Camp Hill line
The Camp Hill line is a railway line in Birmingham between Kings Norton on the Cross-City Line and Birmingham New Street via Grand Junction on the main lines from Derby and Coventry. The line was once the terminal approach of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway to Curzon Street before it was incorporated into the Midland Railway.
| Camp Hill line | |||
|---|---|---|---|
A non-stop CrossCountry passenger service powers along the Camp Hill line to bypass the University branch A 1913 map showing the Birmingham West Suburban Railway (left) and the Camp Hill line (right) between Kings Norton and Birmingham New Street | |||
| Overview | |||
| Status | Operational | ||
| Owner | Network Rail | ||
| Locale | Birmingham | ||
| Termini | |||
| Service | |||
| Type | Heavy rail | ||
| System | National Rail | ||
| Operator(s) | CrossCountry West Midlands Trains | ||
| Rolling stock | Class 170 "Turbostar" Class 172 "Turbostar" Class 220 "Voyager" Class 221 "Super Voyager" | ||
| History | |||
| Opened | 1840-41 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Number of tracks | 2 | ||
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge | ||
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The expansion of the Birmingham West Suburban Railway resulted in its usurping of the line as the service's main line, at which point it became known as the Camp Hill line after its original terminus. Local passenger services on the line ended in the 1940s and the intermediate stations on the line were closed. Since then it has been used primarily by freight trains and some longer-distance passenger trains only.
It is hoped to resume local services on the route by the end of 2024 after a break of nearly 84 years. Expansion of these services via new chords connecting the line to Birmingham Moor Street are currently in the early planning stage.