Castle Cary railway station

Castle Cary railway station is 1 mile (1.6 km) north of the town of Castle Cary and 5 miles (8 km) south of Shepton Mallet in a largely rural area of Somerset, England.

Castle Cary
Location	Castle Cary, South Somerset England
Coordinates	51.0996°N 2.5241°W
Grid reference	ST634335
Managed by	Great Western Railway
Platforms	3
Other information
Station code	CLC
Classification	DfT category D
History
Original company	Great Western Railway
Key dates
1856	Opened
Passengers
2015/16	0.241 million
Interchange	68,294
2016/17	0.244 million
Interchange	75,422
2017/18	0.252 million
Interchange	39,349
2018/19	0.222 million
Interchange	37,593
2019/20	0.278 million
Interchange	32,119
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

The station is on the Reading to Taunton line 115.25 miles (185.48 km) south west of London Paddington and the Bristol to Weymouth line 47.75 miles (77 km) south of Bristol Temple Meads. The two routes share tracks between Westbury and Castle Cary stations and are both operated by Great Western Railway, which also manages the station.

Description

View from the West with the main line in the left foreground, and the Weymouth branch on the right

The station has three platforms. The main station facilities are located on the London bound platform 1, as well as the main station building and ticket office which is staffed until the afternoon. Toilet facilities are available on the concourse too. In front of the building is a car park for 100 cars, a bus stop and a taxi rank. Platform 2 serves west bound services to Taunton, Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance, whilst the shorter platform 3 can only be used by trains on the Bristol to Weymouth line. Immediately to the west of the station the Weymouth line diverges from the London to Penzance Line.[1]

Castle Cary station is the closest station to the site of the Glastonbury Festival, which is held near Pilton about 8 miles away. During the period of the festival additional trains are provided, and special buses are run from the station to the festival site.[1] The station also serves events at the Royal Bath and West Showground, though these are not provided with extra trains. It is also the nearest main line station to the city of Wells.

The station was awarded the Small Station of the Year award in the National Rail Awards 2007.[1]

History

Platform one buildings

Castle Cary station was originally on the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway, a railway that linked the Great Western Railway (GWR) at Chippenham with Weymouth. The line was authorised in 1845, was acquired by the GWR in 1850, reached Castle Cary on 1 September 1856, and was completed throughout in 1857.

For the remainder of the 19th century, the GWR's principal route from London Paddington station to Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance was an indirect one via Bristol Temple Meads (the so-called Great Way Round). However, in 1895 the GWR directors announced that new lines were to be constructed to enable trains to reach Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance in a shorter time. The first stages involved improvements to the Berks and Hants Extension Railway and the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Line which reduced the distance from London to Castle Cary by 14.25 miles (23 km) and provided double track throughout.[2]

This was followed by the construction of the Langport and Castle Cary Railway, which was opened from Castle Cary to the existing Bristol to Exeter line at Cogload Junction in 1906. This transformed Castle Cary from a station on a secondary north to south line, to one on a main east to west route. The route resulting from these improvements and extensions forms the current London to Penzance line.[2]

Services

A Class 165 unit arrives in with a Gloucester to Weymouth service

The service on the London to Penzance line runs approximately every two hours, with 8 trains in each direction, although not all trains run as far as Penzance.[3] The service on the Bristol to Weymouth line runs on a similar frequency, again with 8 trains in each direction.[1]

From 13 December 2015 South West Trains commenced operating a direct service from London Waterloo to Frome and Yeovil Pen Mill via Warminster and Westbury.[4]

References

1. Coward, Andy (30 January 2008). "Castle Cary rocks". Rail. emap active. pp. 50–53.
2. MacDermot, E T (1931). History of the Great Western Railway, volume II 1863-1921. London: Great Western Railway.
3. Table 135 National Rail timetable, May 2016
4. "New South West Trains timetable 13 December 2015 - 14 May 2016" (PDF). South West Trains. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 26 November 2015.