University railway station serves the University of Birmingham, Birmingham Women's Hospital, and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in the West Midlands of England. It is on the Cross-City Line, which runs from Redditch and Bromsgrove to Lichfield via Birmingham New Street. Most services are operated by West Midlands Railway who manage the station, but some are operated by CrossCountry. The station is the only main line railway station in Great Britain built specifically to serve a university. History Located on the former Birmingham West Suburban Railway, University station was built in 1977–8 to the designs of the architect John Broome as part of the upgrade of the Cross City line. The station was opened by William Rodgers, the Secretary of State for Transport, on 8 May 1978. It is a short distance away from the former Somerset Road station which closed in the 1930s. The station is part built on the site of the ancient Metchley Roman Fort. The Cross-City Line was electrified in 1993 and the current Class 323 electric multiple units were introduced by British Rail on local services. In 2017, it was announced that University railway station would receive up to £10 million as an improvement fund to enhance passenger experience and reduce overcrowding, as part of the Government's Midlands Engine Strategy. Facilities Pedestrian access is via University Road West, close to the Medical School and bus interchange - around uphill from University Square. Owing to the station's campus location on a service road there is no car parking, although nearby Selly Oak station is a designated Park and Ride station. The station is alongside the Worcester and Birmingham Canal, a popular cycling and jogging route. Access is at street level as there is a fence between Platform 2 and the towpath. On the concourse are two automated ticket machines and two windowed ticket booths, staffed all day Monday to Saturday and from 9:20 on Sundays. There is lift access down to both platforms from the entrance. Platform 2 has a covered waiting room. Fare control is enforced by a line of automatic ticket barriers installed in April 2009, as at Five Ways station. Services The station is served by West Midlands Railway with local Cross-City Line services operated by 3- or 6-car Class 323 electric multiple units. West Midlands Trains longer-distance services to Hereford and CrossCountry services to Cardiff and Nottingham are operated by air-conditioned Turbostar diesel