Settle Junction railway station
Encyclopedia
Settle Junction railway station is a closed railway station located near the town of Settle
, North Yorkshire
, England
. It was situated on the Leeds to Morecambe Line at its junction with the Settle-Carlisle Line, 39.75 miles (64 km) northwest of .
Located immediately to south of the railway junction of the same name, it was opened by the Midland Railway
five months after the main line to to serve as an "exchange station" with the older route to Morecambe (as stated in an 1872 report submitted to the Settle and Carlisle Construction Committee of the MR by General Manager James Allport and Chief Engineer John Crossley). However, the expected traffic failed to materialise and after just one year of operation, it was closed on 1 November 1877.
Its remote location (1.75 miles (2.8 km) south of Settle and 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Long Preston
) undoubtedly contributed to its early demise, as potential travellers had the choice of three alternative stations that were all more conveniently sited for their respective communities.
(a Midland Railway timber structure dating from 1913) is still operational and can easily be seen from the adjacent A65
, which runs alongside the railway at this point. The box houses a London Midland Region standard frame of 31 levers and controls the busy double junction
(which was rebuilt following a derailment in 1979) between the two lines, as well as the block sections toward to the south, Blea Moor Sidings to the north and Station Junction to the north west.
The latter is the longest block section on the UK rail network at just over 24 miles (38.6 km) in length and severely restricts the capacity of the Carnforth line (a typical passenger train is timetabled to take 40 minutes to travel from one end of the section to the other, including station stops). Network Rail
has acknowledged the performance issues this can cause in its 2008 Lancashire and Cumbria Route Utilisation Strategy and hopes to install additional signalling along the route at some point in the future to address the problem. The same strategy has recently been adopted to solve similar headway issues on the 15 miles (24.1 km) section to Blea Moor (additional signals having been commissioned at to allow a second train to proceed as far as Horton once the preceding train has passed there).
Settle
Settle is a small market town and civil parish within the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. It is served by the Settle railway station, which is located near the town centre, and Giggleswick railway station which is a mile away. It is from Leeds Bradford Airport...
, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was situated on the Leeds to Morecambe Line at its junction with the Settle-Carlisle Line, 39.75 miles (64 km) northwest of .
Located immediately to south of the railway junction of the same name, it was opened by the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
five months after the main line to to serve as an "exchange station" with the older route to Morecambe (as stated in an 1872 report submitted to the Settle and Carlisle Construction Committee of the MR by General Manager James Allport and Chief Engineer John Crossley). However, the expected traffic failed to materialise and after just one year of operation, it was closed on 1 November 1877.
Its remote location (1.75 miles (2.8 km) south of Settle and 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Long Preston
Long Preston
Long Preston is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England, in the Yorkshire Dales. It lies along the A65 road, and is 12 miles from the larger town of Skipton and four miles from the town of Settle...
) undoubtedly contributed to its early demise, as potential travellers had the choice of three alternative stations that were all more conveniently sited for their respective communities.
The site today
Little trace of the station remains today, although the station house survived in private ownership until well after nationalisation of the railways in 1948, finally succumbing to demolition in the late 1960s. Settle Junction signal boxSignal box
On a rail transport system, signalling control is the process by which control is exercised over train movements by way of railway signals and block systems to ensure that trains operate safely, over the correct route and to the proper timetable...
(a Midland Railway timber structure dating from 1913) is still operational and can easily be seen from the adjacent A65
A65 road
The A65 is a major road in England. It runs north west from Leeds in Yorkshire via Kirkstall, Horsforth, Yeadon, Guiseley, Ilkley and Skipton, passes west of Settle, then continues through Ingleton and Kirkby Lonsdale before terminating at Kendal in Cumbria....
, which runs alongside the railway at this point. The box houses a London Midland Region standard frame of 31 levers and controls the busy double junction
Double junction
A double junction is a railway junction where a double track railway splits into two double track lines. Usually, one line is the main line and carries traffic through the junction at normal speed, while the other track is a branch line that carries traffic through the junction at reduced speed.A...
(which was rebuilt following a derailment in 1979) between the two lines, as well as the block sections toward to the south, Blea Moor Sidings to the north and Station Junction to the north west.
The latter is the longest block section on the UK rail network at just over 24 miles (38.6 km) in length and severely restricts the capacity of the Carnforth line (a typical passenger train is timetabled to take 40 minutes to travel from one end of the section to the other, including station stops). Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
has acknowledged the performance issues this can cause in its 2008 Lancashire and Cumbria Route Utilisation Strategy and hopes to install additional signalling along the route at some point in the future to address the problem. The same strategy has recently been adopted to solve similar headway issues on the 15 miles (24.1 km) section to Blea Moor (additional signals having been commissioned at to allow a second train to proceed as far as Horton once the preceding train has passed there).