Cannock railway station

Cannock railway station serves the town of Cannock in the Cannock Chase, Staffordshire, England. It is situated on the Chase Line. The station and all trains serving it are operated by West Midlands Trains. Unlike other stations on the Chase Line. Cannock station is located further from the town itself. It is actually much closer to the suburbs of Stoney Lea and Hawks Green. The station is over half a mile from the centre of town.

Cannock
Location
Place	Cannock
Local authority	Cannock Chase
Grid reference	SJ985098
Operations
Station code	CAO
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	F1
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15	0.221 million
2015/16	0.220 million
2016/17	0.233 million
2017/18	0.200 million
2018/19	0.208 million
History
Original company	South Staffordshire Railway
Pre-grouping	London and North Western Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway
1 February 1858 (1858-02-01)	Opened as terminus
7 November 1859	Line extended to Rugeley
18 January 1965	Closed
10 April 1989	Reopened
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Cannock from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

Chase Line (Walsall Line)
Trent Valley line to Stafford │ to Rugby Rugeley Trent Valley Rugeley B Power Station Rugeley Town Brindley Heath Hednesford Cannock Mineral Railway Cannock  M6 Toll  Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay Landywood limit of TfWM area Bloxwich North Bloxwich Birchills South Staffordshire line Sutton Park line Wolverhampton and Walsall Railway Walsall Walsall– Wolverhampton line South Staffordshire line  M6  Walsall–Wolverhampton line to Wolverhampton Bescot Stadium Bescot TMD Tame Bridge Parkway Tame Valley Canal  M5  Newton Road Hamstead Perry Barr Junctions Handsworth Wood Perry Barr Soho Road Witton Midland Metro  A38(M)  Snow Hill Lines Cross-City Line Rugby–Birmingham– Stafford line Soho Junctions Cross-City Line Aston Birmingham New Street to Stechford New Street South Tunnels Duddeston Proof House Junction Rugby–Birmingham– Stafford line TfWM free parking Other car parking

History

In 1854, the South Staffordshire Railway (SSR) obtained powers to build a branch to Cannock from Ryecroft Junction on its main line near Walsall; this was opened to passengers and goods on 1 February 1858 together with Cannock station. In 1855, the Cannock Mineral Railway (CMR) was authorised to connect this branch with the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) at Rugeley, this line was leased to the LNWR on 7 November 1859 and opened for passengers and goods at the same time.[1][2] The SSR was leased to the LNWR in February 1861 and absorbed on 15 June 1867; the CMR being absorbed by the LNWR in 1869.[3] The station was closed by British Railways on 18 January 1965.[2]

The station reopened by British Rail in 1989,[4] as part of the first stage of the reopening to passenger trains of the Chase Line from Walsall to Hednesford. It had previously closed to passengers on 18 January 1965 and to goods on 10 August 1964, as part of the Beeching Axe. The remains of a small part of the original Up (southbound) platform can still be seen just to the north of the station and behind platform 1.

Announcements were made in December 2018 for minor renovations of the station. "The plans include extending the platform, improving access, creating a 300-space car park, adding spaces for bikes and improving information points. The total cost is expected to be £400,000, with £129,000 being contributed from the joint Investment Fund agreed by Staffordshire County Council and £40,000 from the West Midlands Rail Executive and West Midlands Trains."[5]

Completion of electrification of the Chase line in May 2019 enabled an increased service frequency and speed of services from Cannock[6] including a direct electric train service to London for the first time.

Services

Service frequencies vary depending on the time of day. Of the two southbound services per hour, one continues to London Euston and the other to Birmingham International. All northbound services terminate at Rugeley Trent Valley, apart from two services per day which terminate at Hednesford. There are two trains per hour throughout the day on Saturdays with an hourly evening service. On Sundays there are hourly southbound services to Coventry.

Gallery

• 
  Under construction in 1989
• 
  The station in 2000
• 
  Cannock Station - sign and sculpture

References

1. Reed, M.C. (1996). The London & North Western Railway. Penryn: Atlantic Transport Publishers. pp. 69, 95. ISBN 0-906899-66-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 52. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
3. Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. London: Guild Publishing. pp. 65, 103. CN 8983.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
4. Dynes, Michael (10 February 1992). "Railways enjoy a change of fortune". The Times. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
5. Callear, Charlotte. "Cannock railway station to get £231,000 makeover". www.expressandstar.com. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
6. Reynolds, Jordan (10 May 2019). "First passenger train travels on newly-electrified Chase Line". Express & Star. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.

External links

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

Preceding station		National Rail		Following station
Hednesford		West Midlands Railway Chase Line		Landywood
	Historical railways
Hednesford Line and station open		London and North Western Railway Cannock Mineral Railway South Staffordshire Railway		Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay Line open, station closed