County’s first new station in over 100 years opens

Worcestershire’s first new railway station in over 100 years has opened, delivering increased connectivity to London, the Midlands and South Wales.

History was made when Great Western Railway’s service to London Paddington made the first call at the Worcestershire Parkway station at 08.28 on Sunday.

Tom Pierpoint, GWR’s Interim Commercial Development Director, said: “We know this station has been a long-held ambition for the people of Worcestershire and we have been pleased to work alongside the county council and our rail industry partners to ensure the delivery of this impressive new facility.

“Worcestershire Parkway will benefit from the changes introduced in our December timetable. Customers travelling on one of our new Intercity Express Trains will enjoy a fastest journey time of one hour 49 minutes from Worcestershire Parkway to London Paddington, and 53 minutes to Hereford.”

The station also joins 118 stations already served by CrossCountry across Great Britain.

This enhanced connectivity to the rest of Britain enables Worcestershire to continue growing its business and tourism links as the country becomes an even easier place to visit.

Tom Joyner, CrossCountry’s Managing Director, said: “We are delighted that Worcestershire Parkway is now open for business. This new station and its excellent connections will benefit the regions’ rail users, and we look forward to working with the council and other stakeholders to promote its use.”

Worcestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Economy and Infrastructure, Councillor Ken Pollock, said: “I’d like to thank all those involved in making this station, which has been talked about for over 30 years, a reality. Without the County Council’s ambition for this station to be built to better serve our residents and businesses, the station would not exist.”

Gary Woodman, Chief Executive of Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership (WLEP), said: “Not only will it provide local commuters with improved access and journey times to and from Oxford and London but it will also improve the overall connectivity of Worcestershire to the national network.

“The brand-new direct services arriving at the station from Cardiff, Derby and Nottingham, will reduce congestion on the roads of commuters who travel to stations such as Birmingham International and Warwick Parkway to make these connections.  This station will make Worcestershire a more attractive destination to invest as better connectivity is key to unlocking more local economic growth.”

The station will enable easy access to both the Great Western Railway (GWR) Worcester – London Paddington route and the CrossCounty Cardiff – Nottingham route; the latter being a new service to Worcester which does not stop at any other station in the county.

Photo credit: Worcestershire County Council

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