Stoke-on-Trent railway station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Stoke-on-Trent | |
 |
|
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Place | Stoke-upon-Trent |
| Local authority | Stoke-on-Trent |
| Operations | |
| Managed by | Virgin Trains |
| Platforms in use | 3 |
| Annual entry/exit | 1.156 (2004 / 2005 financial year) million * |
| History | |
| Key dates | Opened 1848 |
| National Rail - UK railway stations | |
| * based on sales of tickets in 2002/03 financial year which end or originate at Stoke-on-Trent. Disclaimer (PDF) | |
Stoke-on-Trent railway station is a main-line train station in the United Kingdom. It is located on the Stafford to Manchester branch of the West Coast Main Line and serves the Staffordshire city of Stoke-on-Trent. The station also provides an interchange between various local services running through Cheshire, Staffordshire and Derbyshire.
The very fine Victorian station buildings were opened October 9, 1848. The other buildings located in Winton Square, including the North Stafford hotel were opened in June, 1849. All these buildings were to the design of H.A. Hunt of London in an architectural style referred to as ‘robust Jacobean manor-house’ [1].
The station was built by the North Staffordshire Railway Company and until the amalgamation of 1923 housed the Company's Boardroom and its principal offices. Stoke-on-Trent has always been and still is the hub of North Staffordshire's Passenger Train Service.
Destinations served by through express trains in 2004 included: London, Manchester, Birmingham, Coventry. Oxford, Reading, Bournemouth, Preston, Carlisle and Edinburgh. Destinations served by local and regional trains include: Kidsgrove, Alsager, Crewe, Congleton, Macclesfield, Cheadle Hulme, Stockport, Stafford, Wolverhampton, Blythe Bridge, Uttoxeter, Tutbury and Derby. Etruria railway station (one mile to the north) was closed to passengers in 2005.
Stoke-on-Trent station, which is managed by Virgin Trains, has three platforms and a central through line without a platform. The entrance to the station is from Winton Square, opposite the North Stafford Hotel, into a large booking hall with an enquiry office and level access to platform 1 from which all Southbound trains normally depart. On this platform are the main buildings, refreshment room and bar, book stall, toilets for both ladies and gentlemen, and a 1st class lounge.
There is a subway connecting platform 1 with platforms 2 and 3. Northbound trains usually depart from platform 2, which has a ladies' waiting room with toilets, and gentlemen's toilets. Platform 3 is a short bay platform used by some regional trains to Manchester Piccadilly. The original, now disused, goods yard lies behind the northbound platforms.
In April 2006, Network Rail organised its maintenance and train control operations into "26 Routes". The main line through Stoke-on-Trent forms part of Route 18 (The West Coast Mainline). The line from Derby to the junction just south of Stoke-on-Trent station forms part of Route 19 (The Midland Main Line and East Midlands).
Winton Chambers (a self contained section of the main station building including the entire upper floor) is currently leased to the Staffordshire University, which has its main Stoke-on-Trent campuses in College Road off Station Road and in Leek Road nearby. The University also leases Nos. 1, 2 & 3 Winton Square and Nos. 4 & 5 Winton Square, which with the North Stafford Hotel and the station comprise the original 1848 station complex. The University has expanded rapidly in recent years and a large area to north-east of Stoke-on-Trent station is now seen as a developing "University Quarter".
[edit] References
- ^ Nikolaus Pevsner; The Buildings of England - Staffordshire, Penguin Books Ltd, 1974. ISBN 0-14-071046-9 (page 262)
[edit] External links
- Train times and station information for Stoke-on-Trent railway station from National Rail
- Street map and aerial photo of Stoke-on-Trent railway station from Multimap.com
- North Staffordshire Railway
- Page with more info on the station
- Stoke-on-Trent Railway Station
- North Staffordshire Railway Passenger Services (from Stoke-on-Trent) 1910 - 1947 - 1999
- North Staffordshire Railway Photographs
- The North Staffordshire Railway Study Group
- Staffordshire University campus map showing proximity to the station.
| Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stafford | Virgin Trains West Coast Main Line |
Congleton | ||
| Wedgwood | Central Trains Stafford to Manchester Line |
Terminus | ||
| Longton | Central Trains Crewe to Derby Line |
Longport | ||
| Terminus | Northern Rail Stafford to Manchester Line |
Longport | ||
