A few snaps from an autumnal though gloomy Sutton Park on Friday afternoon 23rd October. 5Z31 31452. 6M56 37602+37612. 4M66 66414. 6E08 60040. 6Z66 66610.

Return of the Welsh Marches

4965 'Rood Ashton Hall' is seen powering over the Sutton Park Line on Saturday evening with the returning Welsh Marches Express. Captured approaching Walmley and Aldridge. Thanks to Richard Coghlan for the first shot taken near Walmley.

1Z64 Hereford - Tyseley 29th August 2015.

40145 With The 'East Lancs Stalwart'

Another train which thus far escaped the blog was the 'East Lancs Stalwart' tour seen here passing through Sutton Park on 7th June 2014 en route Rawtenstall behind monster loco 40145.

56302 Hauling 6M50

Found this forgotten photo from 14th February 2014 showing Grid Class 56 56302 approaching Walsall with 6M50 Westbury - Bescot Colas engineers train. As far as photography was concerned it looks as though the light was just about to collapse!

Bridge 61 Repairs

Brickwork and pointing repairs being carried out at Middlemore Lane bridge 61 over the last two weeks. Road and rail remain open.

37607 Light Loco

37607 running as 0Z97 Derby RTC - Coleham also on 5th August 2015.

Pathfinder Tour

This tour was captured just after exiting Park Street tunnel at Walsall on 6th June 2015. Unfortunately the choice of traction was a touch disappointing, being EWS-liveried 'shed' 66177...

Choppers and Railgrinder

6M56 Berkeley - Crewe CS running with a pair of 20s on 6th August, and another look at the Speno Railgrinder.

5Z44 FGW HST Stock

66054 brings a rake of empty First Great Western HST stock (and two barrier coaches) over the Park at 1545 on Saturday 25th July 2015. The coaches were running from Plymouth Laira to Kilmarnock for overhaul.

Class 57's With Flask

Quick snap of 57002 + 57004 with 6M56 Berkeley - Crewe CS this afternoon, taken at Streetly.

60039 Hauling 6E08 Empty Steelsheds

And 66511 with the late running 4O09, both Sutton Park bridge 36, 7th July 2015.

Northern Belle takes a trip over the Park

57305 + 57304 top-and-tail a Coventry to York outing this morning, seen at 0910 through Sutton Park.

One Of Our Bridges Is Missing

Today saw the removal of bridge number 31 over Rectory Road in Sutton Coldfield for a complete rebuild. Only the utility pipe remains at present. The line is due to re-open on Tuesday morning, 22nd April.

Fifty Years Today...

A two-tone green-liveried Class 47 runs alongside the pine trees near Blackroot Pool on the up line, on New Years Day 1964. The loco is showing headcode 8T64 (incorrect for a light engine), which was one of the numerous Saltley area trip workings. The photo was taken from one of the cattle arch bridges which pass under the line here. Note the old telegraph poles, long since gone! The second photo shows what became Class 25 number D5225 at Castle Bromwich, just off the Sutton Park line, also in 1964. This loco was apparently the last of the Class 25's to be renumbered, becoming 25075 in December 1974.

On The Hunt

This unusual 1937 photo shows a loco hauled short freight of about five wagons plus brakevan, stopped near bridge 41 at Bracebridge in Sutton Park. Looks like the local huntsmen have lost their hounds, or maybe a fox is hiding under the wheels of the train ? Copyright GWR.

Peak on the Park

The classic view from Blackroot Bridge, taken fifty years ago in March 1961 and depicting 'Peak' Class 45 loco D21 (later 45026) approaching from the Streetly direction on the up line with a short rake of stock.

The loco was temporarily based at Saltley depot at that time for driver training purposes.

The view is pretty much the same today except that the tall semaphore signal and telegraph posts were removed long ago (1969). A new signal has been installed about 100 yards further back from the old semaphore position and will be commissioned in April 2012.

The loco remained in service until 1986 when withdrawn, being cut up at MC Metals in Glasgow around November 1988.

Both Sides of the Bridge

66078 with a down train of empty 'flats', and 66035+66168 with 6D44 on the up, seen from both sides of Mayers Bridge in Sutton Park.

A Royal Diamond

67029 'Royal Diamond' is caught passing Water Orton yesterday morning with 1Z24, a charter express running from Bristol to Hartlepool. Also shown is coach 'Riviera' bringing up the rear of the train.

Obstruction Danger

The shaken lady driver of this car was lucky to escape with cuts and bruises on Wednesday evening, when she lost control of the vehicle causing it to plunge through a fence and hedge, career down a fifty-foot embankment, cross the up line and come to rest across the down line at Aldridge.

Container train 4M63 running from Bescot to Hams Hall had passed the site literally seconds before the car crashed onto the tracks.

Three trains (including 6M51 and 6G45) were held along the Sutton Park line while the vehicle was winched clear, and two hours later at 2000 the line was open for business.

Thanks to Network Rail for permission to reproduce these three photographs.

Signalbox rediscovered - Penns Goods Frame

This 1940's Ordnance Survey map clearly shows the legend SB - Signal Box, at the site of Penns Goods Yard along the Sutton Park line at Walmley, at the bottom right corner of the map. Personally i've never heard any reference to this box, but it was called Penns Goods Frame, and controlled operations within the yard, being taken out of use around fifty years ago. Other references on the map include the siting of old semaphore Signal Posts (SP) and Mile Posts (MP), as well as the former Penns (for Walmley) Station, and the Benchmark Hunter will no doubt be pleased to see various benchmarked bridges etc dotted around the map (BM), though quite a few of the old brickwork structures have now been replaced with boring modern concrete bridges.

Penns Goods Yard was taken out of use shortly after January 1965 when the stations along the route were closed under the Beeching axe, despite being a profitable depot dealing in animal foodstuffs and coal for local merchants, and formerly steel traffic. The yard was serviced by Trip 51 from Water Orton, coal wagons often being taken forward to Aldridge and Walsall Wood.

The timeless Michael Mensing photo was taken on the Saturday afternoon of 5th September 1959, and shows an eastbound up mixed parcels train passing the site of the former Penns Goods Frame signal box (at the Ashurst Road bridge), heading towards Park Lane Junction behind 4-6-0 75022. At left can be seen part of the Penns Goods depot and small yard, and in the background is Eachelhurst Road bridge, in the days before the footbridge was fitted alongside.

I recently found out that the original Midland Railway wooden boxboard from Penns Goods Frame survived, it was sold via the GWR railway auctions concern in May 2006, and went for a measly £40.....