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Barrow-in-Furness railway station

Coordinates: 54°07′09″N 3°13′34″W / 54.1191205°N 3.2260261°W / 54.1191205; -3.2260261
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Barrow-in-Furness
National Rail
General information
LocationBarrow-in-Furness, Westmorland and Furness
England
Coordinates54°07′09″N 3°13′34″W / 54.1191205°N 3.2260261°W / 54.1191205; -3.2260261
Grid referenceSD199699
Owned byNetwork Rail
Managed byNorthern Trains
Platforms3
Tracks3
Other information
Station codeBIF
ClassificationDfT category D
History
Original companyFurness Railway
Pre-groupingFurness Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
British Rail (London Midland Region)
Key dates
24 August 1846Opened as Barrow Pier
29 April 1863Resited and renamed Barrow Strand
1 June 1882Resited and renamed Barrow Central
14 November 1957Renamed Barrow-in-Furness
Passengers
2018/19Decrease 0.626 million
2019/20Increase 0.687 million
 Interchange  26,596
2020/21Decrease 0.198 million
 Interchange Decrease 5,940
2021/22Increase 0.522 million
 Interchange Increase 20,919
2022/23Increase 0.540 million
 Interchange Increase 26,332
Location
Barrow-in-Furness is located in the former Borough of Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is located in Cumbria
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness
Location in Cumbria, England
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Barrow-in-Furness (formerly Barrow Pier, Barrow Strand and Barrow Central) is a railway station on the Cumbrian Coast Line and Furness Line, 85+12 miles (138 km) south-west of Carlisle and 34+34 miles (56 km) north-west of Lancaster, in the town of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.

History

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The present station was formerly known as Barrow Central, and at one time it was a terminus for British Rail long-distance or InterCity services. From October 1947 until May 1983 these included sleeper services to and from London Euston. A sleeper service in the London direction only was briefly reintroduced between May 1987 and May 1990.

The original Barrow station of 1846 had been a wooden building at Rabbit Hill, near the site of the present St. George's Square. It was eventually replaced in 1863 by a new brick building close by, which had been designed by the Lancaster architect Edward Paley, and which latterly came to be known as Cambridge Hall. On 1 June 1882, the town's principal station was transferred to its present site below Abbey Road, following the construction of a new loop line. It had to be almost entirely rebuilt in the late 1950s,[1] after World War II, having largely been destroyed by enemy bombing on 7 May 1941.

From 1907 to 1941, the Furness Railway steam locomotive, Coppernob, was preserved in a special glass case outside the station. It was subsequently transferred away for additional security and is now in the National Railway Museum at York.

Services

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Northern Trains
Route 6
Cumbrian Coast, Furness
& Windermere lines
Carlisle
Dalston
Wigton
Aspatria
Maryport
Flimby
Workington
Harrington
Parton
Whitehaven
Corkickle
St Bees
Nethertown
Braystones
Sellafield
Seascale
Drigg
Ravenglass
Heritage railway
Bootle
Silecroft
Millom
Green Road
Foxfield
Kirkby-in-Furness
Askam
Barrow-in-Furness
Roose
Dalton
Ulverston
Cark & Cartmel
Kents Bank
Grange-over-Sands
Arnside
Silverdale
Carnforth
Windermere
Staveley
Burneside
Kendal
Oxenholme Lake District
Lancaster
Preston
Chorley
Bolton
Deansgate
Manchester Metrolink
Manchester Oxford Road
Manchester Piccadilly
Manchester Metrolink
Manchester Airport
Manchester Metrolink Airport interchange
Braystones & Nethertown
are request stops.

Services to the north are provided on Monday-Saturday by Northern, with services approximately hourly during the day to Whitehaven and Carlisle. One train per day operates to Sellafield specifically for workers at Sellafield nuclear plant (BNFL). Evening trains run only as far as Millom. There are 19 northbound departures each weekday; 15 of these go to Carlisle, three to Millom and one to Sellafield. There are 20 arrivals from the northern part of the line: 15 from Carlisle, three from Millom, one from Maryport and one from Sellafield. Some of these services continue along the Furness Line to Lancaster and Preston.[2]

To the south, there are a mixture of stopping services to Lancaster and a number of through services to Manchester Airport via Manchester Piccadilly. These operate on a broadly hourly frequency, with a few peak extras throughout the week (including Sundays).[3]

An improved Northern service was introduced at the May 2018 timetable change, including evening and Sunday services over the line to Whitehaven and Carlisle. More trains to and from Preston and Manchester Airport are planned to follow when rolling stock becomes available.[4][5]

Layout

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Platform 1, which contains the entrance to the station, is used primarily for Northern Rail through trains (from Lancaster/Preston to Carlisle) heading north, and trains heading to/arriving from Preston and Manchester Airport. The platform has a waiting area, the ticket office and information office and toilets, along with the cafe (run by Cafexpress), all of which have been recently renovated. In early 2012, the platform also had pieces of artwork of the local area unveiled by the Mayor of Barrow and the Barrow and Furness MP.

Platform 2 is mainly used for Northern services heading south to Lancaster or Preston, and local trains arriving from Millom/Sellafield. It can also be used by northbound departures.

Platform 3 is a bay platform that can only be used by northbound trains to Millom and Carlisle. It is used several times each day. It was formerly a through line and could be used by southbound trains until the late 1960s. A further platform once existed adjacent to it (as can be seen in the photograph of the station in 1966) but this has now been removed, along with the line serving it.

Between Platforms 2 and 3 is an indoor waiting area, with live departures indicator, a vending machine and speakers. Further up and down the platform are printed timetables; the rest of the buildings contain offices for staff and British Transport Police.

Depot

[edit]

Barrow-In-Furness Light Maintenance Depot is situated immediately north of the station.[6] In 2023, the depot was upgraded with a new 75-metre service road and steel canopy.[7] Following the upgrade, three carriages can be serviced and fuelled simultaneously, compared to one at a time previously.[8]

Recent renovations

[edit]

The station has recently been renovated, with replacement of most of the old seating and waiting areas, and replacement of the ageing automatic doors within the station. Electronic information signs have been installed, along with improved CCTV after several incidents on the station. Ramps have been provided for access, and this is continuing with provision of better access to Platforms 2 and 3, which previously would have been accessible only via the very end of the platform. The station restaurant is also being upgraded.

In fiction

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In the Railway Series books by the Rev. W Awdry, and the adapted television series Thomas & Friends, Barrow Central is the mainland terminus for the Fat Controller's North Western Railway, and is connected to the fictional Island of Sodor by a bridge to Vickerstown, or as it is known in the books, Vicarstown.

[edit]

References

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  1. ^ Railway Magazine March 1959 pp. 149–157 Dr M J Andrews: The Railways of Barrow
  2. ^ GB eNRT May 2023 Edition, Table 107 (Network Rail)
  3. ^ GB eNRT May 2023 Edition, Table 100 (Network Rail)
  4. ^ Northern Franchise Improvements - DfT Retrieved 25 April 2016
  5. ^ CRUG - August News Copeland Rail Users Group; Retrieved 4 August 2017
  6. ^ "Route Specifications: London North Western" (PDF). Network Rail. p. 69. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  7. ^ Wilcock, Rich (10 May 2023). "Northern upgrades depot to enable longer trains to run between Cumbria and Manchester". Rail Technology Magazine. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  8. ^ White, Chloe (10 May 2023). "Northern depot upgrades support increased capacity with longer trains operating between Cumbria and Manchester". RailAdvent. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
[edit]
Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Terminus   Northern Trains
Cumbria–Manchester Airport
  Roose
    Ulverston
Askam   Northern Trains
Cumbrian Coast Line
  Terminus
Terminus   Northern Trains
Furness Line
  Roose
  Historical railways  
Island Road   Furness Railway   Roose