Acton Bridge railway station
Acton Bridge | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Location | Borough of Cheshire West and Chester |
| Managed by | London Midland |
| Platforms | 3 |
| Other information | |
| Station code | ACB |
| Key dates | |
| 4 July 1837 | Station opens as Acton |
| 1 July 1870 | Station renamed Acton Bridge |
Acton Bridge railway station is near the village of Acton Bridge, Cheshire, in the northwest of England.
History
The station opened as Acton by the Grand Junction Railway in 1837[1]: 58 but was renamed Acton Bridge in 1870. After merging into the London and North Western Railway, the company became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the Grouping of 1923. The line then passed on to the London Midland Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. In addition to its main line calls, the station also served as the terminus of a local service from Crewe via Sandbach & Northwich until 1942. This used a connecting curve that diverged from the main line just north of Hartford to join the Cheshire Lines Committee line from Altrincham to Chester Northgate near Greenbank (this remains in use, but for freight traffic only).
When sectorisation was introduced, the station was served by Regional Railways until the privatisation of British Railways. Trains of the Intercity Sector passed on the West Coast Main Line.
When British Rail was privatised Acton Bridge was served by Central Trains until 2007 and then served by London Midland.
Services
Acton Bridge is served by London Midland trains running between Birmingham New Street and Liverpool Lime Street, although the service is infrequent. Currently there are around 10 trains a day in each direction, The service frequency can vary from every 30 minutes to every 4 hours depending on the time of day. Extra services call here at peak times, but at all other times there are large gaps in between trains. The majority of trains pass through the station without stopping.[2]
Acton Bridge still does not have any trains on a Sunday which call, but trains still pass through non-stop on the West Coast Main Line towards both Liverpool and Preston. A near normal service operates on most bank holidays however.
Services to London and Scotland do not stop at Acton Bridge but passengers for London can change at Crewe or Runcorn and passengers for Scotland can also change at Crewe.
The station is un-staffed; its gardens are maintained by volunteers from Acton Bridge Women's Institute, and won a Commendation in the 2003 JPD 'Best Kept Station' competition. In March 2015, a PERTIS self-service passenger-operated ticket machine remains in service here, and is located in the booking hall.
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford | London Midland West Coast Main Line |
Runcorn | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Hartford | London and North Western Railway Grand Junction Railway |
Preston Brook | ||
Gallery
-
Acton Bridge in December 2010. -
Acton Bridge in 1961. -
Down express north of Acton Bridge in 1962.
References
- ^ Drake, James (1838). Drake’s Road Book of the Grand Junction Railway (1838). Moorland Reprints. ISBN 0903485257.
- ^ http://www.londonmidland.com/download/64291.5/liverpool-crewe-stafford-wolverhampton-birmingham/
- Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
- Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.
- Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
- Station on navigable O.S. map
External links
- Train times and station information for Acton Bridge railway station from National Rail
