Pic - West Midlands Railway THE Stourbridge Town branch line to close to rail passengers for two weeks to undergo a makeover. Hailed the shortest branch line in Europe – the popular train line, which connects Stourbridge Town and Stourbridge Junction stations, will close to passengers for a fortnight from Monday February 8 while improvement works are carried out. During the work, the pair of small Class 139 trains used on the route will be internally repainted, deep-cleaned and have new passenger grab rails installed. Some seating will also be temporarily removed to aid social distancing on board. Network Rail will also use the temporary closure to inspect the track, remove graffiti and clear vegetation along the line, including overhanging trees which could pose a risk to the safety of trains.
Overnight works to repair a landslip on the railway in Kidderminster EMERGENCY repair work has taken place to repair a landslip on the railway in Kidderminster. Teams from Network Rail worked overnight to shore up a railway cutting which collapsed next to the Railway Train pub at Offmore Road at around 4pm on Thursday (January 28). Trains through the area were suspended so railway workers could clear a small amount of debris from the track. Response teams also worked with fire and rescue services to remove a car left close to the edge of the partial ground collapse.
The car was inches away from the ground that broke away. Photo by Tom Clarke