Bromsgrove's new £24m railway station has opened.

The station includes 350 parking spaces, a waiting room, a staffed ticket office and longer platforms.
It was expected to open to passengers in November, but Network Rail admitted in April workers had faced problems.

The station is compatible with electrification of the line, which will facilitate more trains to and from Birmingham, Worcestershire County Council said.

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It stated longer platforms would allow additional rail services to stop at the new site, which was built about 320ft (100m) from the town's previous station.

Another station, Worcestershire Parkway, near junction 7 of the M5 for Worcester, is due to open next year.
The station, near Norton, will join the Cotswolds and Birmingham to Bristol lines.

The county council said the Bromsgrove and Worcestershire Parkway stations "are serving... different passengers".

A spokeswoman said: "Worcestershire Parkway will address the current chronic under-provision of parking spaces for mid- and south-Worcestershire passengers wishing to access trains to London or Cross Country services.

"Many of these passengers are currently driving to Birmingham International or Warwick Parkway."

The new Bromsgrove station was developed by the county council, the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and Network Rail, with construction contractor Buckingham Group.

It added the WMCA replaces Centro, the delivery arm of the former West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority, which jointly funded the Bromsgrove station in partnership with the council.

Source: BBC