Matlock Bath railway station is a Grade II listed

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prep ...

owned by

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 ...

and managed by East Midlands Railway. It is located in the village of

Matlock Bath Matlock Bath is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, England. It lies in the Peak District, south of Matlock on the main A6 road, and approximately halfway between Buxton and Derby. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census wa ...

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

, England. The station is unmanned by rail staff and is located on the Derwent Valley Line, north of

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

towards Matlock.

History

Opened by the

Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midland Junction Railway The Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midland Junction Railway ran from a junction with the Midland Railway at Ambergate to Rowsley north of Matlock and thence to Buxton. In time it would become part of the Midland Railway's main line betwee ...

on 4 June 1849, the station closed on 6 March 1967, and reopened on 27 May 1972. In recent times the usage of the station has increased; for example in the year 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010 journeys increased by 62%. The station buildings have an unusual 'chalet' style, inspired by the romantic notion at the time that the resort was England's '' Little Switzerland''. The Heights of Abraham cable car runs from near the station up to the

Heights of Abraham The Heights of Abraham is a tourist attraction in Matlock Bath, Derbyshire, England. It consists of a hilltop park on top of Masson Hill, accessed from the village by either the Heights of Abraham cable car or a steep zig-zag path. The heights ...

visitor attraction. The station buildings have been occupied by

Derbyshire Wildlife Trust Derbyshire Wildlife Trust is one of 46 local Wildlife Trusts around the UK working to promote and protect local wildlife. It covers the whole of Derbyshire and was founded in 1962 in response to environmental threats to the local countryside, si ...

since the 1980s and were restored in period-style and opened as a cafe/visitor centre in 2019 after a grant from the

National Lottery Heritage Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

, with additional support from Derbyshire Dales and Derbyshire County councils, and other donations.Derbyshire Wildlife Trust opens café at restored Matlock Bath station
''

Matlock Mercury The ''Matlock Mercury'' is a weekly newspaper published on a Thursday in the United Kingdom which serves Matlock, Darley Dale, Wirksworth, Bakewell and smaller villages in the Derbyshire Dales area of Derbyshire. The ''Matlock Mercury'' began l ...

'', 16 April 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019

Stationmasters

*David Ritchie ca. 1849 ca. 1853 *Robert Skirrow ca. 1857 - 1860 *W. Jordan 1860 - 1861 *William Rich 1861 - ca. 1864 *Charles Ward ca. 1870 - 1885 *William Richardson 1885 - 1898 (afterwards station master at Buxton) *Albert C. Bilham 1898 - 1907 (formerly station master at Bakewell) *Frank Porter 1907 - ???? (formerly station master at Bakewell) *Henry Lovatt ca. 1911 - 1914 *John Allen 1914 - 1923 *William Edward Parsons 1923 - 1931 (formerly station master at Duffield) *George White 1931 - 1947 *William Rosling 1947 - 1968

Services

The station is served by East Midlands Railway, who operate the following service: Monday to Saturday – Hourly service westbound to and eastbound to calling at all intermediate stations. The last eastbound service is extended to . Sunday – Two-hourly service westbound to and eastbound to via calling at all intermediate stations except Spondon. The service frequency increases to hourly from mid-afternoon. Services are formed using diesel multiple units of Classes 153,

156 Year 156 (Roman numerals, CLVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Silvanus and Augurinus (or, less frequently, year 90 ...

or 158.

Public safety issues

In October 2015 Network Rail released CCTV footage showing members of the public taking

selfie A selfie () is a self-portrait photograph, typically taken with a digital camera or smartphone, which may be held in the hand or supported by a selfie stick. Selfies are often shared on social media, via social networking services such as ...

photographs on the main crossing over the tracks at the station. Network Rail issued a safety warning asserting the railways were not for taking photographs on and that trains can appear without warning. Network Rail said it was releasing the footage to highlight the dangerous practices, particularly involving children on the railway line. The crossing has since been closed to the public.

References

External links