Hemel Hempstead railway station is on the

West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...

, on the western edge of the town of

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of London, which is part of the Greater London Urban Area. The population at the 2011 census was 97,500. Developed after the Second World War as a new ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

, England. The station is north-west of

London Euston Euston railway station ( ; also known as London Euston) is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden, managed by Network Rail. It is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line, the UK's busiest inter-city rail ...

on the

. Hemel Hempstead is managed by

London Northwestern Railway West Midlands Trains (WMT) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates passenger trains on the West Midlands franchise between London and the English Midlands under two trade names: West Midlands Railway (WMR) (within the ...

and all train services are operated by London Northwestern Railway and

Southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

. Hemel Hempstead railway station is one of two railway stations now serving the town, the other being Apsley. Both were built when Hemel Hempstead was still small; before it was designated a

New Town New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

in 1946 and grew rapidly in size. Bus services run from there to the

town centre A town centre is the commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town. Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. They are also the centre of communications with major public transport hubs such as train or bus s ...

. Also in the vicinity of the station are two

pubs A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

and the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another ends in Birmingham, with the latter ...

, about away. There are four full-length (12 car) through platforms and one disused south-facing bay (on the slow lines). Ticket Barriers are in operation.

History

Hemel Hempstead station was opened by the

London and Birmingham Railway The London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom, in operation from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway (L&NWR). The railway line which the company opened in 1838, betw ...

on 20 July 1837. Originally called Boxmoor station, it was the first terminus of the new line from the south, engineered by

Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson FRS HFRSE FRSA DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of his father ...

, which was subsequently extended to Tring in October of the same year and then to Birmingham in 1838. The decision to locate the station outside Hemel Hempstead town centre was a result of the opposition faced by the L&BR during construction of the line. There were vociferous protests from local landowners who sought to protect their estates from invasion by the "

iron horse ''Iron horse'' is an iconic literary term (considered by the early 21st century to be transitioning into an archaic reference) for a steam locomotive, originating in the early 1800s, when horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domes ...

", including influential figures such as the Earl of Essex ( Cassiobury Estate), the

Earl of Clarendon Earl of Clarendon is a title that has been created twice in British history, in 1661 and 1776. The family seat is Holywell House, near Swanmore, Hampshire. First creation of the title The title was created for the first time in the Peera ...

( The Grove Estate) and the eminent anatomist Sir

Astley Cooper Sir Astley Paston Cooper, 1st Baronet (23 August 176812 February 1841) was a British surgeon and anatomist, who made contributions to otology, vascular surgery, the anatomy and pathology of the mammary glands and testicles, and the pathol ...

( Gadebridge Estate). Turbulent public meetings were held in

Berkhamsted Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which is based in the neighbouring large new to ...

and

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

, and in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

on 22 June 1832, Lord Brownlow of

Ashridge Ashridge is a country estate and stately home in Hertfordshire, England in the United Kingdom. It is situated in the Chiltern Hills, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, about north of Berkhamsted and north west of London. The estate ...

voiced his opposition to ''"the forcing of the proposed railway through the land and property of so great a proportion of dissentient landowners."'' In order to obtain Parliamentary approval, the L&BR was forced to choose an alternative route which was less favourable to Hemel Hempstead but satisfied Hertfordshire landowners. In 1846 the L&BR was taken over by the

London and North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom. In 1923, it became a constituent of the Lo ...

(LNWR). As competition with the rival

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...

's new line through Hemel town centre increased, the LNWR operated a

horse bus A horse-bus or horse-drawn omnibus was a large, enclosed, and sprung horse-drawn vehicle used for passenger transport before the introduction of motor vehicles. It was mainly used in the late 19th century in both the United States and Europe, ...

into the town, later replaced by a

motor bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

service, to poach passengers onto their own, less conveniently placed railway line. In 1912 the LNWR renamed the station ''Boxmoor and Hemel Hempstead''. The LNWR was absorbed into the new

London, Midland and Scottish Railway The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally ...

(LMS) in 1923 as part of the Grouping of British railway companies, and in 1930 the Boxmoor and Hemel Hempstead station name was changed to ''Hemel Hempstead and Boxmoor''. Following

nationalisation Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to p ...

in 1948, the station was under the ownership of the

London Midland Region of British Railways The London Midland Region (LMR) was one of the six regions created on the formation of the nationalised British Railways (BR), and initially consisted of ex-London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) lines in England, Wales and Northern Irelan ...

; the line was

electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history ...

and in 1963 the Boxmoor name was dropped, and the station was simply known as ''Hemel Hempstead''. Nickey Line map

For many years, Hemel Hempstead station was almost a junction – a railway embankment on the south (down) side of the station led to the end of the Nickey Line, a branch line which ran through the town centre to . The line was opened in 1877 by the

and extended to transport coal to Duckhall

gasworks A gasworks or gas house is an industrial plant for the production of flammable gas. Many of these have been made redundant in the developed world by the use of natural gas, though they are still used for storage space. Early gasworks Coal ...

, close to Boxmoor. However, due to rivalry between the Midland Railway and the

London & North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom. In 1923, it became a constituent of the Lon ...

, no direct connection was made between the two lines – the Nickey Line terminated approximately away from Boxmoor station at the gasworks terminus. Only occasional freight trains ran this far; passenger trains terminated in the town centre at Heath Park Halt, and there was also a town centre station on the line called '' Hemel Hempsted''.Hemel ''Hempsted'' was the spelling used widely by the Midland Railway company at the time on ticketing and signage. Passenger services ceased on the Nickey Line in 1947 although it remained in use as a goods line. It was only in the last months of the Nickey Line's operations that a rail link was built at Boxmoor. Hemel Hempstead had been designated as a

and the town centre redevelopment plans included the demolition of the Nickey Line. In order to maintain a coal service to the gasworks, a link was built in 1959 connecting the Nickey Line to the West Coast Main Line via sidings at Boxmoor. This link was for

goods trains Rail freight transport is the use of railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) hauled ...

only and no passenger service was ever provided, but it only remained in operation for six months; the gasworks shut down and the link was closed. The following year the railway viaduct over Marlowes in the town centre was demolished, removing Hemel Hempstead's last town centre rail link. The nearby

crossover Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Albums and songs * ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album) * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album) * ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album) * ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...

at Bourne End was the site of a serious accident on 30 September 1945, when a Scottish express derailed after passing over the junction at excessive speed. The coaches rolled down a high embankment, and forty-three people died. Boxmoor railway station 1898.png, Railway sidings and station car park , Hemel Hempstead (geograph 2172382).jpg,

Services

Platforms 2, 3 and 4 at Hemel Hempstead railway station

Hemel Hempstead is served by frequent trains on the West Coast Main Line between

- and

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

operated by London Northwestern Railway. There are additional direct services between London Euston - , and . There is also one train to and from Crewe on weekdays and some services to/from

Crewe Crewe () is a railway town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The Crewe built-up area had a total population of 75,556 in 2011, which also covers parts of the adjacent civil parishes of Willaston ...

on Sundays. Hemel Hempstead is also served by two

cross-London services per day, which run to via the West London Line.{{ Prior to May 2022, this service continued to Milton Keynes Central. A typical off-peak weekday consists of the following services, in trains per hour (tph) or day (tpd):{{cite web , publisher=London North Western Railway , title=Timetables , url=https://www.londonnorthwesternrailway.co.uk/travel-information/timetables , access-date=7 April 2019 *4tph to

, operated by London Northwestern Railway *2tph to {{rws, Tring, operated by London Northwestern Railway *1tph to {{rws, Milton Keynes Central, operated by London Northwestern Railway *1tph to {{rws, Northampton, operated by London Northwestern Railway *2tpd to

Clapham Junction Clapham Junction is an urban locality around Clapham Junction railway station in London, England. Despite its name, it is not located in Clapham, but forms the commercial centre of Battersea. Clapham Junction was a scene of disturbances during ...

, operated by

{{rail start {{rail line, next=

Watford Junction Watford Junction is a railway station that serves Watford, Hertfordshire. The station is on the West Coast Main Line (WCML), 17 miles 34 chains from London Euston and the Abbey Line, a branch line to St Albans. Journeys to London take between 16 ...

or Apsley, previous={{stnlnk, Berkhamsted, route=

, col={{LNW colour {{rail line, next=

, previous=''Terminus'', route=

West London Route Southern is the brand name used by the Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) train operating company on the Southern routes of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise in England. It is a subsidiary of Govia, a joint venture between tran ...

''Limited service'', col={{Southern colour {{s-end

Notes

{{Reflist, group=notes

References

{{reflist ;Bibliography *''The Harpenden to Hemel Hempstead Railway – The Nickey Line.'' (1996) Sue and Geoff Woodward, Oakwood Press, {{ISBN, 0-85361-502-0

External links

{{commons category {{stn art lnk, HML, HP39BQ {{Hertfordshire railway stations {{TSGN and SE Stations, West London=y, FCC None=y, SE None=y Railway stations in Hertfordshire DfT Category C2 stations Former London and Birmingham Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1837 Railway stations served by West Midlands Trains Railway stations served by Govia Thameslink Railway Stations on the West Coast Main Line Hemel Hempstead