Stevenage railway station

Stevenage National Rail

365537 heading north though Stevenage railway station on platform 3
Location
Place Stevenage
Local authority Borough of Stevenage
Grid reference TL234241
Operations
Station code SVG
Managed by Great Northern
Owned by Network Rail
Number of platforms 4
DfT category C1
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2002/03  3.267 million
2004/05 Increase 3.495 million
2005/06 Increase 3.539 million
2006/07 Increase 3.968 million
2007/08 Increase 4.206 million
2008/09 Increase 4.258 million
2009/10 Decrease 4.093 million
2010/11 Increase 4.223 million
2011/12 Increase 4.272 million
2012/13 Increase 4.339 million
History
Key dates Opened 23 July 1973
8 August 1850 Original station opened by GNR
22 July 1973 Station closed
23 July 1973 Relocated ½ mile south to present location and opened by BR
29 September 1973 Officially opened by Shirley Williams MP
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Stevenage from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal
Remains of old station

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 Great Northern. It is also served by First Hull Trains and Virgin Trains East Coast.

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 1 mile (1.6 km) south, within walking distance (220 yd, 200 m) of the new town centre.[5]

Facilities

The station has two separate ticket offices (Great Northern and Virgin Trains East Coast), but in practice, each 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 (the previous train operator) shortly after it took over the route, as a revenue protection exercise and to improve security at the station. There is a snack bar, at street level, and two coffee bars at platform level, with one per platform. The newsagent previously at street level closed in March 2014, pending the redevelopment of the station which has since been completed. Currently, the refurbished shop is awaiting a new tenant.

Since December 2013, the previous train operator, First Capital Connect started refurbishing the station completely, introducing passenger lifts between platform and street level, and refurbishing the concourse area plus retail units. The works were due to be completed by April 2014, but were delayed. Since Great Northern took over the franchise in September 2014, these works have been completed.

Both island platforms have indoor waiting rooms that were refurbished in May 2012 as part of a wider scheme 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

Great Northern services

Most of the trains serving Stevenage station are operated by Great Northern, 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 at nights) and King's Cross at other times.[6] Great Northern 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 a small number of trains to/from Hertford North and Peterborough trains also terminate & start from platform 4 or platform 1.

Future Thameslink and Great Northern services

Main article: Thameslink Programme

New services are anticipated for 2018, to destinations south of central London.[7] In May 2014, a proposed timetable was released; the planned services are:

Virgin Trains East Coast services

Stevenage is also served by some Virgin Trains East Coast services on the East Coast Main Line. Typically, these are trains between London King's Cross and Leeds or Newark North Gate/York, but there are also services to Edinburgh and Newcastle.[8] These use platform 2 southbound and platform 3 northbound.

First Hull Trains services

First Hull Trains offer a very limited service only calling at Stevenage on weekdays, 1 train northbound and 1 train southbound. This service runs between King's Cross and Hull.[10]

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 2014

Great Northern 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

There is presently also a Virgin Trains East Coast booking office adjacent to the Great Northern ticket area - this usually operates from the morning rush until the late afternoon.

Station Staffing Hours
Day Times
Monday to Sunday 24 Hours

Routes

Preceding station National Rail Following station
London Kings Cross   Great Northern
London-Peterborough/Huntingdon (fast)		   Biggleswade or
St. Neots
Knebworth or
Finsbury Park		   Great Northern
London-Cambridgeshire/Norfolk/Royston		   Hitchin
Watton-at-Stone   Great Northern
London-Letchworth/Stevenage/Hitchin		   Terminus or
Hitchin
London King's Cross   Virgin Trains East Coast
London-York/Newark/Doncaster/Peterborough/Edinburgh/Newcastle/Lincoln/Hull		   Peterborough
London King's Cross   Virgin Trains East Coast
London-Leeds and West Yorkshire services		   Peterborough or
Grantham
London King's Cross   First Hull Trains
London-Hull		   Grantham

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Yonge, John (September 2006) [1994]. Jacobs, Gerald, ed. Railway Track Diagrams 2: Eastern (3rd ed.). Bradford on Avon: Trackmaps. map 15B. ISBN 0-9549866-2-8.
  2. ↑ Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 219. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  3. ↑ A brass plaque in the upstairs walkway/bridge commemorates this.
  4. ↑ http://www.wordoxers.com/hos/main7.htm
  5. ↑ http://www.localhistories.org/stevenage.html
  6. ↑ GB National Rail Timetable 2013-14, Tables 24 & 25
  7. ↑ Proposed Thameslink service pattern
  8. ↑ GB National Rail Timetable 2013-14, Table 26/
  9. ↑
  10. ↑ http://hulltrains.co.uk/timetable.php

External links

Coordinates: 51°54′07″N 0°12′25″W / 51.902°N 0.207°W