![Market Harborough railway station 2174946 4fb3f674](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Market_Harborough_railway_station_2174946_4fb3f674.jpg)
Market Harborough railway station is a
Grade II listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
station which serves the town of
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, in the far southeast of the county, forming part of the border with Northamptonshire.
Market Harborough's population was 25,143 in 2020. It is the admi ...
in
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. It is situated to the east of the town centre and lies on the
Midland Main Line
The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in England from London to Nottingham and Sheffield in the Midlands. It comprises the lines from London's St Pancras station via Leicester, Derby/Nottingham and Chesterfield in the East Midlands.
...
, 16 miles (26 km) south-east of
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
.
History
The original station was opened on 1 May 1850 by the
London and North Western Railway (LNWR) on the
Rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby league: 13 players per side
*** Masters Rugby League
*** Mod league
*** Rugby league nines
*** Rugby league sevens
*** Touch (sport)
*** Wheelchair rugby league
** Rugby union: 1 ...
to
Stamford branch of its main line from
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 railw ...
to Birmingham and the north-west. The
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 am ...
shared this station from 1857 when it built its extension from
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
to
Bedford
Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...
and
Hitchin
Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842.
History
Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...
. On 16 February 1859 the LNWR opened a further branch line, from
Northampton
Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...
to Market Harborough, which also used the same station.
The station was the scene of a serious accident on 28 August 1862. An excursion train bound for
Burton-upon-Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. In 2011, it had a population of 72,299. The d ...
stopped to pick up water, and a second train bound for Leicester collided with the rear of it. The accident resulted in the death of one person and seventy were injured.
As traffic built up, the Midland opened a new line on 26 June 1885 at a higher elevation, crossing the LNWR and then running parallel to a new joint station in the present position.
The new station building was opened on 14 September 1884.
It was built by Parnell and Sons of Rugby from designs by
John Livock
John William Livock (30 July 1814 - 15 March 1883) was an architect based in England, best known for his railway stations constructed for the London and North Western Railway.
Family
He was born on 30 July 1814 in Hampstead, the son of John Liv ...
and Millbank. The engineer was Hirst of Rugby.
Market Harborough was the largest station within the county boundary south of Leicester. Such was the volume of traffic, a junction for five different directions at its height, by 1870 plans for an engine shed were released in addition to the already provided loco pit, turntable and water tank. A shed was never built but this did not stop it becoming a sub-shed of Leicester in later years.
The service on the original LNWR line was drastically reduced in 1960 and it finally closed in June 1966. Freight traffic on the line to Northampton continued until closure in August 1981, when the station ceased to be a junction. The Midland line continues, with the platform buildings and canopies replaced with modern designs in the sixties. The main building survived, however, and was carefully restored in 1981.
Stationmasters
The station was operated jointly from 14 September 1884 although two station masters remained until 1908 when the London and North Western Railway did away with their post.
LNWR stationmasters
*James Heming Edmonds 1850 - 1853
(afterwards station master at Weedon)
*Edward Vardy 1853 - 1855
[
*T.B. Dixon 1855 - 1856][ (afterwards station master at Wellingborough)
*Cornelius Flower 1856 - 1859 (afterwards station master at Blisworth)
*George Henry Rich 1859 - 1863]
*F. Stanbury 1863 - 1865[
*J.H. Bliss 1865][ - 1868 (afterwards station master at Bletchley)
*George Norris 1868 - 1874 (afterwards station master at Northampton)
*Frederick Sharpe 1874 - 1898] (afterwards station master at Castle Ashby)
*William Henry Judge 1898 - 1906[ (formerly station master at Wellingborough)
*William Smith 1906 - 1908][
]
Midland station masters
*Samuel Whitehouse 1857 - 1860
*James Maxey ca. 1861 - 1866[ (formerly station master at Bourne, afterwards station master at Derby)
*H. Warlow 1866][
*Richard Tomlinson 1866][ - 1898]
*John Morton Jacques from 1898[ - 1901] (afterwards station master at Burton)
*Thomas Johnson 1901[ - 1925
*Horace Edward Neale 1925 - 1931
*William Frederick Gee 1931 - 1942 (formerly station master at Flint)
*H.F. Vercoe 1942 - 1944 (afterwards station master at Stafford)
*N. Brassington 1944 - 1948 (formerly station master at Sandbach)
*P.F. Markham 1948 - 1951
*T.W. Edgar until 1959
*Joseph James O’Brien 1963 - 1965
]
Services
Market Harborough is served by the fast and semi-fast East Midlands Railway
Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise.
History
In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...
Class 222 "Meridian" services. Trains to London are around every half hour and all off peak trains now start or end at Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...
. All off peak trains towards London call initially at before running non stop to London St Pancras International
St Pancras railway station (), also known as London St Pancras or St Pancras International and officially since 2007 as London St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden. It i ...
. Fast services north to Nottingham call at only, whereas semi-fast services also call at , and . In the morning and evening some services are extended to Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincoln ...
via Newark
Newark most commonly refers to:
* Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States
* Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area
Newark may also refer to:
Places Canada
* Niagara-on-the ...
.
With a journey time to London of just over one hour, the frequency of trains to the capital in the morning and evening peak is excellent for commuting
Commuting is periodically recurring travel between one's place of residence and place of work or study, where the traveler, referred to as a commuter, leaves the boundary of their home community. By extension, it can sometimes be any regul ...
, with a train running (occasionally non stop) every twenty minutes with the quickest journeys taking fifty-five minutes.
Weekend services include trains operating to York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
and, in the summer, Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to:
People
* Scarborough (surname)
* Earl of Scarbrough
Places Australia
* Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth
* Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong
* Scarborough, Queensland, su ...
.
Bus services depart from outside the station and operate throughout the town and also to both Lutterworth
Lutterworth is a market town and civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England. The town is located in southern Leicestershire, close to the borders with Warwickshire and Northamptonshire. It is located north of Rugby, ...
, Hinckley
Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbor ...
and Leicester.
The initial specification for the East Midlands Trains franchise, which started in 2007, would have seen a big reduction in the number of trains calling at Market Harborough. These plans were fought against by the Harborough Rail Users' Group, and, as a result, the final specification saw no reduction in services.
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
promised as part of their bid that they would create additional car parking spaces at stations along their route, Market Harborough's new larger car park opened early in 2008.
Market Harborough is a Penalty fare
A penalty fare, standard fare, or fixed penalty notice is a special, usually higher, fare charged because a passenger using public transport did not comply with the normal ticket purchasing rules. It should not be confused with an unpaid fares n ...
station, meaning that as there are facilities to buy tickets at the station, a valid ticket or Permit to travel
In the ticketing system of the British rail network, a Permit to Travel provisionally allows passengers to travel on a train when they have not purchased a ticket in advance and the ticket office of the station they are travelling from is closed ...
must be shown when requested, rather than being able to buy tickets on the train.
Future
Market Harborough Line Speed Improvement project
Market Harborough station is located on a large curve on the Midland Main Line
The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in England from London to Nottingham and Sheffield in the Midlands. It comprises the lines from London's St Pancras station via Leicester, Derby/Nottingham and Chesterfield in the East Midlands.
...
and as a result of this line speeds through the station have always been relatively slow, at around . The track layout is set to change significantly as Network Rail
Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...
engineers set about straightening the line as part of their overall plan to increase line speeds. It is also planned that both platforms will be extended. This work was originally scheduled to be complete by no later than 2012 but was completed by the end of 2019.
The Market Harborough Line Speed Improvement project will deliver:
* A straighter line, enabling a line speed increase through Market Harborough and a reduction in journey time for passengers travelling between London and Sheffield
* A new 265m platform 1 and extended platform 2 to accommodate longer trains with more seats
* A new footbridge with lifts
* A new 300 space car park on the east side of the station (completed in 2018). Work to increase this in size to 500 spaces started in the summer of 2019 once the new track has been installed and tied in to the existing lines, freeing up the required space.
Electrification
The railway through Leicestershire is not electrified and therefore all services are operated by diesel trains. Plans to electrify this part of the line (as part of the wider Electric Spine
The "Electric Spine" was the name for part of a, now largely cancelled, rolling programme of railway electrification projects in England initially estimated to cost £800 million, but later thought to cost close to £3 billion. The aim was to fo ...
project), announced in 2012 and later resumed after a pause in 2015, were cancelled in 2017. However, in February 2019 Andrew Jones, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport, announced that electrification would be extended northwards from Kettering up to Market Harborough, enabling the connection of the railway to a new power supply point at Braybrooke. On 21 December 2021 the DfT officially announced that work would start on 24 December 2021 on electrification of the section of line between Kettering and Market Harborough.
The next phase of major work will see a 12-mile section electrified between Market Harborough and Wigston in Leicestershire. A programme of piling will run until August 2023 to ready the line for electric wires to be installed throughout 2023.
References
External links
{{Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway
Railway stations in Leicestershire
Former London and North Western Railway stations
Former Midland Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1850
Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway
Market Harborough
John William Livock buildings
Grade II listed buildings in Leicestershire
Grade II listed railway stations