Kidderminster railway station
Encyclopedia
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a town, in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire, England. It is located approximately seventeen miles south-west of Birmingham city centre and approximately fifteen miles north of Worcester city centre. The 2001 census recorded a population of 55,182 in the town...
, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
. The station is operated by London Midland
London Midland
London Midland is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. Legally named London and Birmingham Railway Ltd, it is a subsidiary of Govia, and has operated the West Midlands franchise since 11 November 2007....
.
Facilities
There is a car park for 400 cars, administered by London Midland, in part of the old goods yard between the two railway stations. The Severn Valley Railway has its own car park on the town centre side of their station.The station has a booking office, a kiosk, a BT Phone Box, a cash point and a ticket machine.
In 2009 a recently opened bridge (with lifts) has transformed access between the platforms. Before this work, it was via the road overbridge, visible in the background of the lower image right.
The signal box (a short distance to the south of the station) is still known as Kidderminster Junction. This controlled the junction to the Severn Valley Line until its closure in the 1970s. Its junction status has since been restored as it now controls the trailing connection between the down Network Rail line and the heritage Severn Valley Railway.
Hoobrook Viaduct
Further south still, the main line crosses over the impressive 20-arch Hoobrook Viaduct, 371 yards (339 metres) in length, 75 feet (23 metres) in height, comprising 7 million blue bricks and erected in 1884-5 at a cost of some £30,000. It replaced an earlier construction comprising 24 timber spans resting on sandstone columns, dating from the original creation of the line in 1851-2, whose partial collapse in 1883 brought about the building of the present viaduct alongside to the east. The sandstone abutments of the original structure can still be seen.The Severn Valley Railway terminus
The Severn Valley RailwaySevern Valley Railway
The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route...
's southern terminus shares the same station approach road and is known as Kidderminster Town
Kidderminster Town railway station
Kidderminster Town is a railway station situated in the town of Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. It is operated by the Severn Valley Railway, a heritage line which runs from Kidderminster to Bridgnorth...
to distinguish it from the National Rail
National Rail
National Rail is a title used by the Association of Train Operating Companies as a generic term to define the passenger rail services operated in Great Britain...
station. This also reflects the GWR tradition of suffixing the station name with "Town" if it was closer to the main body of the town served than that of its competitor(s), which Kidderminster Town achieves to the tune of less than around 60 yds.
History
Kidderminster station opened with the extension of the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton railwayOxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton railway
The Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton railway was a company authorised on 4 August 1845 to construct a railway line from the Oxford and Rugby Railway at Wolvercot Junction to Worcester, Stourbridge, Dudley, and Wolverhampton, with a branch to the Grand Junction Railway at Bushbury...
from Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
to Stourbridge
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. Historically part of Worcestershire, Stourbridge was a centre of glass making, and today includes the suburbs of Amblecote, Lye, Norton, Oldswinford, Pedmore, Wollaston, Wollescote and Wordsley The...
on 1 May 1852 by the GWR
Great 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...
. The station building, of a mock Tudor design, survived until 1968 when it was demolished owing to the effects of dry rot
Dry rot
Dry rot refers to a type of wood decay caused by certain types of fungi, also known as True Dry Rot, that digests parts of the wood which give the wood strength and stiffness...
and replaced by British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
with the small brick building that stands today.
Future
Plans are in hand to replace the small brick station building with something echoing that of the adjacent SVR building. As well as this, the plans envisage a large bus exchange, improved car parking and "drop off" areas.Future planned track alterations will see a facing cross-over installed along with appropriate signalling that will permit passenger carrying trains to pass from NR metals to those of the SVR. At present passengers have to disembark at the NR station and walk to the SVR station whilst their train is shunted across. Trains from the SVR carrying passengers can already pass onto NR metals unhindered.
A service to/from NR metals to Bewdley has also been proposed over the years. This is finally seeing some more local interest.
Service
Most trains using the station are operated by London MidlandLondon Midland
London Midland is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. Legally named London and Birmingham Railway Ltd, it is a subsidiary of Govia, and has operated the West Midlands franchise since 11 November 2007....
.
The standard off peak service is:
- 4 tph to Birmingham Snow Hill, semi fast, of which 2 continue to DorridgeDorridge railway stationDorridge railway station serves the village of Dorridge in the West Midlands of England. The station is served by Chiltern Railways, who manage the station, and also by London Midland.-History:...
and 2 to Whitlocks EndWhitlocks End railway stationWhitlocks End railway station serves the village of Whitlock's End in the West Midlands of England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by London Midland.-Services:...
; - 2 tph to WorcesterWorcesterThe City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
(either Foregate StreetWorcester Foregate Street railway stationWorcester Foregate Street railway station, opened by the Great Western Railway in 1860, is situated in the centre of the city of Worcester, in Worcestershire, England. It is physically the smaller of the two stations serving the city, but is more centrally located...
or Shrub HillWorcester Shrub Hill railway stationWorcester Shrub Hill railway station is one of two railway stations serving the city of Worcester in Worcestershire, England. It is managed by London Midland, and it is also served by First Great Western....
), of which some continue to Great MalvernGreat Malvern railway stationGreat Malvern railway station serves the line between Worcester and Hereford. It is situated close to the centre of Great Malvern, England. It is one of two stations serving the town of Malvern, the other being Malvern Link station...
.
The service between Kidderminster and Birmingham is heavily used, by both commuters and daytrippers to Birmingham. Service was increased from three to four trains per hour in 2006.
The other company which operates trains is Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways is a British train operating company. It was set up at the privatisation of British Rail in 1996, and operates local passenger trains from Marylebone station in London to Aylesbury and main-line trains on the Chiltern Main Line to Birmingham Snow Hill with its associated branches...
. Their services are:
- 4 morning trains to London Marylebone in the morning peak - the first arrives in London at 9 am;
- 4 returning from London over the evening peak times - some taking just 2 hrs 19 minutes
These services also connect Kidderminster to , and .
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|colspan=5|Interchange with Kidderminster Town
Kidderminster Town railway station
Kidderminster Town is a railway station situated in the town of Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. It is operated by the Severn Valley Railway, a heritage line which runs from Kidderminster to Bridgnorth...
on the Severn Valley Railway
Severn Valley Railway
The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route...