Dilton Marsh railway station


Dilton Marsh railway station is a railway station serving the village of Dilton Marsh in Wiltshire, England.
The station is located on the Wessex Main Line between Bristol Temple Meads and Southampton Central railway station north of Salisbury. Great Western Railway operate local services between Bristol and the South Coast which call at Dilton Marsh, the station is also operated by them.

History

The Great Western Railway opened "Dilton Marsh Halt" on 1 June 1937. The wooden platforms were long and were provided with small wooden shelters; the construction cost £1,134. Being a "halt" there were no staff to sell tickets, but a sign directed would-be passengers to the "7th house up the hill" where Mrs H. Roberts sold tickets from her home. She sold tickets on a commission basis until 1947.
The platforms are staggered either side of the road underbridge and are about 100m apart, approached by ramps from either side of the rail bridge.
In 1969 the station was renamed as just "Dilton Marsh." Platforms were reduced to the length of one coach. British Rail tried to shut the station but was met by strong local opposition. The remaining platforms were in very poor condition and so were rebuilt in concrete. The station reopened after an eight-week closure on 1 May 1994.
In 2018 the wooden shelters and fencing on both platforms were replaced by standard Network Rail bus shelter style in glass and metal with galvanised fencing.

Dilton Marsh Halt poem

The station was the subject of a well-loved poem "Dilton Marsh Halt" by the late British poet John Betjeman:

Services

Although it is a request stop, the station is quite well served. In the current timetable eight trains per day call on weekdays southbound and eleven northbound. The base frequency is every two hours each way, increasing to hourly at peak times. Destinations include Warminster, Southampton,, Bristol Temple Meads, and.
On Sundays eight trains call in each direction - these are all through services on the Cardiff and Bristol to Portsmouth/Brighton route.
South Western Railway services between London Waterloo and Bristol Temple Meads pass through the station, but do not stop.