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Five Ways railway station

Coordinates: 52°28′17″N 1°54′46″W / 52.4713°N 1.9129°W / 52.4713; -1.9129
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Five Ways
National Rail
General information
LocationFive Ways, Birmingham
England
Coordinates52°28′17″N 1°54′46″W / 52.4713°N 1.9129°W / 52.4713; -1.9129
Grid referenceSP059858
Managed byWest Midlands Railway[1]
Transit authorityTransport for West Midlands
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeFWY
Fare zone1
ClassificationDfT category D
Key dates
1885Opened
1944Temporary Closure
1950Official Closure
1978Reopened
Passengers
2018/19Increase 2.301 million
2019/20Increase 2.497 million
2020/21Decrease 0.564 million
2021/22Increase 1.171 million
2022/23Increase 1.459 million
Location
Map
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Five Ways railway station is a railway station serving the Five Ways and Lee Bank areas of Birmingham, England. It is situated on the Cross-City Line.

The original Five Ways station operated between 1885 and 1944. The station was reopened in 1978 when the Cross-City line services were created.

History

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LMS Birmingham to Five Ways train ticket, issued on 17 May 1927

The original station was opened in 1885 by the Midland Railway, when the Birmingham West Suburban Railway (BWSR) was extended into Birmingham New Street. It fell prey to competition from local bus services, and services were suspended in 1944, as a wartime economy measure, under the auspices of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.[2] The closure was made permanent by British Railways in 1950.[3]

Alongside the station was the spur line leading to Central Goods station. The junction to this line was just south of Five Ways. The spur was part of the original alignment of the BWSR, leading to its original terminus at Granville Street. Following the closure of Granville Street in 1885, the spur line was extended to run to Central Goods station, which remained open until the late 1960s.[4]

Reopening

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The station was rebuilt and reopened in 1978 to the designs of the architect John Broome[5] as part of the creation of the Cross-City Line services. Built with its main entrance on Islington Row Middleway.[4] British Rail also carried out electrification of the lines through the station in 1993.[citation needed]

Ticket barriers were installed at the start of 2009 and became operational shortly before the end of April in the same year.[citation needed]

The station achieved a milestone in 2009–10 by having over 1 million "entries and exits", according to the Office of Rail and Road’s station usage estimates.

Local attractions

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Five Ways is the nearest railway station to Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Edgbaston Cricket Ground and the Birmingham Oratory.

Services

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The station is served by West Midlands Trains with local Transport for West Midlands branded "Cross-City" services, operated by Class 323 and Class 730 Electric multiple units.[6][7]

The off-peak service pattern is as follows:

Mondays to Saturdays:

Sundays:

  • 2 tph northbound to Lichfield Trent Valley.
  • 2 tph southbound to Redditch.
  • 1 tph northbound to Birmingham New Street only.
  • 1 tph southbound to Bromsgrove.

Services on Sundays call at all stations between Lichfield T.V. and Redditch and all stations between Bromsgrove and Birmingham New Street.[8][9]

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Birmingham New Street   West Midlands Railway
Lichfield – Four Oaks – Birmingham – Bromsgrove/Redditch
Cross-City Line
  University

Connections

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The station is an interchange for trams at Five Ways tram stop on the West Midlands Metro, which is approximately 0.4 miles (0.64 km) away, roughly an eight minute walk.[10]

References

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  1. ^ Station facilities for Five Ways
  2. ^ "Five Ways Station". Warwickshire Railways. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  3. ^ Passengers No More by G.Daniels and L.Dench
  4. ^ a b "Five Ways Station". Rail Around Birmingham & the West Midlands. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  5. ^ Lawrence, David (2018). British Rail Architecture 1948-97. Crecy Publishing Ltd. p. 155. ISBN 9780860936855.
  6. ^ "Class 323 fleet". West Midlands Railway.
  7. ^ "Class 730 fleet". West Midlands Railway.
  8. ^ "Train Timetables and Schedules | Five Ways". West Midlands Railway.
  9. ^ "Cross City line: Lichfield Trent Valley/Four Oaks – Bromsgrove / Redditch Timetable from Sunday 2 June 2024". West Midlands Railway.
  10. ^ "Route planner". wego here. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
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