Does anyone know how much freight per hour travels on the Sutton Park Line?
Also does anyone know any good lineside locations near Sutton Coldfield?
look at e.g.
http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/search/advanced/XIA/2013/12/18/0000-2359?stp=WVS&show=all&order=wtt
for yesterday
Frequency - not brilliant, I'd say on average one movement every 15-20 minutes maximum during the daytime. If you're unlucky, you might only see one freight in an hour. Much less on Saturday but I have seen the occasional mass light-loco working towards Bescot on Saturday afternoons, the largest convoy I've noted was 6 class 66's but that was a couple years back now. A lot of Saturday traffic depends on positioning movements for week-end engineering work, running to/from Bescot Yard, and that could bring 3 or 4 Saturday afternoon workings - or none!
However I got lucky this afternoon while visiting the Ryland Road tip - DR73923 Mercury northbound and 60092 southbound.
Location - the old Sutton Park station (by the GPO sorting office) used to be good, but it's now a building site, so no longer any line-side access, I'm pretty sure. So your best bets are either the north end of East View Road, Sutton Coldfield which runs parallel to the track, or if you don't mind a short walk, take the Newhall country park cycle path southwards from Wylde Green Road (by the pedestrian crossing near Newhall Mill), and the railway crosses that path and Plantsbrook on a bridge about 1/4 mile down there. Nice location in the summer when it's dry.
There's a pedestrian crossing up in the Streetley corner of the park, potentially a good spot