Severn Bridge Junction

Severn Bridge Junction signal box
The signal box as viewed from Shrewsbury station. Shrewsbury Abbey is in the background.
General information
Type	Signal box
Location	South of Shrewsbury railway station
Town or city	Shrewsbury
Country	England
Coordinates	52°42′32″N 2°44′45″W
Construction started	1903
Opened	1904
Client	Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway
Owner	Network Rail
Height	38 feet (12 m)
Dimensions
Diameter	95 by 11 feet (29.0 m × 3.4 m)
Technical details
Structural system	Brick and cement; slate roof
Floor count	3
Design and construction
Architecture firm	London and North Western Railway
Designations	Grade II listed

Severn Bridge Junction as viewed from Shrewsbury Castle

Severn Bridge Junction is the area of railway lines just south of Shrewsbury railway station, in Shropshire, England, controlled by the signal box of the same name. The Network Rail signalling area code is 'SBJ.'

Background

The complexity of the railway system in the area is brought about by the convergence of five major lines at Shrewsbury, built in the Victoria era by two competing and yet also co-operating railway companies, the Great Western Railway and the London and North Western Railway. They were competing to connect the coal and raw material supplies of South Wales with the industrialised Midlands and Northwest; and secondly to transport passengers to and from London to the port of Liverpool. After inheriting Cambrian Railways in 1921, it was also a major point of accessing GWR services into Mid and West Wales:

• Cambrian Line (GWR)
• Shrewsbury to Chester Line (GWR)
• Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line (GWR)
• Welsh Marches Line:
  • North to Crewe via Crewe and Shrewsbury Railway (LNWR)
  • South to Newport via Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway (Joint)

Lines formerly converging in the area also include the regionally important Severn Valley Railway (GWR), and the Stafford to Shrewsbury Line (LNWR).

Signal box

Severn Bridge Junction Signal Box is situated at the centre of the triangular junction and was constructed in 1903. It was opened in 1904 on the Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway, which itself was jointly owned by the London & North Western and Great Western Railways. The signal box controls the southern end of Shrewsbury railway station, Severn Bridge Junction and English Bridge Junction. Its design follows that of an enlarged standard LNWR design of 1876.

Although reduced in importance through the closure of various lines and sidings, today the listed signal box houses a 180-lever frame, making it the largest remaining mechanical signal box on the British network. In 2011 it became the largest mechanical signalbox in the world following the closure of the larger box at Spencer Street in Melbourne, Australia. It operates 24 hours a day, currently controls approximately 300 train movements per day, and is operated by two signalmen.

It is expected to remain in use until at least 2030, and could potentially remain in use (as a mechanical signal box) as late as the 2050s under current Network Rail plans.

Abbey Foregate box

A separate signal box controls the Abbey Foregate Junction (on the Wolverhampton line) and access to the adjacent Abbey Foregate yard; its code is 'AF'.

See also

• Shrewsbury Traction Maintenance Depot#Abbey Foregate - the adjacent Abbey Foregate Yard
• Sutton Bridge Junction
• Railways of Shropshire