Saltaire railway station serves the village of
Saltaire
Saltaire is a Victorian era, Victorian model village in Shipley, West Yorkshire, Shipley, part of the City of Bradford Metropolitan District, in West Yorkshire, England. The Victorian era Salt's Mill and associated residential district locate ...
near
Shipley in
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
,
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 north of .
History
The original station was opened in May
1856
Events
January–March
* January 8 – Borax deposits are discovered in large quantities by John Veatch in California.
* January 23 – American paddle steamer SS ''Pacific'' leaves Liverpool (England) for a transatlantic voyag ...
by 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 ...
, which had absorbed the
Leeds and Bradford Extension Railway
The Leeds and Bradford Extension Railway was an early British railway company in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It built a line from near Bradford through and to . The Skipton–Colne Line closed in 1970, but the remainder of the line is ...
between Shipley and Colne in 1851. It closed on 20 March 1965 following the
Beeching Axe
The Beeching cuts (also Beeching Axe) was a plan to increase the efficiency of the nationalised railway system in Great Britain. The plan was outlined in two reports: ''The Reshaping of British Railways'' (1963) and ''The Development of the ...
, but
West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive
Metro is the passenger information brand used by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority in England. It was formed on 1 April 1974 as the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (WYPTE) at the same time as the metropolitan county of West Yor ...
and
British Rail
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...
reopened it on 9 April 1984, at a cost of £139,000 (). The current station has wooden platforms and waiting shelters (though these are stone-built rather than the metal and plexiglass designs used elsewhere). Its predecessor was of more substantial stone construction, with buildings on each platform; these were demolished in 1970, five years after the station closed.
The station is on the
Airedale line, between Bradford and
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
, and . It is a busy
commuter station both for passengers travelling to Leeds and Bradford and for staff in companies based in
Salt's Mill
Salts Mill (sometimes spelled Salt's Mill) is a former textile mill, now an art gallery, shopping centre, and restaurant complex in Saltaire, Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It was built by Sir Titus Salt in 1853, and the present-day 1853 Gall ...
, as well as serving tourists visiting the
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
at Saltaire.
The lower station of the
Shipley Glen Tramway
The Shipley Glen Tramway is a historic funicular tramway located in the wooded Shipley Glen near the village of Saltaire in the English county of West Yorkshire.
The lower station of the funicular is some by foot from Saltaire railway sta ...
is about half a mile from Saltaire Station. The
Leeds and Liverpool Canal
The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool.
Over a distance of , crossing the Pennines, and including 91 locks on the main line. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal has several small branc ...
,
River Aire
The River Aire is a major river in Yorkshire, England, in length. The ''Handbook for Leeds and Airedale'' (1890) notes that the distance from Malham to Howden is direct, but the river's meanderings extend that to . Between Malham Tarn and Ai ...
and
Roberts Park, Saltaire
Roberts Park is a public urban park in Saltaire, West Yorkshire, England. Higher Coach Road, Baildon, is to the north and the park is bounded to the south by the River Aire.
A pedestrian footbridge crosses the Aire and links the park to ...
are also close by.
Stationmasters
Sometime after 1927 the position of station master was merged with that of Shipley.
*J. Mitchell until 1861
*William Secker 1861 - 1907
*Thomas Ripley 1907
[ - 1920
*Albert John Bell 1921 - 1927
*F.J. Dando from 1927 (formerly station master at Embsay, afterwards station master at Cherry Tree)
]
Facilities
Though unstaffed, the station has ticket machines available. There is step-free access to both platforms via ramps from the street above. Train running information can be obtained via digital information screens, timetable posters and an automated public address system.
Services
Since the May 2022 timetable update, there is a half-hourly service to Leeds, an hourly service to Bradford Forster Square and three trains per hour to Skipton (with a few peak extras) throughout the day Mondays to Saturdays.[GB National Rail Timetable May 2022 Edition, Table 36]
On Sundays, there is an hourly service to Leeds and to Bradford Forster Square, with two trains per hour to Skipton. The first departures from Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
to both Lancaster and Carlisle also call here.
Image:Saltaire_station_p1.jpg, The view from platform 2.
Image:Saltaire_station_p2.jpg, Platform 2.
Image:Saltaire railway station.JPG, Two Class 333 trains cross at the station.
File:Saltaire railway station viewed from Victoria Road September 2022.jpg, Both platforms viewed from Victoria Road. Platform 2 is on the left, and platform 1 on the right.
References
Bibliography
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
Proposals to improve the station
{{Railway stations in the City of Bradford
Railway stations in Bradford
DfT Category F1 stations
Former Midland Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1856
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1965
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1984
Reopened railway stations in Great Britain
Beeching closures in England
Northern franchise railway stations
Shipley, West Yorkshire
1856 establishments in England