50-457: The Snow Hill Lines is the collective name for the railway lines running through Birmingham Snow Hill , and Birmingham Moor Street stations in Birmingham , United Kingdom. They form an important part of the suburban rail network of Birmingham, Warwickshire and Worcestershire . All other lines to/through Birmingham use Birmingham New Street station. The Snow Hill lines carry around 20% of
100-560: A multi-storey car park stands over the main platform area, meaning artificial lighting is required on the platforms. Like its predecessor, the main entrance is on Colmore Row . Some parts of the original station are still visible (notably the now-sealed entrance, with GWR crest, in Livery Street). Initially only local stopping services to Leamington Spa and Stratford-upon-Avon used the new station. Services at Moor Street, where these services had previously terminated, were switched from
150-405: A 10 platform station. The line north from Snow Hill towards Hockley was quadrupled at the same time, however the cost of widening the twin track Snow Hill tunnel at the southern end was considered prohibitive. There was not enough capacity through the tunnel to accommodate all of the services, and so, as a solution, Birmingham Moor Street was built as an "overflow" station at the opposite end of
200-553: A 30-year strategy of Transport in the West Midlands several interventions were proposed between 2018 and 2047. By 2026 it was proposed that trains would be lengthened, improvements to evening services (from May 2019), investigations of a case to extend services to Brierley Hill and West Midland Safari Park and reopening platform 4 at Snow Hill. By 2034, it was proposed that Birmingham to Rowley Regis, Dorridge, Whitlocks End and Stratford upon Avon services would be increased which would see
250-476: A dedicated embankment for trams alongside the station and included a new through stop serving Snow Hill. The site of the station was formerly occupied by Oppenheim's Glassworks. This was demolished, but many parts of the building and machinery are believed to be buried underneath the station and car park, and during recent development work alongside the station the area was designated as a site of archaeological importance by Birmingham City Council . The station
300-494: A new Snow Hill station, the present incarnation, was built; it reopened in 1987. Today, most of the trains using Snow Hill are local services on the Snow Hill Lines , operated by West Midlands Railway , serving Worcester Shrub Hill , Kidderminster , Stourbridge Junction , Stratford-upon-Avon and Solihull . The only long-distance service using Snow Hill is to and from London Marylebone , operated by Chiltern Railways via
350-452: A new turn back facilities at Rowley Regis and capacity interventions at Moor Street and Snow Hill. Beyond 2034, it was proposed that there may be capacity improvements between Leamington Spa and Birmingham, a new semi-fast service between Birmingham and Oxford via Solihull, local service frequency increases and Safari Park service increases. Birmingham Snow Hill railway station Birmingham Snow Hill , also known as Snow Hill station ,
400-422: A projected cost of £9.94 million, but due to Centro's failure to apply for planning permission, and severe technical difficulties, the cost rose to at least £17 million. Although construction and interior finishes' works were largely complete by December 2010, legal disputes between London Midland, Network Rail and Centro caused delay to the opening of the entrance by over a year. The former tram terminus platform
450-485: A two-hourly local service from Moor Street to Leamington. In peak hours some Chiltern services to or from London continue to Stourbridge Junction. The West Midlands Metro runs into Snow Hill, but it is not considered one of the Snow Hill Lines as it is a light rail / tram line. However it runs mostly along the trackbed of the former Birmingham Snow Hill to Wolverhampton Low Level Line . In October 2018, as part of
500-702: Is a railway station in Birmingham City Centre . It is one of the three main city-centre stations in Birmingham, along with Birmingham New Street and Birmingham Moor Street . Snow Hill was once the main station of the Great Western Railway in Birmingham and, at its height, it rivalled New Street station with competitive services to destinations including London Paddington , Wolverhampton Low Level , Birkenhead Woodside , Wales and South West England . The station has been rebuilt several times since
550-448: Is intended to be returned for use for mainline trains as a fourth platform. However as of September 2020, little work has been conducted other than disconnecting and partial lifting of the former tram line. The fourth platform is now expected to be completed by 2026. In remembrance of a cat kept at the station before its closure, a memorial tile was installed during the works for the reopening. During later refurbishment works in 2014 care
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#1732898034070600-524: Is located to the east. A third station, Worcestershire Parkway , is sited just outside of the city to the south-east. The station is managed by West Midlands Railway , who also operate services along with Great Western Railway . The station opened on 17 May 1860. It was originally part of the Hereford and Worcester Railway which was incorporated into the West Midland Railway , before being absorbed by
650-614: The Chiltern Main Line . The present Snow Hill station has three platforms for National Rail trains. When it was originally reopened in 1987, it had four, but one was later converted in 1999 for use as a terminus for West Midlands Metro trams on the line from Wolverhampton . This tram terminus closed in October 2015, in order for the extension of the West Midlands Metro through Birmingham city centre to be connected; this included
700-472: The Great Western Railway . On 1 January 1948, the company became Government owned under British Railways . The Butts Spur line was also constructed in 1860 with the unfulfilled aim of connecting the station to Diglis for the conveyance of freight. Since 1973, the station has had an unusual layout; it is essentially two single-track lines side by side rather than the ordinary double-track layout which it appears to be. The two single lines run from Henwick, on
750-452: The Snowhill development to carry the tram lines into the city centre. This allows platform 4 to be returned to main line use in the future. The new Snow Hill through stop was opened on 2 June 2016, two days after the full opening of the city-centre extension to New Street. However, the necessary works to allow passenger access to the stop from the street or adjacent railway station had not at
800-529: The "Jewellery Line" project. This is a regional main line with services to London Marylebone . In the West Midlands it is one of the Snow Hill Lines, as it also carries a frequent commuter service between Snow Hill and Solihull , Dorridge and Leamington Spa . This is a commuter branch line, which branches off from the Chiltern Main Line at Tyseley and runs south to Stratford-upon-Avon . The line
850-411: The 1970s, a project which was completed in two phases. The first phase was completed on 5 October 1987, when the newly rebuilt Snow Hill station opened for services to the south, along with Snow Hill tunnel . The rebuilt station is on a smaller scale than its Edwardian predecessor, built with two island platforms , giving four platform faces. The station's architecture is functional rather than ornate,
900-510: The West Country, Stourbridge and Shrewsbury were diverted to New Street, and the branch to Dudley was closed. All that was left was a shuttle service of four trains per day using Class 122 railcars to Langley Green , along with six daily stopping services to Wolverhampton Low Level . With this, as most passenger facilities in the station were withdrawn and virtually the entire site became disused save for one bay platform, Snow Hill then acquired
950-542: The West Midlands Railway brand. There are four West Midlands Railway trains per hour (tph) serving Snow Hill in each direction, running as follows: Eastbound: Westbound: From 1999 until 2015, Snow Hill was the terminus of the Midland Metro Line 1 from Wolverhampton . Opening on 31 May 1999, it occupied the space previously used by platform 4 of the main line station. The stop had two platforms, and
1000-547: The daily rail services into Birmingham; the remainder use New Street. Historically, the lines running through Snow Hill station were built by the Great Western Railway , and so they are largely separate from the lines running into New Street station, which were built by the London and North Western Railway and Midland Railway . The original Snow Hill station was closed in 1972. The Snow Hill lines in their present form came into being between 1987 and 1995, when Snow Hill station, and
1050-560: The decision was taken to end main line services through Snow Hill once electrification of the WCML was complete, and divert most of its remaining services through New Street. Long-distance services through Snow Hill ceased in March 1967. Snow Hill tunnel closed to all traffic the following year, with the last train running on 2 March 1968. Local trains towards Leamington Spa and Stratford upon Avon were then terminated at Moor Street. Services to London,
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#17328980340701100-515: The extension was brought into service as far as Bull Street on 6 December 2015. As part of the extension, a new through Snow Hill stop at a different location opened outside the station and further west, on the existing viaduct near the Livery Street entrance. Funding for this was confirmed in the October 2010 Comprehensive Spending Review . A new viaduct was built alongside the station as part of
1150-485: The first station at Snow Hill, a temporary wooden structure, was opened in 1852; it was rebuilt as a permanent station in 1871 and then rebuilt again on a much grander scale during 1906–1912. The electrification of the main line from London to New Street in the 1960s saw New Street favoured over Snow Hill, most of whose services were withdrawn in the late 1960s. This led to the station's eventual closure in 1972 and its demolition five years later. After fifteen years of closure,
1200-411: The former terminal platforms, which then closed, on to two newly built through platforms, at the southern end of Snow Hill tunnel, making a through station adjacent to the tunnel mouth. In May 1993 Network SouthEast reintroduced limited-stop services to London, initially on a two-hourly frequency, routed to Marylebone instead of the pre-closure destination of Paddington. The service proved popular and
1250-568: The lift at the second entrance to be enclosed in the station building and conversion of one of the railway arches into a bike shelter. The bridge was also strengthened and repainted. Until May 2022, Great Western Railway ran limited services to Southampton Central and Brighton . The station layout is unusual in that travelling east the two platforms serve different routes, rather than different directions. Platform 1 can only be accessed by trains via Worcester Shrub Hill (including trains to and from London Paddington and via Cheltenham Spa towards
1300-521: The line between Smethwick West and Snow Hill, along with three new stations ( Smethwick Galton Bridge , The Hawthorns and Jewellery Quarter ). In 1999, the line to Wolverhampton was reopened as a light rail (tram) line, the Midland Metro . Work began on a new entrance on Livery Street to give commuters access to the lower Snow Hill and Jewellery Quarter part of the city centre in 2005, but it did not open for business until March 2011. The work had
1350-435: The line through to Smethwick was reopened, in order to create a new cross-city rail service via Snow Hill and Moor Street stations. The former line to Wolverhampton was reopened as the Midland Metro tram line in 1999. The three Snow Hill lines are: This is a commuter line to Worcester Shrub Hill and Worcester Foregate Street via Stourbridge Junction and Kidderminster . It was reopened to Snow Hill in 1995 as part of
1400-616: The local services on the routes, mainly use Class 172 DMUs. These replaced the older Class 150 in 2011. Chiltern Railways use Class 165 and Class 168 diesel multiple units, and Class 68 locomotives with Mark 3 coaches. However, electrification is a future aspiration of Network Rail and Chiltern Railways. The local services on the Snow Hill Lines are closely integrated. As of 2023, West Midlands Railway run four trains per hour between Kidderminster , Birmingham Snow Hill, and Birmingham Moor Street . The typical weekday service has two services per hour running eastbound to Dorridge and
1450-476: The mid-1960s Snow Hill was still a major station handling millions of passengers annually; in 1964 Snow Hill handled 7.5 million passengers, compared to 10.2 million at New Street. However the electrification of the rival West Coast Main Line into New Street, meant that British Railways decided to concentrate all services into Birmingham into one station, and Snow Hill was seen as being an unnecessary duplication. In 1966
1500-459: The other side of the River Severn , through Foregate Street, to the site of the former Rainbow Hill Junction to the east of the station, which used to provide a crossover between the two tracks. At this point, the lines diverge with that on the north side heading towards Tunnel Junction and Droitwich Spa, while the southern track leads to Worcester Shrub Hill . Rainbow Hill Junction was removed when
1550-518: The other two to Whitlocks End . One of each eastbound service per hour continues to Stratford-upon-Avon , and some evening trains continue beyond Dorridge to Leamington Spa . Westbound, two trains per hour usually continue beyond Stourbridge Junction and Kidderminster continue to Worcester Foregate Street and/or Worcester Shrub Hill . Chiltern Railways run two trains per hour from either Snow Hill or Moor Street to London Marylebone calling at Solihull and Leamington Spa. Chiltern Railways also run
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1600-464: The platforms. In 1871 it was rebuilt, and replaced with a permanent structure. The 1871 station had two through platforms, and bay platforms at the Wolverhampton end, covered by an arched roof. Access to the station was from Livery Street from the side. Trains from the south arrived through Snow Hill Tunnel , built by the cut-and-cover method, and in a cutting from Temple Row to Snow Hill. The cutting
1650-404: The railway station, and the closer proximity of Bull Street stop. The stop is now advertised as an alternate interchange to the mainline station with Bull Street being the main interchange. In December 2018 it was announced that a new entrance would be constructed at Snow Hill station, by opening up an arch in the railway viaduct. This will allow direct interchange between St Chads tram stop and
1700-450: The railway station. The work is due to begin in Summer 2019. In October 1854, a derailed engine fell into Great Charles Street, below the station. Worcester Foregate Street railway station Worcester Foregate Street , opened by the Great Western Railway in 1860, is one of two railway stations that serve the city of Worcester , England; the other is Worcester Shrub Hill , which
1750-469: The railway was prevented from reaching its original intended terminus at Curzon Street ; London and North Western Railway's engineer Robert Stephenson and solicitor Samuel Carter argued in Parliament that there would be safety risks in rival companies sharing the congested connection into their station. The original station was a simple temporary wooden structure, consisting of a large wooden shed covering
1800-444: The signalling in the area was remodelled in 1973. The station celebrated its 150th birthday on 23 May 2010, with the unveiling of a plaque and a special train, which celebrated its 150th anniversary on the same date. that ran to Great Malvern The art gallery movement opened on platform 2 on 2 October 2010. The station was upgraded in 2014, which included a refurbished subway, two new entrances with automatic doors, relocation of
1850-575: The south-west), while platform 2 can only be accessed from the east by trains running directly to and from Droitwich Spa , avoiding Shrub Hill. Signs at the station warn of "Two-way working on both lines". Similar examples of this type of layout can be found at Glenrothes with Thornton in Fife and Bare Lane in Lancashire . This means that Great Western Railway services can only stop at platform 1, as all of these trains stop at Shrub Hill. The station itself
1900-512: The station and platform 3 is used for trains going south. Occasional steam-hauled special trains use the station. Snow Hill is served by Chiltern Railway services to and from London Marylebone . Some Chiltern services continue beyond Birmingham to Stourbridge Junction . The typical Chiltern service pattern is as follows: Local services from Snow Hill, like most local services in the West Midlands, are supported by Transport for West Midlands . They are operated by West Midlands Trains using
1950-467: The time been completed, meaning passengers could only access the stop by a walkway alongside the tracks from the city centre. Stairs and a lift connecting the stop to the street below were completed in September 2017. In January 2017, the stop was renamed St Chads as the name Snow Hill was considered misleading for passengers using the mainline station due to the new stop's lack of direct interchange with
2000-514: The tunnel to take terminating local trains towards Leamington Spa and Stratford-upon-Avon. The Great Western Hotel was closed at the same time (as guests complained of being kept awake by goods trains running underneath) and converted into railway offices, and a passenger entrance was provided on Colmore Row , which became the station's main entrance. At its height, many trains that now run into New Street station ran into Snow Hill, along with some that no longer run. Services included: As late as
2050-467: The unfortunate title of "the largest unstaffed railway halt in the country". In March 1972 these last services were withdrawn and the station closed entirely, along with the lines through to Smethwick and Wolverhampton, with the exception of a single line from Smethwick West for Coopers Scrap Metal Works in Handsworth (the works is still in operation to this day). Following closure, the derelict station
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2100-399: Was approached by a short section of single track. The Snow Hill terminus was officially closed on 24 October 2015, and the approach line disconnected, in order to allow the new extension into Birmingham City Centre to be connected to the existing line. It is therefore the only Midland Metro stop so far to have been permanently closed. Trams terminated at St Paul's until the first part of
2150-413: Was covered by a large glass and steel overall roof. It consisted of two large Island platforms , containing four through platforms, and four bay platforms for terminating trains at the northern end. The through platforms were long enough to accommodate two trains at a time, and scissors crossings allowed trains to pull in front, or out from behind of other trains stood in a platform, effectively creating
2200-449: Was formerly a through main line running south to Cheltenham, but has been a dead end branch since the 1970s. Frequent commuter services run as far as Whitlocks End , with a less frequent service running to Stratford. A spur line from Hatton allows some services to run via Solihull. Unlike the lines to/through New Street station, the lines are not electrified, and are operated by diesel multiple units . West Midlands Railway , who operate
2250-501: Was increased to an hourly frequency the following year. Chiltern Railways took over the service after privatisation. The second phase of the Snow Hill reopening project was completed on 24 September 1995, when the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line was reopened to Snow Hill. This allowed the resumption of services to Worcester Shrub Hill via Stourbridge Junction and Kidderminster. The "Jewellery Line" project involved reopening
2300-474: Was opened in 1852 on the Great Western Railway (GWR) main line from London Paddington to Wolverhampton Low Level and Birkenhead Woodside . Originally called Birmingham Station, its name was changed to Great Charles Street station, and then Livery Street Station. It was finally renamed Snow Hill in 1858, and the Great Western Hotel was added in 1863. It was never intended to be the main station, but
2350-508: Was revealed. The ironwork of the station roof was badly corroded in several places, and the unstable ground and foundations on which the station had been built were causing it to slide downhill. A few items, including the original gates and booking hall sign, were saved and later used in the Moor Street restoration. The West Midlands Passenger Transport Authority had adopted a policy to restore cross-city rail services through Snow Hill since
2400-481: Was roofed over in 1872 and the Great Western Arcade built on top. To cope with expanding traffic. Snow Hill station was rebuilt again on a much larger scale between 1906 and 1912. The new station building was intended to compete with New Street. The rebuilt station contained lavish facilities, such as a large booking hall with an arched glass roof, and lavish waiting rooms with oak bars. The main platform area
2450-481: Was taken that the tile would stay in situ. The station is managed by West Midlands Trains and services are provided by West Midlands Trains and Chiltern Railways. There is a small set of sidings at the Hockley end of the station, which can be reached from Platform 1 only. All platforms can be used in either direction; generally platforms 1 or 2 are used for trains heading north, platform 2 is used for trains terminating at
2500-403: Was used for several years as a car park. It enjoyed a brief moment of fame in 1976 when it was the setting for a fight scene in the locally set BBC TV drama series Gangsters . However, despite a public outcry, the Snow Hill building was not preserved. The Colmore Row façade was demolished in 1969, and the rest of the station largely demolished in 1977, when the dangerous state of the building
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