Railway Herald
Over a distance of just 68 chains (0.85 of a mile) from Arpley Junction to Monks Sidings four signal boxes controlled trains on the Low Level line from Arpley Junction to Ditton East Junction.
Four absolute block boxes, Arpley Junction, Crosfields Crossing, Littons Mill and Monks Siding provided a taste of railways of old. Leaving Arpley Junction the line passes under the WCML and Warrington Bank Quay station before emerging surrounded by industry in the midst of Lever Brothers massive soap powder works. Crosfields Crossing is just 726 yards from Arpley but then only a further 220 yards, an eighth of a mile no less, is Littons Mill, another crossing box, a further 550 yards beyond that is Monks Crossing, again a crossing box and once access to a former British Steel works site.
This short section of track is to be re-signalled and this is actually happened last week. The new signalling utilises track circuit block between Arpley Junction and Monks Siding using axle counters. Only hours to go for the semaphores and Crosfields as a signal box after over a century of service.
The new stubby grey stick with a covered up single head in front of Crosfield's semaphore signal is its replacment, sad to see the semaphores and box go. I believe the train should have been 6F55 Garston Yard - Arpley Yard, worked by Class 66 No. 66058, but as there was no load, it appears to have operated as 0F55 17.34 Garston to Warrington Arpley light engine move on Thursday 5th July 2012.
John Illingworth
