Northfield railway station

Northfield National Rail
Location
Place Northfield
Local authority Birmingham
Coordinates 52°24′29″N 1°57′50″W / 52.408°N 1.964°W / 52.408; -1.964Coordinates: 52°24′29″N 1°57′50″W / 52.408°N 1.964°W / 52.408; -1.964
Grid reference SP024789
Operations
Station code NFD
Number of platforms 2
DfT category E
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2012/13 Decrease 0.739 million
2013/14 Increase 0.775 million
2014/15 Increase 0.777 million
2015/16 Increase 0.845 million
2016/17 Increase 0.863 million
Passenger Transport Executive
PTE Transport for West Midlands
Zone 4
History
Key dates Opened 1870 (1870)
1978 Rebuilt
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Northfield from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

Northfield railway station serves the Northfield area of Birmingham, England. It is situated on the Cross-City Line. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by West Midlands Trains.

History

The station was opened on 1 September 1870 by the Midland Railway. In 1892, the line through Northfield was quadrupled (though only the inner pair of lines had platform access).[1]

In 1913 it was the subject of an arson attack by suffragettes. The fire was extinguished before serious damage was done.[2] The station was placed under threat of closure in 1963, when the suburban service to Redditch was listed for withdrawal in the Beeching Report and its frequency cut significantly. Following widespread public opposition and a campaign by local MPs, the route was subsequently reprieved in 1965 but for the next thirteen years it only received a limited service (just four return trips per day to & from New Street).

In May 1978, the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive launched the new Cross City line suburban service, which linked the existing New Street to Lichfield route to a revamped service along the former Midland main line through Kings Norton to a newly re-sited terminus at Longbridge. One completely new station was opened at University (Birmingham), two others reopened and the remainder rebuilt & upgraded. Northfield received new slow line platforms as part of the £7.4 million upgrade package.[3] Since then, the station has received a regular interval service from Birmingham and a variety of other improvements (notably the extension of the route at both ends in the 1980s and electrification in 1993).

Services

Northfield is served by trains on the Cross-City Line, which operate every 10 minutes Monday-Saturday daytimes, every 10–20 minutes Monday-Saturday evenings, and every 30 minutes on Sundays.[4] It has two platforms, with a disused island platform in the centre of the four-track lines. The station has a small car park provided free by Transport for West Midlands and a bus stop which is served by the number 19 operated by Diamond Bus. The number 27 bus stops close by, at the entrance to the station car park. The station is located between Station Road and Copse Close. The station is geographically on the outskirts of Northfield, being right on the border with West Heath.

Facilities

The station has a ticket office and Automated Ticket Machines. The station is also equipped with Real-Time Information boards and recorded announcements.

The station and line are on an embankment.

Preceding station National Rail Following station
West Midlands Railway
Cross-City Line

Disabled access

There is step-free access from the car park to the ticket office and to platform 1, for trains towards Birmingham New Street. Platform 4, for trains towards Longbridge, was only accessible via steps and a subway. However, in 2013, lifts were built on both sides of the subway to allow access to both platforms.

References

  1. ↑ Northfield StationWarwickshire Railways; Retrieved 31 May 2016
  2. ↑ Tamworth Herald - Saturday 1 November 1913
  3. ↑ "History of the Cross City Line" Redditch Model Railway Club; Retrieved 31 May 2016
  4. ↑ GB eNRT May 2016 Edition, Table 69 (Network Rail)
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