Bradford Forster Square railway station

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Station name

A Class 333 unit on platform 1 333002 at Bradford Forster Square.jpg
A Class 333 unit on platform 1
A Class 144 in the old station platforms, now demolished DMU arriving at Bradford Forster Square from Skipton.jpg
A Class 144 in the old station platforms, now demolished

There is some disagreement about what names were used and when. Most modern references state that at least one of them was called 'Market Street', but there is disagreement as to exactly when this name was in use:

W. E. Forster died in 1886 [15] [16] and when the nearby Central Post Office opened in 1887, Forster Square, between the Railway Station and the Post Office, had recently been named. [17]

Throughout the 19th century, contemporary directories and maps either used the railway company name or a nearby street to identify the station. In 1852 it was the "Leeds and Bradford Railway Station". [18] In 1863 the location was "Midland Railway, Bottom of Kirkgate". [19]

The date of the name change has not yet been identified. In 1901, it was "The Leeds and Bradford railway ... is leased by the Midland Railway Company, and its station (called the "Midland" station) is at the bottom of Kirkgate." [20] Again in 1908 [21] and 1921 [22] it was still the "Midland Station". By 1934 the station name had changed to "Forster Square Station (L.M.S.R)." [23]

Services

Leeds-Bradford lines and other routes Leeds-Bradford lines.png
Leeds–Bradford lines and other routes

Trains from Bradford Forster Square are operated by Northern Trains and London North Eastern Railway. Most trains are run by Northern; these are towards Leeds, Skipton and Ilkley. During Monday to Saturday daytimes, trains operate every 30 minutes to Leeds and hourly on the other two routes. On weekday and Saturday evenings there are trains every hour to each of Skipton and Ilkley, but no trains run through to Leeds; instead a shuttle service runs between Bradford and Shipley, connecting there with Skipton – Leeds trains. Connections are also available at Shipley for longer distance trains to Morecambe and Carlisle; a single early direct service to Carnforth at 06:41 runs from here since the May 2022 timetable change, but there's no balancing return service.

On Sundays, trains run hourly between Bradford and Leeds all day (until the end of service) and to both Skipton and Ilkley. [24] The latter two routes were upgraded from two-hourly frequencies at the December 2017 timetable change.

During off-peak hours most trains use platforms 1 (for Skipton) and 2 (Leeds and Ilkley) – platform 3 is mainly used during weekday peak periods and in the evening, though a spare set is usually stabled here between 09.00 and 16.00 each weekday.

London North Eastern Railway operates two services each way (only one on Sundays) per day via Leeds and the East Coast Main Line to London King's Cross. [25] In January 2024, £24 million was allocated for a fourth platform at the station to allow LNER to provide seven services a day for Bradford's 2025 City of Culture event. The new platform is projected to be complete by the end of 2024. [26]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Whitaker, Alan; Myland, Brian. Railway Memories No. 4: Bradford. Bellcode Books. ISBN   1-871233-03-8.
  2. 1 2 Sheeran, George (1994). Railway Buildings of West Yorkshire, 1812–1920. Keele, Staffs: Ryburn Publishing. ISBN   1-85331-100-6.
  3. ↑ Dixon; Hindle (1987) [1871]. Willmott, Elvira (ed.). The Ryburn Map of Victorian Bradford [Plan of the Town of Bradford]. Keele, Staffs: Ryburn Publishing. ISBN   1-85331-004-2.
  4. ↑ Bradford. Ordnance Survey 1906. Alan Godfrey Maps. 1989. Sheet 216.08. ISBN   0-85054-281-2.
  5. ↑ UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  6. ↑ "£60,000 station improvements" . Bradford Observer. England. 9 September 1953. Retrieved 7 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ↑ "1859–1866". Midland Railway Miscellaneous Depts: 298. 1914. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  8. ↑ "Death of the Bradford Midland Stationmaster" . Bradford Daily Telegraph. England. 11 August 1897. Retrieved 10 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ↑ "Promotion for the Bradford Midland Station Master" . Bradford Weekly Telegraph. England. 30 September 1899. Retrieved 10 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ↑ "Bradford Midland Station Master" . Yorkshire Evening Post. England. 14 April 1908. Retrieved 10 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  11. ↑ "Northern Items" . Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer. England. 9 September 1930. Retrieved 10 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  12. ↑ "New Stationmaster" . Yorkshire Evening Post. England. 11 July 1936. Retrieved 10 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  13. ↑ "Mr. David Mathieson" . 8 December 1948. England. 11 July 1936. Retrieved 10 March 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
  14. ↑ Dewick, Tony (2002). Complete Atlas of Railway Station Names. Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN   0-7110-2798-6.
  15. ↑ Statue in Victoria Embankment Gardens, London
  16. ↑ Tablet in Westminster Abbey
  17. ↑ "Central Post Office (St. Peters House), Forster Square, Bradford". Leeds Mercury. 3 September 1887. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  18. ↑ Bradford Sheet 5 Series: Ordnance Survey, Large Scale Town Plans (1:1056), Surveyed 1848, Published 1852. National Library of Scotland
  19. ↑ Jones's Mercantile Directory, 1863 P26. Pub. Jones & Proud, Bradford Family History Society
  20. ↑ Kelly's Directory of Bradford and Suburbs, 1901 P1, Bradford Family History Society
  21. ↑ Ordnance Survey, 25 inch to the mile. Revised: 1905 to 1906. Published: 1908. National Library of Scotland
  22. ↑ Ordnance Survey, 25 inch to the mile Revised: 1915 Published: 1921. National Library of Scotland
  23. ↑ Ordnance Survey, 25 inch to the mile Revised: 1932 to 1934 Published: 1934. National Library of Scotland
  24. ↑ Table 36, 37 & 38 National Rail timetable, May 2022
  25. ↑ Table 26 National Rail timetable, December 2022
  26. ↑ Hyde, Nathan (31 January 2024). "£24m boost for rail link to capital". The Yorkshire Post. p. 1. ISSN   0963-1496.

Further reading

Bradford Forster Square
National Rail logo.svg
Forster Square Station - geograph.org.uk - 2138009.jpg
View of the station entrance
General information
Location Bradford, City of Bradford
England
Coordinates 53°47′49″N1°45′10″W / 53.7970°N 1.7529°W / 53.7970; -1.7529
Grid reference SE163334
Managed by Northern Trains
Transit authority West Yorkshire (Metro; 19??-2014)
Platforms3 (4 projected)
Other information
Station codeBDQ
Fare zone3
Classification DfT category C2
History
Original company Leeds and Bradford Railway
Key dates
1846Opened
1853Rebuilt
1890Rebuilt
1990Rebuilt on new site
Passengers
2018/19Decrease2.svg 1.995 million
 Interchange Increase2.svg 44,327
Preceding station National Rail logo.svg National Rail Following station
Shipley   London North Eastern Railway
East Coast Main Line
(Limited service)		 Terminus
Frizinghall   Northern Trains
Airedale Line 		 Terminus
Frizinghall   Northern Trains
Wharfedale Line 		 Terminus
Frizinghall   Northern Trains
Leeds-Bradford Lines 		 Terminus
  Historical railways  
Manningham   Midland Railway
Leeds and Bradford Extension Railway 		 Terminus
Manningham   Midland Railway
Leeds and Bradford Railway 		 Terminus
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