Portishead railway station was opened by the Bristol and Portishead Pier and Railway in 1867; it was approximately from the town of Portishead,

North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary district in Somerset, South West England. Whilst its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset, it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the ...

, England. After the opening of the Pier in 1870, the line was extended with an additional railway station opened by the pier. The Pier station closed first; and the original Portishead station closed in 1954, with a new Portishead station opened nearer the town. The 1954 station closed in 1964 when passenger services were withdrawn from the line. A resited new station is due to be opened to passenger traffic as part of MetroWest, a scheme to increase rail services in the

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

area. This will be built about east of the town centre.

History

Portishead railway station was opened by the Bristol and Portishead Pier and Railway on 18 April 1867; it was approximately beyond the village of Portishead and handled both passengers and goods.Butt (1995), p.189.Crowhurst, Ken (2001).RCH (1904), p.80. The Pier was opened in 1870 and line was extended to the pier, with an additional railway station opened by the pier. By 1904, this was listed as a goods-only station, known as "Portishead Dock". In the 1920s, the coal-fired

Portishead power station Portishead Power Station refers to a series of two coal and oil-fired power stations which operated in the dock area of Portishead in Somerset, South West England, between 1929 and 1982. The original coal-fired Portishead power station was bu ...

was built adjacent to Portishead railway station; and the power station was extended in 1948 to increase its capacity. In 1949, building work also started on an additional power station, Portishead B power station. This led to the closure and demolition of the original Portishead railway station. It was replaced on the same day, 4 January 1954, by a new station nearer the centre of Portishead and Bristol to the designs of the Western Region Assistant Architect, Ian J. Campbell. The 1954 station was closed by the " Beeching Axe" on 7 September 1964, when passenger services ceased on the line. Freight services continued on the line until the early 1980s.

Future

In April 2019 the Department for Transport committed £31.9m to cover the shortfall in finance for MetroWest Phase 1, meaning that funding for the new station and reopened line has now been secured. In November 2019 North Somerset Council submitted a Development Consent Order (DCO) application to the Planning Inspectorate, which seeks powers to build and operate the disused section of railway from Portishead to Pill, gain environmental consent to undertake works to the existing freight railway through the Avon Gorge and obtain powers for the compulsory acquisition of land. The Secretary of State for Transport is expected to make a decision within 18 months. Subject to final business case approval, construction work is expected to start on the line in December 2021 and then take around two years to complete.

References

Notes

Sources

* * Crowhurst, Ken (2001). ''Images of England: Portishead''. Stroud: Tempus Publishing Limited. . * {{Proposed rail infrastructure projects in the United Kingdom Disused railway stations in Somerset Former Great Western Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1867 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1954 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1954 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1964 Beeching closures in England Proposed railway stations in England Portishead, Somerset Ian Campbell railway stations