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Tees Valley line

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Tees Valley Line
A Northern Rail Class 156 leaving Heighington station
Overview
StatusOperational
OwnerNetwork Rail
Locale
Termini
Stations18
Service
TypeHeavy rail
SystemNational Rail
Operator(s)
Rolling stock
History
Opened27 September 1825
Technical
Track length38 miles (61 km)[1]
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed60 mph (97 km/h)
Route map

(Click to expand)

The Tees Valley Line is a railway route in Northern England, following part of the original Stockton and Darlington Railway route of 1825.[2] The line covers a distance of 38 miles (61 km), and connects Bishop Auckland with Saltburn via Darlington, Middlesbrough and 14 other stations in the Teesdale.

The section of line between Darlington and Bishop Auckland is branded as the Bishop Line and is supported by the Bishop Line Community Rail Partnership.[3] Beyond the line's western terminus at Bishop Auckland, the tracks continue for around 16 miles (26 km) to Stanhope along what is now the Weardale Heritage Railway.[4]

History

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A map of the railway network of the Tees Valley, and neighbouring areas of County Durham and North Yorkshire, at its greatest extent during the early 20th century

The section of line between Bishop Auckland and Albert Hill Junction, Darlington (prior to joining the East Coast Main Line), as well as the section between Oak Tree Junction, Dinsdale (near Middleton St. George) and Eaglescliffe, follow the original route of the Stockton & Darlington Railway, which dates back to 1825.[2] The 1825 S&DR route is rejoined north of Eaglescliffe and runs as far as Bowesfield Junction, Stockton.

The S&DR line from Bowesfield to Watson's Wharf on the Tees near Middlesbrough opened in 1830, and this was extended to Redcar in 1846. The extension to Saltburn opened in 1861 and the line towards Brotton and Loftus opened in 1872. The line beyond Loftus (now the freight-only line to Boulby Mine) was part of the Whitby, Redcar & Middlesbrough Union Railway, opened in 1883; it closed on 5 May 1958.[5]

In March 2015, a 0.62 miles (1 km) electrified siding was laid adjacent to the Tees Valley Line, just south of Heighington. This allows low-speed testing of the trains manufactured at the nearby Hitachi Rail plant at Newton Aycliffe, including TOPS classes 800, 801, 805, 807, 810 and 385.[6][7]

Services

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Services on the Tees Valley Line are operated by three train operating companies:

Rolling stock

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Predominantly, rolling stock on the Tees Valley Line consists of:

Between 2019 and 2021, Class 156 and 158 units operating on the Tees Valley Line were refurbished, introducing free WiFi, power sockets, on-board passenger information displays and an interior refresh.[11][12][13]

Class 185 units were refurbished as part of a £32 million investment, with the work being completed in 2018.[14]

Class 142 Pacer DMUs formerly served the line on Northern services, until the early 2020s when they were withdrawn from passenger service.[15]

Stations

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Tees Valley line
Bishop Auckland
Shildon Tunnel
Shildon
Shildon Sidings
Newton Aycliffe
Heighington
North Road
Darlington (Bank Top)
Fighting Cocks
Dinsdale
Teesside Airport Teesside International Airport
Allens West
Yarm Depot
Eaglescliffe
Stockton
Thornaby
Newport
Middlesbrough
Cargo Fleet
Cleveland Port
Eston
(2nd)
South Bank
Eston
(1st)
Grangetown
Lackenby
Lazenby
Warrenby Halt
Redcar British Steel
Redcar
(1st)
Redcar Central
Redcar East
Longbeck
Marske
Saltburn West Junction
Boulby line
Saltburn

The route serves the following stations:

Least-used stations

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In 2019, the Tees Valley Line was home to two of the country's least-used railway stations.

Redcar British Steel

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In 2017-18, Redcar British Steel was the least-used station in Great Britain, with an estimated 40 passenger journeys made.

Prior to service suspension in December 2019, it was served by two trains during the morning peak and two during the evening peak.

Teesside Airport

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In 2012–13 and 2013–14, Teesside Airport was the least-used station in the country, with just eight passenger journeys made in both periods.

It is currently served by a once-weekly parliamentary service; a Sunday service, commencing at Hartlepool, calls here before continuing through to Darlington.

In 2020/21, due to decreased travel throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the station saw only two passenger journeys made. While remaining officially open, the station has seen its service suspended since May 2022, with the one operational platform condemned as unsafe. As a result, there were only 2 passengers in the year beginning April 2022.

References

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  1. ^ "Delivering a better railway for a better Britain: Route Specifications 2019 London North Eastern and East Midlands" (PDF). Network Rail. April 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  2. ^ a b "The Stockton Railway". This is Stockton on Tees. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  3. ^ "Welcome to the Bishop Line Community Rail Partnership website". Bishop Line. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  4. ^ "Weardale Railway trust | Stanhope | The Weardale Railway Trust". weardale-railway. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  5. ^ "Whitby, Redcar and Middlesbrough Union Railway". www.gracesguide.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  6. ^ Hitachi Rail Europe's Newton Aycliffe factory connected to national rail network The Journal 25 March 2015
  7. ^ Newton Aycliffe's Hitachi train plant connected to main line BBC News 25 March 2015
  8. ^ "Timetables and engineering information for travel with Northern". Northern Railway. 2 June 2024. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  9. ^ "Timetables". TransPennine Express. 2 June 2024. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
  10. ^ "Our timetables". LNER. 2 June 2024. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  11. ^ "Northern launches North East's first fully refurbished train". Northern News. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  12. ^ "Northern's refurbished trains – creating jobs and boosting the economy". Northern News. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  13. ^ "Northern's train refurbishment nears completion | Northern". www.northernrailway.co.uk. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
  14. ^ "Brighter bigger better A modern makeover for our trains". www.tpexpress.co.uk. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  15. ^ "Northern retires first Pacer train". Northern News. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
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