Wolverhampton railway station
Encyclopedia
Wolverhampton railway station in Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...

, West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...

 is on the West Coast Main Line
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...

. It is served 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....

, CrossCountry
CrossCountry
CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...

, Virgin Trains
Virgin Trains
Virgin Trains is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland...

 and Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales is a train operating company, owned by Arriva, that operates urban and inter urban passenger services in Wales and the Welsh Marches...

.

History

The first station on this site was opened in 1852 by the London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...

 (LNWR). The only visible remnant of the original station is the Queen's Building, the gateway to Railway Drive which was the approach road to the station, which nowadays is a WHSmith serving Wolverhampton bus station. Three years later the Great Western Railway
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...

 (GWR) opened a second station, located behind the older station on lower ground, which became known as the Wolverhampton Low Level
Wolverhampton Low Level railway station
Wolverhampton Low Level was a railway station on Sun Street, in Springfield, Wolverhampton, England .It was built by the Great Western Railway, on their route from London to Birkenhead via Birmingham...

 station, the other becoming known as Wolverhampton High Level.

From 1923, the LNWR was amalgamated into the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS), and in 1948 it became part of the London Midland Region of British Railways.

The present Wolverhampton station dates from 1965, when the High Level station was completely rebuilt as part of the modernisation programme which saw the West Coast Main Line
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...

 electrified. It consisted of three through platforms (the present platforms 1, 2 and 3). In the 1980s, a parcels siding was converted into a south-facing bay platform (the present platform 5), and a new north-facing bay was constructed (the present platform 6).

In 1987 twelve different horse sculptures by Kevin Atherton, titled Iron Horse, were erected between New Street station and Wolverhampton, including one at the southern end of platforms 2 and 3.

More recently (in 2004), a new through platform (platform 4) was constructed on the site of infrequently-used sidings. This has greatly enhanced the capacity of the station. A new footbridge was also constructed, to allow access to the new platform but also to improve access to the existing ones. A proposal for a more comprehensive redevelopment of the station and surrounding area was announced on 18 October 2006.


Current operations

Virgin Trains
Virgin Trains
Virgin Trains is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland...

 manages the station. It operates services via Birmingham New Street to London Euston
Euston railway station
Euston railway station, also known as London Euston, is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest rail terminal in London . It is one of 18 railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line...

 as part of its West Coast franchise. Recently, an increasing amount of southbound services are starting at Wolverhampton; naturally more northbound services from Euston are carrying on and terminating at the station. It also operates trains between Birmingham and Glasgow Central. Virgin Trains also keeps Train Crew Depot at Wolverhampton, all traction units are maintained at Bushbury just to the north of Wolverhampton on the line towards Shrewsbury.

CrossCountry
CrossCountry
CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...

 operates services to a wide variety of destinations: to Stockport
Stockport
Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on elevated ground southeast of Manchester city centre, at the point where the rivers Goyt and Tame join and create the River Mersey. Stockport is the largest settlement in the metropolitan borough of the same name...

, Manchester Piccadilly, Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent railway station
Stoke-on-Trent Railway Station is a main-line railway station in central England. It is located on the Stafford to Manchester branch of the West Coast Main Line and serves the Staffordshire city of Stoke-on-Trent...

, Stafford
Stafford railway station
Stafford railway station is an important main line interchange station in the United Kingdom. It serves the county town of Stafford.The present station built in 1962 is a good example of the Brutalist style of architecture - the beauty of the building was perceived to be its very functionality and...

 and Macclesfield
Macclesfield
Macclesfield is a market town within the unitary authority of Cheshire East, the county palatine of Chester, also known as the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The population of the Macclesfield urban sub-area at the time of the 2001 census was 50,688...

 to the north, Bristol Temple Meads
Bristol Temple Meads railway station
Bristol Temple Meads railway station is the oldest and largest railway station in Bristol, England. It is an important transport hub for public transport in Bristol, with bus services to various parts of the city and surrounding districts, and a ferry service to the city centre in addition to the...

, Exeter St Davids
Exeter St Davids railway station
Exeter St Davids station is the most important of seven National Rail stations in the city of Exeter in southwest England. Today the station is owned by Network Rail and operated by First Great Western.-History:...

 and Plymouth
Plymouth railway station
Plymouth railway station serves the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. It is situated on the northern edge of the city centre close to the North Cross roundabout...

 to the south-west and Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

, Reading
Reading railway station
Reading railway station is a major rail transport hub in the English town of Reading. It is situated on the northern edge of the town centre, close to the main retail and commercial areas, and also the River Thames...

, Southampton Central
Southampton Central railway station
Southampton Central railway station is a main line railway station serving the city of Southampton in Hampshire, southern England. It is on the Wessex Main Line, the South Western Main Line and the West Coastway Line...

 and Bournemouth
Bournemouth railway station
Bournemouth railway station, originally known as Bournemouth East and then Bournemouth Central , is the main railway station serving the town of Bournemouth in Dorset, England. It is located on the South Western Main Line from London Waterloo to Weymouth...

 to the south to name but a few.

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....

 is the final major operator. It operates local services (on behalf of Centro
West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive
The West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive , sometimes known as Centro, is a local government organisation responsible for certain transport services in the West Midlands county in England....

), calling at New Street first, and also to Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury railway station
Shrewsbury railway station is the railway station serving Shrewsbury, county town of Shropshire, England. It is the only remaining railway station in the town; Shrewsbury Abbey, as well as other small stations around the town, having long closed. The station was built in 1848 and has been extended...

. It also operates longer-distance services between Birmingham and Liverpool Lime Street
Liverpool Lime Street railway station
Liverpool Lime Street is a railway station serving the city centre of Liverpool, England. The station lies on a branch of the West Coast Main Line from London Euston, and on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network...

, some of which run through to Northampton
Northampton railway station
Northampton railway station is a railway station serving the large town of Northampton and other parts of Northamptonshire in England. Other parts of South Northamptonshire are better served by Kings Sutton, Banbury and Milton Keynes Central stations....

 in peak periods. Like Virgin Trains, London Midland has a Train Crew Depot at the station and it also stables traction units in the bay platforms and sidings over night.

Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales is a train operating company, owned by Arriva, that operates urban and inter urban passenger services in Wales and the Welsh Marches...

 operates an hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury railway station
Shrewsbury railway station is the railway station serving Shrewsbury, county town of Shropshire, England. It is the only remaining railway station in the town; Shrewsbury Abbey, as well as other small stations around the town, having long closed. The station was built in 1848 and has been extended...

, with alternate trains continuing to either Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth railway station
Aberystwyth railway station is a railway station serving the seaside and university town of Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales. It is served by passenger trains operated by Arriva Trains Wales, being situated at the terminus of the Cambrian Line and also by the narrow-gauge Vale of Rheidol Railway.-...

 (via the Cambrian Line
Cambrian Line
The Cambrian Line is a railway from Shrewsbury to Welshpool, Aberystwyth and Pwllheli. The railway runs first through the central part of Wales and then along the coast of Cardigan Bay....

) or Holyhead
Holyhead railway station
Holyhead railway station serves the town of Holyhead on Holy Island, Anglesey. It is the western terminus of the North Wales Coast Line and is managed by Arriva Trains Wales, although Virgin Trains also serves it....

. There are also direct services to the Cambrian Coast Line to Pwllheli
Pwllheli railway station
Pwllheli railway station is a railway station serving the small coastal town of Pwllheli on the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales. It is the terminus of the Cambrian Coast Railway.- History :...

.

Platforms

Wolverhampton station has six platforms: platforms 1 to 4 are through platforms, while platforms 5 and 6 are bay platforms at the south and north ends respectively. Although all four platforms are reversible, in practice platform 1 is used for northbound services, platform 2 is used as reversible and platforms 3 and 4 are used for southbound service - although platform 3 is used for northbound services at busy times. Platform 5 is used by the local services to Birmingham New Street and then continues to Walsall. Platform 6 was designed for local services on the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line
Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line
The Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line is the railway line from Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury via Wellington; it was originally built by the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway. The line is double track throughout, with rarely used relief sidings at Cosford and 4 tracks through Wellington station...

, however it is rarely used, as the majority of services on that route travel through to Birmingham (or occasionally to Walsall). It is generally used for the first service of the day to Shrewsbury and for holding trains when they are not in use.

During off-peak times, Virgin Trains services from London Euston
Euston railway station
Euston railway station, also known as London Euston, is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest rail terminal in London . It is one of 18 railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line...

 typically arrive at platform 1, then travel empty to Oxley
Oxley, Wolverhampton
Oxley is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. Its area code is WV10. It is situated in the north of the city, bordering South Staffordshire and the Bushbury North, Bushbury South and Low Hill, St Peter's and Tettenhall Regis wards...

 maintenance depot, from where they return to Wolverhampton and depart from platform 4. During the morning and evening peaks, however, Virgin Trains often arrive into platform 2 and reverse to make the return journey to London Euston.

All platforms at the station are electrified to 25kV AC overhead power.

Redevelopment

The railway station as it is, is earmarked for redevelopment as part of the Wolverhampton Interchange Project. Neptune Developments have been selected for the project and plan to create a major mixed used area, which will include both bus and railway stations, a hotel, retail outlets, bars, cafes and offices. Also on the plans are a link to the Metro, which will see Metro stops at the railway station and New Bus Station. This will connect all the major public transport facilities and create and major transport interchange in Wolverhampton City Centre.

The major plan is to completely rebuild the railway station and also improve pedestrian access over the ring road, with a new footbridge link direct to the bus station which opened in summer 2011. After a shortfall in funding for the project, it has been decided that the development will take place in phases. Phase One commenced in April 2010 with the construction of the new bus station
Wolverhampton bus station
Wolverhampton Bus Station is a bus interchange in the city centre of Wolverhampton, in the West Midlands region of England.It is managed by Network West Midlands. Local bus services operated by various companies serve the bus station which has 19 departure stands and 1 unloading stand...

 which was completed in summer 2011.

A date for Phase Two, which includes the Railway Station, Canal Side, and Hotel has yet to be decided.

External links

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