 Work continued apace and by 3 April 1848 the first freight trains were run . Passenger services started on 17 April 1848 and the first passenger train left the temporary station at Wheildon Road , Stoke , hauled by locomotive No. 1 Dragon , heading for a temporary station at Norton Bridge on the London and North Western Railway ( LNWR ) . The opening of the line gave the Potteries a railway link with Birmingham and London which made it an instant success with the public . Profits for the first two months were £ 1 @,@ 668 ' exceeding expectations ' . 
