Northfield railway station

This article is about a railway station in England. For other uses, see Northfield station.

Northfield railway station serves the Northfield area of Birmingham, England. It is situated on the Cross-City Line, and is managed by West Midlands Trains, who also operate all of the rail services that serve it.

Northfield
General information
Location	Northfield, Birmingham England
Coordinates	52.408°N 1.964°W / 52.408; -1.964
Grid reference	SP024789
Managed by	West Midlands Railway
Transit authority	Transport for West Midlands
Platforms	2
Tracks	4
Other information
Station code	NFD
Fare zone	4
Classification	DfT category E
History
Opened	1870
Key dates
1978	Rebuilt
Passengers
2019/20	0.981 million
2020/21	0.173 million
2021/22	0.392 million
2022/23	0.489 million
2023/24	0.576 million
Location
Notes Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

History

The station was opened on 1 September 1870 by the Midland Railway. In 1892, the line through Northfield was quadrupled (though only the inner pair of lines had platform access).^[1]

In 1913 it was the subject of an arson attack by suffragettes. The fire was extinguished before serious damage was done.^[2]

The station was placed under threat of closure in 1963, when the suburban service to Redditch was listed for withdrawal in the Beeching Report and its frequency cut significantly. Following widespread public opposition and a campaign by local MPs, the route was subsequently reprieved in 1965 but for the next thirteen years it only received a limited service (just four return trips per day to & from New Street).

In May 1978, the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive launched the new Cross City line suburban service, which linked the existing New Street to Lichfield route to a revamped service along the former Midland main line through Kings Norton to a newly re-sited terminus at Longbridge. One completely new station was opened at University (Birmingham), two others reopened and the remainder rebuilt & upgraded. Northfield received new slow line platforms as part of the £7.4 million upgrade package.^[3] and other improvements to the designs of the architect John Broome^[4] Since then, the station has received a regular interval service from Birmingham and a variety of other improvements (notably the extension of the route at both ends in the 1980s and electrification in 1993).

In 2013, lifts were built on both sides of the subway to allow disabled access to both platforms.

It currently has two operational platforms, numbered '1' and '4', with a disused island platform in the centre of the four-track lines.

Station masters

• J.W. Brookes 1870 - 1875^[5]
• Edgar Roach 1875^[5] - 1884^[6]
• William Morton 1884^[6] - 1915 - ????
• J.W Hook 1919^[7] - ???? (formerly station master at Wadborough)
• Harry Ariss 1937^[8] - ca. 1940 (afterwards station master at Water Orton)
• Fernley W. Maker 1952 - 1957
• F.G. Courtney 1957^[9] - ????

Services

The station is served by West Midlands Trains with local Transport for West Midlands branded "Cross-City" services, operated using Class 323 Electric multiple units (EMUs)^[10] until September 2024 and currently by Class 730 EMUs.^[11]

The off-peak service pattern is as follows:

Mondays to Saturdays:

• 4tph northbound to Four Oaks via University, Birmingham New Street and Sutton Coldfield, departing from Platform 1.
  • Of which:
    • 2tph continue to Lichfield Trent Valley via Lichfield City, calling at all stations except Duddeston.
• 4tph southbound to Longbridge, departing from Platform 4.
  • Of which:
    • 2tph continue to Redditch via Alvechurch, calling at all stations.
    • 2tph continue to Bromsgrove, 1tph does not call at Barnt Green.

Sundays:

• 2 tph northbound to Lichfield Trent Valley.
• 2 tph southbound to Redditch.
• 1 tph northbound to Birmingham New Street.
• 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.^[12][13]

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Kings Norton		West Midlands Railway Lichfield – Four Oaks – Birmingham – Bromsgrove/Redditch Cross-City Line		Longbridge

Connections

National Express West Midlands route 46 (Northfield - Queen Elizabeth Hospital via Kings Norton) stops on nearby Church Hill.

Kev’s Cars and Coaches routes 19 (Maypole - Rubery) and 42 (Northfield - Queen Elizabeth Hospital via Rubery) stops directly outside the station building.

Facilities

The station has a ticket office and Automated Ticket Machines. The station is also equipped with Real-Time Information boards and recorded announcements.

The station has a small car park, provided free by Transport for West Midlands.

References

1. Northfield StationWarwickshire Railways; Retrieved 31 May 2016
2. Tamworth Herald - Saturday 1 November 1913
3. "History of the Cross City Line" Redditch Model Railway Club; Retrieved 31 May 2016
4. Lawrence, David (2018). British Rail Architecture 1948-97. Crecy Publishing Ltd. p. 155. ISBN 9780860936855.
5. "1871-1879 Coaching". Midland Railway Operating, Traffic and Coaching Depts: 632. 1871. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
6. "1881-1898 Coaching". Midland Railway Operating, Traffic and Coaching Depts: 334. 1881. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
7. "Former Wadborough Station Master". Evesham Standard and West Midland Observer. England. 29 March 1930. Retrieved 31 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
8. "Promotion". Banbury Advertiser. England. 1 April 1937. Retrieved 14 December 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
9. "Mr. F.G. Courtney". Birmingham Daily Post. England. 3 April 1957. Retrieved 31 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
10. "Class 323 fleet". West Midlands Railway.
11. "Class 730 fleet". West Midlands Railway.
12. "Train Timetables and Schedules | Northfield". West Midlands Railway.
13. "The Cross City Line: Lichfield Trent Valley – Four Oaks – Sutton Coldfield – Birmingham – University – Bromsgrove / Redditch | Timetable from Sunday 15 December 2024 until 17 May 2025". West Midlands Railway.

External links

• Train times and station information for Northfield railway station from National Rail
• Rail Around Birmingham and the West Midlands: Northfield railway station
• Warwickshire Railways page