Stevenage railway station serves the town of Stevenage in Hertfordshire, England. The station is 27 miles 45 chains (44.4 km) north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line.[1] Stevenage is managed and served by First Capital Connect. It is also served by East Coast and First Hull Trains.
The present station was opened on 26 July 1973[2] by Shirley Williams,[3] then MP for Stevenage, replacing the previous station, which was 73 chains (1,500 m) to the north,[1] and further away from the centre of the new town.
History
The original Stevenage railway station was built in 1850 by the Great Northern Railway, despite the apparent hostility towards the railway being built there at that time due to the inevitable decline it would cause to local coach businesses,[4] which all ended shortly after the station was opened. In 1946, Stevenage was one of the first communities selected to become a 'New Town' as part of the governments New Towns Act, which resulted in a new town centre. In 1973, the railway station was relocated a mile south, within walking distance (220 yd, 200 m) of the new town centre.[5]
Facilities
The station has two separate ticket offices - East Coast and First Capital Connect - though in practice each will sell each other's tickets. There are also seven ticket machines. There are toilets at street level (but not on the platforms) and restricted lift access from the station to both the station's platforms.
Stevenage Railway Station
The station also has automatic ticket barriers, which were installed by First Capital Connect shortly after taking over the route, as a revenue protection exercise and to improve security at the station. There is a snack bar, coffee bar, and a dry-cleaner's at street level and two coffee bars at platform level, with one per platform. The newsagent previously at street level closed in January 2013, but re-opened temporarily in March 2013, pending a redevelopment of the station.
Since December 2013 FCC started refurbishing the station completely, introducing passenger lifts between platform and street level, and refurbishing the concourse area plus retail units.
Both island platforms have indoor waiting rooms that were refurbished in May 2012 as part of a wider scheme by First Capital Connect to refurbish and add waiting rooms across the Great Northern Route, and there is also outdoor seating along the length of the platforms.
The station is a short walk on a walkway from Stevenage Bus Station, and is opposite a leisure complex that includes the Gordon Craig Theatre.
Services
First Capital Connect services
Most of the trains serving Stevenage station are operated by First Capital Connect, lying on its Great Northern Route from London King's Cross to Peterborough and Cambridge. It is also served by trains between London and Letchworth via Hertford North; these trains use Moorgate station in London on weekdays (except late evenings) and King's Cross at other times.[6] FCC services mainly use the outer faces of each island platform - platform 1 for Kings Cross and Moorgate and platform 4 for Letchworth, Cambridge and Peterborough. During weekday rush hours & at weekends, Hertford North trains also terminate & start from platform 4.
East Coast services
Stevenage is also served by some of East Coast's trains on the East Coast Main Line. Typically, these are trains between London King's Cross and Leeds or Newcastle, but there are also services to Edinburgh and Glasgow.[7] These use platform 2 southbound and platform 3 northbound.
First Hull Trains services
| First Hull Trains Route |
|---|
|
^ Pick up northbound,set down southbound |
First Hull Trains offer a very limited service only calling at Stevenage on Sundays, 1 train northbound and 2 trains southbound. These services run between King's Cross and Hull.[8]
Bus Services
Bus services are available at or near the station to various parts of the town and to nearby Hertford, Ware, Luton, Letchworth, Hitchin, Baldock, Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield, St Albans, Hemel Hempstead and London.
Buses SB1, SB2, SB3, SB7, SB8, SB9, SB15, SB16, SB40, SB50, 10, 55, 80, 100, 101, 102, 301, 384, 390, 391, 625, 635, and Green Line coach 797 all stop at the station, and the 777 National Express coach to Birmingham or Stansted will stop if previously requested. The station is only a short walk from the town's main bus station, which is served by a number of other bus services.
Ticket Office Opening Times & Station Staffing Hours
Below are the current opening and staffing times for Stevenage, as of 2010.[9]
| First Capital Connect Ticket Office Hours |
| Day | Opens | Closes |
| Monday to Thursday | 06:15 | 20:30 |
| Friday | 06:15 | 21:45 |
| Saturday | 06:30 | 21:30 |
| Sunday | 08:00 | 20:15 |
| Station Staffing Hours |
| Day | Times |
| Monday to Sunday | 24 Hours |
Routes
References
External links
Coordinates: 51°54′07″N 0°12′25″W / 51.902°N 0.207°W / 51.902; -0.207
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