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Apperley Bridge railway station

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Not to be confused with Appley Bridge railway station.

Apperley Bridge
General information
LocationCity of Bradford
Managed byNorthern
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeAPY
History
Original companyLeeds and Bradford Railway
Pre-groupingMidland Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
Late July 1846Station opens as Apperley Bridge
1847Station renamed Apperley
1 October 1890Station renamed Apperley and Rawdon
May 1893Station renamed Apperley Bridge and Rawdon
12 June 1961Station renamed Apperley Bridge
20 March 1965Station closed
13 December 2015Station rebuilt and reopened

Apperley Bridge station is situated in Bradford on the (Leeds and Bradford, later Midland) line between Leeds and Shipley, West Yorkshire, England. It serves the district of Apperley Bridge in the north-east of the city.

The current station was opened in 2015. The previous station, which was built in a different site location, had opened in 1846 but closed in 1965 as part of the Beeching Axe.

Original station

The Leeds and Bradford Railway opened on 30 June 1846. At first, there were no intermediate stations, such had been the haste to get the line opened. Temporary stations were quickly provided, including Apperley Bridge, which opened some time during July 1846.[1] A permanent structure followed about a year later. It comprised two platforms, partly covered by an overall roof. The main building ran parallel to the railway on the south side up at road level. A principal customer of the station was Woodhouse Grove School, whose land had been crossed by the Railway. About 1849, the Railway agreed to purchase gas from the school in order to light the station.

The Leeds & Bradford Railway was leased to the Midland Railway from just before its opening, an event of some importance in terms of railway politics. It contributed to the downfall of George Hudson and helped ensure that Bradford never had a through railway. It had previously been thought that the Leeds & Bradford might join with the Manchester & Leeds Railway.

The Railway was widened to four tracks in about 1900, taking more land from Woodhouse Grove School, who used the money to build a swimming bath. The station was enlarged to four platforms, with a distinctive wooden building above at road level. The original station building was swept away when the cutting was widened to accommodate the new "fast lines" on the south side. Platform four, on the up slow line, remained the original of 1847 as there was not room to develop it. The other platforms, number 1 on the down fast line and numbers 2 and 3, the island between the up fast and down slow, were longer, wider and higher. Steps were needed to board trains on platform 4. There were canopies on all four platforms.

The station became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the Grouping of 1923, and then passed to the London Midland Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. It was transferred to the North Eastern Region in 1957 and gained ten tangerine totem signs about 1961.

A goods yard operated in the angle between the main line and the Ilkley branch. This handled domestic coal until closure in June 1964. By that time the cattle dock was well overgrown. A small housing estate now stands on the site. The passenger station gained an enhanced service, almost at regular intervals, when diesel multiple units were introduced in January 1959. Just one stopping train remained steam-hauled after that, the 6.24 p.m. to Leeds, which conveyed more parcel vans than it did passenger stock. This was the "Derby Slow". It continued to Derby after a lengthy pause at Leeds.

The station was used by about 80 passengers a day, that is 80 joining and 80 alighting. With 40 stopping trains, that was an average of only two per train, but a total usage (by current calculations of "footfall") of over 50,000 journeys a year.

The original Apperley Bridge station was finally closed by the British Railways Board, as a result of the Beeching Axe, at about 9.30pm on 20 March 1965. The station handled parcels by passenger train right up to the final day. The delivery area was then transferred to Guiseley station.[1]

Reopening

Car park at Apperley Bridge railway station.

In 1999, Metro, the Passenger Transport Executive for West Yorkshire, announced that Apperley Bridge was amongst five new or reopened stations which they wished to see achieved over the ensuing five years. One of these stations — Glasshoughton — opened in 2005.

In 2009 Metro submitted a business case and designs for both Apperley Bridge and Kirkstall Forge.[2][3] They were to have staggered platforms and a car park for 300 vehicles. It was originally projected that the station would re-open in 2012,[4] but this was pushed back to August 2015, with main construction commencing in 2014.[5] A planning application was submitted in December 2009[6] and permission to build was granted by Bradford Council in March 2010.[7]

Go-ahead for construction of both Kirkstall Forge and Apperley Bridge was given in the National Infrastructure Plan released on 29 November 2011.[8][9] The original estimated completion date of August 2015[5][10] was not met, and the opening was later scheduled for the end of September 2015.[11][12] The station was eventually reopened on 13 December 2015.[13]

Funding

In September 2008, the West Yorkshire PTE announced that the Yorkshire & Humber Regional Transport Board had approved funding for its "rail growth programme" which includes stations at Apperley Bridge and Kirkstall Forge;[14] this allowed a full business case for the two stations to be developed. Following the Comprehensive Spending Review in Autumn 2010 the Leeds Rail Growth Package was included within the "Development" pool of schemes. Metro submitted a "Best and Final Funding Bid" in September 2011 and the schemes funding was confirmed in November 2011 as part of the National Infrastructure Plan.[15]

Final approval for both stations was given by the Department for Transport on 29 May 2014.[16][17] By 2014 the documentation was corrected as the National Infrastructure Plan 2011 lists Apperley Bridge incorrectly as Appley Bridge. In July 2014, Metro announced that construction work would begin in September 2014, and the station would open in 2015.[18]

Facilities

The new station has a free car park, bicycle rungs and a bus terminus. There is an automated ticket machine at the station entrance. Both platforms, in-line with the Disability Discrimination Act, are accessible by wheelchair. Both platforms have an unheated shelter. A new set of traffic lights manages traffic at the entrance to the station car park.

Services

British Rail Class 333 serving a Bradford bound service.

Apperley Bridge is primarily served by trains from Leeds to Bradford Forster Square on the Leeds-Bradford Line. These services operate every 30 minutes each way and are mostly operated by Northern Class 333 electric multiple units, although Class 321 and Class 322 sets are used on some weekday workings. Most trains to Skipton and further beyond pass through the station without stopping.

Monday to Saturday evening trains run to and from Skipton; passengers for Bradford Forster Square must change using a connecting shuttle service that runs between Shipley and Bradford Forster Square.[19]

On Sundays, there is an hourly service to both Leeds and Bradford Forster Square.[20]

Trains from Apperley Bridge, apart from a small number of evening peak services, will not stop at Kirkstall Forge, instead running directly to Leeds. Trains towards Bradford Forster Square and Skipton call at all stations.[21]

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Shipley   Northern
Leeds-Bradford Line 		  Leeds
  Northern
Airedale Line
Mon-Sat evenings only 		 
  From January 2016  
Shipley   Northern
Leeds-Bradford Line
Limited service 		  Kirkstall Forge
  Historical railways  
Idle   Midland Railway
Leeds and Bradford Railway 		  Calverley & Rodley

References

  1. ^ a b Bairstow, Martin (2004). Railways Through Airedale & Wharfedale. ISBN 1-871944-28-7.
  2. ^ Metro: Consultation on proposed Apperley Bridge rail station begins
  3. ^ Metro: Rail growth proposal delivered
  4. ^ Kilner, Will (15 May 2009). "'New rail station is on the right lines!'". Telegraph & Argus. Bradford: Newsquest. Retrieved 18 May 2009.
  5. ^ a b "Apperley Bridge new rail station". West Yorkshire Metro. September 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
  6. ^ O'Rouke, Tanya (10 December 2009). "Apperley Bridge set for transport network boost". Telegraph & Argus. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  7. ^ O'Rouke, Tanya (3 March 2010). "Apperley Bridge facility given planning permission". Telegraph & Argus. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2010. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ National Infrastructure Plan 2011 HM Treasury
  9. ^ [1]
  10. ^ "Green light for new stations on Bradford-Leeds line Ι Construction Enquirer". Retrieved 15 September 2015.
  11. ^ "Apperley Bridge almost ready to open". Rail magazine. 9 September 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
  12. ^ "Apperley Bridge new rail station". West Yorkshire Combined Authority. November 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  13. ^ "Apperley Bridge's new railway station opens". BBC News. December 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  14. ^ "Railplan Update" (PDF). West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Authority. 16 September 2008. Retrieved 29 September 2008.
  15. ^ National Infrastructure Plan 2011 (PDF). UK Government. November 2011. p. 28. ISBN 9780108511165. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  16. ^ "Kirkstall Forge and Apperley Bridge rail stations get go-ahead". BBC News. 29 May 2014. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  17. ^ "Two new rail stations for West Yorkshire". gov.uk. HMG. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  18. ^ "New Apperley Bridge railway station will bring boost to city when it opens next year/". Telegraph & Argus. 29 May 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  19. ^ GB eNRT December 2015 Edition, Tables 36 & 37
  20. ^ "Live departures from Apperley Bridge". Realtime Trains.
  21. ^ "Live departures from Kirkstall Forge". Realtime Trains.
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