Charfield railway station
Encyclopedia
Charfield railway station served the village of Charfield
in South Gloucestershire
, England
. The station was on the Bristol and Gloucester Railway
, originally a broad gauge
line overseen by Isambard Kingdom Brunel
, but later taken over by the Midland Railway
and converted to standard gauge
.
Charfield station opened with the Bristol and Gloucester line in 1844 and had substantial Brunel designed buildings on both platforms. There were sidings to the north and the south, and those to the north were converted to loops to allow slow trains to be overtaken by faster trains.
In 1928, the Charfield railway disaster
occurred when a southbound night-time mail train overran signals into a goods train manoeuvring into these sidings and in the collision the mail train was diverted into the path of a northbound freight train. Gas from the mail train ignited and 15 people died in the blaze. Among them were two children whose identity was never established.
Passenger services were withdrawn from Charfield in January 1965 with the removal of stopping services on the Bristol to Gloucester line. Goods services were withdrawn in the September of the same year. The main station building and the station master's house remain in residential use.
Services between Bristol
and Birmingham
pass through Charfield. There have been discussions about the viability of re-opening the station. The costs of re-opening would be shared between Gloucestershire
and South Gloucestershire
Councils since, although the station would be in South Gloucestershire, the nearby town of Wotton-under-Edge
would be a principal beneficiary.
Charfield
Charfield is a village and civil parish in South Gloucestershire, England lying near the Little Avon River and south-west of the town of Wotton-under-Edge....
in South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire is a unitary district in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, in South West England.-History:The district was created in 1996, when the county of Avon was abolished, by the merger of former area of the districts of Kingswood and Northavon...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The station was on the Bristol and Gloucester Railway
Bristol and Gloucester Railway
The Bristol and Gloucester Railway opened in 1844 between Bristol and Gloucester, meeting the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway. It is now part of the main line from the North-East of England through Derby and Birmingham to the South-West.-History:...
, originally a broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
line overseen by Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
, but later taken over by the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and converted to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
.
Charfield station opened with the Bristol and Gloucester line in 1844 and had substantial Brunel designed buildings on both platforms. There were sidings to the north and the south, and those to the north were converted to loops to allow slow trains to be overtaken by faster trains.
In 1928, the Charfield railway disaster
Charfield railway disaster
The Charfield railway disaster was a fatal train crash which occurred on 13 October 1928 in the village of Charfield in the English county of Gloucestershire....
occurred when a southbound night-time mail train overran signals into a goods train manoeuvring into these sidings and in the collision the mail train was diverted into the path of a northbound freight train. Gas from the mail train ignited and 15 people died in the blaze. Among them were two children whose identity was never established.
Passenger services were withdrawn from Charfield in January 1965 with the removal of stopping services on the Bristol to Gloucester line. Goods services were withdrawn in the September of the same year. The main station building and the station master's house remain in residential use.
Services between Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
pass through Charfield. There have been discussions about the viability of re-opening the station. The costs of re-opening would be shared between Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
and South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire is a unitary district in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, in South West England.-History:The district was created in 1996, when the county of Avon was abolished, by the merger of former area of the districts of Kingswood and Northavon...
Councils since, although the station would be in South Gloucestershire, the nearby town of Wotton-under-Edge
Wotton-under-Edge
Wotton-under-Edge is a market town within the Stroud district of Gloucestershire, England. Located near the southern end of the Cotswolds, the Cotswold Way long-distance footpath passes through the town. Standing on the B4058 Wotton is about from the M5 motorway. The nearest railway station is...
would be a principal beneficiary.