Leapgate Private Sidings

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OSOrdnance Survey Map Hartlebury to Stourport 1960
OSOrdnance Survey Map Wilden 1951, with Leapgate Private Sidings south of the line on the right

The Leapgate Private Sidings were situated between Hartlebury and Stourport at 133m 53ch[1]. They served a depot of the Regent Oil Company (named Texaco after 1967) which opened on 28 August 1939. The depot had no road connection and was probably connected to the Government Pipeline Storage System, a secret fuel supply network created during the Second World War which included a branch running from Ellesmere Port to Avonmouth via Stourport.[2][3]

The two sidings, one on each side of a gantry, would each hold up to 13 20-ton or 17 10-ton tank wagons. Access to the sidings was controlled by a 2-lever ground frame operating the points and a facing point lock, released by the electric token for the Hartlebury to Stourport section. The siding could be accessed either by DownIn reference to the direction of travel means away from the major terminus (i.e. towards Bridgnorth on the present day SVR) trains or by trains of up to 30 wagons being propelled from Stourport.[1][4].
An engine stop board prohibited engines from passing more than a few yards past the point where the two sidings diverged. Shunting beyond this point was conducted by depot staff using capstans.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Birmingham Traffic District Sectional Appendix 1960
  2. GPSS on historic-uk.com
  3. CLH Pipeline (Formerly GPSS) on Wikipedia
  4. Marshall (1989) p. 87.