Bedford railway station

This article is about the station in Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. For the proposed station in Bedford, Virginia, see Bedford station (Virginia).

Bedford Add→{{rail-interchange}}
General information
Other names	Bedford Midland
Location	Borough of Bedford
Coordinates	52°08′11″N 00°28′46″W
Managed by	Thameslink
Platforms	5
Other information
Station code	BDM
History
Original company	Midland Railway
Pre-grouping	Midland Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
1 February 1859 (1859-02-01)	Opened as Bedford
1890	Avoiding lines built
2 June 1924	Renamed Bedford Midland Road
8 May 1978	Renamed Bedford Midland
5 May 1988	Renamed Bedford

Railways in Bedfordshire
Midland Main Line to Kettering & Leicester Northampton & Peterborough Rly to Stamford & Peterborough Northampton–Market Harborough line to Market Harborough Wellingborough Brixworth Ditchford Spratton Wellingborough London Road Pitsford and Brampton Rushden Northampton and Lamport Railway Rushden, Higham & Wellingboro' Rly Boughton Higham Ferrers Northampton loop to Rugby via Long Buckby Irchester Northampton Castle Ashby & Earls Barton Northampton St. John's Street Billing Northampton Bridge Street Sharnbrook Tunnel West Coast Main Line to Rugby via Stowe Hill tunnel Hunsbury Hill Tunnel Blisworth Sharnbrook Roade Geismar Depot Tiffield Piddington Stoke Bruern Salcey Forest Towcester East & West Jct Rly to Fenny Compton & Stratford Olney Northampton & Banbury Jct Rly to Banbury Merton Street Turvey Castlethorpe Newport Pagnell Oakley Great Linford Wolverton works │ Bradwell Wolverton Wolverton & Stony Stratford Tramway Stony Stratford Old Stratford East Coast Main Line to Huntingdon & Peterborough Deanshanger Varsity Line to Cambridge Milton Keynes Central Sandy Bedford East Coast Main Line to Hitchin & London King's Cross Bedford Gas Company Girtford Halt River Ivel Blunham Bedford Cauldwell Walk depot Willington Bedford St Johns Kempston and Elstow Halt Bedford St Johns (former) Kempston Hardwick Cardington Wootton Broadmead Halt Southill Forders (Stewartby) Shefford Stewartby Henlow Camp Millbrook Bedford–Hitchin line to Hitchin & London King's Cross Lidlington Ridgmont Lafarge Stone Terminal Husborne Crawley Halt Wixams Aspley Guise Ampthill Woburn Sands Flitwick Bow Brickhill Harlington Fenny Stratford Midland Main Line to Luton & London St Pancras Leagrave Bletchley West Coast Main Line to Leighton Buzzard & London Euston Newton Longville Newton Longville landfill Varsity Line (East West Rail) to Oxford

Stations around Bedford
Midland Main Line Bedford Bedford station sidings River Great Ouse Bedford Cauldwell Walk depot Bedford St Johns Bedford St Johns (former) Varsity Line Bedford–Hitchin line Marston Vale line Midland Main Line

Bedford railway station (formerly Bedford Midland Road and referred to on some signage as Bedford Midland) is the larger of two railway stations in the town of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. It is on the Midland main line from London St Pancras to the East Midlands and the terminus of the Marston Vale line from Bletchley through Bedford St Johns.

History

The original station was built by the Midland Railway in 1859 on its line to the Great Northern at Hitchin. It was on land known as "Freemen's Common" approximately 200 yards (180 m) south of the current station on Ashburnham Road.

The London & North Western Railway (LNWR) also had a station on its line between Bletchley and Cambridge. The Midland crossed it on the level and there was a serious collision when an LNWR train passed a red signal. (Curiously, both drivers were named John Perkins). Following this accident, the Midland built a flyover in 1885.

The extension to St Pancras opened in 1868. The connection to Hitchin ceased public services during 1961, but the line north of Bedford to Wigston Junction is still officially referred to as the Leicester to Hitchin line. At this time the station was substantially altered, with the replacement of a level crossing by the Queen's Park overbridge. In 1890 fast lines were added to the west to allow expresses to bypass the station.

Serious damage occurred during World War II when a bomb destroyed the booking hall's glass ceiling. The current station was built to replace it and was opened by Sir Peter Parker (chairman of BR) on 9 October 1978. The station was moved about 110 yards (100 m) north; the slow lines were realigned to the west next to the 1890 fast lines, to which platforms were added.

Although the intention was for what remained of the old awnings to be transferred to the Midland Railway at Butterley in Derbyshire it proved impossible to save them. Nothing remains of the original station buildings.

Services over the Marston Vale line to/from Bletchley were transferred here from the old LNWR St Johns station in May 1984. A new connection, which runs along the formation formerly used by the abandoned line to Hitchin (closed to passenger traffic from 1 January 1962 and completely three years later), was laid from the Marston Vale branch up to the main line to permit this. The original St Johns station closed on 14 May 1984 with a replacement halt on the new chord opening the same day. Bletchley trains henceforth used a bay platform (numbered 1A) on the eastern side of the station and still do currently (summer 2018).

Station masters

• F. Redfern 1860 - 1862
• J. ??????? 1862 - 1864
• Jasper John Cooke 1865 - ca. 1873
• William Tugby Sykes ca 1879 - 1884
• T.B. Nichols 1884 - 1907 (formerly station master at St Albans City)
• Henry Ward 1907 -1926 (formerly station master at Cheltenham)
• H. Lewis 1926 - 1929 (formerly station master at Swansea)
• A. David Mathieson 1929 - 1940 (afterwards station master at Bradford Forster Square)
• Joseph Lionel Woodcraft 1940 - 1944
• Philip George Gadd 1944 - 1949
• Harry Collins 1949 - 1951 (formerly station master at Rugby)
• Percy Warren 1951 - 1953
• Eric L. Thompson 1954 - 1955 (afterwards station master at Chester)
• J.A. Leslie 1955 - 1956 (afterwards station master at Wigan)

Services

The main entrance on 4 June 1962

The main entrance on 13 January 2007 from the car park.

The station is served by three operators and managed by Thameslink.

• East Midlands Railway
• London Northwestern Railway
• Thameslink

Off-peak East Midlands Railway semi-fast services along the Midland Main Line between London St Pancras and Nottingham call at the station, as do London-Corby services. Peak East Midlands Railways services no longer call at Bedford as of May 2018, though these are due to resume calling in December 2020.

The station is the northern terminus of Thameslink who operate Thameslink route services to Brighton through St Albans and London St Pancras. Services from the station also call at Luton Airport Parkway and Gatwick Airport. Additional services start or terminate at Gatwick Airport or Three Bridges. These services use Class 700 electric multiple units. Thameslink also runs a few services a day to Sutton on the Sutton Loop line, via both Wimbledon and Mitcham Junction.

London Northwestern Railway operates local services to Bletchley via the Marston Vale Line using Class 230 units. There is no Sunday service on this line.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour (tph) is:

• 2tph to Brighton via Gatwick Airport (Thameslink)
• 2tph to Gatwick Airport via Redhill (Thameslink)
• 2tph to London St Pancras (East Midlands Railway)
• 1tph to Corby (East Midlands Railway)
• 1tph to Nottingham via Leicester (East Midlands Railway)
• 1tph to Bletchley (London Northwestern Railway)

Service summary

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Wellingborough		East Midlands Railway Midland Main Line		Luton
		East Midlands Railway Midland Main Line		Luton Airport Parkway
Terminus		Thameslink Thameslink		Flitwick
Bedford St Johns		London Northwestern Railway Marston Vale Line Mondays-Saturdays only		Terminus
Disused railways
Terminus		London, Midland and Scottish Railway Bedford to Hitchin Line		Cardington Line and station closed
Turvey Line and station closed		London, Midland and Scottish Railway Bedford to Northampton Line		Terminus
Historical railways
Oakley Line open, station closed		Midland Railway Midland Main Line		Ampthill Line open, station closed
	Future Services
Ridgmont		East West Rail Oxford-Cambridge		undecided

Community Rail Partnership

In common with other stations on the Bedford to Bletchley Marston Vale line, Bedford station is covered by the Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership. The partnership aims to increase use of the Marston Vale line by getting local people involved with their local line.

A second CRP with Bedford Midland as its northern terminus - the Bedford to St Albans City Community Rail Partnership (BSAC CRP) - has been set up (June 2019), covering the eight stations on the Midland main line between Bedford Midland and St Albans City

Facilities

The main line and platform layout from the overbridge.

Bedford Station from the station footbridge - looking north. An East Midlands Railway High Speed train is leaving platform 4 heading north.

The station has the following facilities:

• 2 waiting rooms
• Cafe/newsagent/bar and coffee bar
• Telephones
• Post box
• ATM
• FastTicket machine
• Toilets
• Car park with 614 spaces
• Fully wheelchair accessible
• Ticket barriers

The station is in the PlusBus scheme, where train and bus tickets can be bought together to save money.

Future developments

The station will be the eastern terminus for some time of East West Rail, a plan to reopen the railway from Oxford and Aylesbury. As of November 2018, extension to Cambridge and East Anglia via Sandy is planned but not funded.

See also

• Bedford St Johns railway station

External links

• Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership

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