Bitterne railway station

Bitterne railway station is located in eastern Southampton, England. It is on the main Southampton to Portsmouth coastal line, and serves the suburbs of Bitterne, Bitterne Manor, Bitterne Park and Midanbury.

Bitterne
Bitterne Station
Location
Place	Bitterne
Local authority	Southampton
Grid reference	SU438133
Operations
Station code	BTE
Managed by	South Western Railway
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	F2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15	0.104 million
2015/16	97,946
2016/17	89,798
2017/18	95,832
2018/19	85,280
History
Key dates	Opened 5 March 1866 (5 March 1866)
Original company	Southampton and Netley Railway
Pre-grouping	London and South Western Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Bitterne from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

View NW, towards Southampton in 1963

History

The station was opened in May 1866 as Bitterne Road railway station.[1] The station itself is located a mile west of Bitterne village, although original plans for the railway line would have seen the railway pass right through the centre of the village.

The line was originally single-track between St Denys and Fareham, with Bitterne acting as a "crossing station", where trains travelling in opposite directions could pass one another. There were three crossing stations on this stretch, with Netley and Swanwick being the other two.[2]

Services

Most train services are operated by South Western Railway. Many services pass through Bitterne station without calling, particularly on the Brighton and London lines. Trains run hourly to Southampton Central and Portsmouth and Southsea, calling at all stations en route.[3] A single Southern service calls at the station, Monday to Friday only; the 0554 from London Victoria to Southampton Central, which calls at Bitterne at 0843.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Woolston		South Western Railway West Coastway Line		St Denys

References

1. Bitterne Local History Society (11 November 2013). Bitterne and West End Through Time. Amberley Publishing Limited. p. 86.
2. Williams, Ronald Alfred (6 September 1973). The London & South Western Railway. David & Charles. p. 133.
3. GB eNRT 2015-16 Edition, Table 165 (Network Rail)

External links

• Train times and station information for Bitterne railway station from National Rail