Duddeston railway station

Duddeston railway station is situated in the Duddeston area of Birmingham, England on the Redditch-Birmingham New Street-Lichfield Cross-City Line and the Walsall line. Services on both lines are usually operated by Class 323 electric multiple units, although Class 350 electric multiple units are also commonly used on services to and from Walsall as well as occasional stopping service by Class 170 Diesel Multiple Units.

Duddeston
Duddeston station
Location	Duddeston, Birmingham England
Coordinates	52.488°N 1.871°W
Grid reference	SP088878
Transit authority	Transport for West Midlands
Platforms	2
Other information
Station code	DUD
Fare zone	2
Classification	DfT category E
Key dates
1837	Opened as Vauxhall station
1869	Rebuilt and reopened
1889	renamed Vauxhall and Duddeston
6 May 1974	renamed Duddeston
Passengers
2015/16	0.218 million
2016/17	0.245 million
2017/18	0.268 million
2018/19	0.343 million
2019/20	0.408 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

History

Vauxhall station in 1837

Duddeston opened in 1837 as Vauxhall, the temporary Birmingham terminus of the Grand Junction Railway from Warrington.[1]^:12 When the permanent terminus at Curzon Street opened in 1839, Vauxhall became a goods-only station until it was rebuilt and re-opened in 1869 under the LNWR. It was renamed Vauxhall and Duddeston in 1889. In 1941 it was hit by a bomb during a night raid and was destroyed. It was rebuilt in a temporary fashion, and in the mid-1950s it caught fire and was subsequently rebuilt.

The line through the station, to Walsall via Perry Barr, was electrified in 1966 as part of the London Midland Region's electrification programme.[2] The actual energization of the line from Coventry to Walsall through Perry Barr took place on 15 August 1966.[3]

The station was renamed Duddeston on 6 May 1974.[4]

The entrance and ticket hall are over the tracks, on the Duddeston Mill Road bridge. The former Midland Railway line to Derby is nearby.

Adjacent are railway sheds that were once used for industrial purposes. They are now disused and the entrance has been blocked to prevent trespassing. A shed on the opposite side of the station to the remaining sheds has been demolished and its site is wasteland. The station has two island platforms serving four tracks, but only one island platform remains in use; the other has fallen into disrepair.

The remaining platform features artwork on black metal backgrounds.

Services

Platform artwork and disused sheds

Two services in each direction run every hour:

• On the Cross-City Line, between Four Oaks and Redditch/Longbridge, calling at all stations.[5]
• On the Walsall Line, between Walsall and Birmingham New Street, calling at all stations.[6] A limited number of trains continue past Walsall to Hednesford or Rugeley Trent Valley.

In 2011, London Midland proposed the closure of the ticket office.[7] The request was denied.[8]

References

1. Drake, James (1838). Drake’s Road Book of the Grand Junction Railway (1838). Moorland Reprints. ISBN 0903485257.
2. Nock, O.S. (1966). Britain's New Railway. London: Ian Allan. pp. 147–159.
3. Gillham, J.C. (1988). The Age of the Electric Train - Electric trains in Britain since 1883. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 169.
4. Slater, J.N., ed. (July 1974). "Notes and News: Stations renamed by LMR". Railway Magazine. London: IPC Transport Press Ltd. 120 (879): 363. ISSN 0033-8923.
5. GB eNRT December 2015 Edition, Table 69
6. GB eNRT December 2015 Edition, Table 70
7. "Proposed changes to ticket office opening hours". Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 24 July 2011.
8. "Rail ticket office cuts overruled". 17 September 2012 – via www.bbc.co.uk.

External links

• Train times and station information for Duddeston railway station from National Rail
• Rail Around Birmingham and the West Midlands: Duddeston Station
• Warwickshire Railways page