Aston (AST)

Aston station lies on the junction of the Cross-City & Chase Lines in Aston on the Lichfield Road. Although the station signs advise fans to alight here it isn't the nearest station to Aston Villa's ground, that is Witton.

Information
Type: National Rail
(Cross-City & Chase Lines)
Station code: AST
Opened: 1837
Platforms: 2
The station first opened in 1837 as part of the Grand Junction Railway. Like a number of stations in inner Birmingham it is built on an embankment with access to the platforms via stairways and lifts. The station has a ticket office and shelters on both platforms. Interchange between the platforms is via street level.

Platform structures are nowadays pretty basic (though adequate). The station used to have much more elaborate structures on both platforms with canopies though these are now long gone. The station was rebuilt in 1993 [1]. A goods depot and a locomotive depot also used to be near to the station but these are both now long gone.

As well as services to Birmingham New Street there are also West Midlands Railway services to Wolverhampton, Walsall, Lichfield, Sutton Coldfield, Rugeley, Redditch and Longbridge from the station.
LM 323 211 departs with a North bound service

Station sign

Platform shelter

As dusk falls a LM 323 departs for the city

[1] Vic Mitchell, North of Birmingham (Middleton Press, 2014) fig. 81