Driver instructor training has begun on Birmingham’s Camp Hill Line, with the first trains stopping at the three new stations at Moseley Village, Kings Heath and Pineapple Road.
The initial training of instructors appears to be combined with the running of test services on the line. Trains are running at half-hourly intervals at some points during the day, using three-car Class 196 diesel multiple units.
Driver instructor training has begun on Birmingham’s Camp Hill Line, with the first trains stopping at the three new stations at Moseley Village, Kings Heath and Pineapple Road.
The initial training of instructors appears to be combined with the running of test services on the line. Trains are running at half-hourly intervals at some points during the day, using three-car Class 196 diesel multiple units.
Construction of the new stations has suffered serious delays, having encountered several unforeseen challenges – including dealing with wildlife and structural issues. At Moseley Village, the side of a cutting had to be strengthened.
The three stations have been built on the same sites as the former stations, which closed in 1941 (as part of wartime measures) and never reopened. The Camp Hill Line is still being used by long-distance passenger services and freight trains.
Mal Drury-Rose, Director at West Midlands Rail Executive, said: “Construction work is soon to be fully complete on all three Camp Hill line stations.
“Working with the railway industry, we are now beginning to put the stations through a stringent testing and approval/commissioning process, ahead of opening. As part of this, West Midlands Railway has been running a small number of trains.
Trains will shuttle between Birmingham’s New Street station and Kings Norton on the Cross-City Line. There are plans to re-use one of the old island platforms at Kings Norton, the work for which relies on funding via the Midlands Rail Hub scheme.
Meanwhile, two new stations at Willenhall and Darlaston are also nearing completion.
West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker recently viewed the platforms at Willenhall, and said: “My priority has been getting these stations completed so that we can start to run services through them as soon as possible.
“They will relieve congestion on our roads and improve connectivity. Here in the Black Country and in south Birmingham, they will make a real difference to people’s lives and help improve our economy, too.”
It’s now thought that the passenger services at all five stations will commence in either March or April.
The opening of the stations is dependent on the ‘entry into service’ process running smoothly.
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