| Eaglescliffe | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Place | Eaglescliffe |
| Local authority | Stockton-on-Tees |
| Operations | |
| Station code | EAG |
| Managed by | Northern Rail |
| Number of platforms | 2 |
| Live arrivals/departures and station information from National Rail Enquiries |
|
| Annual rail passenger usage | |
| 2004/05 * | 54,555 |
| 2005/06 * | 60,238 |
| 2006/07 * | 65,522 |
| 2007/08 * | 76,072 |
| 2008/09 * | 83,794 |
| 2009/10 * | 109,520 |
| History | |
| Opened 25 January 1853 | |
| National Rail - UK railway stations | |
| A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | |
| * Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Eaglescliffe from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. Please note: methodology may vary year on year. | |
Eaglescliffe railway station serves the town of Eaglescliffe in the borough of Stockton-on-Tees. It is located on the Tees Valley Line at the junction with the Northallerton-Eaglescliffe Line and is operated by Northern Rail. Direct intercity services are provided by Grand Central between London and Sunderland.
Contents |
Eaglescliffe Station was the second station to be built along Yarm Road and deviates from the original course of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, that being the world's first steam operated passenger railway service. Originally the line ran on the east side of Yarm Road through Preston Hall (now more commonly known as Preston Park. However it is said that Lord Preston was so unhappy at the disruption that trains such as Locomotion No. 1 caused to his cattle he insisted that it be moved to the other side of the road.
The railway station that served the parishes of Preston-on-Tees and Egglescliffe was called Preston, however the railway owners displeased at the cost of moving the railway decided to name the new station after Egglescliffe instead of Preston. It was opened on 25 January 1853, some six months after the Leeds Northern Railway had opened their line from Northallerton (on 2 June 1852). This newer route ran alongside the original S&D line, which had its alignment altered to allow easy interchange between the two.[1] Originally it had four platforms, but the western pair were taken out of use in the late 1960s and subsequently removed.
The new station became known as Eaglescliffe. There are various stories as to how the station got the name Eaglescliffe instead of Egglescliffe as intended. One such avenue of stories is that the signwriter was sent a telegram to paint the sign 'Eaglescliffe' due to an error and another variant was that the signwriter thought there must have been an error and changed the name himself.
In each variation of the story it is said that the sign was not changed for a period of time by which time the station became known as Eaglescliffe and the surrounding area has taken the name.
In January 2011, construction work started on a new ticket office at the station with the station set to become manned by the end of the month. This work is part of the wider Tees Valley Metro project.[2]
Trains run twice hourly to Middlesbrough and Saltburn eastbound and to Darlington westbound, with certain trains extended to Bishop Auckland (every two hours, increasing to hourly at peak periods). Four daily Grand Central services between Sunderland and London Kings Cross also call (three services on Sunday). There is an hourly service on Sundays to Darlington and Saltburn and every two hours to Bishop Auckland.
There are plans to re-staff the station from April 2010, on an independent basis, similar to the one at Chester-le-Street, but, as of Dcember 2011, the station is still unmanned.
| Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Central
London-Sunderland
|
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| Northern Rail |
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Eaglescliffe_railway_station Eaglescliffe railway station] at Wikimedia Commons