Black Lake Metro

Black Lake is a stop on the West Midlands Metro in West Bromwich between Wednesbury Great Western Street and Dudley Street Guns Village. 

Tram 24 departs

Information
Type:	West Midlands Metro
Opened:	1999
Platforms:	2

Black Lake was one of the original West Midlands Metro stops opened in 1999. It is situated near to the former Swan Village railway station which closed in 1972 (the station was the opposite side of the level crossing to the metro stop). 

Black Lake is situated next to the Ridgacre Branch of the Wednesbury Old Canal, the Metro crossing the canal just next to the platforms.

Tram 51 speeds away from Black Lake heading to Birmingham

The canal bridge

The level crossing

Preparing to depart

Nantwich (NAN)

Nantwich is a stop on the Crewe-Shrewsbury part of the Welsh Marches Line in Cheshire between Crewe and Wrenbury. 

Transport for Wales 175 009 at Nantwich

Information
Type:	National Rail (Welsh Marches Line)
Station code:	NAN
Opened:	1858
Platforms:	2

The station was opened by the Crewe & Shrewsbury Railway in 1858 and later became part of the London & North Western Railway. In 1862 the Nantwich & Markey Drayton Railway reached the town turning the station into a junction, this became part of the Great Western Railway later on. Nantwich had GWR services heading though it, running over LNWR metals north of Nantwich. The Market Drayton line was closed in 1967.

The station is now unstaffed, the level crossings near the station are now monitored remotely from south Wales. Nantwich is now on the Welsh Marshes Line and is managed and served by Transport for Wales. Access between the platforms is via a footbridge on the road and level crossing at the end of the platforms.

Main station building, now a restaurant

View down the platform

Footbridge and level crossing

Station sign

Departure

Dorking Deepdene (DPD)

Dorking Deepdene is a stop on the North Downs Line between Dorking West and Betchworth. It is within walking distance of Dorking station though the lines are not connected.

GWR 165 111 departs

Information
Type:	National Rail (North Downs Line)
Station code:	DPD
Opened:	1851
Platforms:	2

The station was opened by the Reading, Reigate & Guildford Railway in 1851 as Box Hill & Leatherhead Road [1] (quickly shortened to just Box Hill). In 1923 the station, which was by now part of the Southern Railway, was renamed Deepdene to avoid confusion with the nearby Box Hill & Westhumble station. Finally the station was renamed Dorking Deepdene in 1987.

The station is served by services along the North Downs Line between Reading and either Redhill or Gatwick Airport. There are up to two trains an hour in both directions. All services are run by Great Western Railway.

 

The station is on an embankment, and has wooden platforms to save weight [2], with steps up from the street level. The station is unstaffed with a ticket machine at street level. A couple of bus shelters and passenger information screens are at platform level.

GWR 165 128 arrives with a Reading bound service

Looking down the line

GWR 166 204 departs

Station entrance and ticket machine

Waiting to depart

[1] Vic Mitchell & Keith Smith, Guildford to Redhill (Middleton Press, 1989) Fig. 64

[2] Ibid. Fig. 65

Walthamstow Queen's Road (WMW)

Walthamstow Queen's Road is a stop on the London Overground Gospel Oak to Barking Line in north London between Blackhorse Road and Leyton Midland Road.

London Overground 710 272 departs

Information
Type:	Transport for London (London Overground GOBLIN Line)
Station code:	WMW
Opened:	1894
Platforms:	2

The station was opened as Walthamstow in 1894 [1] by the Tottenham & Forest Gate Railway. The original station buildings survived for decades though was finally demolished in 1995. Platform buildings including canopies were also lost. The station was renamed Walthamstow Queen's Road in 1968. 

The station is now part of the London Overground network. The line was electrified in 2017. The station is a few hundred metres away from Walthamstow Central which serves the London Underground Victoria Line and a different London Overground line.

View down the platform

710 264 arrives

View down the platform showing the bus shelter accommodation

Heading off

[1] J.E. Connor, St Pancras to Barking (Middleton Press, 2005) Fig. 87

Bromfield

Bromfield was a stop on the Solway Junction Railway in Cumbria between Brayton and Abbey Junction.

Bromfield station [1]

Information
Type:	Solway Junction Railway
Opened:	1873
Closed:	1921
Platforms:	1

The station was opened by the Solway Junction Railway in 1873 serving a small village on the English side of the Solway Firth. The station was small with just a single platform though had a private goods siding.

The station was not successful. By 1910 the service was limited to just a handful of trains a day and later reduced even further. In 1917 passenger services ceased completely but were reinstated in 1920 only to cease for good in 1921. The line remained open until 1933.

[1] G.J. Aston & D.S. Barrie, "The Solway Junction Railway", Railway Magazine 70 (415) p. 32