The line between Oxford and Worcester was built under an 1845 Act of Parliament and opened in 1851 as part of the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway. The Act required the line to be built to Isambard Kingdom Brunel's 7 feet 1⁄4 inch (2,140 mm) broad gauge but delays, disputes and increasing costs led to its being completed as 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge. The first stage of the Worcester and Hereford Railway opened between Henwick and Malvern Link on 25 July 1859. The bridge over the River Severn was approved for traffic the following year, and trains started running through from Malvern Link to Worcester Shrub Hill station on 17 May 1860. A short extension from Malvern Link to Malvern Wells opened on 25 May 1860. On 1 July 1860 the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway absorbed both the Worcester & Hereford Railway and the Newport, Abergavenny & Hereford Railway to form the West Midland Railway. On 13 September 1861 the final stage of the railway opened between Malvern Wells and Shelwick Junction. This junction is just north of Hereford station on the line between Hereford and Shrewsbury, and it finally created a through route between Worcester and Hereford. The Great Western Railway took over the West Midland Railway in 1863. The original tunnel through the ridge of the Malvern Hills, Colwall Tunnel, was completed in July 1860. However, the tunnel was unstable, and it was closed for short periods in 1861 and again in 1907 following rock falls. Eventually the GWR decided to build a new tunnel to the south of the existing one. This opened for traffic on 2 August 1926. The old tunnel was abandoned, and during World War II it was used to store torpedoes. In the early 1970s, 25 miles from Moreton-in-Marsh to Norton Junction, Worcester were converted from double to single track. Following serious floods, which washed parts of embankments away, the line was closed for about a fortnight during July and August 2007 for repairs. THE STATIONS: Oxford Oxford railway station is a mainline railway station, one of two serving the city of Oxford, England. It is about 0.5 miles west of the city centre, north-west of Frideswide Square and the eastern end of Botley Road. It is on the line for trains between London Paddington and Hereford via Worcester Shrub Hill. Hanborough Hanborough railway station is a railway station in the village of Long Hanborough in Oxfordshire, England, serving the village and surrounding district. As a result of the Cotswold Line being singled the former up platform is the only one now in use for both up and down trains Combe Combe railway station serves the village of Combe in Oxfordshire, England. It is on the Cotswold Line. This station and all trains serving it are run by Great Western Railway. It was opened as Combe Halt by the Great Western Railway in 1935, originally having two platforms. it is also one of the least used stations in Oxfordshire Finstock Finstock railway station serves the village of Finstock and the hamlet of Fawler in Oxfordshire, England. It is some distance from Finstock itself, being situated to the north-east of Charlbury Road, which crosses the line on an overbridge. The station and all trains serving it are operated by Great Western Railway. Charlbury Charlbury railway station is a railway station serving the town of Charlbury in Oxfordshire, England. This station and all trains serving it are operated by Great Western Railway Ascott-under-Wychwood Ascott-under-Wychwood railway station is a railway station serving the village of Ascott-under-Wychwood in Oxfordshire, England. It is on the Cotswold Line. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Great Western Railway Shipton Shipton railway station serves the villages of Shipton-under-Wychwood and Milton-under-Wychwood in Oxfordshire, England. The station and all trains serving it are operated by Great Western Railway Kingham Kingham railway station in Oxfordshire, England, is between the Oxfordshire village of Kingham and the Gloucestershire village of Bledington, to which it is closer. It is also the closest station to the town of Chipping Norton. The station is on the Cotswold Line and is served by Great Western Railway trains Moreton-in-Marsh Moreton-in-Marsh railway station is a railway station serving the town of Moreton-in-Marsh in Gloucestershire, England. It is on the Cotswold Line between Kingham and Honeybourne stations. The station and all passenger trains serving it are operated by Great Western Railway. Honeybourne Honeybourne railway station serves the village of Honeybourne in Worcestershire, England. Opened in 1853, it is on the Cotswold Line and was formerly a busy junction with five platform faces but sadly they got demolished and now only 2 platforms exist Evesham Evesham railway station is in the town of Evesham in Worcestershire, England. It is between Honeybourne and Pershore stations on the Cotswold Line between Oxford and Hereford via Worcester and Great Malvern. It is operated by Great Western Railway. Trains to London Paddington take about 1 hour 45 minutes. Pershore Pershore railway station is a railway station in the town of Pershore, Worcestershire, near the village of Pinvin. Pershore town centre is just over 1 mile to the south of the station. The station is on a single-track section of the Cotswold Line [I am leaving out Worcestershire Parkway because this route is set in 2017, and Worcestershire Parkway opened in February 2020 therefor including that station would be a bit unrealistic for the time period] Worcester Shrub Hill Worcester Shrub Hill railway station is one of two railway stations serving the city of Worcester in Worcestershire, England. It is managed by West Midlands Trains, operating here under the West Midlands Railway brand, and it is also served by Great Western Railway. Worcester Foregate Street Worcester Foregate Street railway station, opened by the Great Western Railway in 1860 in the centre of Worcester, England, is the smaller of the two stations serving the city, but more centrally located. The other station, Worcester Shrub Hill, is to the east. Malvern Link Malvern Link railway station serves Malvern Link in Worcestershire, England. It is one of two stations serving the town of Malvern, the other being Great Malvern station. Great Malvern Great Malvern railway station is one of two stations serving the town of Malvern, Worcestershire, England on the Hereford to Worcester section of the Cotswold Line. It is situated downhill from the centre of Great Malvern and close to Barnards Green THE TRAINS: The British Rail Class 43 (HST) is the TOPS classification used for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train power cars, built by British Rail Engineering Limited from 1975 to 1982, and in service in the UK since 1976 The British Rail Class 180 Adelante is a class of 14 diesel-hydraulic multiple-unit passenger trains built by Alstom at Washwood Heath in 2000/01 for First Great Western. They are part of the Coradia 1000 family, along with the Class 175 THE MAP: (note only up to great malvern)
I think the inclusion of the 180 would be the best thing for this route but also the stunning scenery (if pulled of well) would really be brilliant too. Overall a great suggestion.
