BROMSGROVE’S new railway station will officially open on July 12, with the first train arriving at 6.20am.
The new £17.4million joint project is being undertaken by Worcestershire County Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority (previously known as Centro), and delivered by Network Rail.
The new station will include a manned ticket office, automated ticket machines, passenger waiting room, travel and ticket information, toilets and new car parking areas, featuring 350 standard bays, disabled parking, electric vehicle charging stations and car share bays.
There will also be a taxi rank, bike lockers and two bus stops where, from July 25, the 42 and 43 services will link the station with the town centre and Redditch and the 145 (Rubery-Barnt Green-Bromsgrove-Droitwich) and 318 (Bromsgrove-Belbroughton-Stourbridge) will also stop there.
The station concourse is fully accessible, with stairs and lifts to platforms.
The new station should have the capacity of handling 800,000 passengers per year.
There are no changes to train timetables or train ticket prices at this time.
Car parking will be £3 per day, £11 for weekly tickets, £40 for monthly tickets or £360 for the year.
Parking at the weekend will be £1.50 per day.
Mike Ponsonby, the chairman of Bromsgrove Rail User Group (BRUG) said: “I’m delighted by the excellent news from Network Rail regarding the new station – the first to be opening in 175 years.
“We are all looking forward to using the new faclities.”
Martin Ball, Network Rail’s area director, said the opening of Bromsgrove’s new station would provide a ‘significant boost’ to passengers and the wider area by providing not only better facilities but also a much-improved first impression of the town.
He added this was the first in the series of upgrades, with a more reliable signalling system being installed and the electrification of the line between Bromsgrove and Barnt Green which would provide more frequent and reliable services.
London Midland will be staffing the station.
The operator’s head of regional services Steve Fisher said: “The new station is all about making travel simpler for our passengers.
“It brings a range of extra benefits and with further investment in signalling and electrification, passengers can also look forward to four trains per hour between Bromsgrove and Birmingham.”
Coun Roger Lawrence of the WMCA, said he was delighted, adding: “It will be a superb new facility for the town that will provide so much more than passengers have been used to, enabling increased frequency of trains to and from Bromsgrove and better access to rail services across the region.”
Coun Ken Pollock, Worcestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Economy, Skills and Infrastructure, said improving transport links was one of the authority’s key priorities.
“It also ensures Worcestershire, which boasts the fourth fastest growing economy in the country, is very much ‘Open for Business’.”
A formal ceremony to mark the end of construction works will take place once the station is begins operating.
Mr Ponsonby said he also wanted to remind residents there will be 12 days in late October where the line will be shut and there will be no trains.
This is because of essential work being carried out on the line electrification.
