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Stratford-upon-Avon Racecourse Platform was a railway station on the Stratford upon Avon to Cheltenham section of the Honeybourne Line. Located one mile (1.6 km) south of the town centre, its purpose was to serve Stratford Racecourse. It closed in 1968 as a result of falling passenger numbers. The site of the station has now long been a part of the Stratford-upon-Avon greenway, however the site (which once served the racecourse) may one day in future become the northern terminus of the preserved Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, which aims to eventually extend north-eastwards to Stratford-upon-Avon. ==History== On 9 July 1859, the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway opened a line from to . The OW&W became the West Midland Railway in 1860 and was acquired by Great Western Railway in 1883 with a view to combining it with the Birmingham to Stratford Line to create a high-speed route from the Midlands to the South West. The GWR obtained authorisation in 1899 for the construction of a double-track line between Honeybourne and Cheltenham and this was completed in stages by 1908. The Racecourse station was opened on 6 May 1933, one of two railway halts added to the line during its 1930s heyday (the other being ). Built to serve Stratford Racecourse, the station was originally known as ''Stratford-on-Avon Racecourse Platform'' and later renamed in 1951 to change the "on-Avon" to "upon-Avon". As it was assumed that most passengers would be coming for the races, only very basic facilities were provided. These consisted of two platforms constructed of sleepers supported by Barlow rail. There were no toilet facilities, passenger shelters or booking office. A separate board, which hung below the running in board, informed racegoers of the date of the next race meeting. Near the north end of the platforms was a bridge which carried the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway (SMJR) over the Honeybourne Line. This section of the SMJR was to close on 13 June 1960 following the opening of a new east-facing curve connecting the SMJR with the Honeybourne Line. The curve opened on 24 April 1960 creating a junction which became known as ''Racecourse Junction'' and which led directly to Stratford-upon-Avon (Old Town) station. The purpose of the link was to facilitate the running of ironstone traffic from South Wales to (which had previously gone via the Alcester to Hatton Branch Line) and also to enable the closure of the line between Stratford and . In the event, the traffic did not materialise and the curve closed on 5 July 1965. Due to increased motor vehicle usage, the number of passengers using the Racecourse station decreased and it was closed on 25 March 1968 following the withdrawal of the twice-daily DMU which ran between and . Freight services continued to pass through the station until 1 November 1976 when the line itself was closed. The tracks between the current Stratford station and Honeybourne station were taken up in 1979. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Stratford-upon-Avon Racecourse Platform railway station」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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