VIDEO: A few hours in the evening peak at Rugeley Trent Valley station, featuring Avanti West Coast class 221 Voyagers, class 390 Pendolinos, London Northwestern Railway class 350 Desiros, GB Railfreight and Freightliner class 66s, Freightliner class 90s and the Network Rail New Measurement Train (NMT).

Rugeley Trent Valley station was first opened on September 15, 1847 as part of the Trent Valley Railway, which acted as a more direct line between Rugby and Stafford which avoided Birmingham, thus allowing for faster journeys between London Euston, the north west and Scotland.

In 1859, the Cannock Mineral Railway opened a line from Cannock to Rugeley, where it also linked up with the South Staffordshire Railway line to Walsall and Dudley. This line would operate until 1965 when services between Rugeley and Walsall ceased however the line remained open for freight and diversionary use.

The line between Walsall and Rugeley was eventually reopened in stages between 1989 and 1998 and named the 'Chase Line', named after the nearby Cannock Chase.

The station, and whole line in general, was served by a local diesel shuttle between Stafford and either Rugby or Coventry until 2004 when services were withdrawn to allow for the West Coast Main Line to be upgraded, increasing the number of tracks and, with a new fleet of class 350 'Desiro' trains, the introduction of a semi-fast service between London Euston and Crewe via the Trent Valley line in 2008.

The Chase Line began running electric train services in May 2019, initially running an hourly fast service to London Euston via Birmingham New Street however, this was simplified from 2022 with all trains on the line terminating at either Birmingham New Street or Birmingham International.

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