Humber Road Tunnel north portal
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1431172
- Date first listed:
- 21-Dec-2015
- List Entry Name:
- Humber Road Tunnel north portal
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1431172
- Date first listed:
- 21-Dec-2015
- List Entry Name:
- Humber Road Tunnel north portal
- Location Description:
- Located approximately 127 metres south-west of Humber Road.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- Coventry (Metropolitan Authority)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- SP3488677754
Summary
A tunnel portal dating from c.1838.
Reasons for Designation
The Humber Road Tunnel North Portal, dating from c.1838, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Date: it dates from the pioneering phase of railway development and survives substantially intact;
* Architectural interest: the portal displays a remarkable level of architectural detail for a structure of its type.
History
The London and Birmingham Railway was established in the 1830s to build the railway line between London and Birmingham, with Robert Stephenson appointed as the company's chief engineer. This was to be the first main line railway between London and another major city. The first parts of the line were opened in 1837, with the remainder opening in 1838.
Much of the line was widened during the 1960s, but this work did not reach beyond Rugby. This tunnel, which is approximately 140 metres south west of Humber Road, then called Folly Lane, is thought to date from the original construction of the railway, c.1838. It is now approached from the north through a later tunnel underneath the Coventry Loop Line which opened in 1914. This line is no longer in use.
Details
A tunnel portal dating from c.1838.
MATERIALS: The tunnel portal is constructed of stone.
PLAN: The portal faces north and is roughly elliptical in plan.
DESCRIPTION: The portal consists of a central round arched opening with flanking retaining walls. The portal surround has an inner band of zigzag decoration with an outer band of scalloped and plain mouldings. The stone of the retaining wall is tooled ashlar, laid in regular courses and capped with large stones.
Sources
Books and journals
Roscoe, T, The London and Birmingham Railway, (1838)
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 07-Jun-2026 at 07:24:10.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.