Broadstone railway station (Dorset)

Broadstonewas a railway station in the northern part of the Borough ofPoolein the county ofDorsetin England. It opened in 1872 under the name of New Poole Junction and closed to passengers in 1966. Between these dates there were several changes of name for a station which at its height provided a suburb of Poole with four substantial platforms and a goods yard. A prominent feature of the station was the large footbridge needed to span the four running lines.

Broadstone (Dorset)
The station in 1963
General information
Location	Broadstone,Poole England
Grid reference	SZ004959
Platforms	4
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Original company	Southampton and Dorchester Railway
Pre-grouping	London and South Western Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
Key dates
2 December 1872	Opened asNew Poole Junction
January 1875	RenamedPoole Junction
July 1883	RenamedPoole Junction & Broadstone
January 1887	RenamedBroadstone & New Poole Junction
15 February 1889	RenamedBroadstone Junction
7 July 1929	RenamedBroadstone (Dorset)
1956	RenamedBroadstone
7 March 1966	Closed

Opened asNew Poole Junctionin 1872, as part of theSouthampton and Dorchester Railway,the station was the junction for the new line into Poole that superseded the old station atLower Hamworthy.When the line was extended toBournemouth WestBroadstone became the junction for the trains to the Bournemouth station. Then theSomerset and Dorset Joint Railwayconstructed a cutoff line, running through theCorfe Mullen stationand the hamlet ofAshington,in order to avoid the need to reverse inWimborneand Broadstone became the meeting point of two lines.However, the construction of further cutoffs to improve access toBournemouthreduced its importance.

Broadstone (position on network)
Distances Times km h:min Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway 94.83 Bailey Gate 2:42 Ringwood Line Southampton and Dorchester Railway Wimborne 97.69 Corfe Mullen Halt 2:49 102.51 Broadstone 2:55 104.59 Creekmoor Halt 2:59 Hamworthy Junction Poole Quay and original ferry link Poole Original (now Hamworthy Goods Station) Current Cross Channel Ferry Port 108.03 Poole 3:03 South West Main Line Distances and times from Bath on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway

Decline and closure

The first line through Broadstone to close for passengers was theOld Roadfrom Brockenhurst via Ringwood in 1964. The line toHamworthy Junctionwas lifted in 1966. This same year, theSomerset and Dorset Joint Railwaylost its passenger services. This left Broadstone the junction of two goods lines, one to serve a goods depot atBlandford Forumvia a stub of the SDJR and one which passed through Wimborne to serve theRAOCfuel depot atWest Moors.The Blandford Forum freight line closed and was lifted in 1969. The goods traffic to Wimborne maintained a track running through the site until 1977 after which the track was lifted and the land sold for redevelopment.

The site today

Today the site is occupied by Broadstone Leisure Centre, its car park and a traffic roundabout. A subway to Broadstone's shopping area passes under the roads where the railway bridge used to be. This, and the building of some houses on the old trackbed north of the station site, mean that theCastleman Trailwayskirts the edge of the former site before regaining the old trackbed on the way toWimborne.

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Creekmoor Halt Line and station closed		Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway Dorset Central Railway		Corfe Mullen Halt Line and station closed
Creekmoor Halt Line and station closed		London and South Western Railway Southampton and Dorchester Railway		Wimborne Line and station closed
Hamworthy Junction Line closed, station open

Further reading

• R.V.J. Butt (1995).The Directory of Railway Stations.Patrick Stephens Ltd.ISBN1-85260-508-1
• J.H. Lucking.Railways of Dorset.Railway Correspondence and Travel Society1968.ISBN(no ISBN)

External links

• Broadstone station on navigable 1946 O. S. map
• Station picture on Broadstone.net
• Broadstone stationon Subterranea Britannica