Congleton railway station is a mainline station serving the

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's coun ...

town of

Congleton Congleton is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The town is by the River Dane, south of Manchester and north of Stoke on Trent. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 26,482. Topony ...

. It lies on the Stafford-Manchester branch of the

West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

History

Plans for a railway station in

were first announced by the

North Staffordshire Railway The North Staffordshire Railway (NSR) was a British railway company formed in 1845 to promote a number of lines in the Staffordshire Potteries and surrounding areas in Staffordshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire and Shropshire. The company was base ...

on 30 April 1845. Congleton Railway station was to be the terminus of a planned line from Congleton to Colwich via

Burslem Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent. ...

and

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement in Staffordshire and is surroun ...

, this planned line was to be called The Pottery Line. Congleton Station, old photo

The Stafford-Manchester line from Stoke-on-Trent to Congleton was opened on 9 October 1848 by the North Staffordshire Railway, with Congleton station opening on the same day. Congleton railway station was the northern terminus for passenger trains on the Biddulph Valley Line. In 1930 a third platform was added by the Nestle's Anglo Condensed Milk Company due to the importance of milk to economy of Congleton. Congleton railway station was rebuilt in 1966. As part of the rebuild the station buildings were demolished and rebuilt, the level crossing was removed and the signal box was demolished. With the closure of the goods yard Brunswick Wharf in Buglawton on 1 April 1968 sand was brought to

via Congleton railway station. The station has, in the past, been subjected to vandalism. In the past the station was served by trains to London, these services had stopped calling at Congleton by 1996. In early privatisation,

Virgin CrossCountry Virgin CrossCountry was a train operating company in the United Kingdom operating the InterCity CrossCountry passenger franchise from January 1997 until November 2007. Virgin CrossCountry operated some of the longest direct rail services in th ...

served the station Monday to Saturday. In the past Congleton was one of the best-kept stations on the Stoke to Manchester via Macclesfield line, this was thanks to the staff who worked at the station. In the past the station was maintained by Congleton In Bloom.

Accidents and incidents

On 27 December 1864 there was a collision between a

London and North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom. In 1923, it became a constituent of the ...

goods engine and van and a

passenger train at Congleton junction where the Biddulph Valley line joined the Stafford-Manchester line. On 17 February 1899 there was a collision at Congleton railway station.

Facilities

The station has a staffed ticket office which is open during weekday and Saturday mornings with two self-service

ticket machines A ticket machine, also known as a ticket vending machine (TVM), is a vending machine that produces paper or electronic tickets, or recharges a stored-value card or smart card or the user's mobile wallet, typically on a smartphone. For instance ...

available for ticket purchases at other times as well as modern help points on both platforms. There is a waiting room on the southbound platform however this is boarded up and closed to the public. The station has a chargeable

car park A parking lot (American English) or car park ( British English), also known as a car lot, is a cleared area intended for parking vehicles. The term usually refers to an area dedicated only for parking, with a durable or semi-durable surfac ...

and bicycle storage available. Step-free access is available to both the platforms at Congleton. As part of the new Congleton Transport Development Plan

Cheshire East Council Cheshire East Council is the local authority of the Borough of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. It provides a full range of local government ...

has proposed improving the quality of the station buildings and the cycling and parking facilities at Congleton railway station.

Services

Entrance to Congleton Station © Jonathan Kington

Off-peak service in trains per hour is: * 1 tph to via * 1 tph to CrossCountry also operate a number of limited peak-hour services between Manchester Piccadilly, Birmingham New Street and

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English ...

although these services are currently suspended. On Sundays, there is a reduced service of six trains in each direction throughout the day. This was increased from 5 each way in December 2018. The station was due to gain hourly Sunday services as part of the Northern franchise when operated by

Arriva Rail North Arriva Rail North, branded as Northern by Arriva (legal name Arriva Rail North Limited) was a train operating company in Northern England which began operating the Northern franchise on 1 April 2016 and inherited units from the previous operat ...

. These improvements were cancelled when

Northern Trains Northern Trains, branded as Northern, (legally Northern Trains Limited) is a publicly owned train operating company in England. It is owned by DfT OLR Holdings for the Department for Transport (DfT), after the previous operator Arriva Rail ...

took over the Northern franchise. As part of the new Congleton Transport Development Plan

has proposed setting up a park and ride and improving rail services at Congleton railway station.

Best Kept Station

Below is a list of years in which Congleton railway station has won a best kept station award. *Best Kept station Stoke-on-Trent Division 1983 *Best Kept station Stoke-on-Trent Division 1984

Notes

References

External links

North Staffordshire Railway
{{coord, 53.158, N, 2.193, W, type:railwaystation_region:GB, display=title Railway stations in Cheshire Former North Staffordshire Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1848 Railway stations served by CrossCountry Northern franchise railway stations Stations on the West Coast Main Line DfT Category E stations Congleton