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General information | |||||
Location | Smethwick, Sandwell England | ||||
Coordinates | 52°29′46″N 1°58′16″W / 52.496°N 1.971°W | ||||
Grid reference | SP021887 | ||||
Managed by | West Midlands Railway | ||||
Transit authority | Transport for West Midlands | ||||
Platforms | 2 | ||||
Other information | |||||
Station code | SMR | ||||
Fare zone | 2 | ||||
Classification | DfT category E | ||||
History | |||||
Opened | 1852 | ||||
Original company | Birmingham, Wolverhampton & Stour Valley Railway | ||||
Passengers | |||||
2018/19 | ![]() | ||||
2019/20 | ![]() | ||||
2020/21 | ![]() | ||||
2021/22 | ![]() | ||||
2022/23 | ![]() | ||||
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Smethwick Rolfe Street is one of two railway stations serving the town of Smethwick, West Midlands, England. It is situated on the Rugby–Birmingham–Stafford line 3¼ miles (5 km) north west of Birmingham New Street. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by West Midlands Railway. The other station serving Smethwick is Smethwick Galton Bridge, which is the next stop up the line.
History
[edit]The station was opened in July 1852[1] by the Birmingham, Wolverhampton, & Stour Valley Railway Company (later absorbed by London and North Western Railway) as part of the Stour Valley Line from Birmingham to Wolverhampton. It was rebuilt in its present form in 1890[1] when two level crossings in the centre of Smethwick were abolished. Drawings of the rebuilt station can be found on the Smethwick Rolfe Street Station gallery page of the Network Rail Corporate Archive.
In 1985, pupils from Parkside Junior School created a mural for Platform 1 under the direction of artist Jeremy Waygood as part of the Birmingham to Wolverhampton Corridor Initiative.[2]
In June 2017, this mural was removed and replaced by one created by students from Sandwell College under the direction of artist Steve Field. In addition, an exhibition room was created by another set of students from the college to display the history of the station and of the murals.[3] In October 2017 this work was recognised in the ACoRP Community Rail Awards with a 1st place for Involving Diverse Groups and a 3rd place for Community Art Schemes - Permanent.[4]
Work began in January 2022 to install lifts to allow step-free access to the station. The project is expected to be completed by July.[5]
Services
[edit]The station is served by two trains per hour in each direction Mondays to Saturdays, by the local service between Wolverhampton, Birmingham New Street and Walsall via Aston. On Sundays, the service runs hourly.[6][7][8] These are operated by Class 350 and Class 730 EMUs.
Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, London Northwestern Railway and Transport for Wales Rail trains run through the station but do not stop. London Northwestern Railway does call at the nearby station of Smethwick Galton Bridge en route to Liverpool Lime Street.[9]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fb/Smethwick_Rolfe_Street_Station.jpg/170px-Smethwick_Rolfe_Street_Station.jpg)
Preceding station | ![]() |
Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Birmingham New Street | West Midlands Railway Walsall/Birmingham - Wolverhampton |
Smethwick Galton Bridge | ||
Historical railways | ||||
Soho Line open, station closed |
London and North Western Railway & Great Western Railway | Smethwick West Line open, station closed |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Clinker, C (1958). Railways of the West Midlands a chronology 1808-1954. London: Stephenson Locomotive Society. pp. 21, 46.
- ^ "Young artists improve view". Smethwick Telephone. 25 July 1985.
- ^ "Latest news". www.londonmidland.com. Archived from the original on 31 May 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
- ^ "Community Rail Awards 2017 | ACoRP". acorp.uk.com. Archived from the original on 16 October 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
- ^ White, Chloe (4 January 2022). "West Midlands railway station to benefit from step-free access". RailAdvent. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
- ^ "Train Timetables and Schedules | Smethwick Rolfe Street". West Midlands Railway.
- ^ "Train times | 10 December until 1 June 2024 | Rugeley to Birmingham New Street via Walsall". West Midlands Railway.
- ^ "Train times | 10 December 2023 until 1 June 2024 | Wolverhampton to Birmingham via Smethwick". West Midlands Railway.
- ^ "Timetable | Birmingham to Liverpool | 21 May 2023 to 9 December 2023". London Northwestern Railway. 21 May 2023. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023.
External links
[edit]- Train times and station information for Smethwick Rolfe Street railway station from National Rail
- Rail Around Birmingham and the West Midlands: Smethwick Rolfe Street station