New longer platform unveiled at Severn Valley Railway’s busy Kidderminster station to improve safety
The 65-yard platform extension at Kidderminster Town station will enhance the busiest of all the Severn Valley Railway sites.
A long-awaited new platform has been unveiled at Severn Valley Railway’s (SVR) Kidderminster station to improve safety - with an additional 65-yard extension.
As a result the station, which handles 80 per cent of the heritage attraction’s footfall, will be able to accommodate a full nine-coach train and locomotive to stand in the run-round position.
Bosses say the the project will enhance operational flexibility and also bring visitors closer to the action while meeting safety standards. The scheme involved significant construction, including reinforced block walls filled with around 142 tons of material, hundreds of edging blocks and coping stones, many reclaimed from across the railway estate.
Project manager Antony Bartlam said: “What began as a straightforward extension quickly developed into a complex engineering challenge. The existing track alignment on platform two, set on a tight radius, required careful repositioning while retaining original points to control costs.
“Additional works included carefully positioning the former Radyr bracket signal, moving the barrow crossing, and regrading the access road to the traction maintenance depot. ”
The official opening ceremony was attended by volunteers and staff whose dedication had ensured the project’s successful completion.
Severn Valley Railway’s managing director Gus Dunster said: “Our sincere thanks go to everyone involved for their hard work and support. This wonderful achievement now opens the way for another ambitious project at Kidderminster. With a longer platform in place, the time has come to complete Kidderminster Town station, as it was always intended to be.
“Very soon we’ll be launching a major fundraising campaign to pay for the construction of a stunning GWR-style platform canopy. This will protect our visitors and give them a welcome worthy of the SVR’s gateway station, using a combination of reclaimed steelwork and newly manufactured components.”
Kidderminster Town station is the busiest of the railway’s six stations and was constructed in the mid-1980s with an authentic Great Western Railway design.
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