The original Ruddington station was on the western side of the village and was of typical Great Central island platform style. The station had a goods yard, road over bridge and GC-style station buildings. It looked very similar to Quorn & Woodhouse with a similar road bridge type and goods yard size. In Great Central times seventeen trains in each direction per day served the station and the villages' 2,500 population.
An early picture of Ruddington station from about 1920
The buildings are now demolished and the edging stones to the platform are now gone. The whole area is very overgrown and is threatened with a housing development from Crest Homes. See the news page for a press release about these developments.If the housing can be stopped then it is hoped to re-open Ruddington station with a proposed northern extension of the Great Central to meet the new Nottingham tram system coming south (possibly via the GCR trackbed as far as north Ruddington). An interchange station could then be constructed giving a rail link right from the heart of Nottingham.
A little further south is 50 steps bridge. This is a steel foot bridge where the line from the Heritage Centre meets the main line. The track work in this area is almost complete except for the long term south chord.
A plan showing the 50 steps
junction. This track work has already been completed with the exception
of the south chord