The original heavy-rail element of the station was opened by the Manchester and Leeds Railway in 1839 (for economical reasons) 0.5 miles (0.8 km) to the south of Rochdale town centre.

The town's first station, which opened in 1839, was adjacent to Moss Lane and located around 300 yards (270 m) east of the present one.

[1] The single storey structure was replaced by the current depot in April 1889, being too small to handle the increasing traffic levels on the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway's main line between Leeds & Manchester and the associated branch lines to Bury (1848), Oldham (1863) and Bacup (1881) that had subsequently been opened.

Passengers thereafter had to walk through a subway from the Maclure Road entrance and climb stairs to the main concourse, which includes a ticket office and snack bar.

Terminating trains from Manchester and beyond use the stub of the former Oldham branch (which has been converted into a turnback siding) to reverse clear of the main line.

Plans to extend Greater Manchester's Metrolink light rail network to Rochdale were part expansion project Phase 3A,[6] began in 2009.

Northern Rail services via Oldham ceased in October 2009, when the line closed to allow this conversion work to start.

[13] These will include the provision of a new turnback facility (bay platform) for terminating trains from the Manchester direction at the south end of the station (due for completion in May 2016) and the refurbishment and recommissioning of the disused Miall St subway; this was duly reopened in July 2015.

The operator's new Northern Connect network will serve the station and offer through services to Liverpool and Chester via Warrington Bank Quay; there will be also extra evening and Sunday trains on the existing routes.