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Rail services in the West of England

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"Bristol Metro" redirects here. For the pressure group, see MetroWest (Bristol). For the proposed rapid transit system, see Light rail in Bristol.

Rail services in the West of England refer to passenger rail journeys made in the Bristol commuter area. 17 million passenger rail journeys were made in 2019-20 within the Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bristol/Bath region.[1]

Services in the West of England

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CrossCountry (XC)

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  • Bristol Temple Meads - Manchester Piccadilly (Extensions to Paignton)
  • Plymouth - Edinburgh Waverley (Extensions to Glasgow and Aberdeen)

Great Western Railway (GWR)

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  • South West/Bristol Temple Meads - London Paddington (via Bath Spa)
  • Swansea/Cardiff - London Paddington (via Bristol Parkway)
  • Bristol Parkway - Weston-super-Mare
  • Great Malvern/Gloucester - Westbury/Weymouth
  • Cardiff Central - Portsmouth Harbour
  • Cardiff Central - Taunton
  • Bristol Temple Meads - Avonmouth/Severn Beach

South Western Railway (SWR)

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  • Yeovil Junction/Frome - Salisbury/London Waterloo

Main destinations

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There is usually a direct weekday service from Bristol Parkway & Bristol Temple Meads to these destinations:

Destination Time from
Bristol
Temple Meads 		Time from
Bristol
Parkway 		Operator(s)
Avonmouth 23 – 35 minutes N/A GWR
Bath Spa 11 – 19 minutes 28 – 47 minutes GWR
Bristol Parkway 8 – 21 minutes N/A CrossCountry / GWR
Bristol Temple Meads N/A 9 – 20 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Birmingham New Street 83 – 122 minutes 71 – 93 minutes CrossCountry
Cardiff Central 47 – 63 minutes 35 – 66 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Cheltenham Spa 38 – 68 minutes 29 – 57 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Edinburgh Waverley 393 – 399 minutes CrossCountry
Exeter St Davids 56 – 112 minutes 69–109 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Glasgow Central 461 – 471 minutes 456–464 minutes CrossCountry
Gloucester 38 – 57 minutes 26–44 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Leeds 210 – 217 minutes 202–215 minutes CrossCountry
London Paddington 97 – 152 minutes 83–106 minutes GWR
Manchester Piccadilly 179 – 180 minutes 168–169 minutes CrossCountry
Newcastle 299 – 303 minutes 289 - 293 minutes CrossCountry
Newport 30 – 47 minutes 21–23 minutes GWR
Paignton 97 – 145 minutes 118 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Penzance 236 – 292 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Plymouth 114 – 167 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Portsmouth Harbour 146 – 164 minutes N/A GWR
Reading 68 – 123 minutes 59 minutes GWR
Salisbury 68 – 86 minutes GWR
Severn Beach 33 – 38 minutes N/A GWR
Sheffield 167 – 172 minutes 159 minutes CrossCountry
Southampton Central 99 – 116 minutes GWR
Swansea 80 - 85 minutes GWR
Swindon 35 – 50 minutes 28 minutes GWR
Taunton 30 – 75 minutes 42–49 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Westbury 37 – 50 minutes 68–75 minutes GWR
Weston-super-Mare 17 – 39 minutes 47 minutes CrossCountry / GWR
Weymouth 141 – 148 minutes 167–170 minutes GWR
Worcester Shrub Hill 90 – 102 minutes 82–84 minutes GWR
York 240 – 243 minutes CrossCountry

Stations

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Current stations

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Station Line(s) Platforms Usage 08/09 [2] Usage 09/10 [3] Usage 10/11 [4] Usage 11/12 [5] Usage 12/13 [6] Usage 13/14 [7] Usage 14/15 [8] Usage 15/16 [9] Usage 16/17 [10] Usage 17/18 [11] Image
Avonmouth Severn Beach 2 Increase 61,948 Increase 68,448 Increase 83,674 Increase 88,642 Increase 97,880 Increase 111,440 Increase 119,924 Increase 129,860 Avonmouth railway station
Bedminster Bristol to Exeter 3 Increase 58,690 Increase 69,898 Increase 70,006 Increase 76,420 Increase 80,262 Increase 83,242 Increase 87,542 Increase 92,868 Bedminster railway station
Bristol Parkway Cross Country
South Wales 		4 Increase 2,084,200 Decrease 2,041,548 Increase 2,114,876 Increase 2,262,000 Decrease 2,255,298 Decrease 2,215,810 Increase 2,340,506 Increase 2,511,016 Bristol Parkway railway station
Bristol Temple Meads Bristol to Exeter
Cross Country
Great Western
Heart of Wessex
Severn Beach
Wessex 		13 Increase 7,829,628 Increase 7,875,686 Increase 8,409,340 Increase 8,884,626 Increase 9,099,368 Increase 9,522,840 Increase 10,099,526 Increase 10,711,464 Bristol Temple Meads railway station
Clifton Down Severn Beach 2 Increase 281,876 Increase 361,828 Increase 433,088 Increase 470,980 Increase 522,010 Increase 573,770 Increase 619,766 Increase 672,386 Clifton Down railway station
Filton Abbey Wood Cross Country 4 Increase 536,958 Increase 598,032 Increase 679,270 Increase 771,344 Increase 852,250 Increase 988,734 Increase 1,007,780 Increase 1,021,550 Filton Abbey Wood railway station
Keynsham Great Western
Heart of Wessex
Wessex 		2 249,842 Increase 278,850 Increase 306,276 Increase 329,274 Increase 358,186 Increase 412,602 Increase 424,032 Keynsham railway station
Lawrence Hill Cross Country
Severn Beach 		2 Increase 67,338 Increase 74,876 Increase 93,600 Increase 102,964 Increase 124,878 Increase 136,316 Increase 150,774 Increase 157,912 Lawrence Hill railway station
Montpelier Severn Beach Line 1 Increase 84,834 Increase 96,114 Increase Increase 122,212 Increase 126,316 Decrease 121,294 Increase 130,560 Decrease 122,146 Montpelier railway station
Nailsea & Backwell Bristol to Exeter 2 450,510 Increase 476,618
Parson Street Bristol to Exeter 2 Increase 46,670 Increase 57,374 Increase 68,840 Increase 77,720 Increase 87,932 Increase 102,654 Increase 114,458 Increase 126,636 Parson Street railway station
Patchway South Wales Main Line 2 Increase 45,280 Increase 49,812 Increase 59,474 Increase 67,422 Increase 82,198 Increase 90,404 Increase 92,540 Increase 98,296 Patchway railway station
Pilning South Wales Main Line 1 Increase 130 Increase 166 Increase 178 Decrease 146 Decrease 130 Decrease 88 Decrease 68 Decrease 46 Pilning railway station
Portway Park & Ride Severn Beach Line 1 Portway Park & Ride railway station
Redland Severn Beach Line 1 Increase 86,234 Increase 86,426 Increase 92,966 Increase 96,904 Decrease 94,984 Decrease 93,176 Increase 105,610 Decrease 99,732 Redland railway station
Sea Mills Severn Beach Line 1 Increase 36,358 Increase 41,680 Increase 49,082 Increase 51,998 Increase 58,310 Decrease 58,106 Increase 64,512 Decrease 61,696 Sea Mills railway station
Severn Beach Severn Beach Line 1 Increase 74,712 Increase 88,504 Increase Increase 141,712 Increase 167,078 Increase 195,824 Increase 225,658 Increase 260,784 Severn Beach railway station
Shirehampton Severn Beach Line 1 Increase 34,292 Increase 35,758 Increase 42,566 Increase 43,480 Increase 50,564 Increase 51,542 Increase 52,480 Increase 56,756 Shirehampton railway station
St Andrews Road Severn Beach Line 1 Increase 3,582 Increase 3,942 Increase 4,328 Increase 6,072 Increase 9,910 Increase 13,376 Decrease 11,184 Decrease 7,374 St Andrews Road railway station
Stapleton Road Cross Country Route
Severn Beach Line 		2 Increase 103,576 Increase 111,532 129,344 Increase 140,390 Increase 157,294 Increase 178,114 Increase 179,872 Stapleton Road railway station
Yate Cross Country Route 2 294,934 Increase 307,148 Increase 328,832 Increase 354,004 Increase 368,910 Yate railway station

Heritage stations

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This is a list of stations currently open on heritage lines.

Station Line Platforms Year Closed Year Reopened Image
Avon Riverside Avon Valley Railway 1 N/A 2004
Bitton Avon Valley Railway 2 1966 1972
Oldland Common Avon Valley Railway 1 1966 1991

Proposed stations

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This is a list of proposed railway stations in the West of England. (This list includes some former stations)

Station Line Platforms Year closed Current status Image
Ashley Down Cross Country Route 2 1964 (as Ashley Hill) Opened on the 28th September 2024
Ashton Gate Portishead Railway 1 1964/1984 Proposed to reopen
Charfield Cross Country 2 1965 Proposed to reopen
Chittening Platform Henbury Loop 1 1964 Proposed to reopen
Long Ashton Bristol to Exeter 2 1941 Proposed to reopen
Henbury Henbury Loop 2 1965 Proposed to reopen
Horfield Cross Country Route 2 1964 Proposed to reopen
North Filton Henbury Loop 1 1986 Planning application
Pill Portishead Railway 2 1964 Proposed to reopen
Portishead Portishead Railway 2 1964 Proposed to reopen
Saltford Great Western Main Line 2 1970 Proposed to reopen
St Anne's Park Great Western Main Line 2 1970 Proposed to reopen

Former stations

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This is a list of former stations in the West of England area.

Station Line Platforms Year Closed Image
Avonmouth (BPRP) Severn Beach Line
Avonmouth Docks Severn Beach Line
Avonmouth (Royal Edward) Severn Beach Line
Brislington Bristol and North Somerset Railway 1 1963
Charlton Halt Henbury Loop 2 1915
Clifton Bridge Portishead Branch 2 1965
Coalpit Heath South Wales Main Line
Cross Country Route 		2 1961
Cross Hands Halt Severn Beach Line 1 1964
Filton Cross Country Route 1903
Filton Junction Cross Country Route 1996
Fishponds Bristol and Gloucester Railway 2 1966
Hallen Henbury Loop 2 1918
Ham Green Portishead Branch 1 1964
Horfield Cross Country Route 2 1964
Hotwells Bristol Port Railway and Pier 2 1921
Hotwells Halt Bristol Port Railway and Pier 1 1922
Kelston Mangotsfield Branch Line 2 1949
Mangotsfield Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line
Bristol and Gloucester Railway 		6 1966
New Passage Halt Severn Beach Line 1 1964
New Passage Pier Severn Beach Line 1886
Nightingale Valley Halt Portishead Railway 1 1932
Portbury Portishead Branch 1 1962
St Philip's Bristol and Gloucester Railway 1 1967
Staple Hill Bristol and Gloucester Railway 2 1966
Thornbury Thornbury Branch 1 1944
Warmley Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line 2 1966
Wickwar Cross Country 2 1965
Winterbourne Cross Country
South Wales 		2 1963
Whitchurch Halt Bristol and North Somerset Railway 1 1959

Railway lines

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There are six railway lines running through Bristol.

Bristol to Exeter line

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Main article: Bristol to Exeter line

The Bristol to Exeter line runs between Bristol and Exeter via the Nailsea, Weston-super-Mare, Bridgwater and Taunton. It is served by local First Great Western services, and used by Cross-Country and Intercity trains headed towards Plymouth.

Cross-Country Route

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Main article: Cross-Country route

The North-East/South-West route (sometimes simply The Cross-Country Route) is the major British rail route running from South West England or Cardiff via Bristol, Birmingham, Derby and Sheffield to North-East England and Scotland. It includes some of the longest inter-city rail journeys in the UK, e.g. Penzance to Aberdeen. It remains a major freight route, although now largely usurped by the M5, M6 and M1 motorways.

The route shares parts of the Great Western Main Line, Midland Main Line, Sheffield to Hull Line, the East Coast Main Line and the core Cardiff-Bristol-Birmingham-Derby route.

In November 2018 tracks were doubled from Bristol Temple Meads through Lawrence Hill to Filton Abbey Wood stations to increase capacity, back to the original four tracks.[12]

Great Western Main Line

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Main article: Great Western Main Line

The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington station to Temple Meads station in Bristol.

Severn Beach Line

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Main article: Severn Beach Line

The route runs from Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach via Lawrence Hill, Stapleton Road, Montpelier, Redland, Clifton Down, Sea Mills, Shirehampton, Avonmouth, St Andrews Road before reaching terminus at Severn Beach. The journey takes approximately 45 minutes.

Following a successful campaign by FOSBR (Friends of Suburban Bristol Railway), the Severn Beach Line is going to have an increased frequency from December 2007 to March 2010.[13] It is hoped this will pave the way for better services across the conurbation. An additional train will operate on the line meaning services should be at the least every 40 mins.

South Wales Main Line

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Main article: South Wales Main Line

The South Wales Main Line is a branch of the Great Western Main Line. It diverges from the main line at Wootton Bassett near Swindon, first calling at Bristol Parkway, after which the line continues through the Severn Tunnel into South Wales.

Wessex Main Line

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Main article: Wessex Main Line

The Wessex Main Line is the railway line from Bristol Temple Meads to Southampton. Diverging from this route is the Heart of Wessex Line from Westbury to Weymouth.

Proposed light rail or rapid transit

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Main article: Light rail in Bristol

In November 2016, the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership began a consultation process on their Transport Vision Summary Document, outlining potential light rail/tram routes from the city centre to Bristol Airport, the eastern and north west fringes of the city, and a route along the A4 road to Bath.[14] By 2017, this proposal had changed to a mass transit network with potential for underground sections, linking the city centre with the northern and eastern fringes of the city and the airport.

Train operators

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Current train operators

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Operator Years Image Major services
CrossCountry 2007–2019 CrossCountry
Great Western Railway (GWR) 1996–2020 Great Western Railway

Former train operators

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Operator Years Image Services
Post-nationalisation
British Rail 1948–1986 All services
Post-sectorisation
InterCity 1986–1996 InterCity
Regional Railways 1986–1996 Regional Railways All non-InterCity services
Post-privatisation
South West Trains 2004–2017 South West Trains
South Western Railway (SWR) 2017-2021
Virgin CrossCountry 1997–2007 Virgin Trains
Wales & Borders 2001–2003 Wales & Borders
Wales & West 1997–2001 Wales & West
Wessex Trains 2001–2006 Wessex Trains All local and non-express inter-city services.

There have also been a number of other companies pre-nationalisation, including:

MetroWest

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Main article: MetroWest (Bristol)

MetroWest is a current initiative in the West of England area to improve local rail services by reopening disused rail lines and stations and improving existing services. Phase One includes reopening the Portishead railway line to passenger traffic and improving services to the Severn Beach Line and Bath Spa. Phase Two will see the Henbury railway line reopen, along with half-hourly services between Weston-super-Mare and Yate. The phases are due to open in 2019[15] and 2021[16] respectively.

The West of England Local Enterprise Partnership also produced a Key Principles Report in November 2015 discussing future potential transport projects for the West of England region, including new rail transit based options referred to as MetroWest++. The options outlined include reopening the Thornbury Branch Line, a Yate to Bath route, the use of tram train technology, a link to the city centre and a connection to Bristol Airport.[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Regional Rail Usage 2019-20 - ORR Data Portal" (PDF). orr.gov.uk. 25 February 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  2. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  3. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  4. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  5. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  6. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  7. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  8. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  9. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  10. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  11. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal".
  12. ^ "Bristol railway line shut until mid-November for upgrade". BBC News. 27 October 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
  13. ^ "The Lib dem Council Cabinet have amended their budget to provide an extra train on the Severn Beach line from December 2007 -". Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. Retrieved 23 July 2007. Friends of Suburban Bristol Railway
  14. ^ "West of England Joint Transport Study - Transport Vision Summary Document" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  15. ^ "MetroWest: Phase 1".
  16. ^ "MetroWest: Phase 2".
  17. ^ "Issues and Options for Consultation. Key Principles Report" (PDF). West of England Joint Transport Study. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
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