Perranwell railway station

Perranwell Add→{{rail-interchange}}
General information
Location	Cornwall
Coordinates	50.217°N 5.112°W / 50.217; -5.112
Managed by	Great Western Railway
Platforms	1
Other information
Station code	PRW
History
Original company	Cornwall Railway
Pre-grouping	Great Western Railway
Post-grouping	Great Western Railway
Key dates
'Perran' opened	1863
Renamed 'Perranwell'	1864

Perranwell station is on the Maritime Line between Truro and Falmouth Docks in south-west England. It is 304 miles 78 chains (490.8 km) measured from London Paddington (via Box and Plymouth Millbay). The station is managed by, and the services are operated by, Great Western Railway.

History

The old goods shed

The station was opened with the Cornwall Railway Falmouth extension on 24 August 1863. It was called Perran until it was renamed Perranwell on 19 February 1864 to avoid confusion with nearby Penryn.

The Cornwall Railway was amalgamated into the Great Western Railway on 1 July 1889. The Great Western Railway was nationalised into British Railways from 1 January 1948 but was then privatised in the 1990s.

The goods shed still stands in the forecourt despite goods traffic ceasing on 4 January 1965. A dry drinking fountain can be seen on the platform, a reminder of more important days. The signal box here was very distinctive, being sited on girders above the track alongside the goods shed.

The original Carnon viaduct

A short distance on either side of the station, valleys had to be crossed on lofty timber viaducts. To the north, Carnon viaduct crossed 96 feet above the Carnon River valley and the Redruth and Chasewater Railway. In the other direction, trains crossed the smaller Perran Viaduct (56 feet high, 339 feet long).

In the 1980s the station had become run down with only a small aluminium shelter with polycarbonate panels offering protection for passengers. However, during the late 1990s a new brick waiting shelter was built as part of a refurbishment programme at all the "Maritime Line" stations.

Description

There is just one platform with level access from the car park. Trains towards Truro run from left to right; trains towards Falmouth Docks run from right to left.

Services

The new loop at Penryn allowed services on the Maritime Line to be doubled in frequency from 17 May 2009 to give up to a half-hourly service, however when two trains are operating only alternate services call at Perranwell.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Truro		Great Western Railway Maritime Line		Penryn

Further reading

• The Great Western Railway in Mid Cornwall, Alan Bennett, Kingfisher Railway Publications, Southampton 1988. ISBN 0-946184-53-4