Western region multiple aspect signalling

A (hopefully) comprehensive listing of stages and commissioning dates

Last update 26 May 2021

Additional information is always gratefully received, whether entirely new records (particularly historical records) or information to fill in gaps or correct errors, via the contact link under the Miscellaneous entry in the navigation bar above. Thank you.

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This list was copied from hand written notes made contemporaneously to the events depicted. The items are listed in date order under each heading, and the headings are in date order by first line. All items are presented as on the original, except that abbreviations are spelt out in full. Any errors or omissions are as the original.

Stage Date Area

Paddington-Hayes

1A 12 April 1953 Hayes-Hanwell
1B 20 March 1955 Hanwell-Acton Middle
1C 1 February 1959 Acton West-Friars Junction

Birmingham

11 September 1960 Snow Hill panel box

Plymouth

Original scheme

27 November 1960 Lipson Junction-Devonport

Extensions

1A 11 March 1973 Keyham area preparations
1B 6 May 1973 St Germans new box
1C 1 July 1973 Keyham-St Germans
2A 12 August 1973 Lipson area preparations
2B 23 September 1973 Totnes preparations
2C 11 November 1973 Lipson Junction-Tavistock Junction
2D 9 December 1973 Tavistock Junction-Totnes
3 28 April 1974 Station rationalisation
10 June 1979 HST depot (stage 5, etc.)

Reading-Hayes

1 12 February 1961 Reading Main Line East-Twyford West
2 30 July 1961 Ruscombe-Maidenhead West
3 22 October 1961 Twyford (new box)
18 November 1962 Taplow-Slough West
6 January 1963 West Drayton East-Southall West Junction
13 October 1963 Slough (new box)
8 December 1963 Maidenhead West-Taplow
9 February 1964 West Drayton

Newport Multiple Aspect Signalling

1 16 April 1961 Magor-East Usk (panel room)-Maindee Main (panel room)
2 20 August 1961 Llantarnam Junction-Maindee North (exclusive)
19 November 1961 Park Junction area (preliminary stage)
3 26 November 1961 Gaer Junction (panel room)
4 27 May 1961 Maindee North (panel room)
5 19 August 1962 Newport East (running signals)
6 9 December 1962 Station area (new box; closure of panel rooms)
7 19 May 1963 Ebbw Junction

Old Oak Common (original scheme)

23 September 1962 Ladbroke Grove-Portobello Junction (Multiple Aspect Signalling)
7 October 1962 Old Oak Common (new box)

Port Talbot Multiple Aspect Signalling

Original scheme

1 22 September 1963 Margam Middle-Baglan Loop (new box)
2A 6 October 1963 Port Talbot East remodelling
2B 6 October 1963 preparation for Margam Middle remodelling
3 20 October 1963 Pyle West-Margam Middle

Extension

1 13 December 1964 Court Sart Junction-Neath East
2 28 March 1965 Port Talbot-Neath East/Dyvenor Junction
3 27 June 1965 Tremains East-Llantrisant West
4 12 September 1965 Pyle West-Pencoed East

Reading Multiple Aspect Signalling

5 April 1964 Tilehurst-Pangbourne
10 May 1964 Southcote Junction-Theale
28 June 1964 Southcote Junction-Bramley
27 September 1964 Steventon-Wantage Road
25 October 1964 Appleford crossing-Radley
25 April 1965 Reading Main Line East-Southcote Junction/Tilehurst (new box)
9 May 1965 Pangbourne-Moreton cutting
16 May 1965 Moreton Cutting-Steventon/Appleford crossing
23 May 1965 Radley-Kennington Junction
30 May 1965 Wantage Road-Uffington
5 September 1965 Reading General-Earley
Note: track circuit block previously introduced between Reading Main Line East and Twyford with temporary panel (12 February 1961)
Note: Uffington signal box abolished under Swindon stage 5 (3 March 1968)

Original Barry amalgamation

10 May 1964 Barry Junction-Barry Dock

Cornwall

24 May 1964 Largin (St Pinnock viaduct singling)
7 November 1971 Truro area
23 June 1974 Penzance (Long Rock-Penzance singling)
17 May 1981 Coombe Junction

Cardiff Multiple Aspect Signalling

1 14 November 1965 St Fagans-Leckwith Junction
2 12 December 1965 Penarth Curve North-Radyr Quarry Junction
3 27 March 1966 Long Dyke Junction-eckwith Junction/Grangetown Curve North/Penarth (new box)
4 24 April 1966 St Fagans-Llantrisant West
5 5 June 1966 Marshfield-Long Dyke Junction
6 26 June 1966 Bute Road-Queen Street/Heath Junction/Llandaff Loop Junction
7 12 February 1967 Grangetown-Cadoxton South/Penarth

Central Wales

12 December 1965 Craven Arms-Llandrindod Wells
13 March 1966 Llandovery-Pantyfynnon

Gloucester Multiple Aspect Signalling

1A 20 November 1966 Lansdown Junction-Churchdown
1B 26 February 1967 Churchdown-Engine Shed Junction
2 26 May 1968 Engine Shed Junction (new box)-Tuffley Junction/California Crossing/Over Juncton
3A 11 August 1968 California Crossing-Tuffley Junction-Naas Crossing
3B 15 September 1968 Tuffley Junction-Standish Junction
3C 13 October 1968 Standish Junction-Charfield/Stonehouse
4 24 November 1968 Lansdown Junction-Cleve/Malvern Road East
5 16 February 1969 Cleve-Pirton Sidings
6 9 March 1969 Pirton Sidings-Bromsgrove South/Norton Junction
7 20 April 1969 Bromsgrove South-Barnt Green
8 1 June 1969 Over Junction-Awre Junction
9 4 October 1970 Kemble-Standish
30 November 1975 Closure of Eastgate

Swindon Multiple Aspect Signalling

1 13 November 1966 Uffington-Highworth Junction
2 4 December 1966 Wootton Bassett West-Thingley Junction
3 26 February 1967 Thingley Junction-Bathampton/Bradford Junction
4 26 June 1967 Wootton Bassett West-Badminton
5 3 March 1968 Uffington-Hay Lane/Loco Yard (new box)
6 24 March 1968 Hay Lane-Badminton/Bathampton/Bradford Junction
7 30 June 1968 Loco Yard-Kemble

Bristol Division (miscellaneous schemes)

Salisbury-Exeter (singling)

1 2 April 1967 Wilton South-Templecombe
2 7 May 1967 Templecombe-Chard Junction
3 11 June 1967 Chard Junction-Pinhoe
1 October 1967 Sherborne-Yeovil Junction (redoubling)

Castle Cary-Dorchester (singling)

1 12 May 1968 Castle Cary-Yeovil
2 26 May 1968 Yeovil-Maiden Newton
3 9 June 1968 Maiden Newton-Dorchester

Worcester resignalling

1 16 September 1973 Shrub Hill station
2 18 November 1973 Rainbow Hill Junction

Westbury area

8 October 1978 Westbury South (remodelling)
3 June 1979 Warminster-Codford

Miscellaneous

various Frome/Witham and quarries
1 and 2 23 March 1980 Burngullow-St Austell

Old Oak Common (new panel)

21 May 1967 control of Middle Junction transferred Acton-Acton Yard
1 3 September 1967 Old Oak Common-Acton (new panel)
2 17 September 1967 Old Oak Common-Subway Junction
3 29 October 1967 Paddington-Subway Junction (main lines, platforms 1-6)
12 November 1967 Paddington platform 7/8 into use and Hammersmith & City line segregated
4 19 November 1967 Paddington-Subway Junction (relief lines, platforms 9-14)
5 25 February 1968 Acton-Ealing Broadway
6 17 March 1968 West Ealing
7 12 May 1968 Southall
8 9 June 1968 Hayes

Western Valleys

1 10 December 1967 Aberbeeg Junction
2 28 January 1968 Lime Kiln-Abercarn
3 7 July 1968 Aberbeeg Junction-Ebbw Vale
4 13 October 1968 Aberbeeg Junction-Lime Kiln
2 May 1971 Aberbeeg Junction-Rose Heyworth
5 November 1978 Park Junction-Lime Kiln
1 November 1981 Lime Kiln-Gaer Junction

London Division (miscellaneous schemes)

Princes Risborough-Aynho (singling)

1 22 September 1968 Princes Risborough (remodelling)
2 3 November 1968 Princes Risborough-Aynho

Oxford-Worcester (singling)

1 19 September 1971 Moreton in Marsh-Evesham
2 24 October 1971 Evesham-Norton Junction
3 28 November 1971 Ascott under Wychwood-Wolvercot Junction

Oxford Multiple Aspect Signalling

1A 15 September 1968 Wolvercot Junction-Aynho Junction
1B 28 October 1973 Oxford-Wolvercot Junction
2 16 December 1973 Oxford (new box)-Kennington Junction

Cardiff Valleys

Aberdare stage 2 20 October 1968 Penrhiwceiber-Cwmbach
Taff Vale stage 1 14 June 1970 Pontypridd area
8 November 1970 Rhymney-Bargoed (singling)
24 January 1971 Abercynon-Black Lion (singling)
7 February 1971 Black Lion-Merthyr (singling)
26 November 1972 Cwmpare-Treherbert
29 March 1981 Porth-Cwmpare

Newport Extension

1 1 December 1968 Magor-Caldicot Junction/Severn Tunnel West
2 23 February 1969 Caldicot Junction-Awre Junction
3 6 July 1969 Severn Tunnel West-Pilning
7 October 1979 Llantarnam Junction-Little Mill Junction

Barry centralisation

1 8 June 1969 Barry-Barry Island
2 27 July 1969 Barry-Cadoxton

Slough/Reading (developments)

20 July 1969 Langley oil terminal
15 March 1970 Scours lane Junction
13 September 1970 West Drayton (box abolition)
20 June 1971 Reading, abolition of high level ground frame
22 August 1971 Bourne End
19 March 1972 Twyford-Henley absorbed
4 February 1973 Ruscombe 70mph junction
29 April 1973 Twyford West
18 August 1973 Dolphin Junction
20 October 1974 Maidenhead (box abolition)
27 October 1974 Didcot East 70mph junction
4 May 1975 Reading platform 4B
5 October 1975 Slough (branch connection)
23 May 1976 Slough (up main-up relief route)
25 June 1978 Didcot-Wantage Road (reversible signalling)

Bristol Multiple Aspect Signalling

1 24 August 1969 Bathampton-Bradford
2 19 October 1969 Yate-Charfield
3A 22 February 1970 Temple Meads
3B 8 March 1970 Temple Meads (new box)
3C 22 March 1970 Temple Meads
3D 5 April 1970 Temple Meads
3E 19 April 1970 Temple Meads
4 19 July 1970 North Somerset Junction-Keynsham
5 16 August 1970 Bath Goods-Bathampton
6 18 October 1970 Stapleton Road-Filton
7A 7 July 1970 Westerleigh-Stoke Gifford
7B 21 February 1971 Filton-Westerleigh/Pilning
7C 14 March 1971 Pilning-Severn Tunnel East
8A 9 May 1971 Westerleigh-Yate/Badminton
8B 16 May 1971 Charfield
9 5 December 1971 Parson Street-Yatton West
10 30 January 1972 Yatton-Highbridge
11 19 March 1972 Highbridge-Cogload
Note: Keynsham-Bath Goods covered by earlier autos scheme

Port Talbot Multiple Aspect Signalling (extensions and developments)

West Wales Multiple Aspect Signalling

20 September 1970 Llanharan (new layout)
1 26 February 1973 Dyvenor Junction-Felin Fran
2 17 June 1973 Felin Fran-Grovesend
3 8 July 1973 Grovesend-Llandeilo Junction
4A 30 September 1973 Neath East-Landore-Llandeilo Junction
4B 14 October 1973 Swansea
5 9 December 1973 Llandeilo Junction-Pembrey
11 June 1978 Landore Viaduct stage 1
31 December 1978 Landore Viaduct stage 2
13 January 1980 Cowbridge Road (Ford siding)

Miscellaneous

9 May 1971 Caeru-Maested
16 May 1971 Clarbeston Road-Letterston Junction
8 August 1971 Port Tennant-Burrows
17 December 1971 Aberthaw CEGB (Friday)
4 May 1975 Waunllyd BSC

Old Oak Common (rationalisation)

13 June 1971 East Junction
12 December 1971 Field Sidings
16 April 1972 Wycombe Line Junction
7 May 1972 Friars Junction
18 December 1977 Engine Shed signal box abolished
15 July 1979 Park Royal signal box abolished
27 April 1980 Kensal Green washer (stage)
15 June 1980 Kensal Green washer (completion)

Centralisation schemes

23 April 1972 Carmarthen
3 September 1972 Whitland
10 June 1972 Hereford

Bristol (developments)

2 July 1972 Yate-Tytherington (reopening)

Devon

12 November 1972 Paignton South (new layout)
18 November 1973 Exeter East (abolition of signal box)
21 September1980 Salmon Pool level crossing (Crediton)

Didcot/Swindon/Bristol reversible working

5 October 1975 Wootton Bassett-Westerleigh Junction (conversion to 3 aspect)

Reading West extension

1A 18 September 1977 Theale
1B 4 December 1977 Ufton-Colthrop
2A 15 January 1978 Colthrop-Newbury East
2B 29 January 1978 Newbury Racecourse (layout)
2C 19 March 1978 Newbury East/Middle
2D 16 April 1978 Newbury West-Kintbury
3 16 July 1978 Kintbury-Bedwyn
4 10 September 1978 Bedwyn-Woodborough
5 21 January 1979 Woodborough-Heywood Road

Carmarthen-Whitland

17 December 1978 Sarnau-Whitland
25 March 1979 Carmarthen Junction-Sarnau