Bournville railway station
Bournville railway station serves the Bournville area of Birmingham, England. It is on the Cross-City Line which runs from Redditch to Lichfield via Birmingham New Street.
Bournville ![]() | |
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![]() Bournville station looking north, alongside the Worcester and Birmingham Canal. | |
Location | |
Place | Bournville |
Local authority | Birmingham |
Coordinates | 52.427°N 1.926°W |
Grid reference | SP050810 |
Operations | |
Station code | BRV |
Managed by | West Midlands Trains |
Number of platforms | 2 |
DfT category | D |
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries | |
Annual rail passenger usage* | |
2014/15 | ![]() |
2015/16 | ![]() |
2016/17 | ![]() |
2017/18 | ![]() |
2018/19 | ![]() |
Passenger Transport Executive | |
PTE | Transport for West Midlands |
Zone | 3 |
History | |
3 April 1876 | Opened as Stirchley Street |
1880 | Renamed Stirchley Street and Bournville |
1885 | Line doubled |
1978 | Rebuilt |
National Rail – UK railway stations | |
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Bournville from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year. |
History
The station opened on 3 April 1876[1] as the temporary southern terminus of the Birmingham West Suburban Railway, while the difficult construction of the junction with the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway was completed at Kings Norton. Stirchley Street opened as a single platform with later added run around loop. In an initial land rental agreement with the Worcester and Birmingham Canal, the station sits above Bournville Lane, as the tracks are on an embankment, shared with the canal.
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With the opening of the Cadbury Bournville Factory in 1879, in 1880 the station was renamed Stirchley Street and Bournville. After an improved through connection was developed to the Birmingham and Gloucester at Kings Norton in 1885, the railway track to Birmingham was doubled along its lines entire length as the line was extended into Birmingham New Street. This necessitated the construction of a southbound platform between the line and the canal, resulting even today in a narrow platform. In 1904, the station was finally renamed Bournville.[2]
The station has never had any goods facilities, but north of its location were the exchange sidings with the 6 miles (9.7 km) of the Bournville Works Railway, while south of it there was a Midland Railway developed roundhouse engine shed, which opened in 1895 and closed in 1961. The station area has changed considerably since the Midland Railway days and lost virtually all its original features as the station was completely rebuilt by British Rail in 1978 to the designs of the architect John Broome[3] along with the others on this line when the Cross-City route was commissioned. Prior to the rebuild, the station had only received a limited service (mainly at peak hours) for much of the 1960s and 1970s. The line was electrified in 1993.
Station masters
Today
The Cadbury chocolate factory is still adjacent to the station, reflected in the fact that Bournville station is partly painted in Cadbury purple, and station signs include the famous Cadbury logo, a reflection of the station providing ideal access for Cadbury World.
The station currently only serves trains of the Cross City Line, all services currently being operated by Class 323 electrical multiple units. Services are all operated by West Midlands Trains on behalf of Transport for West Midlands.
Bournville Station is equipped with real-time information departure boards which were installed in 2006 by Central Trains.
In 2010, the station featured in episode 18 of Michael Portillo's television series Great British Railway Journeys.
In 2011, the station featured in episode 2 of Julia Bradbury's television series Canal Walks with Julia Bradbury.
Disabled access
Both platforms have step-free access (by means of a ramp) from the Mary Vale Road entrance. The main station entrance, via the ticket office on Bournville Lane, only provides access to the platforms via steep steps. There is a ticket machine on platform 1 (for trains towards Birmingham New Street) for the benefit of passengers who enter the station via the step-free entrance.
Services
Trains call here every 10 minutes in each direction Monday to Saturday daytimes and every 30 minutes on Sundays.[7]
References
- "Local and District News". Worcester Journal. British Newspaper Archive. 8 April 1876. Retrieved 23 July 2016 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Bournville station". Rail Around Birmingham. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
- Lawrence, David (2018). British Rail Architecture 1948-97. Crecy Publishing Ltd. p. 155. ISBN 9780860936855.
- "Bournville's Growth. Reminiscences of the Stationmaster. Retiring Today". Birmingham Daily Gazette. England. 31 October 1929. Retrieved 25 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Forty Years with L.M.S.". Birmingham Daily Gazette. England. 2 July 1937. Retrieved 25 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "45 years a railman". Birmingham Daily Gazette. England. 29 August 1956. Retrieved 25 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- Table 69 National Rail timetable, May 2016
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bournville railway station. |
- Train times and station information for Bournville railway station from National Rail
- Rail Around Birmingham and the West Midlands: Bournville railway station
- Warwickshire Railways page
- Warwickshire Railways engine shed page
Preceding station | ![]() |
Following station | ||
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West Midlands Railway |