Bournville railway station

Bournville
Location
Place	Bournville
Local authority	Birmingham
Coordinates	52°25′37″N 1°55′34″W / 52.427°N 1.926°WCoordinates: 52°25′37″N 1°55′34″W / 52.427°N 1.926°W
Grid reference	SP050810
Operations
Station code	BRV
Managed by	London Midland
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	D
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2010/11	0.786 million
2011/12	0.983 million
2012/13	0.976 million
2013/14	1.028 million
2014/15	1.034 million
Passenger Transport Executive
PTE	West Midlands
Zone	3
History
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.
UK Railways portal

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.

History

The station opened in 1876 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.

Bourneville station in 1962. Pre-electrification.

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 concourse. In 1904, the station was finally renamed Bournville.^[1]

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. Under the auspices of British Rail, the station was rebuilt in 1978 and the line electrified in 1993.

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 London Midland on behalf of Centro, the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive.

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.

References

1. "Bournville station". Rail Around Birmingham. Retrieved 2010-06-15.

External links

• 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