Uttoxeter railway station () serves the town of
Uttoxeter
Uttoxeter ( , ) is a market town in the East Staffordshire district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is near to the Derbyshire county border. It is situated from Burton upon Trent, from Stafford, from Stoke-on-Trent, from De ...
,
Staffordshire, England. It is on the
Crewe-Derby Line, which is also a
Community rail line known as the ''North Staffordshire line''. The station is owned by
Network Rail
Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...
and managed by
East Midlands Railway.
History
North Staffordshire Railway
The station was built by the
North Staffordshire Railway
The North Staffordshire Railway (NSR) was a British railway company formed in 1845 to promote a number of lines in the Staffordshire Potteries and surrounding areas in Staffordshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire and Shropshire.
The company was based ...
(NSR) to serve its main line from to . Prior to 1881, three different stations had been in use simultaneously, all being built by the NSR.
[
The section from Stoke-on-Trent to Uttoxeter was opened on 7 August 1848. The first station opened in the town was ''Uttoxeter Bridge Street'' station, which opened the same day as the line opened from Stoke.] However the station buildings were not complete and temporarily the crossing keeper's hut nearby was used.[ The following month on 11 September 1848 the line was completed through to Burton and through running between Stoke and Derby began. When the Churnet Valley Line was opened on 13 July 1849, ''Uttoxeter Junction'' station was opened on the mainline to serve as an interchange with the Churnet Valley line and on the same date, ''Uttoxeter Dove Bank'' station was also opened on the Churnet Valley line.][
]
Uttoxeter then had three stations in total. In 1880, the NSR decided to close all three and construct a north to west line forming a triangular junction. A new Uttoxeter station replaced all three at this new junction and opened on 10 October 1881.[ There is a model of the 1881 station at the Uttoxeter Heritage Centre.
The ]Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway
The Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament on 29 July 1862,Donald J Grant, Directory of the Railway Companies of Great Britain, Matador, Kibworth Beauchamp, 2017, ISBN 978 1785893 537, pages 532 and 533 to build a line ...
which opened in 1867 also used the station but this line was operated by the Great Northern Railway.
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
On 1 January 1923, under the Railways Act 1921, the North Staffordshire Railway was absorbed by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS). During this period of time the Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway
The Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament on 29 July 1862,Donald J Grant, Directory of the Railway Companies of Great Britain, Matador, Kibworth Beauchamp, 2017, ISBN 978 1785893 537, pages 532 and 533 to build a line ...
, which had become part of the London and North Eastern Railway, closed to passengers on 4 December 1939, but the line remained open for goods traffic until 5 March 1951.
British Rail
The LMS was nationalised in 1948 and became part of British Rail.
The last mainline steam train used the station on 16 September 1957 and thereafter an hourly DMU service operated which has been used ever since.
Passenger services on the Churnet Valley line from Uttoxeter towards and ceased operation 2 January 1965, and the trains towards Ashbourne and Buxton
Buxton is a spa town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.[Central Trains
Central Trains was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by National Express that operated a variety of local and inter-regional trains from 2 March 1997 until 11 November 2007.
Overview
Created out of the Central division o ...]
franchise. Trains would run from the station to Manchester Airport and Skegness
Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 19,579 as of 2011, ...
. In 2004, the Manchester Airport train was cut back to Crewe and, in September 2005, the Skegness train was cut short to Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
.
The Central Trains franchise expired on 11 November 2007 and the station and its services were taken over by East Midlands Trains
East Midlands Trains (EMT) was a British train operating company owned by the transport group Stagecoach, which operated the East Midlands franchise between November 2007 and August 2019.
Following the Department for Transport (DfT) award of ...
. When this franchise expired in August 2019, East Midlands Railway began operations and in May 2021, services were once again extended past Derby to provide Uttoxeter with a direct link to Long Eaton
Long Eaton is a town in the Erewash district of Derbyshire, England, just north of the River Trent, about south-west of Nottingham and some 8½ miles (13.7 km) south-east of Derby. The town population was 37,760 at the 2011 census. It has ...
, Nottingham
Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...
and Newark Castle.
Facilities
The station is unstaffed and facilities are limited. There is a shelter on each platform as well as modern help points and bicycle storage. A ticket machine
A ticket machine, also known as a ticket vending machine (TVM), is a vending machine that produces paper or electronic tickets, or recharges a stored-value card or smart card or the user's mobile wallet, typically on a smartphone. For instanc ...
was installed in 2021. There is a car park
A parking lot (American English) or car park (British English), also known as a car lot, is a cleared area intended for parking vehicles. The term usually refers to an area dedicated only for parking, with a durable or semi-durable surface ...
at the station, and a taxi rank just next to the station. Step-free access is available to both platforms.
It is the closest railway station to Alton Towers to which it is linked by an infrequent bus service. There is also direct access to Uttoxeter Racecourse
Uttoxeter Racecourse is a National Hunt racecourse in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, England.
Course
Uttoxeter is a left-handed oval shaped course of 1 mile 2½ furlongs in circumference.
The back ‘straight’ has a dog-leg to the right and i ...
, which is adjacent to the station.
Services
All services at Uttoxeter are operated by East Midlands Railway.
On weekdays and Saturdays, the station is generally served by an hourly service westbound to via and eastbound to via and . During the late evenings, services terminate at Nottingham instead of Newark Castle.
On Sundays, the station is served by an hourly service between Crewe and Derby only although no trains operate before 14:00.
Additional trains serve the station during the Midlands Grand National
The Midlands Grand National is a Listed National Hunt race in Great Britain. It is a handicap steeplechase and is run at Uttoxeter Racecourse in March, over a distance of about 4 miles and 2 furlongs (4 ...
to cater for the increased passenger numbers for the event.
Bus Connections
The station is served by the First Potteries ''Kingfisher'' service which provides hourly connections to Hanley as well as the Midland Classic
Diamond East Midlands, formerly Midland Classic, is a bus company from Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. Since August 2022, the company is a subsidiary of Rotala.
History Midland Classic
Midland Classic was founded in July 2005 by ...
routes 402, 402A and 403 services to Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. In 2011, it had a population of 72,299. The ...
.
No bus services serve the station on Sundays.
References
Further reading
*
External links
Dudley Mall - Stoke-on-Trent to Derby Line
{{Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway
Railway stations in Staffordshire
DfT Category F1 stations
Former North Staffordshire Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1848
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1849
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1881
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1881
Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway
1849 establishments in England
Uttoxeter
1881 establishments in England