Morpeth railway station

Morpeth
General information
Location	Morpeth, Northumberland England
Coordinates	55°09′45″N 1°40′59″W
Grid reference	NZ202853
Owned by	Network Rail
Managed by	Northern Trains
Platforms	2
Other information
Station code	MPT
Classification	DfT category E
History
Original company	York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway
Pre-grouping	North Eastern Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway British Rail (North Eastern Region)
Key dates
1 March 1847 (1847-03-01)	Opened
Passengers
2018/19	0.475 million
Interchange	1,130
2019/20	0.507 million
Interchange	2,262
2020/21	82,468
Interchange	304
2021/22	0.403 million
Interchange	1,961
2022/23	0.488 million
Interchange	1,648
Location Morpeth Location in Northumberland, England
Notes Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Morpeth is a railway station on the East Coast Main Line, which runs between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley. The station, situated 16 miles 50 chains (16.6 mi; 26.8 km) north of Newcastle, serves the historic market town of Morpeth, Northumberland, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.

History

The station was opened by the Newcastle and Berwick Railway on 1 March 1847.^[1] It was designed by Benjamin Green in the Scottish Baronial style and retains its original station buildings.

A severe ninety degree curve in the line of the railway immediately to the south of the station has been the site of four serious rail accidents, two of them fatal.

Blyth and Tyne Railway

Another station was opened by the Blyth and Tyne Railway on 1 April 1858 and closed 24 May 1880.^[2] This was a terminus station that was also used by North British Railway trains from the west from Scotsgap from the opening of their line in 1862 until 1872.^[3][4] The B&T line to Bedlington lost its passenger trains in April 1950 (although occasional summer services between Scotland and the North Eastern coastal resorts continued operating over it until the 1960s), but it remains in use for freight and may have its passenger trains restored in the future (as an extension of the current local stopping service) - the South East Northumberland Rail User Group is currently campaigning for this.^[5] The current local service from Newcastle that terminates here uses the connection onto the B&T line north of the station to reverse and layover clear of the main line between trips.

Passenger trains over the old NBR line from Scotsgap, Reedsmouth and Rothbury ended in September 1952^[6] and it closed completely in 1966 - few traces of this route now remain.

Facilities

In December 2011, a self-service FastTicket machine was installed by Northern Rail for use outside the hours of operation of the ticket office (06:40 -12:40, Mondays to Saturdays only). Pre-purchased tickets can now also be collected from Morpeth. The ticket office is located on the eastern side of the line in the main station building, which also has a taxi office and toilets. The opposite (northbound) platform has a waiting shelter and the two are linked by a subway with lifts for wheelchair and mobility impaired users.^[7] Train running information is supplied via timetable posters and digital display screens.^[8]

A £2.4 million redevelopment of the station was approved in October 2016 and was started in October 2018 - this has seen the main buildings refurbished and the portico entrance modernised to incorporate a cafeteria, expanded ticket office and upgraded toilets. 5,382 square feet (500 m²) of office space has been created for local small businesses. The exterior of the station has been restored to Benjamin Green's original design, including the reinstatement of 15 tall chimney pots. The project was led by Greater Morpeth Development Trust and Northumberland County Council, with financial support from the Railway Heritage Trust, Network Rail, Northern and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.^[9] The refurbishment was completed in September 2020 and opened by Andy Savage, executive director of the Railway Heritage Trust.^[10]

Services

Services from Morpeth are currently operating to a reduced timetable, owing to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. There is also currently a consultation in place, which could see stopping services to and from Morpeth, as well as neighbouring Alnmouth for Alnwick and Berwick-upon-Tweed, significantly altered from the May 2022 timetable change.^{[11][12][13][14]}

CrossCountry

As of the May 2021 timetable change, there are four trains per day heading north towards Edinburgh Waverley. Heading south, there are five trains per day (weekday) to Birmingham New Street via Sheffield, one of which continues to Plymouth, with a further three trains running as far as Bristol Temple Meads. On a Saturday, a single train operates to Bristol Temple Meads. On Sunday, four trains run to Birmingham New Street, with one continuing to Plymouth, and two running as far as Bristol Temple Meads.^[15]

Rolling stock used: Class 220 Voyager and Class 221 Voyager

London North Eastern Railway

As of the June 2021 timetable change, there are seven trains per day heading north towards Edinburgh Waverley, one of which extends to Aberdeen. There are seven trains per day heading south, five of which run to London King's Cross, with two trains per day running as far as Newcastle and Leeds respectively.^[16]

Rolling stock used: Class 800 Azuma and Class 801 Azuma

Lumo

In October 2021, Lumo commenced the operation of a twice-daily service between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley.^[17][18][19] This was later increased to the current frequency of five trains per day in early 2022.^[20]

Rolling stock used: Class 803 AT300

Northern Trains

As of the December 2021 timetable change, there is an hourly service between Newcastle and Morpeth. Most services extend to Carlisle via Hexham. At peak times, two trains per day (excluding Sunday) extend to Chathill.^[21]

Rolling stock used: Class 156 Super Sprinter and Class 158 Express Sprinter

TransPennine Express

As of the May 2021 timetable change, there is a twice-daily service between Liverpool Lime Street and Edinburgh Waverley via Newcastle.^[22] Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the service operated north of Newcastle at an hourly frequency.

In September 2021, TransPennine Express announced that they would be introducing a five return trains per weekday semi-fast service between Newcastle and Edinburgh from December 2021, which will call at Morpeth.^[23]

Rolling stock used: Class 802 Nova 1

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Newcastle		CrossCountry South West–Birmingham–North East–Scotland		Alnmouth
		London North Eastern Railway London–Edinburgh
Newcastle		Lumo London–Edinburgh		Edinburgh Waverley
Cramlington towards Newcastle		Northern Trains East Coast Main Line		Pegswood (Peak only) towards Chathill
Newcastle		TransPennine Express North TransPennine		Alnmouth
Cramlington				Edinburgh Waverley
	Historical railways
Meldon		North British Railway Wansbeck Railway		Terminus
Hepscott		North Eastern Railway Blyth and Tyne Railway		Terminus
Stannington		North Eastern Railway York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway		Pegswood

References

1. Butt 1995, p. 163
2. "Northumbrian Railways; Blyth and Tyne stations". Northumbrian-railways.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 April 2009. Retrieved 29 March 2009.
3. "SENRUG // South East Northumberland Rail User Group: Morpeth 'Then & Now'". Senrug.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
4. Disused Stations - Morpeth B & T Archived 8 July 2013 at the Wayback Machine www.disused-stations.org.uk; Retrieved 2013-12-04
5. "Re-open Ashington Blyth Tyne Line". Senrug.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
6. Body (1989), p.126
7. Morpeth station facilities Archived 7 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine National Rail Enquiries
8. Morpeth station in 2015 Archived 22 June 2018 at the Wayback Machine Thomas, J Geograph.org.uk; Retrieved 6 February 2017
9. "Full steam ahead for £1.7m redevelopment of Morpeth Railway Station" Archived 7 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine Muncaster, Michael Chronicle Live news article 2 November 2016; Retrieved 6 February 2017
10. [https://web.archive.org/web/20200908000812/https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/morpeth-railway-station-restoration-opening-18888555 Archived 8 September 2020 at the Wayback Machine henderson, Tony Chronicle Live news article 7 September 2020; Retrieved 8 September 2020
11. Smith, Ian (18 June 2021). "LNER reveals why major cuts to rail services are planned in parts of Northumberland". Northumberland Gazette. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
12. Smith, Ian (24 June 2021). "Rail campaign group fights proposed cuts to train services from Morpeth". Morpeth Herald. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
13. Holland, Daniel (17 June 2021). "LNER responds to North East fury over 'disaster' timetable". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
14. "East Coast Main Line changes in planned May 2022 timetable". Railway Gazette International. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
15. "Train times: Scotland, the North East and Manchester to the South West and South Coast" (PDF). CrossCountry. 16 May 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
16. "Timetable: London King's Cross to Edinburgh Waverley" (PDF). London North Eastern Railway. 7 June 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
17. Holden, Michael (28 May 2021). "WATCH: New East Coast Trains Class 803s go on test in Darlington". RailAdvent. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
18. Calder, Simon (14 June 2021). "LNER to launch faster rail links to London from Edinburgh, Newcastle and York". The Independent. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
19. Lam, Sophie (25 October 2021). "Low-cost electric rail operator Lumo launches between London and Edinburgh". i. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
20. "Hot topic: will Lumo change the face of rail travel in Britain? Everything you need to know about the new London-Edinburgh service". National Geographic. 24 November 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
21. "Train times: Alnmouth and Morpeth to Newcastle and Metrocentre" (PDF). Northern Trains. 12 December 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 November 2021. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
22. "Train times: Liverpool and Manchester to Leeds, Hull, York, Scarborough, Middlesbrough, Newcastle and Edinburgh". TransPennine Express. 16 May 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
23. "TransPennine Express announces new rail services for Northumberland". International Railway Reviews. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.

Bibliography

• Body, G. (1989). PSL Field Guides - Railways of the Eastern Region Volume 2: Northern operating area (1st ed.). Wellingborough: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0072-1. OCLC 59892452.

• Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
• Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
• Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.

External links

• Train times and station information for Morpeth railway station from National Rail