Revamped Tipton station to reopen for rail users

Rail passengers in Tipton will be able to catch their train from the town’s newly refurbished rail station from this Sunday (28 March 2010), a month ahead of schedule.

The station closed in September 2009 while the £2.5m renovation project was undertaken by J Murphy & Sons Ltd on behalf of Network Rail, London Midland and transport authority Centro.

It was due to reopen at the end of April, but the project team managed to complete the work early.

Passengers using the station will now be able to wait for their train on new platforms which have been created to make it easier for people to get on and off their train by reducing the gap between the train and the platform edge.

There are also new access ramps to the subway and station and anti-slip tactile paving on the platform edge making it easier for all passengers, including those with limited mobility or who are blind or partially sighted, to access their local rail services.

Furthermore the station, which serves trains on the Wolverhampton, Birmingham New Street, Birmingham International and Coventry line, has a new glass and steel waiting shelter on the Birmingham bound platform.

Centro has worked closely with the project team to provide a larger 71 space Park & Ride car park for rail users, as the land from the old car park was required for the new bypass road.

The facility has been created to meet the strict criteria of the Park Mark Safer Parking Award, providing CCTV, a public address system and Help Points for users. The walking route from the station to the car park has also been improved.

It has been estimated that the car park will take over 35,000 car journeys off the region’s roads every year.

Cllr Tim Huxtable, Lead Member for Rail & Metro Operations at Centro said: “It is excellent news that the refurbishment of Tipton rail station has been completed ahead of schedule for rail passengers visiting and living in the town.

“The work will really help to provide access to rail services in the area by providing better facilities for people with limited mobility and by offering a larger free and secure Park & Ride facility to encourage people to travel into our main town and city centres by train.”

Cllr Roger Horton, lead member for Sandwell at Centro added: “The work that has been completed to improve Tipton rail station will play an important role in making rail travel more attractive and easier to use for people in the area.

“It will also create a much more pleasant first impression for people coming into the town, helping to put Tipton on the map as a place for people across the region to visit to do their shopping or access the local leisure facilities including the Black Country Living Museum.”

Centro provides more than 6,400 free Park & Ride spaces at the majority of rail stations across the West Midlands. These are estimated to take more than 3.2 million car journeys off the region’s roads every year.