SJ7787 : Altrincham Bus Station
taken 7 years ago, near to Altrincham, Trafford, England
The station was opened as "Altrincham and Bowdon" on 3 April 1881 by the Manchester South Junction and Altrincham Railway, replacing two separate stations, neither of which was more than half a mile either side.
Platforms 1 and 2 served local trains to Manchester, electrified in 1931 at 1500V, and platforms 3 and 4 were (and still are) for trains to Chester.
The Manchester line was re-electrified at 25kV in 1971, allowing trains to run through to Crewe, and about the same time the depot south of the station was closed, platforms 1 and 2 becoming terminal ones.
The above is a summary from local author Frank Dixon's history of the line, published 1973 by the Oakwood Press.
The station name was shortened to just "Altrincham" in 1974. The electric service to Manchester ceased in 1991 in preparation for conversion to tram operation; diesel services from Manchester to Chester have run via Stockport since then, rejoining the MSJA route briefly at Navigation Road, from where they occupy one of the two tracks and the trams the other. Tram operation started in 1992.
The original Altrincham bus station was replaced in 1975 with one immediately outside the railway station, making a modern interchange. The interchange was rebuilt in 2014.