Settle is a railway station on the Settle–Carlisle line, Settle and Carlisle Line, which runs between and via Settle. The station, situated north of Leeds, serves the market town of Settle, North Yorkshire, Settle, Craven District, Craven in North Yorkshire, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains. The market town is also served by the railway station at Giggleswick railway station, Giggleswick, situated about a mile to the south-west, which is on the Leeds–Morecambe line, Bentham Line, running between Leeds railway station, Leeds and Morecambe railway station, Morecambe via Lancaster railway station, Lancaster.

History and facilities

The station was designed by the Midland Railway company architect John Holloway Sanders. The station was opened with the line on 1 May 1876 and was originally named ''Settle New'' to distinguish it from the nearby station on a different route, which was renamed at the same time. Settle New was renamed ''Settle'' on 1 July 1879, by which time Settle Old had become Giggleswick. Goods facilities were withdrawn from the station in 1970. The station was Grade II listed on 9 March 1984. The railway station is located very close to the town centre and is staffed on a part-time basis. There is a range of facilities available (including waiting room, toilets and a souvenir shop) in the main buildings on the southbound platform. There is a period stone-built waiting room located on the northbound platform and a new stone and glass shelter on the southbound side. The platforms are linked by an ex-North British Railway footbridge that was formerly located at station in East Lothian until electrification of the ECML made it redundant. It was then dismantled and re-erected here in 1993 to allow the old Level crossings in the United Kingdom#Barrow crossing, barrow crossing at the north end of the station to be taken out of regular use (though the crossing is still available for wheelchair users when the station is staffed). A ticket machine is available for use when the booking office is closed. Train running information is provided by timetable posters, a P.A system and telephone. Digital information screens were also installed here in the summer of 2019. The former Settle Station signalbox, which has been out of railway use since 1984, was relocated further north to be adjacent to the Down platform in 1997, and is open to the public on most Saturdays. The water tower situated near the station in the former goods yard was converted into residential accommodation in 2011.

Stationmasters

*J. Smith 1876 - 1879 *Richard Allcock 1879 - 1883 *Benjamin Ash 1883 - 1905 *Arthur Reedman Snow 1906 - ca. 1911 *Abraham Fearn ca. 1914 - 1924 (formerly station master at Oxenhope, afterwards station master at Clay Cross) *Harold Tilforth 1924 - 1925 (resigned to avoid being dealt with for a cash irregularity) *John Banks ca. 1939 - 1946 *Thomas William Whetten from 1946 (formerly station master at Kirby Lonsdale) *Harry Robinson *James M. Taylor 1959 - 1965 (formerly station master at Horton in Ribblesdale)

Accidents and incidents

On 21 January 1960, an express passenger train derailed just to the north of the station (near the village of Langcliffe) and then collided with a northbound freight due to a defect on the BR Standard Class 7 locomotive hauling it. Five people were killed and nine were injured.

Services

Monday to Saturdays there is generally a two-hourly service southbound to Leeds (nine trains a day in total Mon-Sat) and northbound to (eight). The last train of the day from Leeds runs only as far as and the corresponding return to Leeds starts back from there. Trains terminated or started from either Appleby or from the spring of 2016 whilst Network Rail repaired a major landslip at Eden Brows (between Armathwaite & Carlisle). A replacement bus service was in operation over the affected section until the project to repair the line was completed in March 2017. The project was completed on schedule and the line reopened to traffic on 31 March 2017. On Sundays there are now six trains in each direction throughout the year (including one through train to & from ), plus an additional summer service between and Carlisle via and (northbound in the morning, returning south in the afternoon) operated by Northern Rail under the DalesRail brand. The new Northern franchise awarded to Arriva Rail North in December 2015 and which started in April 2016, has seen modest service improvements from the station implemented from the May 2018 timetable change, with one extra weekday service each way and two extra trains each way on Sundays.

References

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