Place Four Oaks Station code FOK DfT category E Number of platforms 3 | Grid reference SP117980 Managed by London Midland 2011/12 0.581 million | |
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Similar Wylde Green railway st, Gravelly Hill railway station, Erdington railway station, Butlers Lane railway st, Sutton Coldfield railway st | ||
Four Oaks railway station serves the Four Oaks area of Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, England. It is situated on the Cross-City Line. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by London Midland.
Contents
History
The station opened in 1884, when the London and North Western Railway's line from Birmingham to Sutton Coldfield was extended to Lichfield. More recently, in May 1978 Four Oaks became the northern terminus of the newly inaugurated Cross-City Line from Longbridge via Birmingham New Street, with trains running up to every 10 minutes in each direction.
The line to the north towards Lichfield City had a less frequent service to begin with (Lichfield being outside the West Midlands PTE boundary), but the growing popularity of the route led to it gaining additional services by the mid-1980s. Eventually, the line was extended to Lichfield Trent Valley in November 1988. Electric operation at the station commenced in 1992 (as far as New Street), with the full line through to Redditch following suit in July 1993.
Four Oaks remains a terminus for some services from the south, which mostly use the dead-end platform 3 on the eastern side of the station to turn back. Northbound trains continuing to Lichfield use platform 1 and southbound ones from there use platform 2 (though this can also be used for terminating trains from the south if required).
Services
The standard Monday to Saturday pattern sees six trains per hour call at the station; two of these terminate at Four Oaks from the south, and four continue north to Lichfield City, two of which continue to Lichfield Trent Valley. Southbound there are six trains per hour to either Longbridge or Redditch. A limited service operates between Four Oaks and Wolverhampton calling at all stations en route.
On Sundays, trains run between Lichfield Trent Valley and Redditch (running the whole length of the line), calling all stations, every 30 minutes.