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Which Platforms at Worcester Foregate Street

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STEVIEBOY1

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Good afternoon, Hope this is in the correct area.

All being, later this week, I shall travelling from Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street, (WOF), the train leaves PAD at about 11.50 and should get to WOF at 13.57. I am meeting my friend at WOF, he will be arriving from South Wales at 14.05, changing onto the WOF train at Hereford. He says that both our trains will be arriving on the same platform at WOF, but I thought that he would arrive on the opposite platform, as he will have come from the direction that the train that I will have alighted from is going towards? Unless they do 2 way working of course.?
 
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zwk500

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Good afternoon, Hope this is in the correct area.

All being, later this week, I shall travelling from Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street, (WOF), the train leaves PAD at about 11.50 and should get to WOF at 13.57. I am meeting my friend at WOF, he will be arriving from South Wales at 14.05, changing onto the WOF train at Hereford. He says that both our trains will be arriving on the same platform at WOF, but I thought that he would arrive on the opposite platform, as he will have come from the direction that the train that I will have alighted from is going towards? Unless they do 2 way working of course.?
Both platforms at Foregate Street are bi-directional. I believe all trains to/from Shrub Hill have to be kept on the southern platform and all trains from Droitwich on the northern platform due to the track layout, but this may just be operational convenience.

Your Paddington train will have passed through Shrub Hill, so if your friend is on a train that calls at Shrub Hill he should indeed alight at the same platform. Real time trains shows this is what is planned to happen: https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/search/simple/gb-nr:WOF/2021-06-07/1335
 

jfollows

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https://traksy.uk/live/M+31+WORCSFS shows the track layout and confirms that trains from Shrub Hill to Foregate Street must use platform 1 at the latter station.

Since the 14:05 arrival from Hereford continues to London Paddington via Worcester Shrub Hill (I had to look this up, it is a vital piece of information missing from the first post!) it too has to use platform 1 at Worcester Foregate Street.
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Horizon22

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Looks like you're both coming in on GWR services that pass through Shrub Hill so yes, you should both arrive on P1 - not much on P1 though other than a few benches. Foregate St has a very strange layout, so it's not the conventional Up/Down for P1&P2!
 

LNW-GW Joint

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And it's been that way for almost 50 years (resignalling occurred late 1973).
Hard to believe it's that long ago (I went to live in the area in 1974, so never knew the old layout).
It eliminated (I believe) 2 signal boxes, Rainbow Hill Jn (west end of the Shrub Hill triangle) and Foregate St itself (in the roof of the station).
It also coincided with the singling of much of the Oxford-Worcester line and the awkward arrangements for token exchange on that route, only recently eliminated.
The Foregate St arrangement was tokenless, but it is still one of the most confusing places to visit, as Birmingham/Hereford trains can use both platforms.
The increase in train frequency generally (they were very thin in the 70s) means the layout really needs improving.
 

kje7812

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Hard to believe it's that long ago (I went to live in the area in 1974, so never knew the old layout).
It eliminated (I believe) 2 signal boxes, Rainbow Hill Jn (west end of the Shrub Hill triangle) and Foregate St itself (in the roof of the station).
It also coincided with the singling of much of the Oxford-Worcester line and the awkward arrangements for token exchange on that route, only recently eliminated.
The Foregate St arrangement was tokenless, but it is still one of the most confusing places to visit, as Birmingham/Hereford trains can use both platforms.
The increase in train frequency generally (they were very thin in the 70s) means the layout really needs improving.
Actually it eliminated Shrub Hill Junction box (south end of the triangle) and Rainbow Hill Junction box. Foregate St box went earlier (60s?).
The following link contains some more info and links to scan of the original resignalling notices: https://www.signallingnotices.org.uk/notices_detail.php?n_id=507
 

Lemmy99uk

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Looks like you're both coming in on GWR services that pass through Shrub Hill so yes, you should both arrive on P1 - not much on P1 though other than a few benches. Foregate St has a very strange layout, so it's not the conventional Up/Down for P1&P2!
Showing my age now, but I take it that the buffet/cycle hire is no longer open on platform 1 then.
 

Horizon22

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Showing my age now, but I take it that the buffet/cycle hire is no longer open on platform 1 then.

Definitely no cycle hire, although there was a tiny little cafe at the Hereford end last time I was there, no idea if its open in the current times though.
 

jfollows

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My only memory of Worcester Foregate Street, indeed probably from the only time I ever used it, was of the retaining wall at the country end of the station. We left Foregate Street on a train to Hereford on a train which had originated from London Paddington, Class 50 + Mark 2 coaching stock. The rear door on the first coach was unfortunately not closed on departure, and was ripped off by the retaining wall .... my friend (a guard) and I reported this promptly to the train's guard and some kind of barrier was put in place to allow the train to continue to Hereford.

Not really an answer to the original question I know.
 

Gloster

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The signal box at Foregate St closed in June 1962, although since August 1959 there had been two (consecutive) temporary boxes. Shrub Hill Junction and Rainbow Hill Junction closed in November 1973, from which time the arrangement of two single lines was in force. (GWR Signal Box Register (First edition), Signalling Record Society.)
 

Pokelet

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All GWR services will use P1 at Foregate At. (there is a once per day ECS through P2 I believe). WMT services serve both platforms but as previously said P2 has no access to Shrub Hill.

Trains from Hereford/Malvern that go via P1 will crossover at Henwick, those from P2 travelling towards Hereford will also crossover there too.

There's not much at Foregate St. Cafe and toilets on P1 only. Waiting rooms and benches on both sides.
 

Wilts Wanderer

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What isn’t widely known is that BR were working up plans to further rationalise and resignal the Worcester area in the mid-late 1980s. From what I can gather, it would have involved a similar arrangement at Shrub Hill, albeit with crossovers to access both platforms from the Foregate Street direction. The route to Norton Jcn would either have been singled, or retained as a pair of parallel single lines permitting the closure of Norton Jcn signal box.

Thank heavens that never happened - it would have supported the rather sparse service provided in the 1980s and no more, and certainly nothing approaching what is provided today. Currently I believe NR does not invisage resignalling Worcester until at least the 2040s.
 

peteb

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What isn’t widely known is that BR were working up plans to further rationalise and resignal the Worcester area in the mid-late 1980s. From what I can gather, it would have involved a similar arrangement at Shrub Hill, albeit with crossovers to access both platforms from the Foregate Street direction. The route to Norton Jcn would either have been singled, or retained as a pair of parallel single lines permitting the closure of Norton Jcn signal box.

Thank heavens that never happened - it would have supported the rather sparse service provided in the 1980s and no more, and certainly nothing approaching what is provided today. Currently I believe NR does not invisage resignalling Worcester until at least the 2040s.
This is great news for steam enthusiasts as the semaphores at Worcester Shrub Hill really make for great photo shots!
 

STEVIEBOY1

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Thank all very much for these brilliant replies and the link to Realtime Trains, that is all really helpful and interesting.

( I like too the comments on post #10, about the train that was allowed to continue it's journey with a broken door, just imagine that happening now - Not. :)
 

HST274

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Even less facilities at the moment as the cafe is closed due to covid unless it opened very recently plus I think the waiting room on p1 is closed, maybe for staff use.
 

Essan

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As a general rule, platform 1 at FS is for (GWR) services on the Cotswold line (ie Hereford/Malvern to Oxford/Paddington) and platform 2 is for (WMT) local services to/from Birmingham. As noted above, both are bi-directional.

Shrub hill is more confusing as GWR services to London can depart from either platform 1 or 2 (though services to Malvern/Hereford normally just use platform 1)
 

LNW-GW Joint

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The signal box at Foregate St closed in June 1962, although since August 1959 there had been two (consecutive) temporary boxes. Shrub Hill Junction and Rainbow Hill Junction closed in November 1973, from which time the arrangement of two single lines was in force. (GWR Signal Box Register (First edition), Signalling Record Society.)
Presumably 1962 was also when the branch down to the River Severn (the Butts Branch) was closed?
I remember it in the 70s as a very steep incline, detached from the main line.
 
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Presumably 1962 was also when the branch down to the River Severn (the Butts Branch) was closed?
I remember it in the 70s as a very steep incline, detached from the main line.
Part of the viaduct/incline is still in situ, it runs alongside the university accommodation before stopping just short of the A38.
Also, a few WMR services, and for that matter GWR as well, do proceed to Henwick to access the Turnback Siding. GWR usually use it so that one of their IET's isn't sat blocking Foregate Street ( in the days of FGW HST operation a service around 5pm would proceed to WOF, run back E.C.S to Worcester Shrub Hill Long Siding, then return about 30 minutes later to Foregate Street to provide a London bound service. WMR usually use the turnback if say a service from the Snow Hill lines has arrived via Shrub Hill, but then needs to change line as it is booked to head back out on the Shrub Hill avoiding lines, direct to Droitwich, however i can only recall this being used during sever disruption or engineering work.
 
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There is a Tesco right outside Foregate Street (which used to be the old Main Post Office) and a new craft beer bar across the street under the bridge.
 

satisnek

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What isn’t widely known is that BR were working up plans to further rationalise and resignal the Worcester area in the mid-late 1980s. From what I can gather, it would have involved a similar arrangement at Shrub Hill, albeit with crossovers to access both platforms from the Foregate Street direction. The route to Norton Jcn would either have been singled, or retained as a pair of parallel single lines permitting the closure of Norton Jcn signal box.

Thank heavens that never happened - it would have supported the rather sparse service provided in the 1980s and no more, and certainly nothing approaching what is provided today. Currently I believe NR does not invisage resignalling Worcester until at least the 2040s.
Yes, I can remember this - the plan was to have two parallel single lines south from Shrub Hill and eliminate Norton Junction. The colour light signals for this arrangement were actually installed and remained in situ for a number of years in the 1990s. I think they eventually got used for a resignalling scheme somewhere else.
 

Ken H

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Even less facilities at the moment as the cafe is closed due to covid unless it opened very recently plus I think the waiting room on p1 is closed, maybe for staff use.
Took the grandkids in there when they were little. We sat at the table right by the railway. Then a train went past inches from their noses. Eyes the size of saucers!. Happy days. Think there is (was) a track joint just outside the window so they got the noise and vibration from that.
 

PeterC

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Foregate Street certainlty confused me on the one occasion that I visited Worcester by rail. It never occurred to be that it was effectively two separate single tracks and I went trotting straight over to platform 1 without checking, on the assumption that it was a normal double track layout.
 

Wilts Wanderer

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Yes, I can remember this - the plan was to have two parallel single lines south from Shrub Hill and eliminate Norton Junction. The colour light signals for this arrangement were actually installed and remained in situ for a number of years in the 1990s. I think they eventually got used for a resignalling scheme somewhere else.

I never knew the signalling was ever installed, that’s interesting.
 

HST274

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Took the grandkids in there when they were little. We sat at the table right by the railway. Then a train went past inches from their noses. Eyes the size of saucers!. Happy days. Think there is (was) a track joint just outside the window so they got the noise and vibration from that.
Despite using WOF regularly never been in the cafe but I am reliably informed it does a good sausage bap!!! Also WMR do use platform 1 for Birmingham trains sometimes but while I cannot be sure I believe since the timetable change this number has decreased with more avoiding Shrub Hill.
 

Gloster

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Presumably 1962 was also when the branch down to the River Severn (the Butts Branch) was closed?
I remember it in the 70s as a very steep incline, detached from the main line.
Googling ‘ butts branch worcester ‘ takes you to an article on the Railways in Worcestershire site, which says that the line closed in 1957. The diagram of the second Foregate Street Signal Box (1889-1959) on the Signalling Record Society shows it as having trailing crossovers at each end and a trailing connection in the Up line at the Henwick end: presumably the Butts Branch.
 

STEVIEBOY1

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There is a Tesco right outside Foregate Street (which used to be the old Main Post Office) and a new craft beer bar across the street under the bridge.
Those are two handy facts to know too, I think there is a Wetherspoons close by too which also had post office connections. ? :)
 
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