Droitwich Spa railway station

Last updated

Droitwich Spa
National Rail logo.svg
A train standing at Droitwich Spa station, geograph 5090654 by Jeff Gogarty.jpg
General information
Location Droitwich Spa, Wychavon
England
Grid reference SO892633
Managed by West Midlands Railway
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeDTW
Classification DfT category E
History
Opened1852
Passengers
2019/20Decrease2.svg 0.520 million
 Interchange Increase2.svg 80,587

Droitwich Spa Junction is a railway junction located 250 metres (800 ft) north-east of the station.

The junction sees the Birmingham to Worcester via Bromsgrove Line branch off from the main line - the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line. Part of this line is a surviving section of the Oxford-Worcester-Wolverhampton Line and is these days used by trains heading towards Kidderminster, Stourbridge Junction and Birmingham Snow Hill. The branch meanwhile joins the main Birmingham to Bristol line at Stoke Works Junction, south of Bromsgrove - services over this line then continue via the famous Lickey Incline en route to Birmingham New Street.

Droitwich Spa signal box controls the junction and is located between the diverging lines. The whole of the junction is controlled by semaphore signals from the British Rail Western Region era. The box interfaces with the West Midlands Signal Control Centre, Stourbridge Desk (at Saltley) on the main line towards Kidderminster and West Midlands Signal Control Centre, Bromsgrove Desk (at Saltley) on the branch, using the Track Circuit Block system - the latter becomes a single line just beyond the junction and remains so until joining the main line at Stoke Works. To the south, the next box is located at Worcester Tunnel Junction, north of Worcester Shrub Hill, signalled via the Absolute Block system.

Services

The service pattern from the station has varied somewhat over the years, particularly after most services via Kidderminster were diverted to New St in 1967 as part of the plans to close Snow Hill (the service via Bromsgrove subsequently becoming peak-hours only). Today though, travellers from the station once again have a choice of stations in Birmingham following the reopening of Snow Hill in 1995 and there are regular services on both routes into the city.

West Midlands Railway serve the station on both routes from Worcester to Birmingham, using the Snow Hill Lines via Kidderminster for services via Moor Street and Snow Hill, and the Cross-City Line after Bromsgrove on New Street bound services.

As of May 2023 the typical weekday off-peak service from the station is: [7] [8] [9]

Birmingham to Worcester via Bromsgrove line:

Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line:

On Sundays, the Worcester to Stratford via Moor Street service runs every hour, continuing eastbound to Stratford-upon-Avon via Shirley.

On the Birmingham New Street to Hereford route, services to both Birmingham and Worcester remain hourly on Sundays, with 2-hourly extentions to all stations south of Worcester.

Services on the Snow Hill line are generally served by Class 172 DMUs and services on the Hereford line are served by Class 196 DMUs.

Preceding station National Rail logo.svg National Rail Following station
Hartlebury or Kidderminster   West Midlands Railway
Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line
  Worcester Foregate Street
  West Midlands Railway
Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line
  Worcester Shrub Hill
Bromsgrove
or University
  West Midlands Railway
Birmingham to Worcester via Bromsgrove line
  Worcester Foregate Street
  West Midlands Railway
Birmingham to Worcester via Bromsgrove line
  Worcester Shrub Hill
Disused railways
Stoke Works   Great Western Railway   Fernhill Heath
Cutnall Green Halt   Great Western Railway
Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway
  Fernhill Heath
Dunhampstead   Birmingham and
Gloucester Railway
  Droitwich Road

References

  1. "Droitwich. The Proposed New Railway Station" . Worcester Journal. England. 26 November 1892. Retrieved 25 September 2021 via British Newspaper Archive.
  2. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth . Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  3. "The New Railway Station at Droitwich" . London Evening Standard. England. 5 June 1899. Retrieved 25 September 2021 via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. "Droitwich Spa Railway Station".
  5. "Dec 2012 timetable change". November 2012.
  6. GB eNRT December 2015 Edition, Table 71
  7. "Train timetables and schedules | Droitwich Spa". West Midlands Railway.
  8. "Train times | Snow Hill Lines - Worcester to Birmingham Snow Hill, Solihull and Stratford upon Avon | 21 May until 9 December 2023". West Midlands Railway.
  9. "Train times | Hereford to Birmingham | 21 May until 9 December 2023". West Midlands Railway.

Further reading

52°16′05″N2°09′29″W / 52.268°N 2.158°W / 52.268; -2.158