Wool railway station

Wool
Location
Place	Wool
Local authority	District of Purbeck
Coordinates	50°40′55″N 2°13′16″W / 50.682°N 2.221°WCoordinates: 50°40′55″N 2°13′16″W / 50.682°N 2.221°W
Grid reference	SY845869
Operations
Station code	WOO
Managed by	South West Trains
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	E
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2004/05	0.139 million
2005/06	0.142 million
2006/07	0.151 million
2007/08	0.167 million
2008/09	0.174 million
2009/10	0.169 million
2010/11	0.176 million
2011/12	0.190 million
2012/13	0.186 million
2013/14	0.197 million
2014/15	0.188 million
History
Original company	Southampton and Dorchester Railway
Pre-grouping	London and South Western Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
1 June 1847	Station opened
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Wool from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

Wool railway station serves the village of Wool in Dorset, England. It is on the South Western Main Line between London Waterloo and Weymouth.

History

When the Southampton and Dorchester Railway (S&DR) was opened on 1 June 1847 Wool was one of the original stations on the line.^[1][2] The line was originally built with a single track but no telegraph, with the result that there was a head-on collision between Wool and Wareham on 27 September 1847; casualties were light.^[3] The S&DR was amalgamated into the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) on 11 October 1848, and that company doubled the line in stages: the section from Wimborne to Wool was doubled on 1 June 1863, and the double track was extended from Wool to Dorchester on 1 August 1863.^[4] In 1960, the station was allocated a camping coach converted from a Pullman car, which was fitted with a full kitchen, two sleeping compartments and a room with two single beds.^[5]

Services

Until 1967, trains through the station were normally steam hauled. Between 1967 and 1988, passenger services were normally provided by Class 33/1 diesel locomotives with Class 438 coaching stock (also known as 4-TC units). The line was electrified in 1988, using the standard British Rail Southern Region direct current third rail at 750 volts. Class 442 electric multiple units were initially used following electrification, until being displaced by new Class 444 electric multiple units in 2007.

There is one train per hour in each direction however peak times two trains an hour serve in each direction, operated by South West Trains.

References

1. Williams, R.A. (1968). The London & South Western Railway, volume 1: The Formative Years. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 62. ISBN 0-7153-4188-X.
2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 255. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
3. Williams 1968, pp. 63–64
4. Williams 1968, p. 65
5. "Pullman Cars as Camping Coaches". Railway Magazine 107 (711): 449–450. July 1960.