parliament by the Rockingham Whigs . William Pitt the Younger re-established the committee in 1784, and an Order in Council of 23 August 1786 provided the formal basis that still remains in force. A secretariat was established which included

693-524: A separate education committee for Wales. The bill passed the House of Commons greatly amended but was completely mangled by the House of Lords. No compromise was possible and the bill was abandoned, allowing the 1902 Act to continue in effect. Nonconformists were bitterly upset by the failure of the Liberal Party to reform the 1902 Education Act, its most important promise to them, and over time their support for

770-451: Is as follows: Mondays to Saturdays: Of which: Southbound Cross-City line services towards Redditch depart from Platform 4, departing every half-hour (Monday-Friday, first train departs at 06:13; last train departs at 23:43). Services to Bromsgrove down the Lickey incline began on 29 July 2018, with an hourly off-peak service in operation from platform 2 (the actual frequency to Bromsgrove

847-550: Is at the point of a Y-shaped junction between the main line towards Bromsgrove , Worcester and the south-east, and the branch line to Redditch which is part of the Cross-City Line . It has platforms on both lines, until 2018 only the Redditch line platforms saw regular services, however since Cross-City Line services were extended to Bromsgrove, the main line platforms now also see regular use. The main line through Barnt Green

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924-605: Is disused. The Birmingham and Gloucester Railway opened throughout in 1840. With the Bristol and Gloucester Railway , it formed a through route between the dominant manufacturing districts of the West Midlands, and the important port of Bristol . The principal objective of the promoters of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway was to achieve a trunk route between those important centres, and in devising its route, they paid little heed to

1001-527: Is half-hourly, but alternate trains skip this station). Services were more frequent prior to the COVID pandemic (as can be seen from the Winter 2019 online timetable ) On Monday-Friday, the first train to Four Oaks via Birmingham departs at 06:12; with the last train to Lichfield City departing at 22:42 and the last for Birmingham departing at 23:42. These trains originate alternately at Redditch and Bromsgrove since

1078-693: Is no access for wheelchairs. There is step-free access to Platforms 1 and 4. The station has a small (charged) car park adjacent to Platform 4 provided jointly by Bromsgrove District Council / West Midlands Trains . The station along with all those located on the Cross-City line has departure boards showing real time train information, located on Platforms 3 and 4. The station is served by West Midlands Trains with local Transport for West Midlands branded "Cross-City" services, operated using Class 323 Electric multiple units (EMUs) until September 2024 and currently by Class 730 EMUs. The off-peak service pattern

1155-560: The American War of Independence , both the board and the short-lived secretaryship were dismissed by the king on 2 May 1782 and the board was abolished later by the Civil List and Secret Service Money Act 1782 ( 22 Geo. 3 . c. 82). Following the Treaty of Paris 1783 , with the continuing need to regulate trade between its remaining colonies, the independent United States and all other countries,

1232-588: The American plantations and elsewhere. Staff appointed to serve the board in 1696 included a secretary, a deputy secretary, some clerks, office keepers, messengers, and a necessary woman; more staff such as a solicitor and a porter were added later. The Lords Commissioners of Trade and Foreign Plantations , commonly known as the Lords of Trade, did not constitute a committee of the Privy Council, but were, in fact, members of

1309-670: The Beeching Report of 1963 along with Barnt Green station itself. As a precursor to this, the timetable was drastically cut back in May 1964, with only a handful of (mostly) peak period services being retained. However the route was eventually reprieved in August 1965 after protests from local rail users and the area's four MPs. Stopping trains on the main line southwards toward Worcester Shrub Hill and Cheltenham Spa were withdrawn in April 1966 (though

1386-570: The Board of Trade approved passenger opening, and passenger trains started running on 17 September 1866. Four trains ran daily between Alcester and Evesham, with two on Sundays, and after a short period these were combined with the Ashchurch trains, but the Gloucester through trains had been discontinued. This opening left 7 miles between Alcester and Redditch to be completed; there was a 330-yard tunnel under

1463-548: The English colonies , depending on the internal demographics and political and religious division of each. Between 1643 and 1648 the Long Parliament would establish a parliamentary Commission for Plantations to take the lead in colonial and commercial affairs. This period also saw the first regulation of royal tonnage and poundage and begin the modernization of customs and excise as growing sources of government revenue. During

1540-533: The Interregnum and Commonwealth three acts of the Rump Parliament in 1650 and 1651 are notable in the historical development of England's commercial and colonial programs. These include the first Commission of Trade to be established by an Act of Parliament on 1 August 1650. The instructions to the named commissioners, headed by Henry Vane the Younger , included consideration of both domestic and foreign trade,

1617-647: The Mines Eight Hours Bill , which legally prohibited miners from working more than an eight-hour day . Sydney Buxton served as president between 1910 and 1914. His main role was passage of numerous specific trade and commerce laws. From 1973, international trade policy of the United Kingdom was a competence of the European Economic Community , and later of the European Union . The board

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1694-509: The Secretary of State for War and the Colonies was established. Between 1768 and 1782 while with the Secretary of State for the Colonies , whose secretaryship was held jointly with the presidency of the Board of Trade, the latter position remained largely vacant; this led to a diminished status of the board and it became an adjunct to the new department and ministry concerns. Following the loss of

1771-659: The Board of Trade was transferred to the Secretary of State for International Trade . The board was reconstituted in October 2017. In 1622, at the end of the Dutch Twelve Years' Truce , King James I directed the Privy Council of England to establish a temporary committee to investigate the causes of various economic and supply problems, the decline in trade and consequent financial difficulties; detailed instructions and questions were given, with answers to be given "as fast as

1848-562: The Liberal Party slowly fell away. According to Martin Roberts, Lloyd George headed a department of 750 experts that was responsible for supervising British industry, commerce and transportation. Using their pool of expertise, he initiated a series of reforms that were quickly endorsed by the Liberal Parliament. One of the first actions was the Census of Production Act 1906 , which generated

1925-589: The Midland Railway (New Lines and Additional Powers) Act of 21 July 1863). The Evesham and Redditch Railway was vested in the Midland Railway from 1 July 1882, and the company was finally dissolved on 25 June 1886. The Midland Railway had acquired a highly competitive access to Birmingham and to all parts of the country for the Vale of Evesham's fruit and vegetable products; at the same time the OW&;WR east-to-west route (by now GWR) had become less strategically important. A line

2002-468: The Midland Railway and amalgamated with it. When complete, the line formed a useful route for goods services avoiding the congested and difficult route via the Lickey Incline . It became more important when a line from Stratford on Avon to Broom was opened in 1879, bringing through goods traffic to the route. Long-distance goods services were diverted away from the line over other routes after 1960, and

2079-462: The Midland's own route from Derby ). Though the station was used as an interchange between the two lines from the outset, its main line platforms were initially staggered - the northbound platform being located north of the junction and initially connected to the two southbound ones by a foot crossing (which was replaced by a footbridge in 1895). A second platform on the branch was provided in 1894, when

2156-471: The Second World War, services were reduced, only nine trains running, with some unhelpful gaps. An hourly diesel service was introduced between Birmingham and Redditch on 25 April 1960. Peak-hour trains and through workings to Evesham and Ashchurch continued to be steam hauled. A frequent regular interval passenger service was introduced between Birmingham and Redditch in April 1960. This greatly reduced

2233-585: The Stratford-on-Avon and Midland Junction Railway. The Alcester Railway company, authorised on 6 August 1872, constructed a branch line from Bearley on the Stratford on Avon Railway to Alcester. In fact it made a junction with the Midland Railway a short distance north of Alcester station; the Alcester Railway had running powers into the Midland Railway station. The branch was opened on 4 September 1876; it

2310-537: The UK and its empire . During the second half of the 19th century it also dealt with legislation for patents, designs and trademarks, company regulation, labour and factories, merchant shipping, agriculture, transport, power etc. Colonial matters passed to the Colonial Office and other functions were devolved to newly created departments, a process that continued for much of the 20th century. The original commission comprised

2387-748: The Woodford Halse traffic to be diverted to the Honeybourne route, leaving only local goods services, and the Oxford-South Wales freight trains running over the Evesham–Ashchurch section. Broom station was closed on 1 October 1962, a few months after the line from Broom West to Broom East had closed on 1 July 1962. On 1 October 1962 the Alcester–Evesham section was closed temporarily to all traffic without warning, because of "the unsafe condition of

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2464-514: The agricultural districts of the Vale of Evesham, ("one of Britain's richest") and other areas of Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. Redditch was an important town not far from the Bristol and Gloucester Railway route, but it was not until 23 July 1858 that the Redditch Railway was incorporated. The line was to leave the Midland Railway main line at Barnt Green and run to Brock Hill Lane, Redditch,

2541-527: The availability of paths for freight trains over the single-track section north of Redditch, and nearly all through freight traffic passing over this section was diverted to the main line via the Lickey Incline. Meanwhile, there was an increase in the Woodford Halse to South Wales traffic from Broom Junction, and in 1960 a double-track east-to-south spur was constructed at Stratford on Avon. This enabled all

2618-501: The complete closure of Harvington and Ashton-under-Hill stations and the retaining of facilities for full wagon loads at Hinton, with all other stations remaining for freight and parcels traffic. But further developments caused all stations on the branch south of Alcester, except Evesham, to be closed completely from 1 July 1963. These events left the Barnt Green to Redditch section as a short branch of less than 5 miles (8.0 km). This

2695-542: The early-1990s, British Rail electrified the branch. In 2014 a passing loop was constructed on the branch at Alvechurch and this allowed the service to be further upgraded to three trains per hour. Barnt Green railway station Barnt Green railway station serves the village of Barnt Green , North Worcestershire , England . It is situated 9 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles (15.3 km) south west of Birmingham New Street . The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by West Midlands Trains . Barnt Green station

2772-579: The first 350 yards from the junction were doubled. A more comprehensive rebuilding scheme came in 1928, when the Cofton Tunnel was demolished and replaced by a wide cutting, so that the main line towards Northfield and Kings Norton could be quadrupled by the LMS (who had taken over ownership of the station at the 1923 Grouping ). This saw the Birmingham-bound platform relocated south of the junction to create

2849-527: The first definitive expression of England's commercial policy. They represent the first attempt to establish a legitimate control of commercial and colonial affairs, and the instructions indicate the beginnings of a policy which had the prosperity and wealth of England exclusively at heart. It was the Lords of Trade who, in 1675, originated the idea of transforming all of the colonies in America into Royal Colonies for

2926-458: The idea of an unemployment insurance scheme, which would be part-funded by the state. Secondly he introduced the Trade Boards Bill , creating trade boards which investigated the sweated trades and enabled the prosecution of exploitative employers. Passing with a large majority, it established the principle of a minimum wage and the right of workers to have meal breaks. Churchill introduced

3003-591: The layout still in use today. A correspondent who lived close to Barnt Green station from the Second World War onwards reminds us that it stood on an important NE-SW express route. It was part of the route of The Pines Express for a long time. As a child he would stand on the Worcester-Birmingham platform with his sister, seeing ambulance trains painted dark green with red crosses passing through. Other troop trains held American soldiers and when they saw us, they threw sweets and coins to us which came bouncing across

3080-401: The line declined steeply. It was closed south of Redditch in stages in 1962 and 1963. Today the northernmost stretch between Barnt Green and Redditch is still in operation as a branch of the Cross-City Line . This has enjoyed a revival of its passenger services in recent years. At the other end, a very short length of the original line serves an MoD depot at Ashchurch. The remainder of the line

3157-463: The line". Next the double-track Evesham–Ashchurch section was closed on 9 September 1963, because of the considerable expenditure necessary to maintain the track for heavy freight movements. The section between Evesham and Ashchurch soon followed, closing for passengers on 17 June 1963. In 1962, British Railways announced the intention of withdrawing passenger services on the 28-mile stretch between Redditch and Ashchurch. The proposals originally entailed

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3234-471: The long term, his most important innovation was creating the Port of London Authority in 1908. It merged numerous inefficient and overlapping private companies and gave unified supervision to Britain's most important port. That enabled London to compete more effectively with Hamburg and Rotterdam. Lloyd George also turned his attention to strikes and industrial disputes in shipyards. He was instrumental in settling

3311-503: The mainline platforms in recent years, provided by trains on the New St - Worcester - Hereford line (see below). The station has no permanent buildings (the building located behind shrubs adjacent to Platforms 2 and 3 is a private business, in no way affiliated with the station). It has automatic ticket machines located on platforms 3 and 4, and shelters are provided on Platforms 2, 3 and 4. A footbridge connects all four platforms, although there

3388-401: The new Liberal Cabinet of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman as President of the Board of Trade . The first priority on taking office was the repeal of the 1902 Education Act. Lloyd George took the lead along with Augustine Birrell , President of the Board of Education. Lloyd George was the dominant figure on the committee drawing up the bill in its later stages and insisted that the bill create

3465-402: The platform. At that time there was a large waiting room on that side with a ticket window, now removed. Close to that stood a green-painted W H Smith bookstall run by Mr. C. B. Fallick. On summer Saturdays the sound of holiday special trains climbing the Lickey Incline with their bankers was clearly audible and then shortly afterwards they would "burst out" from under the road bridge at the end of

3542-522: The platform. They were mostly hauled by Black Fives, sometimes a Patriot and occasionally a Midland Compound valiantly hauling one of those long trains. The compounds typically hauled most of the Birmingham-Worcester local trains and he would travel down and up the Lickey Incline to school once a day for six years, acquiring a lifelong love for those locomotives and the hollow bark of their exhaust. The Evesham loop line through Redditch and Evesham

3619-464: The president, vice president and board members. By 1793, the board still remained in its old structure, with 20 members including the Archbishop of Canterbury . After 1820 the board ceased to meet regularly and the business was carried out entirely by the secretariat. The short name of "Board of Trade" was formalised in 1861. In the 19th century the board had an advisory function on economic activity in

3696-791: The purpose of securing English trade against the French. They brought New Hampshire under the Crown, modified Penn's charter, refused a charter to the Plymouth colony, and taking advantage of the concessions of the charters of Massachusetts and New York, created the Dominion of New England in 1685, thereby transforming all the territory from the Kennebec to the Delaware into a single crown colony. In 1696, King William III appointed eight paid commissioners to promote trade in

3773-520: The route and the necessity to reverse at Broom to continue the journey over the Evesham Loop line militated against it. Nevertheless, during World War II a heavy traffic over that route developed; the track and signalling on the Stratford line was greatly improved for the purpose. The trains still had to reverse at Broom, and the delays involved in doing so with heavy trains became intolerable. To relieve

3850-476: The serious threat of a national railway strike in 1907. While almost all the rail companies refused to recognise the unions, he persuaded them to recognise elected representatives of the workers who sat with the company representatives on conciliation boards—one for each company. If those boards failed to agree then an arbitrator would be called upon. H. H. Asquith succeeded the terminally ill prime minister on 8 April 1908 and, four days later, Winston Churchill

3927-449: The service terminating at Hereford departing at 08:17, while the service towards Birmingham New Street departs at 16:54. Board of Trade The board was first established as a temporary committee of England's Privy Council to advise on colonial ( plantation ) questions in the early 17th century, when these settlements were initially forming. The board would evolve gradually into a government department with considerable power and

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4004-442: The seven (later eight) Great Officers of State , who were not required to attend meetings, and the eight paid members, who were required to attend. The board, so constituted, had little real power, and matters related to trade and the colonies were usually within the jurisdiction of the secretaries of state and the Privy Council, with the board confining itself mainly to colonial administration. In 1905, David Lloyd George entered

4081-478: The several points shall be duly considered by you." This would be followed by a number of temporary committees and councils to regulate the colonies and their commerce. The board's formal title remains "The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of all matters relating to Trade and Foreign Plantations". In 1634, Charles I appointed a new commission for regulating plantations. It

4158-479: The situation a south curve was built at Broom, creating a triangle. It opened on 27 September 1942. The Midland Railway and the OW&WR (later GWR) were alongside one another at Evesham, and for many years there was only an exchange siding connection between the two. In the 1950s a running connection was made, to enable Honeybourne – Cheltenham services to be diverted that way to Ashchurch. Passenger services between Redditch and Ashchurch showed little variation over

4235-414: The southern end of the town at Redditch. The line was completed on 4 May 1868. The Redditch Railway's terminus station was closed and a through station was opened about a quarter of a mile to the south. The new location was more convenient to the town centre. Between Redditch and Evesham the line comprised single track with passing loops; from Evesham to Ashchurch the track was double throughout. The company

4312-532: The start of operations from the latter on 29 July 2018. On Sundays there are 3tph to Birmingham New Street, with the first departing at 09:38 (2tph to/from Redditch and 1tph to/from Bromsgrove) with the 2tph from Redditch continuing to Lichfield Trent Valley. The station is also served by a limited service on the Birmingham to Worcester line using Class 196 Diesel multiple units (Monday-Friday only). The service terminating at Great Malvern departs at 07:39, with

4389-448: The station at Bromsgrove survived), leaving the by now unstaffed station to be served by the few surviving Redditch to Birmingham trains for the next 14 years (the BR timetable of 1972 lists just four trains in each direction serving all of the surviving local stations on the route - two return trips in the morning peak, one at midday, one in the evening and no Sunday service). The service level

4466-401: The trading companies, manufactures, free ports, customs, excise, statistics, coinage and exchange, and fisheries, as well as the plantations and the best means of promoting their welfare and rendering them useful to England. The act's statesmanlike and comprehensive instructions, along with an October act prohibiting trade with pro-royalist colonies and the Navigation Act of October 1651, formed

4543-424: The years, normally consisting of four or five trains in each direction on weekdays at roughly three-hourly intervals. These were a mixture of through trains and trains between Redditch, Evesham and Ashchurch connecting with other services to and from Birmingham. In the early years there were 13 trains in each direction between Birmingham and Redditch on weekdays with an extra late train on Thursdays and Saturdays. After

4620-508: The £35,000 share issue was disappointing: only £27,120 was taken. Worse, the actual cost of construction of the line amounted to £54,574. The deficit on capital account was £27,000, presumably partly supported by unauthorised loans. The Company went back to Parliament for authorisation for further capital, and an Act of 7 August 1862 allowed the Company to raise fresh share capital to the extent of £15,000, and to take loans of up to £5,000, and to create debenture stock in lieu of loans. The company

4697-412: Was appointed President of the Board of Trade, succeeding Lloyd George who became Chancellor of the Exchequer . He continued the reform impulse Lloyd George had launched. One of Churchill's first tasks was to arbitrate in an industrial dispute among ship-workers and employers on the River Tyne . He afterwards established a Standing Court of Arbitration to deal with future industrial disputes, establishing

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4774-439: Was built and opened by the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway in 1841, but it would be 1844 before Barnt Green received its station. The B&GR was linked to the Bristol and Gloucester Railway in 1845 to create a through route to the West Country and then became part of the Midland Railway 's expanding network in 1846. The station then became a junction in 1859 with the opening of the Midland's branch line to Redditch . This

4851-408: Was built from Stratford-upon-Avon joining the Evesham Loop at Broom: the line was built by the Evesham, Redditch & Stratford-on-Avon Junction Railway. This railway was an extension of a line from Fenny Compton to Stratford-on-Avon, called the East and West Junction Railway. The E&WJR aspired to carry Northamptonshire iron ore to South Wales via Stratford and beyond but had run out of money, and

4928-468: Was eventually boosted in May 1980, when hourly trains were reintroduced between Longbridge and Redditch as an extension of the recently commissioned Birmingham Cross-City Line from Lichfield City . This frequency was increased to half-hourly in 1989 and in 1992 the route was electrified (though only the centre main lines were wired beyond Longbridge - the outer lines remain diesel-only and are designated as goods loops). A limited service has also returned to

5005-432: Was headed by the Archbishop of Canterbury with its primary goals to increase royal authority and the influence of the Church of England in the colonies, particularly with the great influx of Puritans to the New World. Soon after, the English Civil Wars erupted and initiated a long period of political instability in England and the resultant loss of productivity for these committees. The war would spread to varying degrees to

5082-420: Was in the hands of the receiver in 1879 when the Evesham company opened its line. The line ran from the E&WJR at Stratford to connect with the Evesham Loop line at Broom, between Alcester and Evesham. Its authorising Act gave it running powers over the Midland Railway between Redditch and Evesham, although these were never exercised except for access to the station at Broom. The line opened on 2 June 1879, and

5159-416: Was merged with the Ministry of Technology in 1970, to form the Department of Trade and Industry . The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (from 2009 Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills ) was also President of the Board of Trade. The full board has met only once since the mid-20th century, during commemorations of the bicentenary of the board in 1986. In 2016, the role of President of

5236-447: Was merged with the Midland Railway in 1863; the change was ratified by the Midland Railway (Additional Powers) Act 1874. The Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway opened its main line through Evesham in 1852. The Midland Railway saw the potential of the town, and determined to build its own line to Evesham. It obtained authorisation of a ten-mile Ashchurch and Evesham branch, by the Midland Railway (New Lines) Act of 7 June 1861. It

5313-510: Was only officially adopted by an act of 1861. The new board's first functions were consultative like earlier iterations, and its concern with plantations, in matters such as the approval of colonial laws, more successfully accomplished. As the Industrial Revolution expanded, the board's work became increasingly executive and domestic. From the 1840s, a succession of acts of parliament gave it regulatory duties, notably concerning railways, merchant shipping and joint-stock companies. This department

5390-403: Was opened to goods trains on 1 July 1864. The first passenger trains ran on 1 October 1864. The Evesham station was immediately adjacent to the OW&WR station. On weekdays there were four trains in each direction on weekdays and two on Sundays. After a short time there were two trains running through to Gloucester. Evesham had two railway lines, but interested parties there saw the advantage of

5467-411: Was proposed for closure as part of the Beeching Axe , but was reprieved due to a local campaign, as well as Redditch gaining the designation of a New Town . However in the late 1960s its service was reduced to just four trains daily at peak times. This persisted until 1980, when an hourly service was extended to Redditch on the newly upgraded Cross-City Line . This was upgraded to half-hourly in 1989. In

5544-551: Was reconstituted in October 2017, after the UK had voted to leave the European Union in June 2016. In its most recent iteration in 2017, only privy counsellors can be actual members of the board, while others are appointed as advisers. There is only one standing member in the Board, who is its President. The Board is held accountable to Parliament through ministers attached to the Board, who are not necessarily members. Advisers to

5621-532: Was subsequently extended through to Evesham and Ashchurch in stages between 1866 and 1868. The Midland then opened a second route into Birmingham New Street (the Birmingham West Suburban Railway ) in 1885 to provide an alternative to the original B&GR main line via Camp Hill , which was becoming increasingly congested at its eastern end (which it shared with the LNWR main line from Euston and

5698-582: Was used in Midland and LMS days as a relief route for freight traffic to avoid the steeply graded Lickey Incline in addition to carrying local passenger traffic, but under British Rail auspices it was closed to passengers south of Redditch in October 1962 due to the poor condition of the track (formal closure occurring on 17 June 1963) and completely in July 1964. The remaining part of the branch north of Redditch had seen its service dieselised and improved to hourly in April 1960, only for it to be listed for closure in

5775-420: Was vested in the Midland by the Midland Railway (Additional Powers) Act 1882. The Evesham branch (from Ashchurch) was part of the Midland Railway; the other two companies forming the through route, the Redditch Railway and the Evesham and Redditch Railway, were worked from their respective openings by the Midland company. The Redditch Railway was absorbed by the Midland Railway from 1 January 1865 (under powers in

5852-537: Was worked by the E&;WJR. The connection at Broom faced north, away from South Wales; at first the point of junction was in the middle of a Midland Railway staff section on the single line (Wixford to Salford Priors), a highly improper situation. This was rectified soon after the line opened. Broom station was an exchange station only, with no public access, until 1 November 1880. The ER&SoAJR itself went into receivership in 1886. In 1909 those two companies merged to form

5929-697: Was worked by the Great Western Railway. The Alcester Company was finally taken over by the Great Western Railway on 1 July 1883. The junction at Broom with the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway faced north. For a time the Midland Railway used the SoA&;MJR line as a through goods link between its system in Northamptonshire and the Gloucestershire network, but the poor facilities of

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