Darlaston Loop

From TrainSpottingWorld, for Rail fans everywhere

Darlaston Loop was a railway which connected the townships of Willenhall and Wednesbury and was so named because it passed through the township of Darlaston.

The line was opened in 1863 to by-pass the recently constructed railway through Walsall. It operated as a single track until a second track was added in 1872, and the only station on the line was located in Darlaston town centre. It closed in 1887 but the line remained open to goods trains for another 80 years or so, when it finally fell victim to the Beeching Axe during the 1960s.

A public footpath has been created along some of the trackbed, including the section which passed through Darlaston Station.