Banbury Merton Street railway station
This article may be confusing or unclear to readers. (February 2009) |
Banbury Merton Street | |
---|---|
General information | |
Location | Banbury, Cherwell, Oxfordshire England |
Grid reference | SP463405 |
Platforms | 2 |
Other information | |
Status | Disused |
History | |
Original company | Buckinghamshire Railway |
Pre-grouping | London and North Western Railway |
Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway London Midland Region of British Railways |
Key dates | |
1 May 1850 | Opened (Banbury) |
By April 1910 | Renamed (Banbury Merton Street) |
2 January 1961 | Closed to passengers |
6 June 1966 | Closed to goods |
Banbury Merton Street was the first
History
Context
Banbury Merton Street was the northern terminus of the Buckinghamshire Railway which consisted of two lines: one from Bletchley to Banbury and another from Verney Junction to Oxford.[1] Construction of the line had begun in July 1847 but was beset by delays and financial problems; priority was given to the construction of the line to Banbury and this was completed on 30 March 1849, with the section from Claydon to Banbury being built to single track rather than double as had been intended.[2] The Oxford branch was opened on 1 October 1850 as far as Islip, reaching a temporary station at Oxford Road on 2 December.
The line was to be worked from the outset by the
Opening and early years
The opening of the line on 1 May 1850 took place amid great celebrations in Banbury; the first train departed at 6.30am to a crowd of onlookers but with few paying passengers. More passengers joined the later trains at 9.45am and 1.45pm which were bound for Bletchley where they were met by flags and a brass band. The LNWR provided an initial service of four trains per day, with special excursion trains being laid on for major events such as the
Four months after the opening of Banbury Merton Street, the
Although the Buckinghamshire Railway was moderately prosperous in its early years, it began operating at a loss as a result of a decision to re-route freight through Oxford and Didcot, and the depression that affected railway shares in the late 1850s. It was absorbed by the LNWR on 23 February 1878. By this point it was accepted that Banbury Merton Street was unlikely to develop to anything more than the terminus of a rural branch, the territory to the north and west having been secured by the GWR.[6]
Zenith
Banbury Merton Street reached its peak of passenger and goods traffic at the outbreak of the
The 1920s also coincided with a period of growth in Banbury's industries. United Dairies had made Banbury a collecting centre for milk in 1920 and later introduced a system of glass-lined tanks to carry milk in bulk from Banbury General. As a result of its success the company began using Merton Street to transport milk north via the Great Central Railway. In 1921 the Midland Marts Company opened a stockyard alongside the station where cattle could be loaded and unloaded from the railway to be taken on to market.[8]
The growth in Merton Street's freight traffic was however matched by a fall in passenger numbers, with Banbury General becoming the town's principal passenger railhead. By 1938, the
Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Terminus | London and North Western Railway Buckinghamshire Railway |
Farthinghoe Line and station closed | ||
Northampton and Banbury Junction Railway
|
Decline and closure
The post-war period saw a further decline in passenger numbers at Merton Street, however freight receipts remained steady as a result of Midland Mart's continued activities. Around 200 cattle vans were handled during per week, the cattle being sorted on arrival and then dispatched for the sheep fair on Tuesday and the T.T. cattle on Wednesday; Thursday brought further cattle traffic as it was market day in Banbury. These activities continued until the early 1960s when British Railways began to phase them out.[11]
In August 1956 the Banbury - Buckingham section of the line became the subject of a railcar experiment which saw two new halts open on the line at Radclive and Water Stratford. After three years of service, the railcar had not succeeded in stemming the line's losses and a proposal to withdraw passenger services was published in July 1960, with the last passenger train running on 31 December. Whereas trains had run virtually every half-an-hour, the replacement bus services provided by the Midland Red Bus Company ran only twice a day: at 7.25am and 3.31pm.[12]
The line remained open to Buckingham for the purposes of cattle traffic until 1963 with traffic then using the connecting spur to Banbury "General" station until 1966. Track-lifting commenced the following year. The remaining station, Banbury General, was subsequently renamed as simply "Banbury".
Station buildings and track layout
From Farthinghoe the track curved round to the west to run nearly parallel with the Great Western's line from Oxford to Banbury before entering Merton Street (21.75 miles from Bletchley). The wooden main station building was frugally built with a timber island platform covered by a glazed roof supported by steel columns. A timber goods shed was initially provided to be later rebuilt in brick. The locomotive shed had capacity for eight engines and up to 1934 acted as a sub-depot for Bletchley with men rostered there. A cattle dock and sidings were provided to handle the substantial agricultural traffic; sidings also led to the nearby gasworks and the Great Western's Banbury yard.[13] The timber boarding on the station roof had by 1956 reached such a condition that it posed a danger to passengers and it was removed leaving the metal supports and piping which were painted white.[14]
Present day
The main station building was swept away soon after closure, leaving the brick goods shed to be used for some time by
See also
- History of Banbury, Oxfordshire
- Grimsbury
Notes
- ^ Oppitz 2000, p. 53
- ^ Davies & Grant 1984, p. 102
- ^ Simpson 1994, p. 24
- ^ Simpson 1994, p. 28
- ^ Davies & Grant 1984, p. 101
- ^ Simpson 1994, pp. 15–16
- ^ Simpson 1994, pp. 51–56
- ^ Simpson 1994, pp. 56–58
- ^ Mitchell & Smith 2005, Historical Background
- ^ a b Simpson 1994, p. 64
- ^ Simpson 1994, p. 69
- ^ Simpson 1994, pp. 144–162
- ^ Simpson 1994, pp. 39–43, 58
- ^ Simpson 1994, p. 149
- ^ Subterranea Britannica, "Banbury Merton Street", 16 July 2005.
- ^ Trev's space: Banbury Merton Street.[permanent dead link]
References
- Davies, R.; Grant, M.D. (1984). Forgotten Railways: Chilterns and Cotswolds. Newton Abbot, Devon: David St John Thomas. ISBN 0-946537-07-0.
- Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (July 2005). Oxford to Bletchley including Verney Junction to Banbury. Country Railway Routes. Middleton Press. ISBN 1-904474-57-8.
- Oppitz, Leslie (2000). Lost Railways of the Chilterns (Lost Railways Series). Newbury, Berkshire: Countryside Books. ISBN 978-1-85306-643-6.
- Simpson, Bill (1994). Banbury to Verney Junction Branch. Banbury, Oxfordshire: Lamplight Publications. ISBN 978-1-899246-00-7.