Penistone Line

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Penistone Line
Denby Dale viaduct in 2008.jpg
Overview
StatusOperational
Owner Network Rail
Locale
Termini
Service
TypeHeavy rail
System National Rail
Operator(s) Northern Trains
Rolling stock Class 150
Technical
Number of tracks Single-track with passing loops
Track gauge 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Route map
Penistone Line.png
(Click to expand)

The Penistone Line [1] is operated by Northern Trains in the West Yorkshire Metro and Travel South Yorkshire areas of northern England. It connects Huddersfield and Sheffield via Penistone and Barnsley, serving many rural communities. Metrocards (Zone 5) can be used for travel between Huddersfield and Denby Dale and intermediate stations.

Contents

Line details

Thurstonland Tunnel, 1970s Brockholes to Thurstonland Rail Tunnel.jpg
Thurstonland Tunnel, 1970s
Railway lines through Huddersfield in 1911 Huddersfield, Bradley Wood, Heaton Lodge, Thornhill, Mirfield & Dewsbury RJD 36.jpg
Railway lines through Huddersfield in 1911
Railway lines through Penistone and Barnsley in 1912 Barnsley, Penistone, Batley RJD 3.jpg
Railway lines through Penistone and Barnsley in 1912

Huddersfield–Penistone

The first section of line between Huddersfield and Penistone was opened on 1 July 1850 by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR). From the joint L&YR/London and North Western Railway Huddersfield station, trains ran south to Springwood Junction (south of Huddersfield) on the London and North Western Railway LeedsManchester main line, where the L&YR line began; from there the route was as follows:

The southern part of that section follows the upper reaches of the River Don.

Penistone–Barnsley–Sheffield

At Penistone, the route joins the former Great Central Railway (GCR) line from Manchester via the Woodhead Tunnel, travelling eastwards. It deviates from the former main line towards Sheffield Victoria at a point once known as Barnsley Junction, and heads towards that town beyond which it takes a circuitous route via Wombwell before going south to Sheffield. The route is as follows:

Up until 1983, trains between Huddersfield and Sheffield travelled due south from Penistone direct to Sheffield via the old GCR line. The diversion to Barnsley officially opened in May 1983, and originally, the line was marketed with the brand name of The Hurrier. [2]

Network Rail

The 32.6-km section of line from Springwood Junction (between Huddersfield and Lockwood) to Barnsley Station Junction (between Dodworth and Barnsley) constitutes Network Rail route LNE 15A.

LNE 15A
LocationM-Ch km
Barnsley 0-110.20
Barnsley Station Junction0-000.00
Dodworth 2-644.50
Silkstone Common 4-226.90
Penistone 7-2511.75
Denby Dale 11-3018.30
Clayton West Junction12-7320.80
Shepley 13-4721.85
Stocksmoor 14-3523.25
Brockholes 16-3626.45
Berry Brow 18-3529.65
Lockwood 19-4331.45
Springwood Junction20-2132.60
Huddersfield + 0-40+ 0.80

The Penistone Line today

Platform 2 at Huddersfield, used only by Sheffield trains Platform 2 for the Penistone Line.jpg
Platform 2 at Huddersfield, used only by Sheffield trains

The Penistone Line Partnership, representing local interests, is a long-time supporter of services on the route and has provided music and real-ale trains.

In November 2005, the line was named as a pilot project within the Department for Transport's Community Rail Strategy. The section from Barnsley to Huddersfield was designated a community rail line in May 2006. This led to line speed improvements at Cumberworth Tunnel and improved reliability. Passenger numbers have continued to grow to a record 1,030,000 in 2005 – a stark contrast from the late 1970s and early 1980s when the line was under threat of closure due to falling levels of patronage and the possible loss of revenue support from both PTEs. [3]

The entire Barnsley to Huddersfield route was originally double tracked. However, following modernisation works in 1983 and 1989, it was reduced to a single line, apart from a pair of crossing loops at Penistone and between Stocksmoor and Shepley. Control was split between the Huddersfield and Barnsley signal boxes but, by 2018, the Rail Operating Centre at York was to take over the signalling of the entire route. [4]

Tram-train trial

On 18 March 2008, the Department for Transport released details of a proposal to trial tram-trains on the Penistone Line, the first use of such vehicles in the UK. The trial was to start in 2010 and last for two years. Northern Rail, the operator of passenger services on the line, asked potential manufacturers to tender for the design and construction of five new vehicles, which Northern Rail would subsequently lease. In addition, Network Rail planned to spend £15 million modifying track and stations to make them compatible with the new vehicles. [5]

However, it was announced on 15 September 2009 that a city tram-train trial between Rotherham and Sheffield would replace the Penistone Line scheme. [6]

Notes

  1. "Named railway lines" . Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  2. Brown, Murray, ed. (1984). Jane's Railway year. London: Jane's Publishing. p. 128. ISBN   0710603010.
  3. Body 1988, pp. 31–32.
  4. Williams, Alan (January 2019). "East Yorkshire begins to ROC". Modern Railways. Vol. 75, no. 844. Stamford: Key Publishing. p. 21. ISSN   0026-8356. The lines previously controlled from Huddersfield and Healey Mills signal boxes are now supervised by the 'Huddersfield' workstation in York ROC, .... with Barnsley on the single track Penistone line in the south... Control from York ROC is by Siemens Controlguide Westcad to renewed remote interlockings at Healey Mills, Thornhill LNW, Heaton Lodge, Greetland and Huddersfield, and will in due course be enabled with Automatic Route Setting (ARS).
  5. "Innovative 'tram-trains' to be trialled in Yorkshire". Network Rail Media Centre. 18 March 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  6. "City tram-trains trial unveiled". BBC News . 15 September 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2009.

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Penistone is a market town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England, which had a population of 24,760 at the 2021 census. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is 8 miles (13 km) west of Barnsley, 17 miles (27 km) north-east of Glossop, 14.2 miles (23 km) north-west of Sheffield, 27 miles (43 km) south-west of Leeds and 29 miles (47 km) east of Manchester in the foothills of the Pennines. The town is frequently noted on lists of unusual place names.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodhead line</span> Former Manchester to Sheffield railway line

The Woodhead line was a railway line linking Sheffield, Penistone and Manchester in the north of England. A key feature of the route is the passage under the high moorlands of the northern Peak District through the Woodhead Tunnels. The line was electrified in 1953 and closed between Hadfield and Penistone in 1981.

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Further reading