Sleights railway station
Sleights is a railway station on the Esk Valley Line, which runs between Middlesbrough and Whitby via Nunthorpe. The station, situated 2 miles 78 chains (4.8 km) south-west of Whitby, serves the villages of Briggswath and Sleights, Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.
| General information | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Sleights, Scarborough England | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 54°27′40″N 0°39′46″W / 54.4611428°N 0.6628583°W | ||||||||||
| Grid reference | NZ867081 | ||||||||||
| Owned by | Network Rail | ||||||||||
| Managed by | Northern Trains | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 1 | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 1 | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Station code | SLH | ||||||||||
| Classification | DfT category F2 | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Original company | Whitby and Pickering Railway | ||||||||||
| Pre-grouping | North Eastern Railway | ||||||||||
| Post-grouping | |||||||||||
| Key dates | |||||||||||
| 8 June 1835 | Opened | ||||||||||
| Passengers | |||||||||||
| 2018/19 | 4,182 | ||||||||||
| 2019/20 | 4,732 | ||||||||||
| 2020/21 | 1,038 | ||||||||||
| 2021/22 | 4,696 | ||||||||||
| 2022/23 | 5,048 | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Location | |||||||||||
Sleights Location in North Yorkshire, England | |||||||||||
| Notes | |||||||||||
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road | |||||||||||
History edit
Sleights station was on the initial 6.5-mile (10.5 km) section of the Whitby and Pickering Railway between Whitby and Grosmont.[1] Originally just a simple halt, it opened to horse-drawn traffic on 15 May 1835,[2] with a full public service operating from June 1835.[1] The station platforms and the main building, a mock-Tudor design by George Townsend Andrews, were constructed eleven years later and opened in 1846.[3]
The station used to have two platforms for up and down line working,[4] but in common with the other stations between Grosmont and Whitby, this was reduced to single track working in 1984 when the second track was lifted and Sleights signal box closed.[5] Trains now stop at the former Up line platform,[6] where the main station buildings, including the station master's house, are now a Grade II-listed private residence.[7][8] The former down platform used to have a wooden waiting shed and store; this building was recovered by the North Yorkshire Moors Railway and re-erected on the extended down platform at Grosmont.[9]
Behind the down platform was a small goods yard with a single siding. The Up line platform is currently managed and maintained by Northern Trains and Esk Valley Railway, whilst the down platform and derelict signal box are the responsibility of Network Rail.
At one end of the platform, a footpath carries passengers over the River Esk to Briggswath on a small box girder bridge, while at the other the A169 towers over the railway and river on a bridge opened on 26 January 1937.[10] The site of the modern day footpath used to be a level crossing carrying the main Whitby-Pickering road to a stone bridge over the Esk,[11] before this was washed away during floods in 1930.[12] Next to the crossing a 19th-century brick built signal box remains, now unused and boarded up.
Services edit
Northern Trains Route 5 |
|---|
Esk Valley Line |
As of July 2022, the station is served by five trains per day towards Whitby. Heading towards Middlesbrough via Nunthorpe, there are four trains per day. Most trains continue to Newcastle, Hexham or Darlington. All services are operated by Northern Trains.[13]
Rolling stock used: Class 156 Super Sprinter and Class 158 Express Sprinter
Heritage trains from the North Yorkshire Moors Railway can be seen passing through Sleights Station, however they do not stop.[14]
References edit
- ^ a b Bairstow 2008, p. 13.
- ^ Bairstow 2008, p. 111.
- ^ Ellis, Norman (1995). North Yorkshire railway stations. Ochiltree: Stenlake. p. 29. ISBN 1-872074-63-4.
- ^ Chapman, Stephen (2008). York to Scarborough, Whitby & Ryedale. Todmorden: Bellcode Books. p. 89. ISBN 9781871233193.
- ^ Bairstow 2008, p. 90.
- ^ Body, Geoffrey (1989). Railways of the Eastern Region. Wellingborough: Patrick Stephens. p. 122. ISBN 1-85260-072-1.
- ^ Historic England. "2 Coach Road (Grade II) (1316164)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ Historic England. "Sleights Station (500526)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ Hunt, John (2004). The North Yorkshire moors railway : a further trip along the former Whitby & Pickering Railway and through to Malton / vol. 2. Kettering: Silver Link. p. 37. ISBN 1-85895-236-0.
- ^ Whitworth, Alan (1998). Esk Valley Railway : a travellers' guide ; a description of the history and topography of the line between Whitby and Middlesbrough. Barnsley: Wharncliffe. p. 33. ISBN 1-871647-49-5.
- ^ Hoole, Ken (1983). Railways of the North York Moors : a pictorial history. Clapham: Dalesman Books. p. 36. ISBN 0-85206-731-3.
- ^ "River Esk fact file" (PDF). environmentdata.org. Environment Agency. p. 4. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ (PDF). Northern Trains. 16 May 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- ^ "Sleights, North Yorkshire: travel and leisure information". www.eskvalleyrailway.co.uk. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
Sources edit
- Bairstow, Martin (2008). Railways Around Whitby Volume One. Farsley: Bairstow. ISBN 978-1-871944-34-1.
External links edit
- Media related to Sleights railway station at Wikimedia Commons
- Train times and station information for Sleights railway station from National Rail
| Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grosmont | Northern Trains Esk Valley Line | Ruswarp | ||