Sheffield Woodburn Jnc, Woodhouse Jnc and Beighton station Jnc

NETWORK RAIL - NORTH & EAST - NOTICE NO. NR/LNE No.51

SUPPLEMENTARY NOTICE OF SIGNALLING AND PERMANENT WAY ALTERATIONS

Operative from 05.00 MONDAY 22nd MARCH 2021. . . . . . .

Summary of work undertaken:

· Woodburn Junction, Beighton Junction and Woodhouse Junction signal boxes were closed; control was transferred to York Rail Operating Centre (ROC), divided between the existing Sheffield and Rotherham workstations.

· Beighton Junction and Woodhouse Junction were resignalled.

· Woodburn Junction was re-modelled: the double junction to and from the Tinsley and Stocksbridge line was replaced with a single lead junction in each direction.

· The signalling from Woodburn Jcn towards Rotherham Central and Tinsley Yard was migrated unchanged.

· Beighton Station Level Crossing was renamed Rotherham Road Level Crossing and converted from Manually Controlled Barriers (MCB) to Manually Controlled Barriers with Obstacle Detection (MCB-OD), controlled from York ROC.

· The Up & Down Main lines were renamed Up & Down Worksop).

· The existing Track Circuit Block method of working at Woodburn Jcn towards Sheffield and Rotherham Central / Tinsley was extended eastwards throughout the resignalled area using axle counters for train detection, with One Train Working on the Up/Down Stocksbridge line retained and a new interface between the extended control areas of Sheffield and Rotherham Workstations.

BEIGHTON STATION JNC SB

A Great Central Railway structure dating from c1908, subsequently refurbished.

Fitted with a second-hand 49 lever McKenzie & Holland 1886 pattern frame with 4" centres in 1962.

Photographs: Courtesy of Mick Charlesworth, MOM Sheffield

Photographs: Left - Courtesy of Andy Overton (Retired Signaller) Right - Closure of the signal box attracted the attention of BBC Look North who interviewed the Operations Manager, Anthony Siddall. SB actually closed at 00.50 hrs on 13 March 2021

WOODHOUSE JNC SB

Formerly Woodhouse East Junction.

An LNER Type 11a structure (subsequently refurbished), with an 84 lever GC pattern frame, manufactured by Westinghouse, both dating from 1926.

Photographs: Courtesy of Mick Charlesworth, MOM Sheffield SB actually closed at 00.01 hrs on 13 March 2021

WOODBURN JNC SB

Portacabin and NX panel installed in 1992 with Alstom SSI interlocking, replaced by new LB Foster (TEW) SM48 NX panel and Alstom SSI in 2017.

Photographs: Courtesy of Mick Charlesworth, MOM Sheffield, and Andy Overton (Retired Signaller) SB actually closed at 01.13 hrs on 21 March 2021.

The FARSAP Project is a "Film Archive of Railway Signalling and People". With support from Network Rail, the project is recording signalling which is being transferred to the ROCs. Unfortunately, as a consequence of the COVID 19 pandemic, the FARSAP team were unable to film at the above boxes so none are included on our website, although there are plenty more which may be of interest: here.

Richard Pulleyn

Deputy Director, FARSAP Project

Friends of the National Railway Museum