Weymouth railway station

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Weymouth
Location
Place	Weymouth
Local authority	Weymouth and Portland, Dorset
Operations
Station code	WEY
Managed by	South West Trains
Platforms in use	3
Live departures and station information from National Rail
Annual Rail Passenger Usage
2004/05 *	0.588 million
2005/06 *	0.595 million
History
Key dates	Opened 20 January 1857
National Rail - UK railway stations
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
* Annual passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Weymouth from Office of Rail Regulation statistics.
UK Railways Portal

Weymouth railway station is a railway station serving the town of Weymouth, Dorset, England. The station is the terminus of both the South Western Main Line from London Waterloo and the Heart of Wessex Line from Bristol.

It is a relatively modern structure, having been rebuilt in 1986; in its final years, the old Weymouth station was far too big for the modest traffic it was handling.

South West Trains operate half - hourly services to/from London Waterloo via Basingstoke, Southampton Central, Bournemouth and Poole. Services were operated by Wessex Electrics electric multiple units, until early 2007. These trains had been introduced when electrification was extended to Weymouth in 1988. The route is now almost exclusively operated by Class 444 Express Desiro units; although there are occasional services operated by the Class 450 Suburban Desiro units. Of the two trains per hour, one calls at many stations all the way to Southampton to pick up stations served by the former Wareham - Brockenhurst and Poole - Waterloo services. The other service calls at few stations to Southampton, and then fast from Winchester to London Waterloo.

First Great Western operate services to/from Bristol via Bath Spa, Westbury and Yeovil. Some services originate from Westbury, with passengers having to change to reach Bristol. Many Bristol services now continue on to Newport and Cardiff, and the 1111 service operates to Bristol Temple Meads and on to Gloucester. Services are operated by Class 150 or Class 153 diesel multiple units. For the past few years, on summer Saturdays, Class 31 locomotives and Mk.2 coaching stock have been hired from FM Rail to cater for extra passengers and holiday makers.

The station is now known simply as "Weymouth" in all public material, though its correct name is still considered to be "Weymouth Town", in order distinguish it from the other station at Weymouth Quay.

Weymouth Quay railway station is the other terminus in the town, though it currently receives no regular scheduled service. Its passenger station was used solely for trains connecting with cross-channel ferries, which have not run since 1987, though the line remains part of the network and the station, in theory, still open. Its use has been suggested as part of the transport infrastructure for the 2012 Olympic sailing events to take place on the Isle of Portland, though since it is accessed via the Weymouth Harbour Branch, which runs along public streets, this poses difficulties. Previously, the branch saw both freight and passenger traffic, most recently fuel-oil trains.

[edit] External links

• Train times and station information for Weymouth railway station from National Rail

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Dorchester South		South West Trains London-Weymouth express services		Terminus
Upwey		South West Trains London-Weymouth semi-fast services		Terminus
Upwey		First Great Western Bristol-Weymouth		Terminus
Junction (Reversal Needed)		Weymouth Harbour Tramway Weymouth-Weymouth Quay		Weymouth Quay

This station offers access to the South West Coast Path
Distance to path	¼ mile (500 metres)
Next station anticlockwise	Swanage 48 miles (77 km)
Next station clockwise	Exmouth 76 miles (122 km)