The English county of Shropshire has a fairly large railway network, with 19 National Rail stations on various national lines; there are also a small number of heritage and freight lines, including the famous heritage Severn Valley Railway running along its eastern border with Worcestershire.
The majority of the county's public rail services are run by Transport for Wales; the remainder are run by West Midlands Trains (under their West Midlands Railway brand) and Avanti West Coast.
National Rail services in Shropshire are centred about Shrewsbury station (all other 'national rail' stations in Shropshire have a direct train service to Shrewsbury, which is the county town), which is managed by Transport for Wales. The station is at the junction of the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line, Shrewsbury to Chester Line, the Welsh Marches Line (between Cardiff and Manchester) and the Cambrian Line (towards Welshpool). Craven Arms station is at the junction between the Welsh Marches Line and the Heart of Wales Line, although services on the Heart of Wales Line begin at Shrewsbury rather than Craven Arms itself. There are direct train services from Shrewsbury (and elsewhere in the county) to the cities of Manchester, Birmingham and Cardiff, as well as the port at Holyhead where regular ferries to Dublin depart.
There are no electrified railways, as such, in the county despite the surrounding railway nodes of Crewe, Chester and Wolverhampton all being electrified (the funicular Bridgnorth Cliff Railway, although electrically powered, is cable worked). This has meant that since the mid-1990s rail privatisation, there has been a reluctance to establish a direct service to London by the cross-country railway companies (previously British Rail ran direct trains from Shrewsbury to London), notably Virgin Trains West Coast who previously ran services to London Euston from the county in 2000. There was a direct service to London Marylebone, provided by the open-access company Wrexham & Shropshire, which operated from 28 April 2008 to 28 January 2011 and used diesel locomotives. On 11 December 2014, Virgin Trains recommenced direct services between Shrewsbury and London Euston. [1]
There are two freight only lines in operation in the Telford area. One is the line from Madeley Junction on the Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton Line to Ironbridge Power Station via the historic industrial area of Coalbrookdale. The other is the newly restored line from Wellington to the Telford International Railfreight Park in Donnington which links the Terminal at Donnington with the Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton Line.
There is also the short Abbey Loop line in Shrewsbury which is generally only used by freight trains.
The Gobowen to Blodwell line, which runs through Oswestry, has been a mothballed line since the 1980s. It previously served a small number of stone quarries in the area. In 2008 the line was bought by Shropshire County Council and will likely be used in part by the Cambrian Heritage Railways being set up in the area (by the Cambrian Railways Trust and Society, see Heritage section below) and also as a cycle path from Oswestry to Gobowen.
There are many closed lines in Shropshire, including
Many were closed in the 1960s, although the county did not fare too badly under Dr Beeching's massive nationwide railway cuts. The Heart of Wales Line was saved from closure. However, some previously major railway centres in the county, such as Oswestry, Newport and Market Drayton, now have no public railways.
There are three heritage railways in Shropshire: the Severn Valley Railway from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster (in Worcestershire), the Telford Steam Railway at Horsehay, and two restored stretches of the Cambrian Railways, being run by Cambrian Heritage Railways between Oswestry and Weston Wharf, and between Llynclys and Pant.
Cambrian Heritage Railways also (since taking on the former Cambrian Railway Society CRS) aims to restore part of the Potteries, Shrewsbury & North Wales Railway at Nantmawr for use as a heritage railway. The CHR have a second operating base at Oswestry railway station, with a small collection of locos and rolling stock.
As well as the heritage only lines, the national lines of Shropshire witness a regular number of special charter trains with heritage diesel and steam locomotives and historic carriage stock in operation.
Here are listed the 19 National Rail stations in current use in the county.
Station | Place | 2015/16 usage [2] | 2016/17 usage [2] | 2017/18 usage [2] | Managed by | Co-ordinates | Line | Distance from Shrewsbury | Platforms | Request stop? | DFT station category |
Albrighton railway station | Albrighton | 95,322 | 99,380 | 98,972 | West Midlands Trains | 52°38′16″N2°16′06″W / 52.63778°N 2.2683°W | Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton | 35 km (21¾ miles) | 2 | No | F2 |
Broome railway station | Broome / Aston on Clun | 1,564 | 782 | 1,150 | Transport for Wales | 52°25′23″N2°53′06″W / 52.423°N 2.885°W | Heart of Wales | 36.5 km (22¾ miles) | 1 | Yes | F2 |
Bucknell railway station | Bucknell | 5,696 | 5,516 | 4,324 | Transport for Wales | 52°21′26″N2°56′53″W / 52.3573°N 2.948°W | Heart of Wales | 45.5 km (28¼ miles) | 1 | Yes | F2 |
Church Stretton railway station | Church Stretton | 127,748 | 132,352 | 130,380 | Transport for Wales | 52°32′13″N2°48′11″W / 52.537°N 2.803°W | Welsh Marches | 20.5 km (12¾ miles) | 2 | No | F1 |
Cosford railway station | Cosford (alight for DCAE Cosford & Air Museum) | 81,530 | 84,384 | 87,626 | West Midlands Trains | 52°38′41″N2°18′00″W / 52.6448°N 2.3°W | Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton | 32.5 km (20¼ miles) | 2 | No | F2 |
Craven Arms railway station | Craven Arms | 109,478 | 100,914 | 96,996 | Transport for Wales | 52°26′31″N2°50′13″W / 52.442°N 2.837°W | Welsh Marches (junction with Heart of Wales) | 32 km (20 mi) | 2 | No | F1 |
Gobowen railway station | Gobowen (alight here for a bus service to Oswestry) | 213,900 | 221,138 | 218,684 | Transport for Wales | 52°53′37″N3°02′14″W / 52.8935°N 3.0371°W | Shrewsbury-Chester | 28.5 km (17¾ miles) | 2 | No | E |
Hopton Heath railway station 1 | Hopton Heath | 1,754 | 1,332 | 1,006 | Transport for Wales | 52°23′29″N2°54′43″W / 52.3915°N 2.912°W | Heart of Wales | 41 km (25½ miles) | 1 | Yes | F2 |
Knighton railway station | Knighton 2 | 21,626 | 20,714 | 21,440 | Transport for Wales | 52°20′42″N3°02′31″W / 52.345°N 3.042°W | Heart of Wales | 52.5 km (32½ miles) | 2 | No | F1 |
Ludlow railway station | Ludlow | 299,776 | 299,802 | 300,742 | Transport for Wales | 52°22′16″N2°42′58″W / 52.371°N 2.716°W | Welsh Marches | 44 km (27½ miles) | 2 | No | E |
Oakengates railway station | Oakengates | 55,830 | 59,006 | 67,408 | West Midlands Trains | 52°41′35″N2°27′00″W / 52.693°N 2.450°W | Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton | 21.5 km (13½ miles) | 2 | No | F2 |
Prees railway station | near Prees | 6,674 | 6,838 | 7,374 | Transport for Wales | 52°53′57″N2°41′22″W / 52.8992°N 2.6895°W | Welsh Marches | 22.5 km (14.0 mi) | 2 | Yes | F2 |
Shifnal railway station | Shifnal | 144,532 | 166,046 | 181,702 | West Midlands Trains | 52°39′58″N2°22′19″W / 52.666°N 2.372°W | Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton | 28 km (17¼ miles) | 2 | No | F2 |
Shrewsbury railway station | Shrewsbury | 1,979,248 | 2,087,820 | 2,211,520 | Transport for Wales | 52°42′43″N2°45′00″W / 52.712°N 2.75°W | Junction of several lines | n/a | 5 | No | C1 |
Telford Central railway station | Telford Town Centre | 1,139,070 | 1,207,406 | 1,211,078 | West Midlands Trains | 52°40′52″N2°26′28″W / 52.681°N 2.441°W | Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton | 23 km (14¼ miles) | 2 | No | C2 |
Wellington (Shropshire) railway station | Wellington | 631,176 | 665,778 | 693,438 | West Midlands Trains | 52°42′05″N2°31′01″W / 52.7015°N 2.517°W | Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton | 16 km (9.9 mi) | 3 | No | E |
Wem railway station | Wem | 100,678 | 105,044 | 110,636 | Transport for Wales | 52°51′22″N2°43′08″W / 52.856°N 2.719°W | Welsh Marches | 17 km (10¾ miles) | 2 | No | F1 |
Whitchurch (Shropshire) railway station | Whitchurch | 125,430 | 138,246 | 140,746 | Transport for Wales | 52°58′05″N2°40′18″W / 52.968°N 2.6716°W | Welsh Marches | 30 km (18¾ miles) | 2 | No | F1 |
Yorton railway station | Yorton / Clive | 9,304 | 8,788 | 7,686 | Transport for Wales | 52°48′32″N2°44′10″W / 52.809°N 2.736°W | Welsh Marches | 11.5 km (7¼ miles) | 2 | Yes | F2 |
1 Sometimes written as "Hoptonheath".
2 Although the town of Knighton is in Powys, Wales, the railway station is in Shropshire, England.
There are four railway tunnels in use at present in Shropshire:
A notable disused tunnel exists running beneath High Town of Bridgnorth, which once carried the railway from Bridgnorth station northwards towards the Ironbridge Gorge. The tunnel continues to be maintained and is in good condition. There is the possibility of the Severn Valley Railway extending northwards through the tunnel, with the tunnel's owner BRB (Residuary) Ltd offering the heritage railway first refusal, however there would be substantial difficulties in reinstating the railway beyond the tunnel to the north of Bridgnorth.
Shropshire is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to the north, Staffordshire to the east, Worcestershire to the southeast, and Herefordshire to the south. A unitary authority of the same name was created in 2009, taking over from the previous county council and five district councils, now governed by Shropshire Council. The borough of Telford and Wrekin has been a separate unitary authority since 1998, but remains part of the ceremonial county.
The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The 16-mile (26 km) heritage line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route, and crossing the river on the historic Victoria Bridge.
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into a High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079.
Cambrian Railways owned 230 miles (370 km) of track over a large area of mid Wales. The system was an amalgamation of a number of railways that were incorporated in 1864, 1865 and 1904. The Cambrian connected with two larger railways with connections to the northwest of England via the London and North Western Railway, and the Great Western Railway for connections between London and Wales. The Cambrian Railways amalgamated with the Great Western Railway on 1 January 1922 as a result of the Railways Act 1921. The name is continued today in the route known as the Cambrian Line.
The Telford Steam Railway (TSR) is a heritage railway located at Horsehay, Telford in Shropshire, England, formed in 1976.
The Wolverhampton–Shrewsbury line is the railway line from Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury via Wellington; it was originally built by the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway. The line is double track throughout, with rarely used relief sidings at Cosford and four tracks through Wellington station.
Shrewsbury railway station is in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. Built in 1848, it was designated a grade II listed building in 1969.
The Shropshire Union Railways and Canal Company was a Company in England, formed in 1846, which managed several canals and railways. It intended to convert a number of canals to railways, but was leased by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) from 1847, and although they built one railway in their own right, the LNWR were keen that they did not build any more. They continued to act as a semi-autonomous body, managing the canals under their control, and were critical of the LNWR for not using the powers which the Shropshire Union Company had obtained to achieve domination of the markets in Shropshire and Cheshire by building more railways.
The Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway was authorised in 1846. It agreed to joint construction with others of the costly Wolverhampton to Birmingham section, the so-called Stour Valley Line. This work was dominated by the hostile London and North Western Railway, which used underhand and coercive tactics. The section between Shrewsbury and Wellington was also built jointly, in this case with the Shropshire Union Railway.
Gobowen railway station is a railway station on the Shrewsbury to Chester Line of the former Great Western Railway's London Paddington to Birkenhead Woodside via Birmingham Snow Hill line, serving the village of Gobowen in Shropshire, England. It is the nearest station to the town of Oswestry.
Wellington railway station serves the town of Wellington, Shropshire, England. It is situated on the former Great Western Railway's London Paddington to Birkenhead via Birmingham Snow Hill line. Trains are operated by West Midlands Railway, Avanti West Coast and Transport for Wales. At its peak, the station hosted six platforms, four through and two bay platforms.
Telford Central railway station serves the town of Telford, Shropshire, England. 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. It is situated close to the Telford Shopping Centre, the main commercial district of the town.
Whitchurch (Shropshire) railway station serves the town of Whitchurch in Shropshire, England. The station is 18¾ miles (30 km) north of Shrewsbury on the Welsh Marches Line. The station is maintained and served by Transport for Wales.
Buildwas railway station was an isolated junction railway station on the Wellington to Craven Arms Railway and Severn Valley Railway. Opened on 1 February 1862. Although the station served both the Severn Valley Railway and Wellington to Craven Arms Railway, it was an interchange station in open countryside with no passenger access except by rail.
The Wellington to Craven Arms Railway was formed by a group of railway companies that eventually joined the Great Western Railway family, and connected Wellington, Shropshire and Shifnal, with Coalbrookdale, Buildwas, Much Wenlock and a junction near Craven Arms. Its objectives were dominated by the iron, colliery and limestone industries around Coalbrookdale.
Severn Bridge Junction is the area of railway lines just south of Shrewsbury railway station, in Shropshire, England. It is controlled by a mechanical interlocked signal box of the same name, which is the largest operational mechanical signal box in the world. The Network Rail signalling area code is 'SBJ.'
The Stafford–Shrewsbury line is a former railway line in England, which ran between Stafford in Staffordshire and Shrewsbury in Shropshire, via Newport and Wellington, from 1849 to 1966. The Shropshire Union Railways and Canal Company (SUR&CC) constructed and ran one of the few railways in England ever built by a canal company. The line served Newport and Wellington stations. The SUR&CC were solely responsible for the section from Stafford to Wellington; but the building and operation of the 10.5 mile (17 km)-long Shrewsbury-to-Wellington section was shared with the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway.
The Llanfyllin Branch was a railway line extension of the Oswestry and Newtown Railway to access the limestone resources within the Llanfyllin area; it opened in 1863.
Llanymynech railway station was an important junction station on the Cambrian Railways mainline from Welshpool, Powys to Oswestry, Shropshire, serving the village of Llanymynech which is partly situated in Shropshire, England and partly in Powys, Wales.