Telford Central railway station

Telford Central railway station serves the new town of Telford, England. It is situated close to the town centre, the main commercial district of the town. It is located on the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line 15 1⁄2 miles (24.9 km) north west of Wolverhampton and is operated by West Midlands Trains.

Telford Central
Location
PlaceTelford
Local authorityTelford and Wrekin
Grid referenceSJ702093
Operations
Station codeTFC
Managed byWest Midlands Trains
Number of platforms2
DfT categoryC2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15 1.093 million
2015/16 1.139 million
2016/17 1.207 million
2017/18 1.211 million
2018/19 1.198 million
– Interchange 13,471
History
Key datesOpened 12 May 1986[1] (12 May 1986[2])
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Telford Central from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

History

The new town of Telford was designated in the 1960s, but until the 1980s it was served only by two railway stations which predated it, Oakengates and Wellington, although Wellington was at one stage renamed "Wellington-Telford West" to indicate that it was located in the new town. The line through Telford also boasted a further station in the form of New Hadley Halt between Oakengates and Wellington until 1985.

The situation changed in May 1986, when Telford Central opened. The new station was equipped with full-length platforms to accommodate inter-city trains, and a large car park, which took advantage of the station's location next to the M54 motorway to provide a park and ride facility. The £700,000 cost was jointly funded by British Rail, the Telford Development Corporation and Shropshire County Council.

The station and car park were built on the former Hollinswood sidings that served the Lilleshall Company and local industry.[3]

Facilities

The station is staffed all week, with the ticket office open Monday - Saturday 06:00 - 19:00 and Sunday 10:00 - 17:00. A ticket machine is provided in the booking hall for use outside these times and for the collection of pre-paid tickets. A coffee kiosk, photo booth and toilets are also located in the main building on platform 1 (for Wolverhampton and Birmingham), whilst platform 2 (Shrewsbury and beyond) has bench seating and a waiting shelter only. CIS displays, automatic announcements and timetable posters provide train running information. Step-free access is available to both platforms (via ramped footbridge or public roads).[4]

Services

Currently (summer 2019), the Monday-Saturday off-peak service comprises three trains per hour in each direction. One, operated by Transport for Wales, runs between Birmingham International and Shrewsbury, with alternate trains continuing to Aberystwyth & Pwllheli or Holyhead via Chester. The other trains are West Midlands Railway services between Shrewsbury and Birmingham New Street, with one calling at all stations between Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton and the other a limited stop semi-fast express. Sunday services consist of an hourly fast service (Chester or Aberystwyth to Birmingham International) operated by Arriva Trains Wales and an hourly stopping service (Shrewsbury to Birmingham), operated by West Midlands Trains. There is also a once a day service to London Euston and Shrewsbury operated by Avanti West Coast.[5][6][7]

Although the station was built to accommodate inter-city trains to/from London Euston, British Rail services ceased in the early 1990s and Virgin Trains West Coast withdrew a short-lived, (trial) daily service between Shrewsbury and London in 2000. A new company, Wrexham & Shropshire, reintroduced express services (to London Marylebone) on 28 April 2008; these were withdrawn on 28 January 2011. In December 2014, Virgin Trains re-introduced two daily services to and from London Euston.[8][9]

Passenger numbers using the station annually exceeded the 1 million mark for the first time in the 2011-12 financial year.

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References
  1. Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2009). Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury. Midhurst: Middleton Press. p. 84. ISBN 978 1 906008 44 4.
  2. Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2009). Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury. Midhurst: Middleton Press. p. 84. ISBN 978 1 906008 44 4.
  3. Clarke, Neil (2015). Railways of East Shropshire. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. p. 31. ISBN 978-1-4456-4022-8.
  4. Telford Central Station Facilities National Rail Enquiries
  5. "'Major' rail changes in timetable overhaul". BBC News. 19 May 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  6. O'Brien, Lisa (13 March 2019). "New timetable includes later rail services between Shropshire and West Midlands". The Shropshire Star. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  7. GB eNRT May 2019 Edition, Table 74 (Network Rail)
  8. Blackpool and Shrewsbury direct rail services to London approved BBC News 22 September 2014
  9. Table 66 National Rail timetable, May 2017
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Shifnal   West Midlands Railway
Wolverhampton/Birmingham-Shrewsbury		   Oakengates
  Transport for Wales
Wolverhampton-Shrewsbury
Sundays only		  
Shifnal   Transport for Wales
Birmingham-Chester		   Oakengates
Wolverhampton   Transport for Wales
Cambrian Line		   Wellington
Wolverhampton   Transport for Wales
Birmingham - Holyhead		   Wellington
Wolverhampton   Avanti West Coast
London-Shrewsbury		   Wellington

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