The North Wales Coast Line, also known as the North Wales Main Line, is a major railway line in the north of Wales and Cheshire, England, running from Crewe on the West Coast Main Line to Holyhead on the Isle of Anglesey. The line has 19 stations, with all except two, Chester and Crewe, being in Wales.
The Shrewsbury–Chester line is a railway line between Chester and Shrewsbury in England, with the line passing through Wrexham County Borough in Wales. Passenger train services are operated by Transport for Wales Rail between the northern terminal of Chester and Shrewsbury in the south as part of the Wales & Borders franchise. Some additional services, starting part way along the line to London Euston via Chester are operated by Avanti West Coast. The line was built in 1846 by the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway, with the engineer for the line being Henry Robertson, a partner in locomotive builders Beyer Peacock, while the contractor was Thomas Brassey in partnership with William Mackenzie and Robert Stephenson. The line is part of Transport for Wales' North Wales Metro improvement programme.
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.
Chester railway station is located in Newtown, Chester, England. Services are operated by Avanti West Coast, Merseyrail, Northern and Transport for Wales. From 1875 to 1969 the station was known as Chester General to distinguish it from Chester Northgate. The station's Italianate frontage was designed by the architect Francis Thompson.
Wrexham General railway station is a main line railway station and the main railway station serving the city of Wrexham, north-east Wales. It is currently operated by Transport for Wales, but services are also provided by Avanti West Coast who operate a service to London Euston. Until January 2011 Wrexham & Shropshire also operated from here to London Marylebone.
Chirk railway station serves the town of Chirk, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. The station is on the Shrewsbury to Chester Line 21 miles (34 km) north of Shrewsbury, which is part of the former Great Western Railway mainline route from London Paddington to Birkenhead Woodside. The original 19th-century Chirk / Y Waun station building was demolished in 1987, without consultation, by the local council.
The Birkenhead Railway was a railway company in North West England. It was incorporated as the Birkenhead, Lancashire and Cheshire Junction Railway (BL&CJR) in 1846 to build a line connecting the port of Birkenhead and the city of Chester with the manufacturing districts of Lancashire by making a junction near Warrington with the Grand Junction Railway. The BL&CJR took over the Chester and Birkenhead Railway in 1847, keeping its own name for the combined company until it shortened its name to the Birkenhead Railway in 1859. It was taken over jointly, on 1 January 1860, by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) and the Great Western Railway (GWR). It remained a joint railway until nationalisation of the railways in 1948.
Weston Rhyn railway station was a minor station on the Great Western Railway's London to Birkenhead main line serving the villages of Weston Rhyn and Preesgweene in England. It had an adjacent signal box and level crossing and immediately to the south were Up & Down Goods Loops. It had originally opened as Preesgweene and closed for the first time in March 1855. It re-opened as Preesgweene in November 1871 and was renamed Weston Rhyn in February 1935 It closed in 1960 but the railway is still open today as part of the Shrewsbury to Chester Line. After closure the platforms were removed but the station building was converted to a private residence.
Whittington Low Level railway station is a disused station and was one of two former railway stations in the village of Whittington, Shropshire, England.
Rednal & West Felton railway station was a minor station on the GWR's Paddington to Birkenhead main line. Today this is part of the Shrewsbury to Chester line. The distinctive red brick station building can still be seen on the west side of the line.
Baschurch railway station was a minor station located about ten miles north of Shrewsbury on the GWR's Paddington to Birkenhead main line. Today this is part of the Shrewsbury to Chester line. The station building can be seen on the west side of the line adjacent Baschurch level crossing; it was designed by Thomas Mainwaring Penson.
Leaton railway station was a minor station located about six miles north of Shrewsbury on the GWR's Paddington to Birkenhead main line. Today this is part of the Shrewsbury to Chester line. It was at the top of the long climb up Hencote bank out of Shrewsbury. The station opened on 12 October 1848 and closed on 12 September 1960. The station building can still be seen on the north side of the adjacent Leaton level crossing on the east side of the line. A small industrial estate now exists at the former railway sidings.
Oldwoods Halt was a minor station located north of Shrewsbury on the GWR's Paddington to Birkenhead Woodside main line. It was opened in the nineteen thirties as part of the GWR's halt construction programme, aimed at combatting growing competition from bus services. Today the route is part of the Shrewsbury to Chester line. Nothing now remains of the halt although the area of the adjacent goods siding/s can still be seen on the west side of the line.
Gresford Halt was a small railway station located on the Great Western Railway's Paddington to Birkenhead line a few miles north of Wrexham in Wales and halfway up the Gresford bank.
Rossett was a minor railway station located on the Great Western Railway's Paddington to Birkenhead line several miles north of Wrexham in Wales. The route is still open today as part of the Shrewsbury to Chester Line. Originally, there was a level crossing just south of the platforms but this has been reduced to the status of a foot and cycleway crossing. To the south of the station there were once goods loops on both sides of the line as well as extensive sidings on the east side. Part of the old Up (southbound) platform still survives. The double track on the Wrexham to Chester section was singled in 1983 but has been redoubled between Rossett and Saltney, with work finally completed in April 2017.
Pulford was a short-lived minor railway station located on the Great Western Railway's Paddington to Birkenhead line several miles south of Chester, just inside the English border. The route is still open today as part of the Shrewsbury to Chester Line. Nothing now remains at the site except for a Pulford AHB level crossing. The double track on the Wrexham to Chester section was singled in 1983 but was redoubled through here in 2017 as part of a £40 million upgrade of the route.
Rhosrobin Halt was a minor railway station located on the Great Western Railway's Paddington to Birkenhead line a few miles north of Wrexham in Wales. Only local trains called here and freight was never handled at the station. The route is still open today as part of the Shrewsbury to Chester Line. The station was located just north of Wheatsheaf Junction, where the goods line from Cefn-y-Bedd joined on the north side of the line. The double track on the Wrexham to Chester section was singled in the 1980s but has been re-doubled in part since, with work completed in April 2017.
The North Wales Mineral Railway was formed to carry coal and ironstone from the mineral-bearing area around Wrexham to the River Dee wharves. It was extended to run from Shrewsbury and formed part of a main line trunk route, under the title The Shrewsbury and Chester Railway. It opened in 1846 from Chester to Ruabon, and in 1848 from Ruabon to Shrewsbury. It later merged with the Great Western Railway.
The Mold Railway was a railway company that built a line in north-east Wales. The line linked Mold to Chester and it opened on 14 August 1849. The company built a mineral branch line to Ffrith, opened in November 1849. Mold itself was an important regional centre, and contained considerable mineral resources.
The Brymbo railway branch lines served the rich reserves of coal, iron, limestone and other minerals in an area around Brymbo to the west of Wrexham in Wales. Coalowners and others needed transport to get their products to market and lines were built from the main line into the mineral-bearing area. The topography was difficult and gradients were steep. The Great Western Railway became dominant, but a rival company built a competing line and branches.
