Ruabon railway station

Ruabon railway station is a combined rail and bus interchange serving Ruabon in Wrexham, Wales. It is the second busiest station in Wrexham in terms of passenger journeys, after the mainline station, Wrexham General. It is on the Shrewsbury to Chester Line, which is part of the former Great Western Railway mainline route from London Paddington to Birkenhead Woodside which lasted until 1967.

Ruabon
Welsh: Rhiwabon
The station building
Location
PlaceRuabon
Local authorityWrexham
Coordinates52.987176°N 3.043363°W / 52.987176; -3.043363
Grid referenceSJ303438
Operations
Station codeRUA
Managed byTransport for Wales
Number of platforms2
DfT categoryF1
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15 99,782
2015/16 92,986
2016/17 90,964
2017/18 95,670
2018/19 102,628
History
Key datesOpened 4 November 1846 (4 November 1846)
National Rail – UK railway stations
  • Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Ruabon from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

History

Ruabon station was originally larger than at present, with an extensive marshalling yard with a turntable and goods depot accompanying it, and was the terminus of the Ruabon to Barmouth line which ran via Llangollen, Corwen and Dolgellau.[1] This branch line was a victim of the Beeching cuts in the 1960s, closing to passengers in 1965 and completely three years later.[2] The bay platform serving this route can still be seen at the station, whilst the old goods yard has been redeveloped as a housing estate.

A fenced-off portion of the passenger footbridge leads to the disused platform

The original station building was Italianate in style and was designed by the architect Thomas Penson and opened on 4 November 1846.[3] However, this was replaced by the current neo-Tudor style stone buildings,[4] designed by Henry Robertson, in 1860. In 1870, refreshment rooms were added between the platforms serving Chester and Barmouth.[3]

Following further cuts in the national railway service, Ruabon station became an unstaffed halt in 1974. Only parts of both main platforms are now in use.

In 2009, Ruabon station was refurbished at a cost of £70,000.[5] New shelters, lighting and passenger information system screens were provided as part of the Welsh Assembly-funded project.

Facilities

As noted, the station is unmanned and has no ticket provision - all tickets must be bought prior to travel or on the train. The main buildings on platform 2 are privately occupied. Train running information is offered via digital displays, automatic announcements, timetable posters and customer help points on each platform. Step-free access is only provided on platform 2, as platform 1 can only be reached via a footbridge with stairs.[6]

Services

Currently, trains run on two routes operated by Transport for Wales:

- Usually continues to Chester and Holyhead

- Usually continues to either Birmingham International or Cardiff Central via Hereford (two-hourly to each)

A two-hourly service operates on Sundays to Chester and Birmingham International, with limited additional services to Cardiff and Holyhead.[7]

Until January 2011 the Wrexham, Shropshire and Marylebone Railway provided regular daily services between Wrexham and London. This service ceased due to a continuing loss being made by the company.

Preceding station National Rail Following station
Chirk   Transport for Wales
Shrewsbury to Wrexham General Line		   Wrexham General
  Historical railways  
Rhosymedre Halt   Great Western Railway
Shrewsbury to Chester Line		   Wynnville Halt
Acrefair   Great Western Railway
Ruabon to Barmouth Line		   Terminus

Weekday bus services
  • 6 buses per hour to Cefn Mawr (operated by GHA coaches and Arriva Midland)
    • Of which 2 per hour continue to Chirk and Oswestry (Arriva Midland)
  • 4 buses an hour to Llangollen (Arriva service 5)
  • 1 bus per two hours to Barmouth via Llangollen and Corwen (Lloyds Coaches service T3)
  • 10 buses an hour to Wrexham Bus Station (Arriva, GHA, Lloyds)
  • Along platform 1
  • The station footbridge
  • An Arriva Trains Wales Class 158 waits at the Shrewsbury-bound platform.
  • The view from the footbridge

References
  1. Llangollen Railway - History of the Line Accessed 2014-06-03
  2. Llangollen Railway - History Accessed 2014-06-03
  3. "Ruabon Railway Station" Wrexham History website article 2 October 2016; Retrieved 13 June 2017
  4. Hendry, R. Preston; Hendry, R. Powell (1992). Paddington to the Mersey. Oxford Publishing Company. p. 114. ISBN 9780860934424. OCLC 877729237.
  5. "New shelters arrive at Ruabon Railway Station as part of upgrade" Chester Chronicle news article 2 April 2009; Retrieved 13 June 2017
  6. Ruabon station facilities National Rail Enquiries
  7. GB eNRT December 2018 Edition, Table 75 (Network Rail)

Further reading
  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2010). Ruabon to Barmouth. West Sussex: Middleton Press. figs. 1-5. ISBN 9781906008840. OCLC 651922152.
  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2010). Shrewsbury to Chester. West Sussex: Middleton Press. figs. 55-64. ISBN 9781906008703. OCLC 495274299.
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