Carnforth railway station

History

Carnforth railway station was opened in 1846 by the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway (L&CR). It had a single platform and was a second-class station. It became a junction in 1857 when the Ulverston and Lancaster Railway arrived from the northwest, the station was its southern terminus. The Furness Railway took over the U&LR in 1862 and became the second major company operating to Carnforth.

The station was enlarged during the 1870s and in 1880 received trains from the Midland Railway following the commissioning of a south-to-east direct curve to the Furness and Midland Joint Railway that created a triangular junction. The L&CR was taken over by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) and Carnforth was operated under joint management by Furness, Midland and LNWR. Station personnel wore a uniform with the initials CJS for Carnforth: Joint Station. The Furness Railway erected a distinctive stone-built signal box to the north-west of the station in 1882, used until 1903, and this survives preserved as a listed building.

A major rebuilding project, including a 300-yard long platform (currently used by northbound services), took place in 1938 with government funding - it brought the number of platforms in use to six. In 1944, the government approved the rebuilding of Carnforth MPD into a major regional railway depot.

Brief Encounter was partly filmed there in February 1945. The station clock became a powerful icon through repeated use in the film.

The West Coast Main Line platforms were closed in May 1970, following the withdrawal of local stopping passenger services between Lancaster and Carlisle two years earlier. The platform walls facing the fast lines were demolished, cut back and fenced off before the commissioning of 25 kV overhead electrification in 1974. This made Carnforth a branch line station, even though it is situated on the main line, as WCML trains cannot call. In 2011, Network Rail rejected proposals to reopen the mainline platforms, stating that there would be too few passengers to justify slowing down mainline trains. Only the former platforms 4 & 5 (now renumbered 1 & 2) remain in use, as the old 'Midland bay' that once handled trains on the Joint line to Skipton & Leeds is also disused and no longer rail-connected.

Responsibility for the signalling at the station is divided between Preston PSB (main line) and the one surviving manual ex-Furness Railway signal box at Carnforth Station Junction, sited just past the junction between the Barrow & Leeds lines. This has acted as the 'fringe' box to the PSB since the main line was resignalled in 1972/3. Two other boxes (F&M Junction & East Junction) were closed & demolished when the northern side of the triangle (avoiding the station) was decommissioned in 1998.

After lying in a semi-derelict state for many years, the station buildings were refurbished between 2000 & 2003 and returned to commercial use. An award-winning Heritage Centre and the "Brief Encounter" Refreshment Room, a number of shops and a travel/ticket office occupy the buildings. The outer half of the non-operational up main (southbound) platform is in use as the access route to the subway, the active platforms & tea room.

There is also a micropub called The Snug which was the first of its kind to be set up in the North West and has been in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide They host an annual beer festival inside the Heritage Centre in mid to late November.

Facilities

The booking office is staffed part-time (six days per week, closed Sundays & public holidays) - it is run by an independent retailer on behalf of the local authority but sells a full range of National Rail tickets. Both platforms have waiting rooms and step-free access (by the aforementioned subway ramps) from the station entrance, whilst train running information is provided by a P.A system and digital information screens.

Operators

Carnforth is served by Northern, who operate the following routes:

For the Northern franchise that started in April 2016 until March 2025, all Furness Line services will be transferred to a single operator, Northern, with TransPennine Express services ceasing. Management of the stations on the route, including Carnforth, will transfer as part of the franchise changeover. The timetable will be improved from 18-20 trains per day to 21 each way and more through trains to and from Manchester Airport (from four to eight, marketed under the 'Northern Connect' brand). There will also be two additional weekday and one extra Sunday service on the Leeds route.

Carnforth is also the headquarters of the West Coast Railway Company.