Place Ripon Pre-grouping North Eastern Railway Platforms in use 2 | Grid reference SE318723 1 June 1848 Opened | |
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Original company Leeds and Thirsk Railway Post-grouping London and North Eastern Railway Similar Thirsk railway station, Northallerton railway station, Harrogate railway station, Starbeck railway station | ||
Ripon railway station was a railway station that served Ripon, North Yorkshire, England on the Leeds-Northallerton Line that ran between Harrogate and Northallerton.
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History
Opened by the Leeds and Thirsk Railway on 1 June 1848.
On 11 August 1866 Prince Edward and Princess Alexandra arrived at the station for a short visit to Studley Royal. They returned the day afterwards to catch the Royal Train to Barnard Castle
It was taken over by the North Eastern Railway, which became part of the London and North Eastern Railway during the Grouping of 1923. The line then passed on to the Eastern Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. It was then closed by the British Railways Board in 1967 as part of the Beeching Axe.
Proposals for re-opening
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 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.
In October 2015, North Yorkshire County Council included the reopening in its Strategic Transport Prospectus which was submitted to Transport for the North. In February 2016 the County Council included it in its Local Transport Plan, but it is accepted that it is unlikely to happen until after 2030.