The London and Birmingham Railway (L&B) opened Roade station in 1838 as part of its line from London to Birmingham. Hostility to the railway in Northampton[3] and steep gradients in the suggested route[4] prevented the line from running through the town and so Roade was announced as its nearest station – even though the county town is some 6 miles (9.7 km) away. It lost this status in 1845 when the L&B opened a branch linking Northampton and Peterborough allowing services to run directly into Northampton from Blisworth. This had an immediate effect on Roade: the refreshment room was removed by 1865, while the daily stopping services fell to seven.
In 1875, the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) (which had acquired the L&B in 1846) increased the main line from Euston to four tracks as far as Roade, with the four-track line resuming onwards from Rugby. The direct route to Rugby was retained as two tracks but a two-track link to Rugby via Northampton (known as the Northampton Loop Line) was added.[5] Roade, by then a junction for fast trains north as well as services through Northampton, saw its facilities considerably enlarged to include three platforms.[6] In 1881, the station was resited 200m to the south of a bridge carrying the Northampton to London road over the line.[1]
East and West Junction Railway
In 1890-91 a new east–west single-track line – the East and West Junction Railway (E&WJR) – was built across Roade and, although there was initially no connection between the two lines, the LNWR agreed to the construction of a single line connecting spur (660 yards (600 m) long) which made a junction with its main line on the down side just to the south of Roade station. The spur saw its first use on 13 April 1891 with a goods working.[7] The spur soon became an important means of exchanging coal and minerals with the LNWR which was charging as much as £50 per half year for its use. Although the LNWR had refused a request to allow passenger services on the spur, the line did run into a bay platform at Roade. Sidings were installed at Roade in 1909 to handle the E&WJR's limestone traffic. The spur became less important with the formation of the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway and the strengthening of the connection with the main line at Blisworth.[8] The spur was eventually closed in May 1917, the southern part being retained as a siding.[9]
Closure
Roade station was reprieved from closure in 1959 due to the efforts of local MPSir Frank Markham, remaining open until 1964.[10] The West Coast Main Line and Northampton Loop Line were rebuilt as a 25 kV.overhead electrified route.[6] The footbridge and platforms were demolished but the ticket office building survived in various uses for several years until it was also demolished in 2013.
^ abButt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations, Patrick Stephens Ltd, Sparkford, ISBN1-85260-508-1, p. 198.
^Clinker, C.R. (October 1978). Clinker's Register of Closed Passenger Stations and Goods Depots in England, Scotland and Wales 1830-1977. Bristol: Avon-AngliA Publications & Services. p. 116. ISBN0-905466-19-5.
^Dunn, J.M. (1977). The Stratford & Midland Junction Railway. Blandford, Dorset: The Oakwood Press. p. 7. ISBN0-85361-036-3.
^Riley, R.C.; Simpson, B. (1999). A History of the Stratford-upon-Avon & Midland Junction Railway. Witney, Oxon: Lamplight Publications. p. 84. ISBN978-1-899246-20-5.
^Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (November 2008). Branch Lines Around Towcester. Midhurst, West Sussex: Middleton Press. Plate 9. ISBN978-1-906008-39-0.