Rail transport in Northamptonshire

Rail transport in Northamptonshire
Rail transport in Northamptonshire
	Trackside view of southbound Pendolino from the public footpath at Roade, Northamptonshire
Operation
Infrastructure company	National Rail
Major operators	East Midlands Railway London Northwestern Railway
Statistics
Ridership	4.86 million (2023)
Track gauge
Main	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Features
No. stations	6

Rail transport in Northamptonshire is an integral part of transport in Northamptonshire and part of the national rail network of Great Britain. Rail in the county of Northamptonshire began in the 19th century and there were many different railway companies. There used to be 92 railway stations in Northamptonshire, however following the Beeching cuts today there are only six: Kings Sutton, Long Buckby, Northampton, Kettering, Wellingborough, and Corby.

History

Historically, rail transport in Northamptonshire has been hampered by the fact that most railway lines pass through the county, as opposed to the county being a destination itself.^[1]

Northamptonshire historically had many railways and stations, having had 92^[1] total railway stations, most of which were closed following the Beeching cuts, leaving the county with six railway stations still open on the national rail network.^[1]

Early

The first major passenger railway to enter Northamptonshire was the London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) in 1838; however, it did not pass through the county town of Northampton. This is thought to be because the gradients from Blisworth, where the L&BR passed, to Northampton were larger than locomotives at the time were capable of handling.^[2]^[3]^[1]^[4]

Development of major lines

The decision to avoid Northampton by the L&BR meant that the largest settlement in the county, Northampton, did not have direct rail links to London. A branch from the main line was built to Northampton in the early 1840s: the Northampton and Peterborough Railway, from Blisworth, which gave the town indirect rail links to London and Birmingham.^[5]

The successor to the L&BR, the London and North Western Railway (LNWR), decided to construct the Northampton loop line through Northampton in the 1870s. It was built as part of a wider scheme to double the capacity of the West Coast Main Line between Bletchley and Rugby by quadrupling the track; however, routing the additional tracks on a deviation via Northampton had the advantage of giving the town a much better rail service, including a direct service to London, and avoiding the cost of widening the Kilsby Tunnel. The LNWR obtained parliamentary approval for the line in 1875 and commenced construction in 1877.^[5]

Significance of stations

When it was decided to expand Northampton railway station, owing to the proximity of the River Nene, the only way the expansion could be facilitated was to expand onto the site of Northampton Castle.^[6] On 18 December 1876, the L&NWR purchased the site from William Walker and subsequently demolished the remains of the castle except for the postern gate, which, following a local petition, was moved to a new site in the boundary wall of the new station, where it remains to this day.^[7]^[6]

Following the Great Depression in the United Kingdom, several post-grouping railways were forced to initiate station closures. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway, successors to the Midland Railway, decided in July 1939 to close St. John's as a cost-cutting measure. Services were switched to Castle station via Hardingstone junction.^[8]

Beeching cuts

Following the nationalisation of British railways in 1948, British Railways took over the running of all lines and stations within the country.

In an effort to remove railway lines that were seen as unprofitable or an "unnecessary duplication" of existing railways, Richard Beeching, then Chairman of British Railways, began a reorganisation process known as the Beeching cuts in a bid to restore profitability and increase efficiency. This resulted in the closure of most smaller passenger lines themselves, rather than the limited station closures that had preceded them. Some were spared complete closure through conversion to freight-only operation. Most of these freight-only lines were later closed fully, although some remain open.^[1]

Former railways

Great Central Railway

The Great Central Railway (GCR) entered Northamptonshire in the west, away from Northampton itself. The railway entered the county south of Rugby. The GCR crossed a tributary of the River Leam by the Staverton viaduct, the River Leam itself through the Catesby viaduct, and a range of hills at the end of the valley through the Catesby tunnel. Former stations on the line (within Northamptonshire) are:^[1]

Former LNWR lines

Rugby–Peterborough line

The Rugby-Peterborough line passes through the north of Northamptonshire. The L&BR, prior to its merger to become the London and North Western Railway (LNWR), were interested in creating a branch line, from Rugby to Peterborough, with the intention of keeping the Midland Railway out of Northamptonshire. The branch line was a single track which opened between 1850 and 1852 in stages however only got as far as Seaton railway station, requiring the use of the Midland Railway's Syston and Peterborough Railway to get to Peterborough. The line was doubled in 1878, and the LNWR built the final section of the line from Seaton to Peterborough in 1879.^[1] Former stations within Northamptonshire include:^[1]

Ashley and Weston railway station
Wakerley and Barrowden railway station
King's Cliffe railway station
Nassington railway station
Lilbourne railway station (village in Northamptonshire, station in Leicestershire)
Rockingham railway station (Leicestershire) (village in Northamptonshire, station in Leicestershire)

Weedon–Leamington Spa

The LNWR (now known as the West Coast Main Line) passed through the village Weedon, which was then an important military supply depot and barracks.^[1] The LNWR created a line, originally from Weedon railway station to Daventry railway station, although in 1890 they received approval to extend the line to Leamington Spa railway station and it was opened in 1895. Former stations on the line included:^[1]

Banbury–Bletchley line

The LNWR also created a line from Banbury to Bletchley, passing through Northamptonshire, from Banbury (on the line now known as the Chiltern Main Line) to Bletchley. The line was in the south of the country and construction was started in 1847, and completed in 1850. Stations on the former line within Northamptonshire include:^[1]

Market Harborough–Northampton line

The LNWR also created a line from Market Harborough to Northampton in 1859.^[1] This included within it the complete remodelling and expansion of Northampton Castle railway station, which up to that point had been a smaller station serving only the Northampton Loop section of the West Coast Main Line. The line interchanged with the Northampton Loop at Northampton Castle station, and with the line to Peterborough at Northampton Bridge Street station. The line also featured two sets of two tunnels, the Oxendon Tunnels and the Kelmarsh Tunnels.

The line was originally a single-tracked line, but due to the high demand on the line during the 1860s, it was turned into a double track. The Newark-Market Harborough line built by the Great Northern Railway (GNR) in 1879 also increased demand on the Northampton–Market Harborough line, and the LNWR was able to run trains on the Newark-Market Harborough line in exchange for the GNR being able to run trains on the Northampton–Market Harborough line. This allowed for the LNWR to run direct services between Northampton and Nottingham.

The line allowed for Northampton to access further locations in the Midlands and further north by trains changing at Market Harborough station. This allowed for a direct train from Northampton to Skegness on Saturdays during the summer.^[1]