Yeovil Pen Mill railway station

Yeovil Pen Mill railway station is one of two stations serving the town of Yeovil, Somerset, England. The station is situated just under a mile to the east of the town centre. The station is located 59.5 miles (96 km) south of Bristol Temple Meads, on the Heart of Wessex Line. The station is managed by Great Western Railway, with trains being operated by them and by South Western Railway.

History

The station was opened by the Great Western Railway (GWR) as part of the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth route on 1 September 1856. The route was completed to Weymouth on 20 January 1857. The Bristol and Exeter Railway's (B&ER) line from Taunton, which initially terminated at Yeovil Hendford, was extended to connect with the GWR at Yeovil Pen Mill from 2 February 1857. Both these lines were built using the 7 ft (2,134 mm) broad gauge. The GWR line was converted to what become the 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge in June 1874. The B&ER line was mixed and had trains of both gauges from 12 November 1868 but broad gauge trains ceased operation after 30 June 1879 by which time the B&ER had been taken over by the GWR.

The station originally had two platforms, one for each direction, with a train shed for protection. A fire on 18 April 1859 resulted in one building being burnt down. All trains then used the 'up' platform (that built for trains towards Frome and London Paddington) until the station was rebuilt in the 1880s.

The GWR opened a locomotive depot at the station in September 1856, which operated until January 1959, when it was closed and the locomotives transferred to Yeovil Town depot.

A connection between the GWR line and the Southern Railway line to Exeter was established during World War II to allow trains direct access between Yeovil Junction and Yeovil Pen Mill. This was opened on 13 October 1943 and offered a new route for trains of war materials as well as a diversion route in the event of bomb damage.

1913 accident

A passenger train, hauled by GWR City Class 4-4-0 No. 3710 City of Bath, overran a signal on 8 August 1913 and hit the rear of another passenger train. Two people were killed and ten injured.

Stationmasters

Description

Yeovil Pen Mill has two platforms: platform 1, used predominantly by trains heading north; and platform 3, used mostly by trains heading to Weymouth. Trains using platform 1 could open their doors both sides, as there are physical platforms on both sides. However, the former platform 2 is now disused, and trains open their doors on the left hand side (when arriving from the south).

Services

Great Western Railway operate the majority of services at Pen Mill on their route between Weymouth and Gloucester via Bristol Temple Meads.

South Western Railway operate a few services between London Waterloo and Pen Mill, some via Yeovil Junction and others via Westbury.

The town is also served by Yeovil Junction railway station, on the West of England Main Line, and served by South Western Railway. Commencing December 2015 a limited regular passenger service began using the rail connection between the two lines. The two stations are just under two miles apart by road.

References