Twerton-on-Avon railway station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Twerton on Avon railway station is a former railway station in Bath, Somerset.
Contents |
[edit] Architecture and Opening
Twerton was named after village that it served (west of Bath on the south bank of the Avon) though at the time it was also called Twiverton. The station was built in Gothic style variously called Tudor or Jacobethan. This style is seen from the tunnel mouths west of Twerton to Bath Spa station including many arches and embellishment in the viaduct itself. This is something of a contrast to the Georgian buildings in the centre of Bath north of the river, but is reflected in the Victorian domestic architecture on the southern suburbs. It opened as a railway station in 1841 for Great Western Railway services from Bristol. Four trains a day stopped at Twerton in each direction (out of eleven services each way between Bath and Bristol).
[edit] Subsequent history
Twerton station was operated by the Great Western Railway but was renamed Twerton on Avon in 1899
[edit] Closure
The station was closed in 1917 as an economy measure during the First World War. Passenger traffic into Bath had been reduced by competition from the electric tram line which terminated in Twerton, and the station was not reopened after the end of the war. In 1929 Oldfield Park station was opened nearby (but closer to Bath).
[edit] Current uses
The station building was boarded up as of May 2006 and appears to be abandoned. A roadside cafe operates from its forecourt, but does not occupy any original parts of the station.
[edit] Other stations in Bath
The other stations in Bath were:
- Bath Spa, the Great Western and principal station for trains from London and Bristol, still extant;
- Oldfield Park, a small commuter station in a western suburb, still open with limited services on the Bristol to Weymouth route through Bath, opened in the 1920s;
- Bath Green Park, the Midland and Somerset and Dorset station for trains from Bournemouth and To the north and Bristol, now redeveloped as a supermarket car park and community centre;
- Weston (Bath) railway station, a small station on the Midland line about a mile west of Bath Green Park, closed in 1953 (line closed 1966).
