National Express East Coast

National Express East Coast (NXEC) was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, owned by National Express, that operated the InterCity East Coast franchise on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, North East England and Scotland from December 2007 until November 2009.
During December 2006, the previous franchisee Sea Containers, operating via its subsidiary Great North Eastern Railway (GNER), was stripped of the franchise after failing to meet overly-generous payments. During August 2007, National Express was awarded the franchise via a competitive tender; its bid was criticised for having offered similarly onerous payments to GNER. Within months of commencing operation in December 2007, NXEC became known for its cost-cutting measures and a noted drop in service level. The company became unable to meet its payment obligations, having forecast greater ridership than actually experienced while fuel costs had risen considerably. By early 2009, National Express was in talks with the government over possible financial assistance with the franchise. Months later, in light of National Express's plan to default on the franchise, the Department for Transport announced that the franchise would be re-nationalised. Hence, operations passed to the publicly-owned East Coast on 14 November 2009.
History.
Background.
The original InterCity East Coast franchise was awarded to the Bermuda-based transport and container leasing company Sea Containers, which operated it from April 1996 until April 2005 via its subsidiary Great North Eastern Railway (GNER). Within only a few years, the future franchising arrangements of the East Coast route had already begun to be evaluated. During March 2000, the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority announced that two companies, Sea Containers and Virgin Rail Group, had been shortlisted to bid for the next franchise. During January 2002, the Strategic Rail Authority announced that the refranchising process had been scrapped, with an interim extension to GNER's contract being given as a stopgap measure. During October 2004, the Strategic Rail Authority issued the Invitation to Tender for the InterCity East Coast franchise to the four shortlisted bidders, Danish State Railways/English Welsh & Scottish, First, GNER and Virgin Rail Group.
Sea Containers emerged as the victor, being awarded a new seven-year franchise by the Department for Transport, commencing in May 2005, along with an option for a three-year extension dependent on performance targets being met. However, the awarding was subject to criticism that, amid aggressive bidding between the competing companies, GNER had committed itself to fulfilling an overly generous arrangement that may not be financially realistic, and was accused as having overbid to secure the franchise. During the original franchise, the company had been receiving subsidies from the British government to support its operations; however, the terms of the second franchise reversed this to have the operator making payments to the government, specifically a £1.3-billion premium which was due to the Department for Transport over a ten year period. Within two years, the company's financial difficulties had become a public concern, particularly those of its parent company.
In July 2006, rumours began circulating that Sea Containers would be prepared to sell its GNER franchise in an effort to stave off resorting to Chapter 11 proceedings to secure itself from its creditors. In October 2006, Sea Containers filed for bankruptcy protection under the US Chapter 11 process, During December 2006, the Department for Transport announced its intention to strip Sea Containers of its franchise, although continued to GNER operate the franchise on a fixed fee management contract in the interim while another competitive tender was organised.
Tender and award.
In February 2007, the Department for Transport announced that Arriva, First, National Express and Virgin Rail Group had been shortlisted to lodge bids for the new franchise. In August 2007, the Department for Transport awarded the Intercity East Coast franchise to National Express, leading to the creation of National Express East Coast (NXEC) shortly thereafter.
Under the terms of its franchise agreement, National Express committed to paying a £1.4-billion premium to the Department of Transport over a time span of seven years and four months. However, numerous rail analysts at the time promptly voiced concerns that the company had paid too much for the franchise, and had effectively repeated GNER's mistake in order to secure the franchise. According to industry periodical "Rail", even the Department of Transport had classified National Express' bid as having "medium risk", although this would not be made public until years later. Professor Felix Schmid of the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Railway Research and Education, has claimed that National Express had gambled that it would receive a significant amount of revenue via compensatory payments for delays attributable to the East Coast's infrastructure owner, Network Rail. Furthermore, National Express had allegedly spent a reported £23m in its attempts to retain or win new franchises around this period, and had been stripped of several, including Midland Mainline, Gatwick Express and Silverlink, which may have motivated the company's management team to be more generous to emerge with something from its efforts.
National Express's bid had included the stated ambition to increase capacity on its services, specifically to add up to 25 extra services each weekday from December 2010 along with a direct London-Lincoln train that would be operated at two-hourly intervals. However, there was no mention of any new trains for achieving this capacity increase; instead, a number of recently withdrawn British Rail Mark 3 coaches that had been previously operated by Virgin West Coast would be transferred over to NXEC's control. Other promised improvement included the introduction of free Wi-Fi for passengers travelling in standard class, the provision of an additional 2,000 car parking spaces in close proximity to a number of its major stations, and a general reduction in journey times.
Operations.
On 9 December 2007, NXEC commenced operations. Prior to this, the company's management had decided that, rather than incorporate (wholly or in part) the existing GNER branding, a fresh brand would to be adopted, including a distinct new livery intended to embody modernity; this would be rolled out over a two year period. According to "Rail", the franchise, NXEC quickly garnered a reputation for cost-cutting and a decline in service levels, particularly in terms of the onboard catering.
By 2009, NXEC was under increasing financial pressure due to various factors, including compounding rises in fuel prices and the poor economic climate of the time, commonly known as the Great Recession. In contrast to the company's projected revenue increases during its franchise, NXEC's actual operating income (generated primarily from ticket sales) had decreased by 1 percent during the first half of 2009.
Seeking to generate additional revenue to meet this shortfall, NXEC introduced a charge of £2.50 per journey leg for seat reservations. The introduction of these fees was largely met with dissatisfaction from the travelling public.
During April 2009, National Express confirmed that the company was still pursuing talks with the government over possible financial assistance with the franchise, either through a reduction in the premium due or some other form of assistance. This quickly led to speculation that the franchise was increasingly likely to be terminated entirely.
Demise.
In July 2009, it was announced that National Express had plans to default on the franchise, having failed to renegotiate the contractual terms of operation; National Express stating that it would not be providing any further financial support necessary to ensure NXEC remained solvent. This meant NXEC would run out of cash by the end of 2009. As a consequence of this decision, the Department for Transport announced it would establish a publicly owned company to take over the franchise from National Express.
During prior negotiations, the company had reportedly offered to pay over £100 million to be released from its commitment to operate the franchise. Transport Secretary Lord Adonis had rejected this proposal on a matter of principle, stating: "The government is not prepared to renegotiate rail franchises, because I'm simply not prepared to bail out companies that are unable to meet their commitments". In defaulting on the franchise, under the franchising system, National Express only directly incurred losses of £72 million by forfeiting bonds. The franchise failure sparked public and industry calls for the permanent public ownership of the InterCity East Coast franchise, or even the complete scrapping of the entire franchise system. In response, Lord Adonis reiterated the findings of a 2008 National Audit Office report, which had concluded that the rail franchising system delivered good value for money and steadily improving services.
National Express East Coast continued to operate the franchise until 23:59 on 13 November 2009, when the Department for Transport took over through its East Coast subsidiary.
Services.
NXEC's principal routes were from London King's Cross to Leeds and Edinburgh Waverley.
In off-peak times, there were three or four trains per hour to and from King's Cross. The following details apply to weekday operations.
Principal routes.
London–Leeds.
The service between King's Cross and Leeds was generally half-hourly, with all trains serving Wakefield Westgate, most trains serving Peterborough and Doncaster and some serving Stevenage, Grantham, Newark and Retford.
London–Newcastle–Edinburgh.
A half-hourly service between King's Cross and Newcastle operated for most of the day, departing from London on the hour and on the half-hour. The 'top of the hour' departures continued through to Edinburgh Waverley (with the 10:00 departure keeping the traditional name "Flying Scotsman"), with a two-hourly extension to Glasgow Central.
These trains generally ran as limited-stop expresses between London and Newcastle, all trains called at York, and most at Peterborough and Darlington, though afternoon and evening departures from King's Cross ran non-stop to Doncaster or York. The trains leaving King's Cross on the half-hour generally terminated at Newcastle and served Stevenage, Grantham, Newark, Retford, Northallerton, Doncaster and Durham as well as Peterborough, York, and Darlington.
Other routes.
London/Leeds-Aberdeen.
There were four trains per day serving Aberdeen departing Leeds at 07:10 and King's Cross at 10:30 ("The Northern Lights"), 14:00 and 16:00 and Aberdeen at 07:52, 09:52 (The Northern Lights) and 14:50 for King's Cross and 18:16 for Edinburgh with a journey time from King's Cross of just over seven hours. These services were operated by HSTs, as the Edinburgh–Aberdeen line was not electrified.
London-Inverness.
The "Highland Chieftain" ran between Inverness and King's Cross with a journey time of just over eight hours, departing Inverness at 07:55 and King's Cross at 12:00. This service was operated by a HST, as the Edinburgh – Dunblane and Dunblane – Inverness lines were not electrified.
London-Hull.
The "Hull Executive" ran between Hull and King's Cross, departing Hull at 07:00 and King's Cross at 17:20. This service was operated by a HST as the Temple Hirst Junction – Hull Line was not electrified.
London-Skipton.
There was a 06:55 departure from Skipton and Keighley to King's Cross with an 18:03 return. This was an extension of a Leeds – King's Cross service. Though the line was electrified, the service was operated using a HST because the electrical infrastructure on the line was insufficient to support a Class 91 locomotive and the Class 333 EMUs that operate the local services. The Saturday running of the southbound service was the only NXEC southbound service from Leeds not to call at Wakefield Westgate. This service departed from Leeds and headed along the Leeds-Selby Line to join the East Coast Main Line at Hambleton. This was to retain driver route knowledge for diversionary services.
London-Bradford Forster Square.
There was a 06:30 service from Bradford Forster Square to King's Cross with a 17:33 return. This was an extension of a Leeds – King's Cross service and was operated by an InterCity 225 set.
London-Harrogate.
There was a Monday-Saturday 07:28 departure from Harrogate to King's Cross. However, there was no return journey. This was operated by an InterCity 125.
Named trains.
NXEC operated the following named passenger trains:
Proposed routes.
London-Lincoln.
A franchise commitment was to introduce a fifth service out of King's Cross each hour, operating to Lincoln and York on alternate hours from December 2010. It was reportedly proposed for NXEC to lease four Class 90 locomotives and additional Mark 3 coaches for use on the Leeds and York services, while HSTs were intended for use on the Lincoln services. These plans were later shelved, while five Class 180s were leased instead. It was anticipated that one early morning train would start from Cleethorpes, serving Grimsby Town and Market Rasen, with one evening service to Lincoln extended to Cleethorpes.
Rolling stock.
NXEC inherited from GNER a fleet of InterCity 125 High Speed Train sets made up of Class 43 power cars and Mark 3 carriages, and InterCity 225 sets made up of Class 91 locomotives and Mark 4 carriages and Driving Van Trailers. The HSTs were part way through an overhaul program, the power cars being overhauled by Brush Traction at Loughborough and re-engined with MTU 16V4000 engines, and the carriages being refurbished by Wabtec Rail at Doncaster. This programme was completed in 2009.
NXEC offered free Wi-Fi to passengers in both first and standard class.
To operate proposed new services from 2010, five Class 180 "Adelante" units were leased. These were never operated in revenue-earning service with NXEC, although three were sublet to Northern Rail during October 2008.
During 2009, a HST that had been on lease while the fleet was refurbished, was returned to Porterbrook and sent to First Great Western.


Blea Moor Tunnel

Blea Moor Tunnel is a 2,629 yd (2,404 m) railway tunnel located between Ribblehead Viaduct and Dent railway station in England. It is the longest tunnel on the Settle-Carlisle Line, being almost twice as long as the second longest tunnel, Rise Hill Tunnel.
History.
Built by the Midland Railway, it took more than four years to complete. Construction started in 1872, with dynamite transported from Carlisle and Newcastle in carts to the construction site. The wages on offer to the miners who dug the tunnel were 5s () to 5s 6d () per day.
It was completed in 1875 at a cost of £109,000 ().
It passes some 500 feet below the moor after which it was named, and was built with the aid of seven separate construction shafts sunk from the moor above. This permitted sixteen separate gangs of workers to be used during construction (one from each open end and two from the foot of each of the shafts). Four of these were subsequently filled in but three were retained for ventilation purposes and are still used as such today (with occasional ice accumulation problems: ). At one point of the track's history, steam locomotives were tested for their worthiness by driving them through this tunnel.
Traffic.
Any train that goes the full length of the Settle & Carlisle line goes through the Blea Moor Tunnel. This includes passenger trains, all run by Northern (seven each way per day in the 2016-17 timetable), various special excursions (some hauled by steam locomotives) and the many goods trains.
Train simulators.
You can go through the Blea Moor Tunnel either with Microsoft Train Simulator, Trainz Classics 3 or Train Simulator 2021.


Middlesbrough, Stockton and Thornaby Electric Tramways Company

The Middlesbrough, Stockton and Thornaby Electric Tramways Company operated an electric tramway service between Middlesbrough, Thornaby-on-Tees, Stockton-on-Tees and Norton between 1898 and 1921.
History.
The Imperial Tramways Company had been acquiring local tramway companies in the area, and once these were all under its control, it rebuilt these as a unified system to connect Middlesbrough and Stockton. From Norton Green, the former steam route was extended beyond Thornaby to Newport, and the former horse route was extended beyond Middlesbrough Town Hall to Borough Road East. From Middlesbrough railway station the line extended beyond Benson Street, to Roman Road. Services started on 16 July 1898. One further extension from Middlesbrough railway station to the ferry opened on 16 August 1901.
The depot was located off Boathouse Lane at grid reference .
Closure.
On 2 April 1921, the Middlesbrough, Stockton and Thornaby Corporations exercised their rights to purchase the tramway company assets within their own districts and set up their own tramway operations as Middlesbrough Corporation Tramways. The transfer of this Imperial Tramways Company concern brought to an end to Imperial's tramway interests, although the company continued in existence until it sold the Corris Railway in 1930.


Great Grimsby Street Tramways

The Great Grimsby Street Tramways Company was a tramway serving Grimsby and Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire, England. It was a subsidiary of The Provincial Tramways Company. They opened a horse tramway in 1881, running from the Wheatsheaf Inn in Bargate to the border with Cleethorpes, with a branch along Freeman Street, and extended the line into Cleethorpes in 1887. It followed the trend of many British systems, and was converted to an electric tramway in December 1901. Small extensions were made to the system at both ends, but the basic plan of the system remained the same throughout its life.
The company ran a mix of tramcars, some bought from new, four bought from the first public tramway to be built in London, and some built by the Corporation, using trucks obtained from the Malleable Steel Castings Company. One unusual vehicle was an open-top single-deck toastrack car which was known as the Tram Coach. It only ran for four years, before it was sold to another system. After 1925, Grimsby Corporation bought second-hand vehicles from Sunderland, and Great Grimsby Street Tramways bought some from the Gosport and Fareham system.
Grimsby Corporation exercised their rights under the Tramways Act 1870 to buy the tramway within their boundaries after 21 years, and so the system was split in two in 1925, after negotiations were completed. They built a new depot from an aircraft hangar, but began replacing the tramway by trolleybuses and motorbuses soon after acquisition. The company were left with a small part of their original system, which they sold to Cleethorpes Urban District Council in 1936, along with their motorbuses. Cleethorpes converted the system to a trolleybus route just one year later, and trams finally stopped running on 17 July 1937.
History.
Great Grimsby Street Tramways Company (1881).
The Great Grimsby Street Tramways Company was a subsidiary of The Provincial Tramways Company, which had been set up in 1872 and owned a number of tramway systems, principally in the Portsmouth area, but also in London, Plymouth and Grimsby. They obtained the Great Grimsby Street Tramways Act (1879), which authorised the construction of of horse tramway.
The tramway opened in 1881 using horse-drawn trams on standard gauge single track line with passing loops, stretching from Park Street, on the Grimsby/Cleethorpes boundary, to the Wheatsheaf Inn in Bargate, Grimsby. From the eastern terminus, it ran along Cleethorpes Road, passed the Alexandra Dock and reached the Wheatsheaf Inn by following Victoria Street and Deansgate. There was a short spur from Park Street to the depot, which was located on Carr Lane, and a branch that ran for about southwards from Riby Square, at the Grimsby end of Cleethorpes Road, following Freeman Street and Hainton Street. Plans for a link from this terminus to the Wheatsheaf Inn, thus creating a circular route, did not materialise. In order to provide the service, seven small open top double deck trams were purchased, with another two added to the fleet in 1882. The manufacturer of these vehicles is unknown, but it is possible that they were made by another one of the systems owned by Provincial.
On 21 May 1887 the route was extended to Kingsway in Cleethorpes, the single track running along Grimsby Road to its junction with Poplar Road. The system was further extended on 4 September 1898, when double tracks were brought into operation, that ran down Isaacs Hill, along High Street and Alexandra Road to terminate on Cleethorpes seafront near Albert Road. The company built three open-top single deck toastrack cars, one in 1886 and two more in 1888, which were used on the extensions during the summer months. Although details are not known, they built or bought more cars as traffic levels grew, for they owned 14 in 1892, 16 in 1893, and around 20 by the time the system was replaced by an electric tramway.
Around 1900, many horse tramways in Britain were being converted to electric traction, and Provincial were aware of this. They obtained the Great Grimsby Street Tramways Act (1900), which allowed them to carry out the work. Dick, Kerr & Co. of Preston were employed to reconstruct the system, which involved building a new depot and a generating station on Pelham Road, just off Grimsby Road, and doubling the track between Cleethorpes and Old Market Place in Grimsby, where a one-way detour was introduced. Horse trams continued to run throughout this period, and were withdrawn on 6 December 1901, with electric trams running the following day. At the Grimsby end, the section from Old Market to the Wheatsheaf Inn remained single track, and so was closed for a while, but when it re-opened on 15 February 1902, it included a extension eastwards to the gates of the People's Park on Welholme Road. A short extension in Cleethorpes opened on 12 July 1906, running along Alexandra Road and High Cliff. The Freeman Street branch continued to be single track.
Dick, Kerr carried out the conversion work, and for the opening, 22 open top double deck tramcars were obtained from Electric Railway and Tramway Carriage Works (ERTCW), which was a subsidiary company of Dick, Kerr. Another two identical vehicles were obtained in 1902. The next four vehicles came from the Alexandra Park Electric Railway, the first electric tramway to be built in London. They were built by Waggonfabrik Falkenreid of Hamburg for Elektrizitats-gesellschaft Wandruska, who built and ran the tramway, but when they became bankrupt in late 1899, a creditor seized its assets, and the four single-deck vehicles were acquired by Provincial. They were rebuilt at Grimsby with double-deck bodywork, Nos.25, 26 and 28 having open tops and No.27 having an enclosed upper deck. Two more open top trams were obtained from the original manufacturer in 1903, who also supplied a 1904-built covered tramcar in 1906, and a 1900-built single deck car in 1915, which had formerly worked on the Oldham system.
Some of the open-top trams were retained as such for use in the summer months, but many were later fitted with top covers. The company also owned six trailer cars, four of which had been built by ERTCW in 1899, but were designed so that they could be converted to electric trailer cars in due course, and two of which were original horse cars that had been adapted. They were towed by the motorised cars, and continued in use until 1918, when the two horse cars were sold to Lincoln Corporation Tramways, while the other four were converted to motorised cars by Dick, Kerr in 1920. The company also built an open-topped charabanc-style vehicle in 1922, which became known as the Tram Coach.
The trailer cars were mainly used to provide extra capacity on football match days.
Under the provisions of the Tramways Act (1870), local authorities could buy tramways that operated within their boundaries after 21 years, and Grimsby Corporation decided to use these powers on 21 July 1922. However, things were not straightforward, and it was not until 6 April 1925 that they paid the company £109,848, gaining responsibility for the section within Grimsby. The company retained the depot and power station, the tram coach, and 13 of the tramcars, while Grimsby Corporation took the rest. The company built a new tram in 1925 and two more in 1926, but the final additions to the fleet were twelve open top cars dating from 1905, which they bought from the Gosport and Fareham system in 1930. That system was built to the slightly narrower gauge of , and the trucks had to be regauged before the vehicles could operate on the Grimsby system.
With the larger part of their system now operated by Grimsby Corporation, the company decided to sell the rest of it to Cleethorpes Urban District Council in 1935. They had been operating motor buses since 1909, and their motorbus fleet, together with the tramway, the power station, and the depot were included in the price of £50,000. The takeover was completed on 15 June 1936.
Grimsby Corporation Tramways (1925).
Under the terms of the Grimsby Corporation Act (1921), the Corporation obtained control of the tramway within its boundaries in 1925. The purchase price included 22 trams, Nos.4 to 21 and 31 to 34, for which a new depot was completed in 1927 on Victoria Street. The front of the building was made of brick, but the storage area consisted of seaplane hangars, which had been moved from RNAS Killingholme after that facility closed in 1919. As the rolling stock was showing signs of age, the Corporation purchased sixteen Brush balcony tramcars from Sunderland District Electric Tramways. Much of the track was also in need of replacement, and the Corporation decided to run trolleybuses on the Freeman Street branch, as the conversion of the overhead wiring was cheaper than relaying the trackwork. The last trams ran on this route on 1 October 1926, with trolleybuses taking over the following day.
From 27 November 1927, the Corporation also began running motorbus services, and these replaced the tramway between Old Market and the People's Park on 3 June 1928. Trams were replaced by trolleybuses on the Old Market to Riby Square section on 21 November 1936, leaving just five trams to work the through service to Cleethorpes. These lasted for another four months, and the final tram ran on 31 March 1937. The tram depot was subsequently used as a bus depot, and was still in use by Stagecoach Grimsby-Cleethorpes in 2017.
Cleethorpes Corporation Tramways (1936).
Cleethorpes had set its sights on replacing the tramway system when they obtained the Cleethorpes Urban District Council Act (1928), which gave them powers to operate the tramway and to replace it with trolleybuses. However, no further action was taken at the time, until Great Grimsby Street Tramways offered to sell them the remaining of the tramway which lay within their boundaries. They took over this section on 15 July 1936, and the sale price included the depot and 25 trams. They decided to apply a new livery of dark blue and primrose to the cars, and the ex-Oldham car No.38 carried it, but it is unclear whether it was applied to any other vehicles. Cleethorpes became a borough on 23 September 1936, and paper labels declaring that they were part of Cleethorpes Corporation Tramways were applied. They lasted under their new ownership for just a year, as the last tram ran on 17 July 1937, with trolleybuses taking over on the following day.
The trolleybus line was extended from the Kingsway tram terminus to Bathing Pool. Operation was transferred to the Grimsby Cleethorpes Transport Joint Committee in 1957, and trolleybuses were replaced by motor buses in 1960.
Fleet.
The first batch of trams were fitted with trucks made by J. G. Brill Company of Philadelphia and bodywork by Electric Railway and Tramway Carriage Works, with 34 seats on the upper deck and 22 on the lower deck. Car No.3 had its Brill truck replaced with an Angier Empire equaliser truck in 1902, but it reverted to a Brill truck subsequently. Top covers were fitted to 13 of this batch between 1908 and 1910, when seating on the upper deck was increased to 39. The vehicles affected were Nos.5 to 12 and 18 to 22. Nos.5, 6, 10 and 19 were fitted with new trucks and motors in 1908, and the original trucks and motors were used to replace the Falkenreid ones on the four vehicles obtained from the Alexandra Park Electric Railway. Nos.4 to 21 were transferred to Grimsby Corporation in 1925, while Nos 2, 3, and 22 had been withdrawn by 1929. No.1 was renumbered 11 in 1929, and had been withdrawn by the time the rest of the system was sold to Cleethorpes. Nos.23 and 24 were identical to the first batch, but had been fitted with fully-enclosed upper decks by 1904, though they were later converted to balcony tops. They were renumbered in 1929 and were among those sold to Cleethorpes.
The single-deck Falkenreid vehicles obtained in 1903 were rebuilt at Grimsby as open-top double deck trams, with the exception of No.27, which had a fully enclosed upper deck. It was rebuilt for a second time around 1910, when balcony ends were fitted to the upper deck. All had been withdrawn by 1925. Nos.29 and 30, obtained in 1903, initially had fully enclosed upper decks, but again were fitted with balcony ends. No.29 was sold to Cleethorpes, while No.30 had been withdrawn by 1929. No.37 had been built as an exhibition vehicle in 1904, and came to Grimsby in 1906, to be sold to Cleethorpes 30 years later, while No.38, which also went to Cleethorpes, had been built in 1902 and acquired from Oldham Corporation in 1915. In 1920, four horse trailer cars dating from 1899 were converted to electric operation, and passed to Grimsby Corporation in 1925.
Between 1922 and 1928, the company built one single-deck and eight double-deck trams using trucks supplied by the Malleable Steel Castings Company of Pendleton, Lancashire. No.40 was an open-top single-deck vehicle, known as the Tram Coach, which was built in 1922 and withdrawn in 1925, when it was sold for further use on the Portsdown and Horndean Light Railway, another system owned by Provincial. Of the rest, No.39 was fitted with a top cover in 1926, and all were sold to Cleethorpes. The final batch were bought second-hand from Gosport and Fareham Tramways in 1929, when that system closed. It was another network owned by Provincial, and the vehicles dated from 1905-6. Nos.2, 3, 27, and 30 had been fitted with top covers by 1933, and all were sold to Cleethorpes.


Royston and Hitchin Railway

The Royston and Hitchin Railway was an English railway company; it built a line from the Great Northern Railway at Hitchin to Shepreth. A Shepreth branch line was built by the Eastern Counties Railway from Shelford Junction (later called Shepreth Branch Junction) to Shepreth, and in time the line from Hitchin to Shepreth Branch Junction was regarded as a single unit.
The Royston and Hitchin Railway was absorbed by the Great Northern Railway in 1897. For many years the line competed with the Great Eastern Railway line for Cambridge to London traffic, and the route became famous for the Cambridge Buffet Express trains. After 1923 the two routes were under the same ownership but continued to operate in a form of competition.
In 1978 an electrically operated passenger service operated between London and Royston, and nearly all through journeys required a change of train at Royston. In 1987 the rest of the line was electrified, and became the primary route for Cambridge to London journeys, the service on the alternative former Great Eastern Railway route being downgraded outside the commuter peaks hours. The line remains in heavy use today.
Beginnings.
The Eastern Counties Railway completed its main line from London to Norwich on 30 July 1845, running from the south through Cambridge and on to Ely. Cambridge was an important industrial and agricultural centre.
The year 1846 was a peak time for the authorisation of railway schemes, part of the railway mania. The Great Northern Railway obtained its authorising Act of Parliament on 26 June 1846; this was a huge project: it was to build a line from London to York, with a number of small branch lines. The Royston and Hitchin Railway had been submitted to Parliament as a proposed Cambridge and Oxford Railway, which would have run as a single track through Royston, Hitchin and Dunstable, but the scheme was very considerably cut back by the Lords in Parliament; there were other contenders in the field for occupation of the route. The railway as actually authorised, on 16 July 1846, was renamed the Royston and Hitchin Railway, and the Lords demanded double track for the truncated version.
The Great Northern Railway had encouraged the Cambridge and Oxford Railway scheme, (now the Royston and Hitchin Railway) and had guaranteed the shareholders 6% on paid-up capital. The GNR wanted to use the line to get access to Cambridge, and at all costs it wanted to keep the Eastern Counties Railway out. If the ECR could seize control of the R&HR it would have yet another penetrating line into GNR territory. The Eastern Counties Railway had secured approval for a Cambridge to Bedford line in 1847, and the GNR tried to get its Cambridge connection using that line, but this attempt failed too, in 1848.
Extending to Shepreth.
However the Royston and Hitchin Railway had more success: on 14 August 1848 it obtained an Act to extend its line from Royston to Shepreth, joining the Cambridge to Bedford branch there. If the Eastern Counties failed to construct its Cambridge to Bedford line in a reasonable time, the R&HR would have power to build the line itself.
Construction of the Royston and Hitchin Railway was not difficult and not expensive, and the miles from Hitchin junction to Royston were opened on 21 October 1850. The route was hilly and the line had a series of gradients. Beyond Royston the line, still under construction, was also beset by gradients, one as steep as 1 in 100. The line served a purely agricultural district, but a connecting bus service ran between Royston and Cambridge. The extension of 5 miles 4 chains to Shepreth was brought into use on 1 August 1851. A service of five daily omnibuses between Shepreth and Cambridge was laid on, taking 40 minutes for the 9 miles. The fastest combined journey from King's Cross to Cambridge was 130 minutes by the 09:15 northern express. Fares were lower than on the ECR, but the service did not prove viable. For the time being the R&HR was simply a short branch line in a purely agricultural area, and the GNR was paying nearly £15,000 a year because of its guarantee.
Eastern Counties line to Shepreth.
The Eastern Counties Railway was compelled by a condition in its Act to open its line to Shepreth without undue delay; despite considerable prevarication, it opened from Shelford Junction to Shepreth on 1 April 1852, with works constructed for double line, although only a single line was laid. It was 5 miles 28 chains in length, and ran to an end-on junction with the R&HR at Shepreth. The Board of Trade Inspecting Officer sanctioned opening only on condition that the ECR could use the R&HR turntable at Shepreth. It seems that through carriages were worked between King's Cross and Cambridge. The ECR paid £300 per annum for use of Hitchin station. The ECR was always well behind in payment of rent, as was its successor, the Great Eastern
During this period the Eastern Counties Railway had opened negotiations to lease the R&HR, and a fourteen year lease had been agreed in February 1852, to start from the connection of the lines at Shepreth: the ECR would pay £16,000 per annum guaranteed rent and interest on the R&HR. The GNR was not sorry to have passed over the financial obligation for the R&HR to its rival. The GNR agreed to pay the ECR 60% of any earnings in respect of King's Cross and Hitchin traffic to and from Cambridge and stations east of Ashwell on the R&HR. During the operation of the lease, the Railway Clearing House referred to it as the "Shelford & Hitchin Railway". Three daily services, subsequently four, with two on Sundays, were provided between Cambridge and Hitchin.
The Eastern Counties and others merged and together formed the Great Eastern Railway, by Act of 7 August 1862.
Reversion to the Great Northern Railway.
Towards the end of the lease period, the GNR gave consideration to taking over the R&HR Company, but there was obstruction from the GER about actually reaching Cambridge over their tracks (from Shelford Junction). During the lifetime of the lease, the Bedford and Cambridge Railway had opened its line on 7 July 1862. The line was worked by the London and North Western Railway, which was friendly to the GNR at that time. The GNR therefore put forward two alternative proposals: one envisaged running powers from Shepreth to Cambridge, doubling of the track between Shepreth and the main line, use of the GER Cambridge station and a one mile extension to a separate terminal; the alternative was to be an extension from Shepreth to the Bedford and Cambridge Railway, joining it miles east of Lord's Bridge, with running powers over that line to the outskirts of Cambridge, and then a new two-mile branch would run to the town centre.
The GER saw that if the second choice materialised, they would be left in possession of a useless short branch that ended at Shepreth, and they agreed to the GNR’s wishes, signing an agreement on 2 May 1864. An Act in that year conceded to the GNR full running powers to Cambridge station, where all facilities and a separate platform would be provided; double track capable of carrying express services was promised between Shepreth and Shelford by 31 March 1866, the last day of the lease, on the expiration of which the R&HR line would be returned to the GNR.
Track maintenance shortcomings.
The ECR and later the GER were supposed to have kept the leased line in good order, but the GER was not in good financial health. In December 1865 GNR and GER engineers made a joint inspection of the R&HR line. The stations and permanent way were in a state of dilapidation, and there were insufficient sleepers to each length of rail. The GNR's engineer demanded that 11,400 sleepers should be renewed. When the line was handed back on 1 April 1866, the sleepers had been supplied but not installed, and it was left to the GNR to put the road in order. Eleven miles had been relaid and 5,000 new sleepers inserted within three months; nevertheless on 3 July a fatal derailment occurred.
Captain Tyler reported on the causes of the derailment. The permanent way was laid with 16-foot rails, and the joints were not fished. The sleepers were widely spaced, with only four for each rail length; many were "in the last stages of rottenness". The track geometry near the point of derailment was very poor ("wavy" in Tyler's words).
 I find that this portion of railway, which had been for some 11 years in the charge of the Great Eastern Company, was taken over, at the expiration of the agreement under which it was worked, by the Great Northern Company, on the 1st April last. I learn from the engineer of the Great Northern Railway that he inspected it, with the engineer of the Great Eastern Company, in December 1865, and that he then required that 11,400 new sleepers should be inserted in the permanent way; but this not having been done, the same number of new sleepers were handed over to the Great Northern Company, with the line, in April. Out of 18 miles of double or 36 miles of single line thus taken over, 11 miles have since been re-laid, with fished joints, and sleepers 2 feet apart at the joints, and 2 feet inches apart in the intermediate spaces; besides which, 5,000 new sleepers have been inserted by the ordinary gangs. I am glad to learn also that... the re-laying of the whole 18 miles may be completed in 12 weeks from the present time... Orders have wisely been given to slacken the speed of the trains pending the completion of this re-laying; and the posts have been erected, and wires strained, for providing telegraphic communication, which, strange to say, had not previously been supplied.
The GER section east of Shepreth was in no better shape, and on the previous 31 May, the 7.10 p.m. from Cambridge was derailed between Shelford Junction and Shepreth, but there were no serious casualties. This section had not been doubled as promised; nor was the accommodation provided at Cambridge, where there was no shelter for GNR passengers. W. Bell & Sons, the contractors for these works, had ceased operations when the GER was unable to pay them, leaving the GNR to advance £5,000 for the work to proceed. From 1 January 1868 the GNR provided its own staff at Cambridge for passenger traffic. Doubling the line between Shelford Junction and Shepreth was completed early in May 1867, and the electric telegraph was working between Hitchin and Cambridge a few months afterwards.
As the GNR were maintaining the greater, western part of the line, they took over the maintenance of the Shepreth to Shelford Junction line, by arrangement for 21 years from 1 January 1874; the GE allowed £320 per mile per annum out of the tolls. Next it was resolved to re-signal the whole Cambridge line and install the block system. An intermediate box was erected at Letchworth, between Hitchin and Baldock, although at that time there was no station there. A new box and additional sidings were provided at Baldock in 1875. Two years later new boxes were built at Ashwell, Royston, Meldreth and Shepreth. The GER paid for new signalboxes at Harston and Foxton and improved the signalling at Shelford junction. Saxby & Farmer did the re-signalling and all the works were finished in April 1878.
Letchworth.
Sir Ebenezer Howard published his book "Tomorrow a Peaceful Path to Real Reform" in which he put forward the notion of a Garden City; his work included heavy reliance on a railway connection. As a direct result, the world's first Garden City was founded at Letchworth in 1903. Construction workers used a wooden halt there from 1903. Regular passenger services were provided at the halt from 15 April 1905; a goods depot was added on 19 August 1907, and a permanent station on 18 May 1913. This station had two island platforms, giving four platform faces, but they were never used as such.
Train service to 1923.
Slip carriages were slipped at Hitchin for the Cambridge line in the August 1872 timetable, off the 10:10 and the 14:45 from Kings Cross, at Hitchin for Cambridge. The up express due at Kings Cross at 11.55 am slipped at Hitchin for Cambridge. Competition with the GER for London-Cambridge traffic was keen. In the summer of 1880, the GNR put on a noon express from Cambridge which was allowed only 75 minutes, with a Hitchin stop. It was one of the few up trains then which did not stop at Finsbury Park. The best down train, the Cambridge portion of the 17:00 from Kings Cross, took 80 minutes with Hitchin and Royston stops.
At the end of 1883, the 12:00 Cambridge to Kings Cross was given a Royston stop, and the overall schedule increased to 77 minutes, which remained for some years. By 1888, the 17:00 from Kings Cross was allowed the same time, also with Hitchin and Royston stops. The GNR introduced an express service between King’s Cross and Cambridge (95 minutes, then 90 down, 100 up) from 1 April 1866. By 1883 up journeys of 75 minutes were possible but GER acceleration ended the possibility of effective competition and the GNR, while maintaining good speeds (in 1898 there were six down and five up trains in times of 77 to 82 minutes), wisely determined to concentrate on the development of traffic at intermediate points as much as at Cambridge itself.
Acquisition by Great Northern Railway.
The Royston and Hitchin Railway company was acquired by the GNR by Act of 3 June 1897, effective on 1 July 1897
The twentieth century.
Hostility between the Great Northern Railway and the Great Eastern Railway cooled in the twentieth century. By arrangement GNR traffic staff were withdrawn from Cambridge in July 1912, but four GNR engines were still based there. There were still five or six fast trains each way between King's Cross and Cambridge. The 17:00 down made its 75 min trip with an additional Royston stop from 1912, but the best up trains took 80 minutes.
In 1923 most of the main line railways of Great Britain were reorganised into one or other of four new larger companies, in a process called the "grouping", following the Railways Act 1921. The Great Northern Railway was a constituent of the new London and North Eastern Railway, the LNER. The Great Eastern Railway too joined the LNER, so that both routes between Cambridge and London were under the same ownership. In May 1932 five daily "Garden Cities Expresses" were run, at first taking 82 minutes down and 77 up, soon renamed "Cambridge Buffet Expresses". From July 1932 they were accelerated to 75 and 72 minutes respectively. They were suspended at the outbreak of World War II in 1939, but they were reinstated on 6 December 1948, with four daily services in times of 82 to 90 minutes. In the pre-war years the original three-coach formations had on occasion to be strengthened to as many as nine or ten coaches.
Since 1960.
At Letchworth, Baldock and Royston considerable residential and industrial growth has occurred. At Letchworth, population had grown to 30,945 by 1971 and many of its industries (principally engineering, printing, food preparation and the making of clothing and furniture) had developed alongside the railway. In 1965 Letchworth despatched 64,197 tons of freight in full wagon loads and 8,554 in smaller consignments, while the station issued 151,295 ordinary and 2,795 season tickets, collecting 168,015. Farther to the north-west Foxton was linked to a cement works near Barrington by a short branch line sanctioned by a Light Railway Order of 1920.
Electrification.
In the 1970s the Inner and Outer Suburban services from Kings Cross were electrified. The Inner Suburban service, to Welwyn Garden City and Hertford North was commissioned first, followed by the Outer service, which was electrified as far as Royston. The first Outer Suburban electric multiple unit was received in July 1977, and from 3 October some entered service on existing diesel timings. The full Royston electric service of three per hour, and up to seven in the peak, started on 6 February 1978. For the time being a diesel service operated in connection between Royston and Cambridge. In early 1978 ten sidings and a carriage washing plant were added east of Letchworth.
Continuation of the electrification from Royston to Cambridge was authorised in March 1987, the Bishop's Stortford to Cambridge section having been commissioned on 19 January 1987. Electric operation to Cambridge started on 16 May 1988.


Castlefield corridor

The Castlefield corridor (also known as the Deansgate corridor) is a railway corridor between Castlefield junction and Fairfield Street junction in Greater Manchester, England. The corridor forms the eastern end of the southerly Liverpool–Manchester line.
Route.
The twin-track corridor extends from Castlefield junction to the west of , through and , to Fairfield Street junction just beyond Piccadilly station. Oxford Road station is the only point on the route where there are four through lines. At the western end of the corridor, lines from , , and converge. Lines from , and converge at the east.
The corridor is on a viaduct, built by the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway in the late 1840s as a near continuous series of red brick vaulted arches, interspersed with iron or steel bridges. The structure is Grade II listed from the River Irwell to Piccadilly station.
The route carries a mixture of local and long-distance passenger trains, as well as intermodal freight from the Trafford Park container terminal.
Current congestion.
The corridor is a significant bottleneck to rail traffic; it is one of three officially recognised congested infrastructure rail hotspots, in the United Kingdom, and is uniquely still in need of major investment. In an attempt to obligate the Department for Transport to provide funding for the Oxford Road upgrade to improve punctuality, Network Rail declared the Castlefield corridor 'congested' in September 2019.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, services on the line were scaled back in line with a 90% reduction in demand, as the United Kingdom went into a lockdown in March 2020. Since the partial return from that lockdown, services were steadily increased. However, the phased recovery process enabled both Northern and TransPennine Express to achieve a higher percentage of reliability and service than in the period immediately before the lockdown. Throughout 2020, there has been a limit of 12 trains per hour (12 tph) rather than the previous 15 tph.
Proposed improvements.
As a trade-off, a temporary reduction in the number of passenger services using the corridor has been suggested, as a short-term measure to improve service reliability.
In 2010, a study for the Manchester Hub ruled out quad-tracking the corridor with a new viaduct. A rail tunnel has been proposed for the corridor, as part of the Greater Manchester Transport Strategy 2040.
UK rail advocacy group Railfuture has noted that the reinstatement of the Glazebrook East Junction–Skelton Junction line, along with its former branch to Carrington Power Station and an extension of the branch to , would help to relieve the Castlefield corridor of freight traffic.


Riviera Line

The Riviera Line is the railway between the city of Exeter, towns Dawlish, Teignmouth, and the "English Riviera" resorts of Torbay in Devon, England. Its tracks are shared with the Exeter to Plymouth Line along the South Devon sea wall. It is part of the Network Rail Route 12 ( to ).
History.
The line from Exeter to was opened by the South Devon Railway Company on 30 May 1846 and was extended to on 30 December 1846. After the company had completed its main line to Plymouth it opened a branch from Newton Abbot to Torquay (the present Torre railway station) on 18 December 1848. Nine years later this was extended as the independent Dartmouth and Torbay Railway to on 2 August 1859.
These lines were built as single-track, broad gauge railways by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. They were designed for atmospheric power and although this was only used from 13 September 1847 until 9 September 1848; the remains of several of the South Devon Railway engine houses used for the stationary engines can still be seen by the side of the line. The track was converted to standard gauge on 21 May 1892. Double track was laid in sections over a period of several years, requiring the widening or removal of several tunnels near Teignmouth.
The Dartmouth and Torquay Railway was operated from the outset by the South Devon Railway and amalgamated with it in 1872. This company in turn amalgamated with the Great Western Railway on 1 February 1876. The GWR was nationalised on 1 January 1948 as part of British Railways.
In 1977 the Parliamentary Select Committee on Nationalised Industries recommended considering electrification of more of Britain's rail network, and by 1979 BR presented a range of options to do so by 2000. Some included electrifying the Bristol to Exeter line, Exeter to Plymouth Line, Riviera Line and Cornish Main Line. Under later governments the proposal was not implemented. At present, there are no proposals to electrify the line or any others in Devon or Cornwall.
South West Trains operated several services between and Paignton via for several years, as well as some to or . Since December 2009 their services only operate east of Exeter St Davids.
Services.
Local passenger services on the line are currently operated by Great Western Railway. Most days see an approximately hourly service calling at all stations, which runs beyond Exeter to and from along the Avocet Line – more frequent at peak times. On Sundays a more restricted service operates, most of which terminate at Exeter.
Other services on the line include Great Western Railway express services from and CrossCountry services from the Midlands and the North. These mostly call only at , , , , , and . Other long-distance services of the same operators call at Exeter, Dawlish, Teignmouth and Newton Abbot before continuing to or even .
Infrastructure.
Trains going towards Paignton are described as travelling in the "down" direction; those towards Exeter in the "up". The line is double track throughout except for a long single-lead junction at Newton Abbot where trains are turned off the main line onto the Paignton branch. Loops at allow slower trains to be overtaken, as does the flexible layout at Newton Abbot where all three platforms can access the Paignton branch. At Exeter St Davids, Riviera Line trains generally use platforms 1 and 3 as these allow access to and from Exeter Central and the Avocet line; starting or terminating trains may also use platforms 4, 5 and 6. At Paignton down trains may arrive in the up platform; if they arrive in the down platform they must shunt across to the up before departure, generally "via" the sidings at .
Between Exeter and Newton Abbot the predominant speed limit is , the route availability is RA8, and freight loading gauge is W7. On the Paignton branch the predominant speed limit is , the route availability RA6, and the freight loading gauge W6A. Multiple aspect signals are controlled from the panel signal box at Exeter and allow a headway between trains of four minutes from there to Newton Abbot and seven minutes onwards to Paignton. The sea wall section is signalled for trains to run either way on the up (landward) line to allow for restricted working in the event of sea damage to the down line.
The Paignton branch has been identified as a "fragile route" "where the addition of any further loco hauled traffic would have a significant impact on the residual life of track and/or structures." The three stations on the branch are currently under consideration for the provision of improved facilities but this is dependent on third-party funding being made available.
Route description.
The route is described from Exeter to Paignton for a passenger facing the direction of travel, which will put the sea on their left.
Exeter to Newton Abbot.
"Communities served: Exeter – Starcross (and Exmouth via a seasonal ferry service) – Dawlish Warren – Dawlish – Teignmouth – Newton Abbot"
On leaving , the line crosses the River Exe and a parallel flood relief channel, then passes above the suburbs of Exeter along a stone viaduct on which is situated Exeter St Thomas railway station. The church of St David with its spire, and the older Exeter Cathedral, can be seen on the hill above the river. Beyond this is an industrial area where two lines used to branch out. On the left a short line went down to the Exeter Canal at City Basin; on the right a longer branch ran to Heathfield on the Newton Abbot to Moretonhampstead branch.
Once out in the countryside our line crosses marshes as it runs alongside the canal and river. What looks like a level crossing in the fields near Countess Wear is actually a lifting bridge across the canal. After passing the site of Exminster railway station the canal comes more clearly into view on the left and joins the River Exe, as does the railway, at Turf. The square pond next to the line is the site of Turf engine house. This stretch of the line used to have long water troughs between the rails from which steam locomotives could refill their water tanks without stopping.
From Powderham Castle the railway is right alongside the river; on the right of the line is the castle's deer park, while on the left, across the river, trains on the Avocet Line may be seen near Lympstone Commando railway station. Our train now enters the village of Starcross; beyond Starcross railway station is the pier for the Exmouth to Starcross Ferry and the old Starcross engine house.
A little further along the river the railway crosses the mouth of Cockwood harbour. Near the shipwreck here was the long Exe Bight Pier, in use from 1869 for about ten years. Dawlish Warren now comes into sight; the sand dunes are home to a nature reserve where many wading and sea birds can be seen. The railway line opens out into four lines at Dawlish Warren railway station, where the platforms are alongside loop lines that allow fast trains to overtake stopping services.
On the left is the beach and seaside amusements; on the right are some camping coaches in the old goods yard. The railway now comes onto the Sea Wall which it shares with a footpath, although it quickly enters the short and deep cutting at Langstone Rock. Emerging above the beach, views can be had across the sea towards Torbay.
Approaching Dawlish railway station, Coastguard's Cottage is on the right. Although now a café, this building was used by the railway during its construction and then sold to the coastguard. Their boat house is below the footbridge. The town can be seen off to the right from Colonnade Viaduct at the other end of the station.
The line now enters its first tunnel, the Kennaway Tunnel beneath Lea Mount, beyond which is Coryton beach where the footpath along the Sea Wall ends, and then Coryton tunnel. The next beach is the private Shell Cove and then the railway passes through Phillot Tunnel and Clerk's Tunnel, emerging onto a section of sea wall at Breeches Rock before diving into Parson's Tunnel beneath Hole Head. The last two tunnels are named after the Parson and Clerk Rocks, two stacks in the sea off Hole Head. When the tunnel was dug the workers cut into a smugglers tunnel which ran from a hidden entrance above the cliff down to a secluded cove.
Beyond Parson's Tunnel is a short viaduct across Smugglers Lane and then the footpath resumes alongside the line for the final stretch of the Sea Wall past Sprey Point to the cutting at Teignmouth Eastcliff. On the right side of the railway near Sprey Point can be seen the remains of a lime kiln used during the construction of the line.
The railway passes through to Teignmouth railway station then continues through a cutting to emerge behind the busy Teignmouth Harbour, after which the railway resumes its course alongside the water, the River Teign. The cuttings on both sides of the station were originally tunnels and were opened out between 1879 and 1884. The railway passes under the Shaldon Bridge and then follows the river past the small promontories at Flow Point, Red Rock, and Summer House, opposite which can be seen the waterside inn at Coombe Cellars.
After leaving the riverside the line crosses Hackney Marshes and passes between the railway sidings at Hackney Yard (left), and the race course and former Moretonhampstead branch (right). The industrial area to the left of Newton Abbot railway station is the site of the South Devon Railway Company locomotive workshops – the older stone buildings are the only surviving railway buildings.
Newton Abbot to Paignton.
"Communities served: Newton Abbot – Torre – Torquay – Paignton"
Leaving Newton Abbot the railway widens out to four tracks; the two for Penzance diverge to the right at Aller Junction while the two for Paignton pass through the concrete beam 270m long Aller Tunnel, constructed in 2015 to carry the new South Devon Highway. From here the Riviera Line trains climb and then slowly descend towards the sea at Torquay. First though, they pass through the remains of the former Kingskerswell railway station.
Just before Torre railway station the line curves through a cutting; the Torquay engine house still stands on the top of the cutting on the right. The stone building on the left is the old goods shed, while sidings for coal traffic were situated on the opposite side of the line. The disused signal box on the eastbound platform was unusually tall to allow the signalman to look over the footbridge to see trains approaching up the steep gradient.
The train now descends this to reach Torquay railway station opened in 1859, although today's large stone buildings and old signal box date from 1878. Unlike the original Torquay station (now Torre), this one is right by the beach at Abbey Sands and a level promenade links it with the harbour and town centre.
On leaving the station the line passes beneath an ornamental cast iron bridge, through a small cutting, and then climbs alongside Livermead Beach to the site of Torquay Gas Works, now a park on the right of the line. It then passes a headland at Preston before dropping down again into Paignton, with more views of the beaches and sea. Immediately outside Paignton railway station is a busy level crossing right in the town centre. The ticket office is now situated in the 1859 goods shed; the bus station is right outside the front door while the Dartmouth Steam Railway is situated alongside on the other side of the station.
The railway line continues beyond the station to reach carriage sidings at and to provide a connection that allows special trains to run through to over the heritage railway.
Passenger volume.
Traffic growth in recent years has been largely on the main line section between Exeter and Newton Abbot, although reduced in 2014 due to the Dawlish seawall breach.
Plans.
In 2009 the Association of Train Operating Companies identified Brixham as one of fourteen towns for which the provision of a new railway service would have a positive benefit-cost ratio. This would be an extension of the Great Western Railway service beyond Paignton to Churston station on the Dartmouth Steam Railway, which would then act as a railhead for Brixham. It would also serve other housing developments in the area since the opening of the steam railway, and may require the doubling of that line between Paignton and .
South West Coast Path.
The South West Coast Path is the longest national trail in the United Kingdom and the Riviera Line runs alongside it for much of its length. The Path crosses the River Exe on the ferry to Starcross station and then follows the road to Dawlish Warren where it joins the Sea Wall to Dawlish. It then climbs up onto the cliffs above Kennaway Tunnel before rejoining the Sea Wall at Parsons Tunnel to follow the line to Eastcliffe at Teignmouth.
It again follows closely from Abbey Sands (by Torquay station) to Preston Sands at Paignton. It also follows alongside the Dartmouth Steam Railway from Goodrington to Broadsands, the beach near Churston railway station.
The Path thus gives opportunities to observe trains at close hand, and also provides links for linear walks between stations, including .
Winter 2014 blockage.
The UK storms of January–February 2014 cut a 50 m (165 ft) section of track at Dawlish cutting the Exeter and Newton Abbot on the main railway line through the county on 3 February. A section of the town's sea wall was washed away along with the track. Network spokesman, Julian Burnell, estimated "hundreds of tonnes" of ballast had been dislodged from under tracks after they had "taken a real pounding from the sea".
It was initially hoped that the line would only be closed for a short time but further storms prevented work to repair the railway. On the morning of 5 February the hole exposed railway track were reassessed. Prime Minister David Cameron chaired a Cobra meeting and announced an extra £100m for flood works over the year while insisting that everything possible was being done to get "stricken" communities moving again. The Department for Transport said the "most pressing issue" was to get the line up and running as soon as possible, "but equally it is clear it is important we look at the long term as well". Powerful waves caused further damage to the track, sea wall and Dawlish station on 6 February. Adrian Sanders, the MP for Torbay, said the loss of the main line was "a disaster" and called on the Transport Secretary to intervene. John Clatworthy, Devon county councillor for Dawlish, speaking on 10 February said that "The storm last night was unbelievable. It is not just Dawlish that is affected, this railway line is to Plymouth, the naval bases, Cornwall – it is a lifeline".
Repairs were finally completed at the beginning of April 2014, with the first train (the 05:34 Exeter St Davids to Paignton) running on schedule on the morning of Friday 4 April.


Sandgate Branch

The Sandgate branch was a three mile long railway branch line that ran from Sandling railway station in Kent on the South Eastern Main Line to Hythe and Sandgate railway stations. It opened in 1874 and closed completely in 1951.
History.
Opening.
The line opened in 1874, and for the first few years trains ran to and from Westenhanger railway station on the main line, then in 1888 Sandling Junction opened with four platforms, two for the main line and two for the branch.
Traffic.
Usage was always light, possibly because of the distance of the two stations from the populations they served. The Folkestone, Hythe and Sandgate Tramways was built to try improve connections.
Proposed extension.
The line was planned to provide a new route to the continent with a proposed extension through to Folkestone Harbour. Although parliamentary consent for the extension was granted in 1876 it was never built.
Closure.
In 1931 Sandgate station was closed and the remaining line between Sandling and Hythe singled. The line was closed briefly in 1943 to reopen in 1945 with two trains a day each way. The last train ran between Hythe and Sandling on 3 December 1951 and Sandling Junction was renamed Sandling for Hythe.
The route today.
As at 2012 the route from Sandling to Hayne Tunnel is now a public footpath (Elham Valley Way). Hayne Tunnel is still in situ but the tunnel is now flooded up to several feet deep because part of its cutting to the south of the tunnel has been partially in filled with refuse. At the site of Hythe Station and around Seabrook there are many houses built onto the old railway embankment. Between Hythe and Sandgate short sections of infrastructure were still visible (in 2012) including some bridges still in situ.


Over and Wharton branch line

The Over and Wharton branch line was a railway line serving the town of Winsford in Cheshire. It was owned and operated by the London and North Western Railway Company (LNWR) from 1882 and then the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) until the railways were nationalised under the Transport Act 1947, which took effect on 1 January 1948. Thereafter the branch was operated by British Railways London Midland Region until the line's closure in .
Beginnings.
The line was an extension and, to some extent, resiting and relaying, of various branches connecting the Grand Junction Railway's (GJR) main line to various salt works and coal wharves around Wharton Common and the east bank of the River Weaver. By 1882, the LNWR had converted and amalgamated these lines into a double track branch line to a new station at Over and Wharton.
The route.
The branch left the LNWR's Crewe to Warrington Line at Winsford Junction, a short distance north of Winsford railway station. The line curved sharply westwards then followed a cutting before curving into the terminus, a distance of 1 mile and 22 yards.
Operation.
The branch was originally double track but then was worked as a single track line after the First World War. The original up line was not lifted but used as a long siding. This siding was later used for the storage of locomotives bound for the scrap yard. There were no intermediate stations and the only signal box on the line was closed in 1957 when the line was worked under one engine in steam.
Passenger services.
Although the LNWR provided passenger facilities at the terminus at Over and Wharton, the main raison d'être of the line was freight: mainly salt and coal. There was a limited passenger service until when Over and Wharton station closed. Services ran to a variety of local destinations such as Runcorn, Wigan, Warrington and Acton Bridge but offered poor connections in the main.
Decline and closure.
The line remained busy with rock salt trains until 1992 when the line was closed and the track lifted.
The line today.
Only a small portion of brickwork from Over and Wharton station remains, the remainder of the branch and station is now the site of a housing development and the A5018 road.


Northern line (Merseyrail)

The Merseyrail Northern line is a cross-city railway running from in south Liverpool then (by way of an underground section through Liverpool's city centre) to termini in the north at (Merseyside), (Lancashire) and (Merseyside). It and the Wirral Line are commuter rail services operated by Merseyrail, serving Merseyside. A third line, the City Line, is not owned or operated by Merseyrail, although stations inside Merseytravel's area are branded as Merseyrail. All three lines are funded by Merseytravel.
Passenger interchange to the Wirral Line is available at Moorfields and Liverpool Central, and to the City Line at Hunts Cross and Liverpool South Parkway. Liverpool South Parkway also allows interchange with regional and long-distance services, while connections to services operated by Northern Trains are possible at Kirkby, Ormskirk and Southport.
Description.
The line runs from Hunts Cross in the south of Liverpool towards Liverpool Central. Brunswick station between and Liverpool Central was added in 1998 to provide a connection to the Brunswick Business Park. In the tunnel just south of Liverpool Central, the line drops into a 1970s tunnel to a lower level into the underground Mersey Railway Liverpool Central (Low Level) station. North of Central the line uses the Mersey Railway tunnel for about half of the route to Moorfields, an underground station built in the 1970s to replace the surface-level Liverpool Exchange. North of Moorfields, the route emerges from the tunnel to join the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway lines from the former Exchange station.
After Sandhills, the former Liverpool, Crosby and Southport Railway branches off towards Southport, while the other routes continue to Kirkdale on what was a joint section of track between Liverpool, Ormskirk and Preston Railway and the Liverpool and Bury Railway. After Kirkdale, the Ormskirk and Kirkby lines diverge.
Generally, trains from Hunts Cross continue to Southport, while trains to Ormskirk and Kirkby start at Liverpool Central. Daytime trains operate every 15 minutes on each of the three routes Monday to Saturday daytime and every 30 minutes evenings and Sundays. Until 2017, summer Sunday frequencies on the Southport route were increased to every 15 minutes. There are no peak hour frequency increases but trains on the Southport and Ormskirk routes are increased to six carriages, as are weekend services during the summer on the Southport route.
Special timetables are implemented for major events such as the Grand National meeting at Aintree and golf tournaments at Birkdale. These involve changing services on all branches and the closure of stations in anticipation of overcrowding risks.
Passenger volume.
Passengers from the year beginning April 2002 to the year beginning April 2010.
Service pattern.
There are a total of 12tph running on the central section between Sandhills and Liverpool Central. The off-peak service pattern as of December 2019 is: "(Not all stops listed; trains call at every station on their route.)"
History.
The Northern Line was introduced in 1977.
Former stations.
"This list is incomplete."
Apart from Garston, all closures were prior to the formation of the Northern line.
Electrification.
The line is electrified using 750 V DC third rail, identical to the third rail system present in southern England.
Connections.
Interchange with the Wirral line is available at and . As the Northern line does not pass through , passengers from other rail networks must use the Wirral line as a connection. As there is only a direct escalator down to the Wirral line towards Birkenhead at Liverpool Central and given the short distance between Central and Lime Street most passengers prefer to walk rather than use the several escalators necessary to travel between the two stations.
Liverpool city centre stations have lifts for wheelchairs buggies and heavy luggage but they are small.
Interchange with other National Rail services can be made at Southport, Ormskirk, Kirkby, Liverpool South Parkway and Hunts Cross.
Liverpool South Parkway opened on 11 June 2006, replacing Garston and providing connections to the City Line formerly available at .
Future.
Plans to re-open St James station have been proposed. Merseytravel agreed to work with Liverpool Vision in March 2014 to investigate the cost of re-opening the station and its projected usage. Merseytravel listed the re-opening of St James station as a 'top rail project' on a Rail Development and Delivery Committee report in 2016.
As part of Lancashire County Council's plans to build a new railway station in Skelmersdale, they have proposed an extension to the Northern Line that would change the terminus of the Kirkby branch of the line from Kirkby to Skelmersdale. The proposals could see a new station built at Headbolt Lane and Merseyrail services also passing through Rainford railway station. By September 2017, Merseytravel and Lancashire County Council had committed £5 million of funding to the scheme. Merseytravel believe the scheme could cost around £300 million to develop and could be ready in a decade.
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Long Term Rail Strategy document of October 2017, page 37, states a review in 2020 to introduce new Merseyrail battery trains will be undertaken, in view to put Preston onto the Merseyrail network by extending the Merseyrail Northern Line from Ormskirk to Preston. The aim is to have Preston one of the terminals of the Northern Line. The document states, "The potential use of battery powered Merseyrail units may improve the business case".


Ipswich Corporation Tramways

Ipswich Corporation Tramways was an electric tramway system that served the town of Ipswich in Suffolk from 23 November 1903 until 26 July 1926.
Infrastructure.
Horse tramway.
Ipswich's horse tramway (Ipswich Tramway) had been operating since 1880 from a depot located at the junction of Quadling Street and New Cardinal Street (), and with a total length of .
Electric tramway.
In 1903 the electric tramway replaced the horse tramway. Extensions to the system increased track length to producing a network that centred upon Cornhill (). From Cornhill the lines ran along:
The depot, consisting of a power station and tram shed, was in Constantine Road (). The buildings are still in use by motorbuses.
Tramcars.
The fleet, in a livery of dark green and cream, consisted of:
Closure.
Line closures started in 1923 and were completed in 1926. Five of the tramcars and one tramcar body were sold to Scarborough Tramways Company. The tramway system was replaced by a trolleybus system.
See also.
List of town tramway systems in the United Kingdom


Hope Valley line

The Hope Valley line is a trans-Pennine railway line in England, linking Manchester with Sheffield. It was completed in 1894.
From Sheffield Midland, trains head up the Midland Main Line through the south-west of the city to Dore and Totley, where the Hope Valley line branches off to run through the Totley Tunnel, the fourth-longest tunnel in England.
It emerges in the Hope Valley area of Derbyshire, where it passes through the railway stations of Grindleford, Hathersage, Bamford, Hope and Edale before entering the two-mile-long Cowburn Tunnel.
From the western portal of the tunnel, the line runs through Chinley, then splits. The northern branch runs via New Mills Central towards Manchester Piccadilly. The southern branch passes through the Disley Tunnel before merging with the Buxton Line and then heading to Stockport to join the main line to Manchester.
Passenger services on the line are operated by Northern Trains, East Midlands Railway and TransPennine Express.
History.
Sheffield and Midland Joint Section.
This section was built by the Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee as part of the Midland Railway's drive to reach Manchester with its line from London via Ambergate and Millers Dale. Initially, in 1867, it joined the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway at Hyde Junction, running into Manchester London Road, but in 1875 a more direct route was built through Bredbury. When Manchester Central was opened by the Cheshire Lines Committee, a new line was built through Heaton Mersey. This third route was closed along with Manchester Central, apart from the section through Disley Tunnel to Hazel Grove, where it now joins the old LNWR line into Stockport.
Dore and Chinley.
In 1872, the Midland Railway's only route from Sheffield to Manchester was via Ambergate. It had originally proposed a line to run from Dore to Hassop, meeting its extension from Rowsley to Buxton. However, the "Dore and Chinley Railway" was floated independently in 1872 and, unsuccessfully, until the Midland took an interest, since it would provide a more direct route, connecting through Chinley into Manchester. The line was authorised in 1884 and work began in 1888.
The line took five years to build, opening to goods traffic in November 1893, with passenger traffic being carried from June 1894. The terrain through Hope Valley and the Vale of Edale was easy enough by Midland standards, but at each end there were formidable obstacles, negotiated by means of the Totley and Cowburn Tunnels.
20th century.
At the time of the Beeching review, the line was running in competition with the recently modernised and faster Woodhead Line and its closure was suggested. On appeal, British Rail was required to keep the Hope Valley line open to passenger traffic; it was decided that the Woodhead route would be closed to passenger traffic instead and then subsequently to all traffic in 1981, due to the high cost of further upgrading the line to modern standards.
Metrolink proposals.
In the early 1980s, proposals were put forward to convert the Piccadilly–Belle Vue–Rose Hill/Marple section of the Hope Valley line to light rail operation for the proposed Manchester Metrolink system. While construction of Metrolink went ahead, the Hope Valley line was not included in the system which was completed in 1992. When in 2000, proposals for a large-scale extension of Metrolink were announced by the government, these still did not include conversion of the Hope Valley line; but, subsequently, planning documents from Network Rail and from the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority have suggested that this route might be appropriate for tram-train operation, and, as such, it was suggested to the Department for Transport as a possible location for a national tram-train pilot.
2019 closure.
On 1 August 2019, the line was closed between Marple and Sheffield amid fears that the dam at Toddbrook Reservoir would collapse, following heavy rain, which would flood the town of Whaley Bridge. The Buxton line, between Hazel Grove and Buxton, was also closed because of this. The line was re-opened on 7 August 2019.
Future.
Nottinghamshire County Council and the Department for Transport have investigated the possibility of adding another service that does not call at Sheffield in order to improve the journey time between Nottingham and Manchester. Stopping (and changing direction) in Sheffield, the fastest journey is 110 minutes (in 2019), but the council has estimated bypassing Sheffield would cut the time to 85 minutes. Improvements to allow faster speeds on a stretch near Stockport could also shave off 2–3 minutes.
Network Rail, in partnership with South Yorkshire ITA, will redouble the track between Dore Station Junction and Dore West Junction, at an estimated cost of £15 million. This costing is based on four additional vehicles in traffic to deliver the option, however, this will depend on vehicle allocation through the DfT rolling stock plan. This work will be programmed, subject to funding, in conjunction with signalling renewals in the Dore/Totley Tunnel area.
In 2018, proposals were published for works in order to fit in an all-day (07:00–19:00) hourly Manchester–Sheffield via New Mills Central stopping service, by extending an existing Manchester–New Mills Central service. Planning permission for the upgrade was granted in February 2018, but delays mean that this will now not be completed until 2023. These changes to allow three fast trains, a stopping train and freight trains each hour were also supported in a Transport for the North investment report in 2019, together with “further interventions” for the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme.
In March 2021, it was announced by Minister of State for Transport, Andrew Stephenson, that £137 million would be used to upgrade the line. A joint venture between Volker Rail and Story Contracting was awarded an £80 million contract for the delayed Hope Valley upgrade. The work includes creating a passing loop between Bamford and Hathersage, and adding a second track and platform at Dore and Totley station. This will allow passenger trains to pass slow-moving freight and allow three fast trains per hour between Manchester and Sheffield. There will also be improvements to the Jaggers Lane Bridge in Hathersage. Construction is expected to start in 2022 and be complete by 2023.
Freight.
Over a million tons of cement a year is taken away by rail from Earle's Sidings at Hope.


Barnsley and District Tramway

The Barnsley and District Electric Traction Co was an electric tramway network serving the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
The tramway was a subsidiary of the British Electric Traction and services begun on 31 October 1902. In early 1898, three companies had applied for local tramway systems, the Barnsley Corporation applied in 1900 for a larger network than it finally built. In 1913, the company began to run motor buses to Hoyland and other points, Electric was dropped form the company name in 1919. the Barnsley company changed its name to Yorkshire Traction Co. in 1928 and abandoned tramway operation in 1930.
Ignoring Oxford and Bristol, YTC is the largest bus operator to have originated from a tramway company in England.
The network.
The Barnsley electric tramway was a standard gauge line, running from Smithies (near Monk Bretton Colliery) to the south of Barnsley, 2 miles south of the town centre to two termini, at Worsbrough Bridge and Worsbough Dale with a junction at the crossroads of Upper Sheffield Road and Kingwell Road at the Cutting End by the present day Cutting Edge public house. The line ran from the level crossing on Old Mill Lane, down the Barnsley town centre to Sheffield Road and split in two termini down Park Road (Worsbrough) and High Street. At the road junction south of Market Place, the left fork was occupied by the Dearne & District. Both networks were virtually next to each other at this point but never connected.
Extensions.
The Barnsley tramway was to be larger than it actually were but the Great Central Railway company refused the passing of tramway tracks of its own network, and prevented authorised lines to be built. One of these lines was to push the tramway "away" from Barnsley towards Carlton Road to the North. Other extensions were to extend the tramway into a loop on Park Road (Barnsley) in Locke Park and south from Worsborough Bridge down Park Road (Worsbrough) to Hoyland Common, this extension was also blocked by the GCR.
Tram depots.
Sheffield Road shed.
The shed stood next to the 1920s bus garage of the same company to the south of Barnsley town centre. The shed had four running tracks and an extensive yard. Overhaul workshops were situated to the back of the shed.
At the end of tramway operations the depot became a bus depot exclusively, passing to Stagecoach Yorkshire and finally closing for housing development on 20 October 2008. Demolition work started in April 2009.
Very little of the system survives today apart from a few sawn off overhead wire poles in the cutting of Upper Sheffield Road and the occasional piece of track unearthed during roadworks.
Rolling stock.
The Barnsley & District used two types of vehicle:


Bristol Tramways

Bristol Tramways operated in the city of Bristol, England from 1875, when the Bristol Tramways Company was formed by Sir George White, until 1941 when a Luftwaffe bomb destroyed the main power supply cables.
History.
The first trams in Bristol (horse-drawn, with a maximum speed of 6 miles per hour) were introduced in 1875. Electric trams were introduced in 1895, the first city to do so in the United Kingdom. At the system's peak there were 17 routes and 237 tramcars in use.
In 1887 the Bristol Tramways Company merged with the Bristol Cab Company to form the Bristol Tramways and Carriage Company. The new company developed a fleet of omnibuses to serve the rest of the city and country areas. In 1912 it bought the Clifton Rocks Railway. In 1929 the White family sold its controlling interest in the company to the Great Western Railway, but by 1932 control had passed to the Thomas Tilling Group. William Verdon Smith (nephew of Sir George White) remained as chairman but was replaced in 1935 by J.F. Heaton of Thomas Tilling, so he could concentrate on the Bristol Aeroplane Company.
In 1937 control of Bristol's tramways passed to a joint committee of the Bristol Tramways company and Bristol Corporation.
Closure.
Abandonment of the tramways began in 1938, but this was halted at the outbreak of World War II. Tram operations ceased in 1941 following the Luftwaffe's Good Friday air raids during the Bristol Blitz, which set central Bristol on fire. A bomb hit Counterslip bridge, St Philips, next to the Tramways generating centre, and severed the tram power supply. The final tram from Old Market to Kingswood was given a push by passers-by and freewheeled its way into the depot.
Almost all Bristol's trams were scrapped; however, one is preserved at Filton by Aerospace Bristol, formerly the Bristol Aero Collection. Another memorial to the system is a length of tram track still embedded in St Mary Redcliffe churchyard, where it was blown by a bomb. Two lengths of intact track can be seen at the car park of the Gloucester Road Medical Centre, and a short section of track still exists on the approach to Bristol Temple Meads railway station. Another section of track used to be still in place near Castle Park, but this was lost when the area was redeveloped as part of the Cabot Circus development.
The Bristol Tramways company continued as a bus operator, but the name was not changed to Bristol Omnibus Company until 1957.
Routes.
The electric tram routes were not numbered until November 1913. They were then numbered as follows:
Note that:


Barton line

The Barton line is a railway line in North and North East Lincolnshire, England. It runs from Barton-upon-Humber south east to Cleethorpes and was designated by the Department for Transport as a community rail line in February 2007. Barton station is near to the Humber Bridge. It is situated on the south bank of the Humber Estuary.
Stations served.
The stations served by the route are listed below.
Services and rolling stock.
Passenger services on the line are provided by East Midlands Railway however the trains crews are provided by TransPennine Express as Northern does not have any train crew based in Cleethorpes to run the service. Passenger services on the line were due to switch to East Midlands Railway from the start of the new franchise in August 2019, but this transfer was deferred until May 2021. Freight services previously served the chemical works at Barton-upon-Humber and the sidings at . Services are operated by one Class 153 unit every two hours in each direction on weekdays. Sunday trains only run during the summer months (May to early September).
Before Class 153s started operating Class 142s and Class 150s (and before that Class 114) DMU sets were used. On Mondays – Saturday, the first service of the day from to , the 06:00 departure, and the 06:58 return was operated by a First TransPennine Express Class 185 (for operational reasons), although this service did not call at and due to the low platforms. This practice ceased at the December 2013 timetable change and the first train from Cleethorpes now serves all intermediate stations other than New Clee, which is currently served by trains on request during daylight hours only. East Midlands Railway will operate the line with Class 156s.
Since the closure of the chemical plant no scheduled freight services operate on the route, though occasional trainloads have operated from the bulk grain terminal at New Holland (which now occupies the former pier it remained rail-connected for a period, but the tracks are now in disrepair and unusable).
Infrastructure.
The line is mostly double track, except for the sections at each end and the connecting curve between and . The eastern portion of the route as far as Habrough is shared with the South Humberside Main Line to and , whilst the short section either side of Ulceby also forms part of the busy freight artery between and the Port of Immingham. West of Ulceby the line is double as far as Oxmarsh Crossing (near New Holland), reverting to single for the final to the terminus at Barton. This section has several manual signal boxes with semaphore signalling and manned & gated level crossings in operation. Network Rail are planning to re-signal the line in 2015–16, with control passing to the York Rail Operating Centre – the level crossings on the line will then be automated and the existing signal box at Ulceby Junction abolished (those at Goxhill, Barrow Road and Oxmarsh Crossing will remain).
History.
The to section of the line follows the Great Grimsby and Sheffield Junction Railway, opened in 1848. This subsequently became part of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway and eventually the London and North Eastern Railway at the 1923 Grouping. The line was extended to Cleethorpes by the MS&LR in 1863, with a branch from Goxhill to the docks at Immingham added in 1911. The line was particularly busy during the Second World War, as it served Royal Air Force airfields at Goxhill and Killingholme in addition to the various industrial installations in the area. The line was twice proposed for closure in the 1960s (in 1963 and again four years later), but was reprieved on each occasion (though the Goxhill to Immingham Line did close in June 1963).
Prior to the opening of the Humber Bridge in June 1981, passenger services ran via where they connected with the Humber Ferry service across the Humber to Corporation Pier in Hull but after the bridge was commissioned the ferry service was withdrawn and a new chord line and replacement station provided at New Holland to allow trains to run directly to and from Barton. Since then, the connection to and from Hull has been provided by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire bus over the bridge and now operates out of Hull Paragon Interchange.
The service ran hourly until the spring of 1990, but was cut to the current two-hourly pattern at that year's timetable change by British Rail due to unreliability and a shortage of rolling stock. The winter Sunday service also suffered the same fate in 1999 following the abolition of Humberside County Council and subsequent withdrawal of funding by the replacement unitary authorities.
Signalling.
The south end of the line is signalled under Track Circuit Block by the York Rail Operating Centre. To the north, several signal boxes control the line under Absolute Block with semaphores. The single section is signalled under One Train Working with staff, with the signaller at Oxmarsh Crossing signal box giving the staff and collecting it.