There's an introduction to Sedgeley Jn. box (with a signalling diagram) here.
Sedgeley Jn. Wednesday 31st January 1962
Second-hand story, this. The scene: Sedgeley Jn, the signalman: T. Allen, the time: 3.45 p.m.
The diesel twinset, which makes a trip from Dudley to The Port (Dudley Port) and back as a ‘1-3-1’ (parcels), is signalled on its return journey and the pegs (signals) are ‘off’. Drizzle has made the rails nasty and the diesel slithers with great difficulty towards the junction. The struggling train comes to a halt with the driven bogie stuck in the crossing of the diamond.
When the unit starts off again, a most singular occurrence takes place. The driving bogie goes off ‘bang road’ towards Dudley!
This blocks the Up and Down Main. The Western Region start running their locals out of the other end of Dudley. The Up Loop is ‘converted’ (allowing use by passenger trains) and two Up Walsall locals reach Dudley via the Up Loop. One of these returns on the Down for Dudley Port, creeping past ‘the wreck’ at Sedgeley Jn. with about ½ inch to spare. After the driver changes ends, it reaches Wednesbury via Tipton Curve. The driver changes ends again and travels to Dudley Port Low Level. Changing ends again, the driver returns ‘wrong road’ to Great Bridge under the authority of a ‘Wrong Line Order’. At Great Bridge, the diesel can regain the right line and continue to Walsall.
Sedgeley Jn. Saturday 3rd February 1962
The parcels trains are little 2-6-0s and bogie parcels vehicles, occasionaly with 4-wheel vans, apart from the Leamington Parcels (3H47) Diesel Parcels Unit which comes up at 9.16 a.m. returning at 11.7 a.m. on the down. This DPU has bright yellow gangway boards!
Note the ‘1-1-3’ and ‘2-3-1’ (engine and brake with engine and brake assisting) which are two Black 5s
Sedgeley Jn. Saturday 17th January 1962
(1) One of the units on the Western service is a ‘Swindon’ 3-car set. Two ugly windows to the driving cabs and large vestibule windows along the side.
(2) 3H47 is a Western single-unit parcels car with gangway boards painted bright yellow. It looks just like a runaway coach!
(3) I then have an interlude at Dudley Port box [described elsewhere].
(4) Back at Sedgeley Jn. at 1.30 p.m., an EBV [Engine and Brake Van] is belled from Dudley. When it comes into sight, we can see it’s just a light engine, so it is suitably re-described forward.
(5) The Up diesel parcels at 4.0 p.m. is accepted by Dudley under ‘Regulation 5’ [section clear but station or junction blocked]. Thrills all round and pass the green flag! [This was a fairly unusual occurrence. The train is ‘brought under control’ before clearing the home signal and then the green flag displayed from the box indicates to the driver that the line beyond the home signal of the next box may be blocked].
