Penrith railway station

Penrith North Lakes (also shortened to Penrith) is a railway station on the West Coast Main Line, which runs between London Euston and Edinburgh Waverley or Glasgow Central. The station, situated 17 miles 69 chains (28.7 km) south of Carlisle, serves the market town of Penrith, Westmorland and Furness in Cumbria, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Avanti West Coast.

This article is about the station in Cumbria, England. For the station in New South Wales, Australia, see Penrith railway station, Sydney.

Penrith

Penrith North Lakes
National Rail
General information
LocationPenrith, Westmorland and Furness
England
Coordinates54°39′43″N 2°45′31″W
Grid referenceNY511299
Owned byNetwork Rail
Managed byAvanti West Coast
Platforms3
Tracks3
Other information
Station codePNR
ClassificationDfT category D
History
Original companyLancaster and Carlisle Railway
Pre-groupingLondon and North Western Railway
Post-grouping
Key dates
17 December 1846Opened as Penrith
1904Renamed Penrith for Ullswater Lake
6 May 1974Renamed Penrith
18 May 2003Renamed Penrith North Lakes
Passengers
2017/18Increase 0.566 million
2018/19Increase 0.592 million
 Interchange  0.223 million
2019/20Increase 0.610 million
 Interchange Decrease 0.222 million
2020/21Decrease 0.147 million
 Interchange Decrease 19,295
2021/22Increase 0.506 million
 Interchange Increase 0.114 million
Listed Building – Grade II
FeatureOriginal Lancaster and Carlisle Railway station buildings
Designated9 February 1983
Reference no.1326905[1]
Location
Penrith is located in the former Eden District
Penrith
Penrith
Location in Eden, Cumbria
Penrith is located in Cumbria
Penrith
Penrith
Location in Cumbria, England
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Background
A 1903 Railway Clearing House map, showing railway lines in the vicinity of Penrith.
A British Rail Class 87 passing through the station, heading south towards London Euston in August 1974.

The station was built by the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway, and opened on 17 December 1846.[2] The station was designed by Sir William Tite, designer of a number of early railway stations in Britain, including neighbouring Carlisle (Citadel), as well as Carnforth and Lancaster (Castle). It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.[3]

An 1863 Ordnance Survey plan shows refreshment facilities in the large room seen to the right on entering the building, but this is now used for storage.[4]

Although the station is now relatively quiet, at one time it served as the terminus of the Cockermouth, Keswick and Penrith Railway and the North Eastern Railway's Eden Valley branch. The latter joined with the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway at Kirkby Stephen, providing connections to the East Coast Main Line at Darlington. In the mid-nineteenth century, there was a plan to connect Penrith to the lead mines at Caldbeck by rail, eventually joining up with the Cumbrian Coast Line near Wigton.

Passenger services to Darlington and Kirkby Stephen were withdrawn on 22 January 1962, whilst those to Workington via Cockermouth fell victim to the Beeching Axe around four years later. The surviving section of the Cockermouth, Keswick and Penrith Railway as far as Keswick survived until 6 March 1972. There have recently been plans to re-open the line as far as Keswick, but there have been no further developments to progress this at present.[5][6][7]

The station was the last in the United Kingdom where mail was collected by a moving train, the practice finally coming to an end on 3 October 1971.[8][9]

Opened as Penrith, the station was renamed Penrith for Ullswater Lake in 1904.[2] The station's name reverted to the original Penrith on 6 May 1974.[2][10] It has since been renamed Penrith North Lakes on 18 May 2003.

Facilities
A TransPennine Express Class 350 Desiro, seen operating a service to Manchester Airport in September 2019.

The station is staffed throughout the day, with the ticket office open from 05:30–19:00 Monday to Saturday and 11:30–19:00 on Sunday. A self-service ticket machine is also available. Each platform has next train audio-visual displays, with customer help points on platforms 1 and 2 (platform 3 is rarely used). Waiting rooms are provided on platforms 1 and 2, along with toilets, a post box and a payphone. Step-free access is available to all platforms via lifts, with a footbridge and subway also available.[11]

Services

Avanti West Coast

Avanti West Coast operate services on the West Coast Main Line southbound towards London Euston via Preston, with 5 tpd going via Birmingham New Street and the rest via the Trent Valley Line. A single evening service operates to Crewe on weekdays. Heading north, there are services towards Glasgow Central via Carlisle, as well as two trains per day (three trains per day on Saturday and 4tpd on Sunday) towards Edinburgh Waverley via Carlisle.[12][13]

These services operate using Class 390 Pendolinos.

TransPennine Express

Following the December 2021 timetable change, TransPennine Express operate nine trains per day heading north towards Glasgow Central via Carlisle (seven trains per day on Sunday), as well as three trains per day to Edinburgh Waverley via Carlisle. Heading south, there are 15 trains per day to Manchester Airport (11 trains per day on Sunday), with a once-daily service to Liverpool Lime Street.[14]

Rolling stock used: Class 397 Civity

See also

References
  1. Historic England. "Penrith railway station (Grade II) (1326905)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 183. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  3. Historic England. "Penrith railway station (Grade II) (1326905)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  4. Ordnance Plan of the town of Penrith (10.56 feet to one mile), 1863, British Library shelfmark O.S.T.(11)
  5. Parsons, Emily (1 June 2020). "Plans to reinstate railways take step forward". In Cumbria. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  6. Lytollis, Roger (24 February 2019). "Penrith to Keswick rail line should reopen, says Lake District National Park chairman". News and Star. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  7. "Trains back on track to return to Keswick after 48 years says railway campaigner". Keswick Reminder. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  8. "End of the line for mail trains". BBC. January 2004. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  9. "News of the Month". Railway World. Vol. 32, no. 379. Shepperton: Ian Allan. December 1971. p. 514.
  10. Slater, J.N., ed. (July 1974). "Notes and News: Stations renamed by LMR". Railway Magazine. London: IPC Transport Press Ltd. 120 (879): 363. ISSN 0033-8923.
  11. "Station facilities for Penrith (North Lakes)". National Rail. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  12. "Scheduled timetable book for 11 December 2022 to 20 May 2023" (PDF). Avanti West Coast.
  13. "Scheduled timetable book for 21 May 2023 to 9 December 2023" (PDF). Avanti West Coast.
  14. "Train times: Manchester and Liverpool to Carlisle, Glasgow and Edinburgh". TransPennine Express. 12 December 2021. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Lancaster   Avanti West Coast
West Coast Main Line		   Carlisle
Oxenholme Lake District    
Preston    
Lancaster   TransPennine Express
West Coast Main Line		   Carlisle
Oxenholme Lake District    
Preston    
Disused railways
Blencow   Cockermouth, Keswick and Penrith Railway   Terminus
Terminus   Eden Valley Railway   Clifton Moor
  Historical railways  
Clifton and Lowther   London and North Western Railway
Lancaster and Carlisle Railway		   Plumpton
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