Brockenhurst railway station

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Brockenhurst
General information
LocationNew Forest (district)
Managed bySouth West Trains
Platforms4
Other information
Station codeBCU
History
Original companySouthampton and Dorchester Railway
Pre-groupingLondon and South Western Railway
Post-groupingSouthern Railway
Key dates
1 June 1847Opened

Brockenhurst railway station is a railway station serving the village of Brockenhurst in Hampshire, England. It is located on the South Western Main Line from London Waterloo to Weymouth. It is also the junction of the Lymington Branch Line with the main line.

The station was winner of the 2009 National Rail Award for best medium-sized station, with the judges stating they "were impressed by the standard of customer service, station presentation, initiative and innovation they observed, all of which ensure that the station provides a smooth, efficient and pleasant departure and arrival point for the travelling customer".[1][2] The station was also winner of a National Cycling Award, for a system which informs passengers of where cycle spaces are on approaching trains, allowing them to speed boarding, and partnerships with local bike-hire firms.[3]

History

The station as it was in 1963 with Platforms 1 and 2 on the left, and platforms 3 and 4 on the right

Brockenhurst station was opened on 1 June 1847 as part of the Southampton and Dorchester Railway (nicknamed the Castleman's Corkscrew) with services running to Southampton in one direction and Dorchester via Ringwood and Wimborne Minster the other.[4] The following year, the railway was amalgamated with the London and South Western Railway. On 12 July 1858 the Lymington Branch Line opened, beginning shuttle services between the station and Lymington, turning the station into a junction station and leading to its name being changed between 1876 and 1888 to Brockenhurst Junction to emphasise this.[5]

On 5 March 1858 the new Sway line, offering a direct line from Brockenhurst down to Bournemouth and Poole and bypassing the longer 'Corkscrew', opened to traffic. This massively increased the number of trains passing through the station for both routes and enhancing its status as an interchange, especially after the downgrading of the 'corkscrew' in 1893 to that of a branch line.[6] Brockenhurst station, along with the L&SWR was taken over by Southern Railway in 1923 and under their ownership, the station was extended in 1936 to include two new platforms.[7] The track through the station was electrified in 1967 and the station saw minor changes as part of British Rail's Network South East region.

In 2014 the station received £4.6 million of government grants as part of the Access for All initiative to replace the footbridge at Brockenhurst with a new bridge complete with lift shafts.[8] Step-free access to platforms 1 and 2 was previously by a rotating turntable bridge across the tracks while step-free access to platforms 3 and 4 was across the track bed itself.[9]

Station layout

The station consists of four platforms, arranged in two island platforms, with a ticket office housed in the main building nearest Platform 1 on the side closest to the village. The platforms, ticket office and car park are all connected by footbridge, with the ticket office at one end and the car park and bicycle hire point at the other end of the walkway.[10]

  • Platform 1 - Up loop platform used by stopping services to Poole where it is overtaken by the express services from Weymouth and CrossCountry services from Bournemouth on platform 2. This is occasionally used by Lymington services.
  • Platform 2 - for through services towards Southampton, Winchester and London Waterloo.
  • Platform 3 - for through services towards Bournemouth, Poole and Weymouth.
  • Platform 4 - Down loop platform for Lymington services, this can also be used by other down services, but this is rare.

The station has an unusual luggage traverser bridge, which can be moved out over the track to give access to platform 1 from the ticket hall. It is mainly used for disabled passengers and at peak times for the large flow of students to Brockenhurst College.

A signal box and level crossing is located at the northern end of the station.

Services

Rail

South West Trains Desiro EMU 444010 departs with a service to London Waterloo.

The station is primarily served by South West Trains, who operate fast and semi-fast trains from Waterloo to Weymouth, stopping services from Waterloo to Poole, and local stopping services to Lymington. In addition, CrossCountry operate services from Bournemouth to Manchester.

Some peak time South West Trains services by-pass the station without stopping.

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Southampton Central   CrossCountry
Bournemouth-Manchester 		  Bournemouth
  South West Trains
Waterloo-Weymouth express services 		 
Southampton Central   South West Trains
Waterloo-Weymouth semi-fast services 		  New Milton
Ashurst New Forest
or Beaulieu Road 		  South West Trains
London-Poole 		  Sway
Terminus   South West Trains
Lymington Branch Line 		  Lymington Town
  Historical railways  
Terminus   London and South Western Railway
Lymington Branch Line 		  Shirley Holms Halt
Terminus   British Rail
Southern Region
Southampton and Dorchester Railway 		  Holmsley

Bus

Local bus routes serve the bus stop located outside the ticket hall. There is a year-round Bluestar 6 service to Lymington in the south, Lyndhurst to the north and onward connections to Totton and Southampton.[11] In the summer time, this is supplemented by the seasonal New Forest Tour green and blue routes to Lymington, Beaulieu, Hythe and Lyndhurst and Burley, New Milton, Barton on Sea, Milford on Sea and Lymington.[12][13][14]

References

  1. ^ "Tracking Our Performance - Achievement and Awards". Stagecoach. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  2. ^ "South West Trains wins top station honour at National Rail Awards". South West Trains. 2009-09-18. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  3. ^ "South West Trains rides away with two national cycling awards". South West Trains. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  4. ^ Holland, Julian (2011). The Lost Lines Of Britain. Basingstoke: AA. pp. 48–51. ISBN 978-0-7495-6631-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  5. ^ Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (1992). Branch Lines Around Wimborne. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 0 906520 97 5.
  6. ^ Holland 2011, p. 50
  7. ^ Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (1998). South Coast Railways: Southampton to Bournemouth (second ed.). Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 0 906520 42 8.
  8. ^ "New improved passenger facilities at Brockenhurst station officially opened". South West Trains. South West Trains. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  9. ^ "£100 million pounds for accessible stations". rail.co.uk. rail.co.uk. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  10. ^ "Brockenhurst (BCU)". National Rail Enquiries. National Rail Enquiries. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  11. ^ "Bluestar 6". Bluestar. Go South Coast. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  12. ^ "Green Route". New Forest Tour. Go South Coast. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  13. ^ "Blue Route". New Forest Tour. Go South Coast. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  14. ^ "Travel Map". New Forest National Park. New Forest National Park Authority. Retrieved 28 August 2014.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brockenhurst railway station.
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