Bruton railway station serves a largely rural area in the county of Somerset in England. The station is situated in the market town of Bruton. The station is on the Bristol to Weymouth line some south of Bath Spa. Trains on the Reading to Taunton line pass through the station but do not normally stop. Services are operated by Great Western Railway (who also manage the station) and South Western Railway.
History
The station was opened by the Great Western Railway on 1 September 1856 on its Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth main line. At that time this was just a single track but a loop was provided at Bruton to allow trains to pass. A signal box was provided from 1877 at the west end of the station.
Location The cutting in which the railway is built is a Site of Special Scientific Interest as one of the best places in England to demonstrate the stratigraphic distinction of ammonites in the subcontractus zone and the morrisi zone.English Nature citation sheet for the site (accessed 7 August 2006)
Facilities The station has two platforms with a modern glass-and-metal waiting shelter on each. A footbridge enables passengers to cross the line. There is no wheelchair access to the far platform (for trains arriving from Bristol and going to Weymouth). The station has a bike rack and help points.
Passenger volume +Passenger volume at Bruton2004–052005–062006–072007–082008–092009–102010–112011–122012–132013–142014–152015–162016–172017–182018–192019–202020–212021–222022–232023–242024–25Entries and exits17,16718,44919,36918,52023,44425,57625,54427,36430,07832,08834,09636,95040,66041,36442,79848,81812,30840,68846,23851,03053,002 The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
Great Western Railway operates eight trains each way on the Bristol to Weymouth line during the week and five on Sundays. It is not a regular service; there are some gaps of up to three hours between trains. To the north services run to and from and via . Most are extended beyond Bristol to and from . To the south trains run to and .eNRT May 2026 Edition, Tables 133, 153 (Network Rail)
Additionally, there are services provided by South Western Railway that operate between and , although these are relatively slow due to taking an indirect route towards London, reversing at and travelling via and the West of England Main Line. A faster and more frequent service to London is available at both and Westbury on the same route, from where Great Western Railway operates trains between and . These trains pass Bruton, but do not stop.
Community rail The station, along with others on the Heart of Wessex Line, is part of the South Wessex Community Rail Partnership.
References
Bibliography
External links
Bruton – Least Used Station in Somerset, 2018 YouTube film about the station and its status as the station with lowest passenger numbers in Somerset