Place Accrington Station code ACR DfT category E Number of platforms 2 | Grid reference SD757285 Managed by Northern 2011/12 0.346 million | |
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Address Accrington, United Kingdom Original company East Lancashire Railway 1844–59 Similar Blackburn railway station, Hapton railway station, Burnley Central railway st, Burnley Manchester Road rail, Church and Oswaldtw | ||
Accrington railway station serves the town of Accrington in Lancashire, England. It is a station on the East Lancashire Line 6 1⁄4 miles (10.1 km) east of Blackburn railway station operated by Northern.
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It is also served by Caldervale Line express services between Blackpool North, York and Leeds.
History
The station was opened in 1848 by the East Lancashire Railway, which amalgamated with the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway in 1859. Taken into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the Grouping of 1923, the line then passed on to the London Midland Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948.
The station was formerly a major junction on the ELR, with the line to Bury and Salford diverging southwards from that towards Blackburn & Preston at the western end of the station, just before the impressive viaduct that carries the line over the town centre. This was for many years a busy commuter route carrying regular trains from Skipton and Colne to Manchester Victoria, but it fell victim to the Beeching Axe in the sixties and closed to passengers on 5 December 1966. Few traces of this route remain today, the formation through the town (including part of the notorious 1 in 40 Baxenden Bank) having been built over.
When Sectorisation was introduced, the station was served by Regional Railways until the Privatisation of British Railways.
Buildings and structures
The station has two side platforms, flanking the twin-track railway line. Other than three small shelters (two on platform 2 and one on platform one) there is no protection from the elements; indeed, even with the recent improvements, the whole impression is one of a basic halt. It offers disabled access via ramps adjacent to the platforms.
In 2011 the station underwent a major rebuild, as part of a project to create a model of sustainable energy use for a railway station. This redevelopment cost £2 million, of which £500,000 was funded by the European Union's Interreg IVB programme. The previously existing ticket office has been demolished, and was replaced by a new build and constructed, where possible, with local materials including recycled stone. The building uses a rainwater harvesting system, photovoltaic cells and solar hot water generation panels on the new tower.
Services
There is an hourly service from Accrington to Blackpool North (westbound) and Leeds/York (eastbound) on the Caldervale Line. This now also runs hourly on Sundays since the May 2009 timetable change, though it was suspended beyond Burnley (with a replacement bus connection to/from Hebden Bridge) due to ongoing engineering work at Holme Tunnel between November 2013 and late March 2014.
These call at Blackburn, Preston, Poulton-le-Fylde & Blackpool North westbound and Burnley Manchester Road, Hebden Bridge, Halifax, Bradford Interchange, New Pudsey, Leeds, Cross Gates, Garforth, East Garforth, Micklefield, Church Fenton (2-hourly) and York eastbound.
On the East Lancashire Line, Monday to Saturday daytimes, there is an hourly service from Accrington to Blackpool South (westbound) and Colne (eastbound). There was also a solitary Mon-Fri morning commuter service from Colne to Manchester Victoria that formerly called here, along with a corresponding return working during the evening. This was however withdrawn at the May 2009 timetable change (it was diverted to run to Clitheroe instead).
There is a two-hourly service in each direction on Sundays. These call at all stops (except Salwick), including the major stations of Preston, Blackburn and Burnley Central.
From May 2015, direct services to Manchester Victoria have resumed (after a gap of almost 50 years) with the reopening of the Todmorden Curve. These start at Blackburn and continue onwards through Burnley Manchester Road, using the Caldervale Line south of Todmorden to reach Rochdale and Manchester. An hourly service each way operates on this route throughout the week.