Huddersfield railway station

Last updated

Huddersfield
National Rail logo.svg
Huddersfield Station - geograph.org.uk - 2263702.jpg
St George's Square entrance
General information
Location Huddersfield, Kirklees
England
Coordinates 53°38′53″N1°47′06″W / 53.648°N 1.785°W / 53.648; -1.785
Grid reference SE143168
Managed by TransPennine Express
Transit authority West Yorkshire (Metro)
Platforms6
Other information
Station codeHUD
Fare zone5
Classification DfT category B
History
Original company London and North Western Railway
Pre-groupingLondon and North Western Railway/Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway joint
Post-grouping London, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
3 August 1847Station opened [1]
Passengers
2019/20Decrease2.svg 4.769 million

Station cats

Felix by the door of the station offices on Platform 1 Felix the station cat.jpg
Felix by the door of the station offices on Platform 1

The first station cat, Felix, joined the staff as a nine-week-old kitten in 2011. [21] Since then she has patrolled the station to keep it free from rodents, and even has her own cat-flap to bypass the ticket barriers. [22] In 2016 Felix was promoted to Senior Pest Controller [23] and local artist Rob Martin painted a portrait of her which now hangs in the station. [24] In 2019 Transpennine Express named a Class 68 locomotive (68031) after Felix. [25]

The second station cat, Bolt, joined the staff in September 2018 as an eight-week-old kitten. [26] [27]

The two cats have featured in calendars and two books, raising more than £240,000 for charity. [28]

Felix died on 3 December 2023 after the discovery of tumours which led to medical complications. [28]

On 9 July 2025, Bolt’s retirement from the station was announced. [29] [30] [31] [32]

See also

References

  1. Bairstow, Martin (1993). The Huddersfield & Sheffield Junction Railway. Martin Bairstow. ISBN   1-871944-08-2.
  2. 1 2 Historic England. "Railway Station (Grade I) (1277385)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  3. Stocks, William (June 1956). "Huddersfield Station". The Railway Magazine . Vol. 102, no. 662. London: IPC. p. 378. ISSN   0033-8923.
  4. Rennison, Robert William (1996). Civil Engineering Heritage (2nd ed.). London: Thomas Telford. pp. 187–188. ISBN   0-7277-2518-1.
  5. Tuffrey, Peter (4 June 2019). "A Splendid Station". The Yorkshire Post. Picture Past. p. 11. ISSN   0963-1496.
  6. Pevsner, Nikolaus (2001). Ratcliffe, Enid (ed.). Yorkshire : the West Riding (2 ed.). Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. p. 64. ISBN   0-14-071017-5.
  7. Jenkins, Simon (1 October 2017). "10 of the best railway stations in Britain". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  8. "Concert for Alyson's cause". Huddersfield Examiner. 6 March 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  9. Huddersfield Station facilities National Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 16 January 2017
  10. Access improvements complete at Huddersfield Station (Huddersfield Examiner, 20 August 2010)
  11. Above and beyond unveils plans for Huddersfield railway station revamp (Huddersfield Examiner, 5 September 2009)
  12. Ticket barriers go in at Huddersfield railway station (Huddersfield Examiner, 13 May 2013)
  13. Huddersfield to Leeds, Transpennine Route Upgrade project. Accessed 2023-01-20
  14. Huddersfield to Westtown (Dewsbury), Transpennine Route Upgrade, Network Rail
  15. "Huddersfield and Dewsbury stations close for signal works" BBC News article 5 August 2017
  16. Huddersfield Station design and access statement, TWAO submission document NR15a, Network Rail, March 2021: page 46 (frame 50 of pdf), section 5.6.3
  17. Table 39 National Rail timetable, December 2023
  18. Table 27 National Rail timetable, December 2023
  19. "Stagecoach-Virgin company awarded InterCity East Coast rail franchise" (Press release). Perth: Stagecoach Group plc. 27 November 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  20. UK Steam "Mainline Steam Tour Programme 2010", 2010 listing.
  21. "Huddersfield Railway Station welcomes a new member of staff – Felix the station cat" Douglas, Joanne Huddersfield Examiner 21 November 2011
  22. "Felix the cat gets special entrance at Huddersfield station after coming unstuck at new barriers" James, Richard Metro.co.uk 14 June 2013
  23. "Felix the Huddersfield Station cat gets a purr-motion" Beever, Susie Huddersfield Examiner 2 February 2016
  24. Douglas, Joanne (30 November 2016). "New oil portrait unveiled of Felix the cat". Huddersfield Examiner. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  25. Beever, Susie (5 March 2019). "Felix the Huddersfield Station Cat now has a train named after her". Yorkshire Live. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  26. Beever, Susie (2 September 2018). "Huddersfield Station take on SECOND cat as Felix's apprentice". Huddersfield Examiner. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  27. Bevis, Gavin (29 December 2019). "The commuter cats who became fur-mous". BBC News. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  28. 1 2 Holden, Michael (5 December 2023). "West Yorkshire railway station cat dies from terminal illness". RailAdvent. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  29. "We have some news for you. After much deliberation Bolt has taken a retirement package and has gone to live with Jacqui (his Station Mum) and of course Buddy". Facebook. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
  30. "Popular Huddersfield Railway Station cat Bolt retires". ITV News. 9 July 2025. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  31. Jones, Steve (9 July 2025). "Much-loved railway station cat takes retirement". BBC News. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  32. "A legendary duo departs: Station manager and Bolt the cat say goodbye to Huddersfield station". TransPennine Express. 9 July 2025. Retrieved 10 July 2025.