Old Hill railway station

Old Hill railway station serves the Old Hill area of Sandwell, in the West Midlands of England. The station is managed by London Midland, who provide the majority of train services; Chiltern Railways also operate a small number of trains. It is situated on the Birmingham-Stourbridge line.

History

The station opened in 1866. Historically, it was part of the Great Western Railway, and was at the junction of the line from Birmingham to Stourbridge Junction with lines to Dudley and via Halesowen to Longbridge; these two lines have long since been closed. The original station buildings have also been removed.

This junction meant that the station was built staggered, with the Birmingham-bound platform offset by a short distance.

A further junction in the Stourbridge direction allowed trains to traverse the Bumble Hole Line, which ran to Dudley. This line closed in 1964.

To the East of the current station there were private railway sidings to serve Palmer Timber's Yard, which have now long been removed.

The timber station buildings originally on this site were badly damaged by fire on 13 September 1967, and this prompted the station to be modernised - with the opening of the new building on the 22 May 1968.

Note: the station bridge is in a different location to that of the original bridge, which was towards the Stourbridge end of the platform.

With rationalising of signalling, the signal box that served Old Hill was demolished in 1973.

Services

The typical Monday-Saturday daytime service is every 30 minutes, between Stourbridge Junction and Birmingham Snow Hill, with alternate trains continuing to Dorridge or Stratford-upon-Avon. On Sundays, trains are hourly.

There are additional services at peak times, including occasional Chiltern Railways services to London Marylebone.

External links

• Train times and station information for Old Hill railway station from National Rail
• Rail Around Birmingham and the West Midlands: Old Hill station