English: St Erth railway station photo-survey (18) Looking in the up (eastbound) direction from the footbridge between platforms 1 and 2 at St Erth railway station. The line diverging to the left immediately beyond the end of the platform is the St Ives branch (though St Ives trains use platform 3 which out of shot to the left).

St Erth signal box, which dates from 1899, stands between the St Ives branch and the main line. Beside the signal box, a trailing crossover links the up and down lines. There is also a fan of sidings opposite the signal box on the south side of the main line (out of shot, right).

The well-maintained St Erth railway station in Cornwall is on the former Great Western Railway (GWR) West of England main line. It is the junction for the St Ives branch line and retains a traditional appearance with its handsome granite buildings, wooden valanced canopies and semaphore signalling. The station is east of the A30 road near Lelant and is over a mile from the village from which it takes it name.

The original single-platform station (built by the West Cornwall Railway in 1852) was rebuilt by the GWR after the St Ives branch opened in the 1870s. The mainline was originally single-track but the line was doubled eastwards in 1899 and westwards in 1929. The St Ives branch was built as, and remained, a single-track line.

There are three platforms in use at St Erth station. Platform 1 is a facing platform serving the down (westbound) main line. Platform 2 serves the up (eastbound) main line. The two main line platforms can accommodate eight-car trains and are connected by a covered footbridge of GWR vintage (the bridge provides the only access to platform 1). Platform 3 is a terminal bay platform serving the St Ives branch. The west end of platform 2 is a facing platform but the east end forms an island platform (albeit on two levels) with platform 3. There is also a short loading dock on a second track in the St Ives branch bay.

St Erth station is managed by First Great Western (FGW) which operates most of the services. The St Ives service is operated as an out-and-back shuttle by FGW (though a few branch trains are extended to and from Penzance). The company also operates local stopping services between Plymouth and Penzance and FGW expresses from London to Penzance stop at St Erth. CrossCountry operates daily services to and from the Midlands, the north and Scotland. South West Trains operates infrequent services to London Waterloo.

For pictures of St Erth station in 1979 and 1981 see [1] and [2] .