Darlaston Loop

Darlaston Loop
Legend Walsall Pleck Wood Green Darlaston James Bridge Walsall to Wolverhampton Line Darlaston Wednesbury Town Dudley via South Staffordshire Line

Darlaston Loop was a railway which connected the townships of Willenhall and Wednesbury and was so named because it passed through the township of Darlaston.

The line was opened in 1863 to by-pass the recently constructed railway through Walsall. It operated as a single track until a second track was added in 1872, and the only station on the line was located in Darlaston town centre. It closed in 1887 but the line remained open to goods trains for another 80 years or so, when it finally fell victim to the Beeching Axe during the 1960s.

A public footpath has been created along some of the trackbed, including the section which passed through Darlaston Station. A disused railway building on Crescent Road is still standing nearly 50 years after falling into disuse.

Coordinates: 52°33′59″N 2°02′02″W / 52.56644°N 2.03393°W / 52.56644; -2.03393