Kidderminster Station serves a busy market town in the heart of Worcestershire. It is also home to the Severn Valley Railway.
The station is referred to as ‘Kidderminster Town’ by the railway to distinguish it from National Rail services running from the same area, although they share the same station approach off Comberton Road.
History
The railway station of Kidderminster has an important part to play in the history of trains and transport in Worcestershire. The station has a huge railway museum that is home to some of the most valuable collections in the world. People who are passionate about the history of transport come to visit this place to learn how transportation worked a long time ago.
The present building and concourse of the station is a faithful reproduction of a GWR station from 1900. It is a beautiful building that is worth a visit. During your stay in the town, you can also visit the Museum of Carpet, which is a unique attraction of this place that was once known as the carpet capital of the world.
In the early 1900s there was a brisk trade of excursion traffic from the West Midlands conurbation, including day trippers to Blackpool and other resorts. In 1963 passenger services north of Bewdley were withdrawn and the station closed to through traffic in 1969.
Services
The station is the most important for the large town of Kidderminster in Worcestershire. It is situated on the Worcester to Birmingham Snow Hill line and is adjacent to the Severn Valley Railway heritage steam railway.
A footbridge was opened in 2009, transforming access between platforms. The main station building is on platform 1, the down (northbound) platform. The Severn Valley Railway’s own station, called Kidderminster Town is located on the opposite side of the tracks and shares a common approach road with the mainline station.
The site also includes the SVR’s locomotive shed and carriage repair works, where much of the railway’s restoration work is undertaken. The SVR’s working rakes of heritage carriages are stored here when they’re not on the mainline services to Bridgnorth and Bewdley. The town of Kidderminster itself is a popular visitor attraction with three shopping centres and beautiful Victorian buildings overlooking the river Stour. It is also home to the award-winning West Midlands Safari Park, where guests can see giraffes, elephants, cheetahs and Indian rhinos.
Facilities
The main station building, a Victorian-style structure, was built in phases over the course of 20 years and officially opened by HRH The Duke of Gloucester in 2006. The West wing houses the Station Emporium, while the ticket office and entrance hall were added in 1984. The East wing (The John Garth Building) houses the multiple award-winning King and Castle pub.
The station is a medium sized terminus for services to Worcester, Birmingham and Great Malvern, with the occasional direct service to London Marylebone. It is operated by West Midlands Trains. A new glass fronted building opened on the site in 2020, and is complemented by the adjacent Kidderminster Town railway station (not to be confused with the main line station), which opened in 1984 to serve the Severn Valley Railway heritage passenger services.
The station is also home to key parts of the SVR’s preservation infrastructure, including the 1/5th mile Carriage Shed where a large portion of the fleet of heritage carriages are restored. This is also where the locomotives of the SVR are stored when they are not in use on the passenger services.
Parking
Visiting Kidderminster Station can be a bit of a hassle, but JustPark helps to make your journey as smooth as possible. Pre-booking your parking space online gives you peace of mind that a great car park is waiting for you, saving you time and money. With transparent pricing, you can book and pay for your parking before arrival at the station.
The busiest railway station in Worcestershire, Kidderminster Station is a medium-sized station on the Stourbridge Junction – Hereford line and is managed by West Midlands Railway. It has a variety of services to destinations such as Worcester, Hereford, and Great Malvern, with some trains travelling all the way through to London.
Kidderminster is also a good base for a day out at West Midland Safari and Leisure Park, where visitors can get up close to many incredible animals, including giraffes, lions, and Indian rhinos. Or, take a ride on the Bridgnorth Cliff Railway, which is an historic funicular railway and provides stunning views of the town.
