Northallerton railway station

History

The station was opened by the Great North of England Railway on 30 March 1841. Eleven years later the Leeds Northern Railway completed its line from Leeds to Stockton through the town, although this did not initially connect with the main line. Instead trains called at nearby Northallerton Town station a short distance away, near the point where it passed beneath the line towards Darlington. By 1854 the GNoE and the LN had both become part of the North Eastern Railway which soon began running through trains on the LN route via Thirsk. These then rejoined the line towards Eaglescliffe by means of a new link from the main line at High Junction that was opened in 1856. The original LN route southwards towards Melmerby was then operated as a branch line until 1901, when the NER connected it to the main line via another new junction at the southern end of the station and started using it as the primary route from West Yorkshire to Teesside once more.

Meanwhile, the Wensleydale branch line to Bedale, Leyburn and Hawes had been opened in stages between 1848 and 1878. It joined the main line immediately north of the station and its trains used a bay at the northern end of the northbound island platform. Passenger trains on the branch were withdrawn from 26 April 1954, although it remains open for occasional M.o.D trains to Redmire and heritage trains operated by the Wensleydale Railway. The old down passenger loop platform and Hawes bay were both removed in the early 1970s and currently there is no direct route to the branch from the station as its junction faces north; trains must access it by means of a reversing siding off the northbound main line. The defunct south to west curve will need to be reinstated and a new platform constructed before Wensleydale trains can run to and from the station once again (the link to and from Leeming Bar was made by bus until late 2014, though a new temporary terminus has now been constructed approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) away - see above).

Services were withdrawn on the line towards Ripon on 6 March 1967, after the route was earmarked for closure in the Beeching Report. The line north-eastwards towards Stockton had already lost its local passenger services by this time, but it was retained for freight traffic to and from Teesside and occasional longer distance passenger trains. It now carries a regular service to and from Middlesbrough.

Facilities

The station is fully staffed , with its ticket hall open from 05:30 each day (except Sundays, when it opens at 08:45) until 20:00. Self-service ticket machines are also available, which can be used for the collection of advance purchase/pre-paid tickets. Toilets and a newsagents shop are provided on the concourse, along with heated waiting rooms on both platforms. Train running information is offered via digital CIS displays, timetable posters, customer help points and automated announcements. Step-free access is available to both platforms via ramps from the subway.

Services

TransPennine Express is the main train operator at the station. On Mondays to Saturdays there are generally two trains an hour southbound - one to Manchester Airport via York, Leeds and Manchester Piccadilly and one to Liverpool Lime Street via Leeds & Manchester Victoria. Northbound there is an hourly service to both Middlesbrough and to Newcastle Central.

Sundays there is generally a two-hourly service towards Manchester Airport & Liverpool and a two-hourly service towards both Newcastle Central and Middlesbrough.

The station used to be served by very few direct Virgin Trains East Coast services to London King's Cross. However, East Coast undertook a significant revamp of their timetables in May 2011. As a result of this, there are now more frequent daily weekday direct services from Newcastle Central to London King's Cross and more direct services from London King's Cross to Newcastle Central which call at Northallerton. Furthermore, there are now also additional peak direct services between London and Edinburgh Waverley.

All Grand Central Railway services between London Kings Cross and Sunderland stop at Northallerton each day (5 services each way)

CrossCountry services to and from Newcastle Central and Scotland pass through Northallerton, but do not call there.

Level crossings

Northallerton has three level crossings in the town; Boroughbridge Road (A167) Romanby Road (B1333) and Low Gates (A167). All three of these level crossings are activated by freight trains going to and from the Teesside area with Low Gates also being activated by passenger trains going to and from Middlesbrough. Low Gates, on the road to Darlington, is the worst for traffic congestion with the barriers being down for 30 minutes in each hour. Freight trains are often held at the red signal whilst passenger trains leave the station (due to the passenger lines crossing the freight avoiding line and passenger trains having priority in signalling). The wagons of the freight trains block Low Gates crossing until the freight train is given a green light to proceed. Motorists in the town have launched a petition to have a study into how the problem could be managed.

Accidents and incidents

On 29 November 1979, a Kings Cross to Edinburgh Service (1S28) was derailed just south of the station. The whole train completely left the tracks, but stayed upright and came to a halt 550 metres north of where it first hit some trailing points which caused the derailment. Although the compliment of passengers was in excess of 440, only one person was kept in hospital overnight.

The leading power car of the High Speed Train (E43110) was found to have a seized front axle due to a gearbox failure and confusion over maintenance schedules. The seizure of the axle had created an out of gauge wheelset, which then derailed on the points.

Ripon Railway

The city was previously served by Ripon railway station on the Leeds-Northallerton line that ran between Leeds and Northallerton. It was once part of the North Eastern Railway and then LNER.

The Ripon line was closed to passengers on 6 March 1967 and to freight on 5 September 1969 as part of the wider Beeching Axe, despite a vigorous campaign by local campaigners, including the city's MP. Today much of the route of the line through the city is now a relief road and although the former station still stands, it is now surrounded by a new housing development. The issue remains a significant one in local politics and there are movements wanting to restore the line. Reports suggest the reopening of a line between Ripon railway station and Harrogate railway station would be economically viable, costing £40 million and could initially attract 1,200 passengers a day, rising to 2,700. Campaigners call on MPs to restore Ripon railway link.