Chippenham railway station
Encyclopedia
Chippenham railway station serves the market town of Chippenham
in Wiltshire
, England. The station is on the Great Western Main Line
, in between and , and is served by First Great Western
main line services between Bristol Temple Meads and London Paddington, and a smaller First Great Western
local service that runs between and , via Chippenham and over the northern end of the former Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
. It was also the junction for a GWR branch line to from 1863 until its closure (a victim of the 'Beeching Axe
') in 1965. Only two of the three platforms at the station are now in use (the two faces of the island platform to the right of the photo) - the former platform one (on the left) having lost its rails.
The station is managed by First Great Western
.
There are no automatic ticket barriers, but manual ticket checks are made for some trains.
's design and was opened in 1841. With the subsequent opening of new lines to and , the station was not adequate to meet the increased demand and was redesigned by J H Bertram in 1856-58; it is Grade II listed. It is constructed in Bath stone
ashlar with a bay window at one end and a wing at the other making a long, low composition.
In the station yard, there is another Grade II listed building partly in random stone but mainly weather-boarded on a timber frame with a pitched slate roof. It is an early weighbridge house and coal merchant's office. It is known that coal merchants opened a depot in 1840 and the building dates from that time. The building is painted dark green and currently leased by North Wiltshire Artspace (charity), and rented out to various groups.
Immediately west of the station lies Chippenham Viaduct
designed by Brunel in 1841. It is Grade II listed. The first arch, over New Road, appears to have been modelled on the Roman
triumphal arch
. It has a 26 ft span and is flanked by two smaller pedestrian arches of 10 ft each. All is surmounted by a heavy cornice and parapet. The north side is constructed from Bath Stone
Ashlar with some brick patching while the south side is in blue brick following widening in the early 1900s.
, and now supplying equipment to the worldwide rail industry. It was founded in 1842 by Rowland Brotherhood and, as of 2008, is occupied by Invensys Rail Systems
and its UK manufacturing subsidiary, Westinghouse Rail Systems
. For most of its life, it manufactured railway air braking systems and railway signalling
.
The service to Trowbridge and is much less frequent, with just one morning and one evening train each way per day since 2006 (compared to five each way prior to that). At present both Monday-Friday services run to , although those in the opposite direction start from Westbury. There are also two Saturday services each way (but at different times to the weekday ones) and a single train each way on Sundays.
Chippenham, Wiltshire
Chippenham is a market town in Wiltshire, England, located east of Bath and west of London. In the 2001 census the population of the town was recorded as 28,065....
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, England. The station is on the Great Western Main Line
Great Western Main Line
The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in Great Britain that runs westwards from London Paddington station to the west of England and South Wales. The core Great Western Main Line runs from London Paddington to Temple Meads railway station in Bristol. A major branch of the Great...
, in between and , and is served by First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
main line services between Bristol Temple Meads and London Paddington, and a smaller First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
local service that runs between and , via Chippenham and over the northern end of the former Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
The Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Great Western Railway at Chippenham in 'Wilts' with Weymouth in Dorset, England. Branches ran to Devizes, Bradford-on-Avon and Salisbury in Wiltshire, and to Radstock in Somerset. The majority of the line survives...
. It was also the junction for a GWR branch line to from 1863 until its closure (a victim of the 'Beeching Axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
') in 1965. Only two of the three platforms at the station are now in use (the two faces of the island platform to the right of the photo) - the former platform one (on the left) having lost its rails.
The station is managed by First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
.
There are no automatic ticket barriers, but manual ticket checks are made for some trains.
Station buildings
The original station building at Chippenham was to Isambard Kingdom BrunelIsambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
's design and was opened in 1841. With the subsequent opening of new lines to and , the station was not adequate to meet the increased demand and was redesigned by J H Bertram in 1856-58; it is Grade II listed. It is constructed in Bath stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
ashlar with a bay window at one end and a wing at the other making a long, low composition.
In the station yard, there is another Grade II listed building partly in random stone but mainly weather-boarded on a timber frame with a pitched slate roof. It is an early weighbridge house and coal merchant's office. It is known that coal merchants opened a depot in 1840 and the building dates from that time. The building is painted dark green and currently leased by North Wiltshire Artspace (charity), and rented out to various groups.
Immediately west of the station lies Chippenham Viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
designed by Brunel in 1841. It is Grade II listed. The first arch, over New Road, appears to have been modelled on the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
triumphal arch
Triumphal arch
A triumphal arch is a monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road. In its simplest form a triumphal arch consists of two massive piers connected by an arch, crowned with a flat entablature or attic on which a statue might be...
. It has a 26 ft span and is flanked by two smaller pedestrian arches of 10 ft each. All is surmounted by a heavy cornice and parapet. The north side is constructed from Bath Stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
Ashlar with some brick patching while the south side is in blue brick following widening in the early 1900s.
Engineering works
Immediately to the north of the station itself is an engineering works, originally founded to support the Great Western RailwayGreat Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
, and now supplying equipment to the worldwide rail industry. It was founded in 1842 by Rowland Brotherhood and, as of 2008, is occupied by Invensys Rail Systems
Invensys Rail Systems
Invensys Rail Group is a designer, manufacturer and integrator of railway equipment, including automation, signalling and controls. It is a division of Invensys, a UK-based multinational engineering company...
and its UK manufacturing subsidiary, Westinghouse Rail Systems
Westinghouse Rail Systems
Westinghouse Rail Systems Ltd is a British supplier of railway signalling and control equipment to the rail industry worldwide. Its head office is in Chippenham, Wiltshire, where it manufactures a variety of mechanical and electrical/electronic railway signalling equipment...
. For most of its life, it manufactured railway air braking systems and railway signalling
Railway signalling
Railway signalling is a system used to control railway traffic safely, essentially to prevent trains from colliding. Being guided by fixed rails, trains are uniquely susceptible to collision; furthermore, trains cannot stop quickly, and frequently operate at speeds that do not enable them to stop...
.
Services
The station has frequent services to Swindon, Reading and London and to Bath and Bristol Temple Meads, with some Bristol trains continuing to and beyond. Currently (June 2009) these operate approximately every half hour in each direction Mondays-Saturdays, with seven through services to/from Weston-super-Mare (these run mainly during the weekday business peaks, although certain summer Saturday trains also operate). There is an hourly service each way on Sundays.The service to Trowbridge and is much less frequent, with just one morning and one evening train each way per day since 2006 (compared to five each way prior to that). At present both Monday-Friday services run to , although those in the opposite direction start from Westbury. There are also two Saturday services each way (but at different times to the weekday ones) and a single train each way on Sundays.