Morpeth railway station

History

The station was opened by the Newcastle and Berwick Railway on 1 March 1847. It was designed by Benjamin Green in the Scottish Baronial style and retains its original station buildings.

A severe ninety degree curve in the line of the railway immediately to the south of the station has been the site of four serious rail accidents, two of them fatal.

Blyth and Tyne Railway

Another station was opened by the Blyth and Tyne Railway on 1 April 1858 and closed 24 May 1880. This was a terminus station that was also used by North British Railway trains from the west from Scots Gap from the opening of their line in 1862 until 1872. The B&T line to Bedlington lost its passenger trains in April 1950 (although occasional summer services between Scotland and the North Eastern coastal resorts continued operating over it until the 1960s), but it remains in use for freight and may have its passenger trains restored in the future (as an extension of the current local stopping service) - the South East Northumberland Rail User Group is currently campaigning for this. The current local service from Newcastle that terminates here uses the connection onto the B&T line north of the station to reverse and layover clear of the main line between trips.

Passenger trains over the old NBR line from Scots Gap and Reedsmouth/Rothbury ended in September 1952 and it closed completely in 1966 - few traces of this route now remain.

Facilities

In December 2011 a self-service FastTicket machine was installed by Northern for use outside the hours of operation of the ticket office (06:40 -12:40, Mondays to Saturdays only). Pre-purchased tickets can now also be collected from Morpeth. The ticket office is located on the eastern side of the line in the main station building, which also has a taxi office and toilets. The opposite (northbound) platform has a waiting shelter and the two are linked by a subway with lifts for wheelchair and mobility impaired users. Train running information is supplied via timetable posters and digital display screens.

Services

Morpeth station is served by Virgin Trains East Coast intercity trains running to London and Edinburgh. Northern operates a regular local service from here to Newcastle Central and MetroCentre (hourly Mondays - Saturdays) - two services per day continue northwards to Alnmouth and Chathill. Northern do not run services to Morpeth on a Sunday so services are provided by VTEC and CrossCountry. Since December 2005 a few long distance services operated by CrossCountry have also stopped at Morpeth. TransPennine Express will start calling here from December 2019, when the current Liverpool to Newcastle service is extended to Edinburgh.

Future

In May 2016 ORR gave the green light to a new operator called East Coast Trains which would operate services to Edinburgh Waverley via Stevenage, Newcastle & Morpeth. The operate would begin operation in 2021.

A £1.7 million redevelopment of the station was approved in October 2016 and is due to start in Spring 2017 - this will see the main buildings refurbished and the portico entrance modernised to incorporate a cafeteria, expanded ticket office and upgraded toilets. 500 square metres of office space would also be created for local small businesses. The project is being led by Greater Morpeth Development Trust and Northumberland County Council, with financial support from the Railway Heritage Trust, Network Rail, Northern and the Heritage Lottery Fund.