DalesRail

DalesRail
A British Rail Class 158 and a British Rail Class 153 heading south at Long Preston
(the type of traction used on DalesRail services)
Overview
Service typeSeasonal
Tourist
LocaleNorthern/North West England
First service1974
Current operator(s)Northern Trains
Former operator(s)
WebsiteCommunity Rail webpage
Route
TerminiBlackpool North
Carlisle
Stops21
Service frequencyTwice-daily (Summer only)
Line(s) usedBlackpool line
East Lancashire line
Ribble Valley line
Settle & Carlisle line
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

DalesRail is a railway passenger service operated for tourism in the summer months across Cumbria, Lancashire and North Yorkshire, England. The service routinely uses the current freight-only line between Clitheroe and Hellifield, offering the opportunity to travel on a line rarely used by passenger trains. The trains then also traverse the full length of the Settle & Carlisle line. The DalesRail brand has also been used on the Wensleydale Line in the 1970s and 1980s, before that line reopened as a heritage railway.

DalesRail customers were part of the campaign to save the Settle–Carlisle line from closure, and initially used stations that were closed to passengers in 1970. With the re-opening of most stations on that line, the DalesRail brand continues with services from Blackpool and Preston to Carlisle via Clitheroe and Hellifield.

History

[edit]

The DalesRail service started in 1974, when a group of ramblers complained that British Rail were not affording them the opportunity to use the train to go fell-walking in the Lancashire and Yorkshire Dales or the Eden Valley, as only the stations at Settle and Appleby were open to the public (the other stations on the line had been closed in 1970).[1][2] The venture was a success, and led to several other stations on the Settle-Carlisle line being reopened from May 1975 to service the DalesRail train.[3][note 1] The Settle–Carlisle Line was being progressively rundown during the 1970s, and with the introduction of DalesRail, the Yorkshire Dales National Park Committee were hoping to increase the number of people using the train.[4] Initially, the first services were between Leeds and Appleby calling at Horton-in-Ribblesdale, Ribblehead (southbound only), Dent and Kirkby Stephen. These were integrated with a local bus service which would take people living in the dales to the stations (such as at Garsdale) and they would get into the trains that the tourist had vacated, with the DalesRail train then going back to Leeds or Bradford. This allowed the residents of the Dales a day out shopping, and meant revenue was increased as tickets were charged in two directions, so costs were then kept to a minimum.[5]

The following year, services were run from Manchester and Colne, with some being extended all the way to Carlisle.[6] In 1977, the stations in the upper Eden valley were re-opened for occasional use (Langwathby, Lazonby, and Armathwaite).[7] Initially, the project was funded jointly by the Yorkshire Dales Committee and the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (WYPTE).[8] Fears of over-ordering stock from British Rail, led to the WYPTE using fewer carriages on DalesRail services in an effort to fill the trains rather than have spare seats. In order to maximise this, the WYPTE took over marketing the service.[9] As the project gained momentum, so other official bodies gave support, with Cumbria County Council, Eden District Council and the Countryside Commission who appointed a project officer.[10]

DalesRail was extended into an excursion service which visited the Wensleydale Line in the 1970s. The first service was in 1977, with Bedale, Finghall, and Leyburn being used as alighting and embarkation points.[11][12] Services ran from Leeds and York to Redmire in September each year until 1981, whilst a service originating in Newcastle and running in June, actually took passengers from Wensleydale back to Tyneside for a day out.[13]

The main services have however, always been focussed on the Settle–Carlisle line, with services running from Leeds to Carlisle, and Preston to Hellifield via Clitheroe on a Saturday. This allowed the two services to connect at Hellifield. Sundays consisted of services between Leeds and Appleby.[14] Use of the line through Clitheroe first occurred in 1978,[15] and the success led to a small number of Christmas shopping specials run during weekends in December.[16]

Other services were extended to other lines with some trains from Carlisle running to and from Bradford Forster Square,[17] and by 1981, 6,000 people used the service when it ran over several weekends of that year.[18] By 1985, this number had dropped slightly to 5,000,[8] though between its inception in 1974 to 1983, the service had carried an estimated 70,000 passengers.[19] As the rundown of the Settle–Carlisle line continued, the last express trains using the line were withdrawn in 1982 (Glasgow to Nottingham).[20] Initially, those objecting to the closure plans were mainly those who lived in the communities along the line, but this was later extended to anyone who used the DalesRail or excursion services.[21]

The service has been labelled as "pioneering", as it is seen as a backbone for an integrated transport network in a large rural area.[22] Many co-ordinated guided walks and local buses are timed to connect with the DalesRail trains on a Sunday,[23][24] affording people the opportunity to travel to destinations away from the railway, such as Hawes, Leyburn and the lower Wensleydale valley into Northallerton.[25][26]

Whilst the service runs every year (usually on 17 Sundays across the summer and autumn) the service suffered severe disruption after the introduction of the reformed timetable in May 2018, which was compounded by a strike by staff at Arriva Rail North.[27][28] The service was suspended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[29][30] The service was due to run one daily train on a Sunday between Blackpool and Carlisle, until early September, when the train would only travel as far from Blackpool as Hellifield.[31] The service restarted from the 16 May 2021 timetable change with the guided walks programme restarting from 6 June 2021, however, it was only carrying 1,000 people annually.[32]

The 2023 service was announced as being cancelled completely in March 2023, due to the lack of available staff from Northern to run the trains.[33]

In 2024, Northern announced that the service would be brought back in the form of two daily trains on Saturdays between Ribblehead and Rochdale. This modified service would begin on 8 June 2024 and was renamed the Yorkshire Dales Explorer.[34]

Traction

[edit]

In the 1970s and 1980s, British Rail used a mixture of first generation DMU stock such as classes 108.[35] During the 1990s and 2000s onwards, Sprinters and Pacers have been used, but Class 156 units have been the most common, with one even being named Lancashire DalesRail.[36]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Stations north of Appleby (Langwathby, Lazonby and Armathwaite) were reopened in April 1976.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Walking group celebrates 30 years". Telegraph & Argus. 27 February 2004. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Telling tales for DalesRail". Community Rail Network. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  3. ^ Quick, M. E. "Railway Passenger Stations in Great Britain; a Chronology" (PDF). rchs.org.uk. pp. 53, 152, 191, 233, 252. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 July 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  4. ^ YDNPC 1984, pp. 2–3.
  5. ^ Speakman 1982, pp. 192–193.
  6. ^ Joy, David (1990). A regional history of the railways of Great Britain, 14: the Lake counties. Newton Abbot: David St John Thomas. p. 59. ISBN 0946537569.
  7. ^ YDNPC 1984, p. 4.
  8. ^ a b Earl Peel (25 February 1986). "Settle/Carlisle Railway: Proposed Closure". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. col. 1129-1130.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ Abbott, Stan (1986). To kill a railway : the run-down of the Settle-Carlisle line : the endeavours of 22,265 people and a dog to prevent its closure and the relevance of it all to transport policy in Britain. Hawes: Leading Edge in association with West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council. pp. 25–29. ISBN 0948135018.
  10. ^ Speakman 1982, p. 193.
  11. ^ Jenkins, Stanley C. (1993). The Wensleydale branch : a new history. Headington: Oakwood. p. 186. ISBN 0-85361-437-7.
  12. ^ Jones, Robin (March 2018). "Wensleydale ditches public service in favour of heritage trains". Heritage Railway. No. 239. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 8. ISSN 1466-3562.
  13. ^ Hallas, Christine (1984). The Wensleydale Railway. Clapham: Dalesman Books. p. 70. ISBN 0-85206-780-1.
  14. ^ Betty Lockwood (25 February 1986). "Settle/Carlisle Railway: Proposed Closure". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. col. 1192.
  15. ^ Shannon, Paul (2019). British railway infrastructure since 1970 : an historical overview. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Books. p. 73. ISBN 978-1-52673-479-2.
  16. ^ Speakman 1982, p. 195.
  17. ^ Nixon 1988, p. 128.
  18. ^ John Watson (25 November 1981). "Settle-Carlisle Railway (Closure)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 973.
  19. ^ Scott, John William Robertson (1984). "Settle Lines". The Countryman. 89. Oxford: J W R Scott: 153. ISSN 0011-0272.
  20. ^ Bairstow 1994, p. 65.
  21. ^ Bob Cryer (26 May 1988). "Settle-Carlisle Railway". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 611–612.
  22. ^ Speakman, Colin; Mason, Viv (24 September 2020). "Call to action to improve Yorkshire Dales traffic and transport". Craven Herald & Pioneer. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  23. ^ "Conservation Area Appraisals in the Yorkshire Dales National Park Settle-Carlisle Railway" (PDF). outofoblivion.org.uk. p. 8. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  24. ^ "Railwatch Back IssuesRailwatch 072 - July 1997". www.railwatch.org.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  25. ^ "How a volunteer bus service is providing a lifeline in the Dales". The Yorkshire Post. 9 December 2017. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  26. ^ Minting, Stuart (14 October 2020). "Under-threat Dales Bus 856 service given extra funding to run in 2021 after being described as a 'lifeline'". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  27. ^ "Northern cancels Eighteen Blackpool services tomorrow". Blackpool Gazette. 4 August 2018. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  28. ^ "COMMUNITY RAIL LANCASHIRE ANNUAL REPORT 2018" (PDF). communityraillancashire.co.uk. p. 6. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  29. ^ Hill, Mike (17 May 2019). "Much loved rail link reopens in Lancashire". Lancashire Evening Post. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  30. ^ Kelly, Clare (6 June 2020). "DalesRail hits buffers for summer 2020". Lancashire Evening Post. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  31. ^ Table 042 National Rail timetable, May 2020
  32. ^ Johnston, Howard (5 April 2023). ""Dismay and outrage" as DalesRail trains cancelled". Rail Magazine. No. 980. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. p. 22. ISSN 0953-4563.
  33. ^ MacDonald, Robbie (30 March 2023). "Fears as Lancashire to Dales rail service is axed this summer". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  34. ^ Goodlad, Nat (24 February 2024). "Northern confirms DalesRail to return under new name". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  35. ^ Nixon 1988, p. 127.
  36. ^ Paul Salveson (2019). The Settle-Carlisle Railway. La Vergne: Crowood. p. 190. ISBN 978-1-78500-638-8.

Sources

[edit]
  • Dales Rail; Settle and Carlisle Railway. Bainbridge, North Yorkshire: Yorkshire Dales National Park Committee. 1984. ISBN 0-905455-14-2.
  • Nixon, L. A. (1988). Transpennine Rail Routes. Sparkford: OPC/Haynes. ISBN 0-86093-307-5.
  • Bairstow, Martin (1994). The Leeds, Settle & Carlisle railway : the Midland route to Scotland. Halifax: M. Bairstow. ISBN 1-871944-09-0.
  • Speakman, Colin (1982). Walking in the Yorkshire Dales. London: R. Hale. ISBN 0709196172.
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