Railways in Worcestershire

RAILWAYS IN WORCESTERSHIRE
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Defford Station

DEFFORD

Grid Reference: SO 916428

Defford Ticket

(Ticket from the MIAC Collection)

At Defford there was a small station and goods yard. Local services between Gloucester and Birmingham New Street stopped here until closure on 4th January 1965. After closure the station buildings and goods yard were demolished but the access road remained in place. The station yard was later taken over by a business but reverted to railway use in 2015.

There was also a small narrow gauge railway nearby at Bredonvale Products Ltd.

This photograph from the collection of Andrew Smith was taken on 1st April 1962.

Class 31

A green livery class 31 locomotive passes the site of Defford station with a southbound goods train in 1972. Photograph taken by Andrew Smith.

121

'Peak' class 45 diesel locomotive No.121 is heading a northbound express past the site of Defford station on 27th May 1974. The headcode of 1S27 indicates that this may be a Paignton or Plymouth to Edinburgh train. The road bridge had been rebuilt since the 1972 photograph. Photograph taken by Andrew Smith.

Peak at Defford

A green 'Peak' class is heading a northbound express in June 1972. The ravages of time have taken their toll on the colour negatives from which this image was made. Photograph taken by Andrew Smith.

No.67013 at Defford

Taken from the same viewpoint as the 'Peak' class diesel above much has changed in the intervening 29 years. Most notable being the removal of the lineside hut. The field layout to the left hand side also shows many changes. This photograph which was taken at 18:54 on 25th July 2001 shows a long-extinct mail train heading towards Birmingham pulled by class 67 diesel locomotive No.67013. Photograph taken by Adrian Booth.

Nos59205 & 66056 at Defford

Nearly forty years separate this photograph from the 'Peak' class diesel (above) and shows a Worcestershire rarity in the form of class 59 diesel locomotives No.59205 towing class 66 diesel locomotive No.66056 on train code No.0Z50 from Hincksey Yard, Oxford to Bescot. The class 59 was being transferred for use in the Liverpool area and earlier in the day it had worked train No.6M50 from Westbury to Hincksey Yard. The class 66 locomotive is one of those fitted with slip couplers for use on the Lickey Incline. Photograph taken by Robert Cooke on 29th July 2011.

43143 & 43171 at Defford

On 1st March 2012, Robert Pritchard took this photograph of an 'HST 125' nine-car diesel train at Defford. Ian Clay advises that this was the empty stock that should have worked train code 1P13 05:18 from Great Malvern to Paddington but which had been cancelled due to fog. The traction is provided by class 43 No.43143 and the front and No,43171 at the rear.

On 28th January 2016 the sun at Defford shone in a clear blue sky and Andrew Smith took advantage of the good light to photograph DRS livery class 66 diesel locomotive No.66426 with the 08.20 Daventry to Wentloog Tesco container train. Network Rail employees can be seen in the 'up' yard in the course of erecting a perimeter fence following the relocation of the former occupants of the yard.
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