[3] At Shrewsbury in steam days, the GWR regularly turned its locomotives by running round the triangle formed by using the Abbey Foregate loop, which links the Wolverhampton Line with the Welsh Marches Line and enables through running for freight trains, summer Saturday specials and formerly for trains like the Cambrian Coast Express.

Until 1967, Shrewsbury was served by the GWR, latterly BR Western Region, express services between London Paddington and Birkenhead Woodside.

The station was given Grade II listed status in May 1969;[1] this applies to the main building on Castle Foregate, adjacent to platform 3.

Arwel Hughes composed Tydi a roddaist (You gave) in 20 minutes during a wait between train connections in 1938.

[5] As a result of Shrewsbury's joint (GWR/LNWR) history, and having been transferred at different times between the Western and London Midland regions of BR and more recently Network Rail – it is now in the Great Western territory again – the signalling is a diverse mixture of lower-quadrant and upper-quadrant semaphore signals, with a few colour lights too.

[7] In Autumn 2010 changes were made to allow Cambrian and Welsh Marches line trains to depart in a southerly direction from platform 3.

Changes made in 2010 to the signalling and track now allow additional passenger trains (those coming in from and going out to the Hereford, Heart of Wales and Cambrian lines) to use platform 3.

[9] As of November 2024, a small coffee shop has opened in the former information centre on the ground floor of the main station building before the ticket gates.

Prior to the June 2024 timetable change, Avanti West Coast operated a daily direct service to and from London Euston via Birmingham New Street and Coventry, with Class 221s[19][20][21]