Stockport railway station

Infobox UK station
name = Stockport
code = SPT


manager = Virgin Trains
locale = Stockport
borough = Stockport
start = 15 February 1843
platforms = 6
usage0405 = 1.608
usage0506 = 2.011
usage0607 = 2.237

Stockport railway station (also known as Stockport Edgeley and Edgeleycite book |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor=Andrew Macfarlane |others=Railway Development Society |title=Peaks and Plains by Rail |origdate= |origyear=1989 |origmonth= |url= |format= |accessdate= |accessyear= |accessmonth= |edition= |series= |date= |year= |month= |publisher=Jarrold Colour Publications |location=Norwich |language= |isbn=0-7117-0429-5 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages=19 |chapter=Manchester–Buxton |chapterurl= |quote= ] ) is in Greater Manchester, England, 8 miles south-east of Manchester Piccadilly station on the West Coast Main Line from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston. It was opened on 15 February 1843 by the Manchester and Birmingham Railway, following completion of the large railway viaduct just to its north. After operation by the London & North Western Railway, it became part of the London Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923, who renamed it Stockport Edgeley, to differentiate it from Stockport Tiviot Dale, which closed in 1967. It is high above the valley of the river Mersey in which Stockport lies, and is linked to both central Stockport and Edgeley by a pedestrian underpass.

Current passenger routes

Trains running north-west all serve Manchester Piccadilly, with some continuing to Manchester Oxford Road and beyond to Liverpool or Blackpool.

South-east from Stockport, express services run to Sheffield and onwards to Cleethorpes or to Nottingham, Peterborough, Ely and Norwich with local services running to Hazel Grove and Buxton.

The two southern (West Coast Main Line) routes are via Cheadle Hulme. The first continues via Macclesfield and Stoke-on-Trent to London and Birmingham and the second via Wilmslow and Crewe also with through services to London and Birmingham as well as via Shrewsbury and the Welsh Marches Line to Cardiff and Milford Haven. Many trains to Birmingham continue to destinations in the south of England.

The Mid-Cheshire Line runs westerly to Altrincham, Knutsford, Northwich and Chester.

The line running north-east from Stockport via Guide Bridge railway station to Stalybridge no longer has a regular passenger service, being reduced in the early 1990s from an hourly shuttle service to a once a week, one direction only skeleton service. (See Stockport to Stalybridge Line).

The main concourse is a modern building, opened in 2004, as part of a development including a new platform (platform 0). This platform had been dubbed by many as "The white elephant" because it was hardly ever used and the new track which was installed was rusting, However At the beginning of March 2008 platform 0 rather strangely came into operation mid-timetable. A pedestrian subway leads to the two older island platforms, which include a buffet and newsagent.

Platform use

Platform 0 - Hazel Grove, Buxton, Sheffield, Norwich, Nottingham and Cleethorpes.

Platform 1 - Southbound services to Macclesfield, Crewe, Stoke-on-Trent, Alderley Edge and Reading.

Platform 2 - Southbound platform for services to Chester, Crewe, services to South Wales, services to London and Bristol.

Platform 3 - Predominantly used by fast service which next call at Manchester Piccadilly.

Platform 3a - North facing bay which is used by a small number of services in the northbound Manchester direction and the weekly service to Stalybridge.

Platform 4 - Mainly used by stopping services to Manchester Piccadilly and Deansgate which call at Heaton Chapel and Levenshulme. Also used by trains from Chester which do not call at Heaton Chapel and Levenshulme.

A Parliamentary Act of 1840 stated that as part of the conditions in building Stockport’s railway viaduct any passenger train using the structure is bound by law to stop at Stockport station.cite web|title=Concern over proposed train cuts|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/7129447.stm|accessdate=2008-03-09|publisher=BBC|year=2007-12-05|work=BBC News Website] cite web|title=Register your viaduct vote online for trains to stop|url=http://www.stockportexpress.co.uk/news/s/1041477_register_your_viaduct_vote_online_for_trains_to_stop|accessdate=2008-03-26|publisher=MEN|year=2008-03-26|work=Stockport Express News Website]

References

External links