Stroud railway station

Stroud railway station serves the market town of Stroud in Gloucestershire, England. It is a stop on the Gloucester–Swindon Golden Valley Line and was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It is located 102 miles 13 chains (164.4 km) west of London Paddington.[1]

Stroud
National Rail
General information
LocationStroud, Stroud District
England
Coordinates51°44′42″N 2°13′08″W / 51.745°N 2.219°W / 51.745; -2.219
Grid referenceSO849051
Managed byGreat Western Railway
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeSTD
ClassificationDfT category D
History
Original companyCheltenham and Great Western Union Railway
Pre-groupingGreat Western Railway
Post-groupingGreat Western Railway
Key dates
1845Opened
Passengers
2018/19Increase 0.562 million
2019/20Increase 0.578 million
2020/21Decrease 0.147 million
2021/22Increase 0.447 million
2022/23Increase 0.545 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road
Chalford–Gloucester auto-train at Stroud station in 1962

History

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The station was opened on 12 May 1845 with the opening of the Kemble to Gloucester section of the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway, later part of the Great Western Railway. For a period between 1886 and 1947, when Stroud had two passenger railway stations, it was known as Stroud Great Western, Stroud Russell Street or Stroud Central. Stroud's second station, Stroud Wallbridge, was the terminus of a short branch line from the Midland Railway's Stonehouse and Nailsworth Railway, and freight services were always more important there than passengers.[2]

In 1905, the Great Western Railway inaugurated a motor bus service between Stroud and Painswick, similar to systems in operation at other places such as Penzance and Slough. The services were operated by Mills Daimler vehicles with 22hp petrol engines, capable of carrying 22 passengers. The journey time was around 30 minutes.[3]

Stationmasters

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  • Mr. Taylor, ca. 1854
  • William John Hamilton Notter, 1858[4]–1862
  • John Parkinson, 1862–1866[5] (formerly station master at Cirencester, afterwards station master at Cirencester)
  • Thomas Smith, 1866–1869[6] (formerly station master at Cirencester, afterwards goods agent at Hereford)
  • John Robert Ward, 1869–1876[7]
  • Lawrence Henry Nolan, 1876[8]–1897
  • Richard Roberts, 1897[9]–1909 (formerly station master at Ledbury)
  • George Libby, 1909[10]–1915 (formerly station master at Warwick)
  • W.P. Roberts, 1915[11]–1916 (formerly station master at Ross on Wye, afterwards station master at Gloucester)
  • T. Cobourne, 1916–1919[12] (afterwards station master at Cheltenham)
  • W.H. Reed, 1919–1925
  • A.M. Taylor, 1925[13]–1926 (formerly station master at Melksham)
  • Mr. Mason, ca. 1926
  • C.W. Wilson, ca. 1930–1936
  • George Edwin Howell, 1936–1942[14] (formerly station master at Abergavenny)
  • W.J. Hough, 1943[15]–ca. 1950 (formerly station master at Kington)

Description

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Stroud station has two platforms and is served by Great Western Railway. The station has a ticket office, located on the Swindon-bound platform, whose opening times are in theory 7am to mid-afternoon Monday - Saturday, though in reality somewhat erratic due to staff shortages (November 2021), and it is not currently open on Sundays. There is a ticket machine on the same platform as the ticket office.

Services

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Great Western Railway operates services from London Paddington to Gloucester and Cheltenham using Class 800 trains, and limited local services from Swindon to Gloucester and Cheltenham using the former Class 165 two-carriage sets. Trains call hourly each way Monday to Saturday, with some additional weekday business peak services. On Sundays, there is an hourly service between Swindon and Cheltenham Spa, with 3 services a day onwards to Paddington.[16]

Preceding station   National Rail Following station
Stonehouse   Great Western Railway
London/Swindon - Cheltenham
  Kemble
  Great Western Railway
Cheltenham-Westbury
 
  Historical railways  
Downfield Crossing Halt
Line open, station closed
  Great Western Railway
Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway
  Bowbridge Crossing Halt
Line open, station closed

References

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  1. ^ Padgett, David (June 2018) [1989]. Munsey, Myles (ed.). Railway Track Diagrams 3: Western & Wales (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. map 16D. ISBN 978-1-9996271-0-2.
  2. ^ Mike Oakley (2003). Gloucestershire Railway Stations. Wimborne: Dovecote Press. pp. 128–129. ISBN 1-904349-24-2.
  3. ^ "G.W.R. Motor Service to Painswick". Gloucester Journal. England. 14 January 1905. Retrieved 20 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. ^ "1835-1910 Clerks Vol.3". Great Western Railway: 31. 1835. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  5. ^ "Great Western Railway". Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard. England. 24 March 1866. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ^ "1835-1910 Clerks Vol.3". Great Western Railway: 22. 1835. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  7. ^ "We hear with regret". Stroud Journal. England. 26 August 1876. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ^ "1835-1910 Clerks Vol.5". Great Western Railway: 70. 1835. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  9. ^ "Notes". Stroud News and Gloucestershire Advertiser. England. 24 September 1897. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ^ "Strood. The new G.W.R. Stationmaster". Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard. England. 24 April 1909. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  11. ^ "Gloucester G.W.R. Station-master". Gloucester Citizen. England. 7 January 1926. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  12. ^ "G.W.R. Stationmastership". Cheltenham Chronicle. England. 3 May 1919. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  13. ^ "G.W.R. Staff Changes". Somerset Guardian and Radstock Observer. England. 13 February 1925. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  14. ^ "Strood Enforcement Officer". Gloucester Citizen. England. 28 September 1942. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  15. ^ "New Strood Stationmaster". Gloucester Citizen. England. 30 April 1943. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  16. ^ Table 125 National Rail timetable, May 2016
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