Cheltenham Spa railway station

Cheltenham Spa
Cheltenham Spa station
General information
Location	Cheltenham
Managed by	First Great Western
Platforms	2
Other information
Station code	CNM

Cheltenham Spa railway station is a railway station serving the town of Cheltenham, England, located on the main Bristol-Birmingham line. The station is managed by First Great Western and is about one mile from the town centre.

History

The first railway to Cheltenham was the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway (C&GWUR), part of the broad gauge system, which was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1836, and opened between Cheltenham and Gloucester in 1840. In the same year the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway (B&GR) opened its line between Cheltenham and Bromsgrove, from whence trains ran on mixed gauge tracks to Gloucester. Both railways had virtually their own station in the town, although the principal one - with the title Cheltenham Spa (Lansdown), named from the principal road in the area - is the single one remaining, although without its secondary title.

The C&GWUR was taken over by the Great Western Railway in 1844, and the B&GR by the Midland Railway in 1846. Within the town there were three other passenger railway stations: Malvern Road, St James's and Cheltenham South and Leckhampton; there was also the Racecourse Platform, only open on Race Days.

Interestingly, Cheltenham Spa Malvern Road West Signal Box, and its "east" partner, possessed the longest namesigns on the GWR.

Services

Cheltenham Spa station is served on Mondays to Fridays by approximately 8 trains every hour, including 3 trains an hour to or from Gloucester.

First Great Western operate an hourly Cheltenham-Swindon with two-hourly extensions to London Paddington. These services operate on the Golden Valley Line via Stonehouse, Stroud and Kemble. First Great Western also operate local hourly Westbury-Cheltenham services, some of which are extended to and from Great Malvern.

CrossCountry serve the town with services to Cardiff, Bristol, Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance to the south, and Birmingham, Nottingham, Leeds, York, Edinburgh, Manchester and Glasgow among other destinations to the north. There are also occasional services between Birmingham and Gloucester provided by London Midland.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Gloucester		Arriva Trains Wales Maesteg - Cardiff - Cheltenham		Terminus
Gloucester		CrossCountry Cardiff Central to Nottingham Line		Birmingham New Street
Bristol Parkway or Gloucester		CrossCountry Cross-Country Route
Gloucester		First Great Western Cheltenham - London/Swindon		Terminus
Gloucester		First Great Western Great Malvern - Westbury		Ashchurch for Tewkesbury
Gloucester		London Midland Birmingham - Gloucester (Limited service)		Ashchurch for Tewkesbury
	Disused railways
Churchdown Station closed		Birmingham and Gloucester Railway Midland Railway		Ashchurch
Gloucester		Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway Great Western Railway		Cheltenham (Malvern Road) Line and station closed
Leckhampton Line and station closed		Midland and South Western Junction Railway Great Western Railway		Terminus

Gloucestershire Parkway railway station

Main article: Gloucestershire Parkway railway station

Gloucestershire County Council proposed a new station called Gloucestershire Parkway railway station be built. Local fears were that this would severely impact services to Cheltenham Spa; however, the project is currently shelved.

External links

• Train times and station information for Cheltenham Spa railway station from National Rail