Darwen railway station

Darwen National Rail

Darwen railway station looking north in 2014
Location
Place Darwen
Local authority Blackburn with Darwen
Coordinates 53°41′53″N 2°27′54″W / 53.698°N 2.465°WCoordinates: 53°41′53″N 2°27′54″W / 53.698°N 2.465°W
Grid reference SD694225
Operations
Station code DWN
Managed by Northern Rail
Number of platforms 2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2004/05  0.176 million
2005/06 Increase 0.206 million
2006/07 Increase 0.231 million
2007/08 Increase 0.247 million
2008/09 Increase 0.251 million
2009/10 Increase 0.256 million
2010/11 Increase 0.262 million
2011/12 Increase 0.287 million
2012/13 Increase 0.309 million
2013/14 Increase 0.319 million
History
Key dates Opened 1847
Original company Bolton, Blackburn, Clitheroe and West Yorkshire Railway
Pre-grouping Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Post-grouping London, Midland and Scottish Railway
3 August 1847 Opened as Over Darwen
1 December 1883 Renamed Darwen
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Darwen from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

Darwen railway station serves Darwen, a town in Lancashire, England. It was opened in 1847 by the Bolton, Blackburn, Clitheroe & West Yorkshire Railway, which was subsequently taken over by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway twelve years later. It is now served by Northern Rail services on the Ribble Valley Line from Manchester Victoria/Bolton to Blackburn and into Clitheroe.

Darwen is set amongst the hills of East Lancashire. Arriving from or departing towards Bolton involves journeying through the long Sough Tunnel, some 2,015 yd (1,843 m) in length.

History

The railway line between Blackburn (Bolton Road) and Bolton was built by the Blackburn, Darwen and Bolton Railway, but it had amalgamated with the Blackburn, Clitheroe and North Western Junction Railway to form the Bolton, Blackburn, Clitheroe and West Yorkshire Railway by the time that the first section, from Blackburn to Sough, including the station at Over Darwen, 4 14 miles (6.8 km) from Blackburn, was opened on 3 August 1847. The station was renamed Darwen on 1 December 1883.[1][2]

The neighbouring stations either side which also served the area, at Lower Darwen and Spring Vale, were both closed in 1958 and the nearest surviving station to the south is now Entwistle.

Facilities

The station has two platforms. It is one of only two passing points on the otherwise single track Blackburn to Bolton part of the route, but trains normally cross here only in the morning and evening peak periods. The station is currently unstaffed, with waiting shelters on each platform.

Services

There is generally an hourly service daily (including Sundays) to Blackburn and Clitheroe northbound and Manchester Victoria southbound, rising to half-hourly during weekday peak hours.

References

  1. Marshall, John (1969). The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway, volume 1. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. pp. 178, 181. ISBN 0-7153-4352-1.
  2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. pp. 179, 77. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Darwen railway station.
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Blackburn   Northern Rail
Ribble Valley Line
  Entwistle or
Bromley Cross
Historical railways
Lower Darwen
Line open, station closed
  Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Blackburn, Darwen and Bolton Railway
  Spring Vale
Line open, station closed