Time flies by, and it is hard to believe that Gloucester and Cheltenham lost railway stations 50 and 60 years ago, respectively, as part of the rationalization schemes of the time. Where Gloucester was concerned, it was pressure mounted by those in command to rid the city of four level crossings to make life easier for motorists, whereas in Cheltenham, it was the decline of the GWR routes into the town, writes Ian Thomas.
Firstly, Cheltenham Malvern Road opened on March 3rd, 1908, to serve the brand new Honeybourne Line constructed from Lansdown Junction to Stratford and on to Birmingham Snow Hill and Wolverhampton Low Level, giving the GWR and the town direct services between the southwest and West Midlands.
The GWR wanted a direct route to compete with the Midland Railway route from Cheltenham Lansdown to Birmingham New Street. The GWR route never really prospered, but Malvern Road was convenient and cut out the need for trains to use Cheltenham St James, which required a reversal. Many will remember the daily service from Malvern Road to and from Penzance to Wolverhampton, which was titled “The Cornishman” from 1952.
There was a local train service, known as the Coffee Pot, (pictured above) calling at local stations along the Honeybourne Line until 1960, and of course, the London services starting at St James, including the “Cheltenham Spa Express” to and from London Paddington, offering a full breakfast up and dinner on the way back—not forgetting the summer Saturday holiday trains to the resorts in Devon and Cornwall.
A spur took the GWR into Cheltenham St James, opening on October 23rd, 1847. This was the most convenient station for the town center, supporting local services, London trains, and not forgetting the MSWJR trains to and from Southampton via Andoversford, Cirencester Watermoor, and Andover, plus the direct services to Kingham serving Stow on the Wold and Bourton on the Water.
Southampton services finished in September 1961, and Kingham trains in October 1962. All these trains also served Malvern Road. Both Malvern Road and St James finally closed on October 3rd, 1966, with some trains by then already diverted to Lansdown Station. A regrettable closure in my opinion, but hey—that was the politics of the time. Any duplicate routes had to go. The Honeybourne Line continued to see summer Saturday services until 1966 and the Gold Cup race trains until 1971.
And so, six miles to the west and nine years later, Gloucester was in the news with the closure of Eastgate Station. Eastgate was opened by the Midland Railway as a convenient through station on April 12th, 1896, so Birmingham to Bristol trains could call at the city, replacing a less convenient terminus station. It was used by local services to Bristol Temple Meads, Worcester, and even Birmingham, and of course, long-distance expresses from the northeast and Yorkshire to Bristol and the southwest.
I expect there are many who remember those fabulous named trains: “The Cornishman,” “The Devonian,” “The Pines Express” to Bournemouth via the Somerset & Dorset, and, following the remodelling of Standish Junction in 1964, the “Cheltenham Spa Express,” all conveying restaurant cars taking people to the seaside and London. Indeed, the Cornishman also conveyed a portion for Torbay, which ran separately during holiday periods, acting as a relief train—something that never happens these days! So, we all enjoyed Jubilees, Black Fives, Castles and Halls, and even the diesels in the shape of Western Region Diesel Hydraulics, the mighty Peak Class 45, 45/1, and 46s, and not forgetting the ubiquitous Class 47s.
Eastgate closed its doors in the early hours of Monday, December 1st, 1975, with all services diverted into Central (the current station). As I type this, Boom Radio is playing 10cc’s “I’m Not in Love” from — you’ve guessed it — 1975. The irony of it.
Finally, this December also marks the 60th anniversary that steam traction was withdrawn from the Western Region of British Rail on the 31st. That evening, 7029 Clun Castle was turned out for the 17:00 Gloucester Central to Cheltenham St James (note Ben Ashworth’s wonderful night scene). However, this train did see steam up front in January 1966.
