Poulton-le-Fylde railway station serves the town of Poulton-le-Fylde in Lancashire, England. It is managed by Northern Trains, but also served by Avanti West Coast.
Poulton-le-Fylde  | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Poulton-le-Fylde station in 2023 | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Poulton-le-Fylde, Wyre England | ||||
| Coordinates | 53°50′54″N 2°59′26″W / 53.8484°N 2.9906°W | ||||
| Grid reference | SD349395 | ||||
| Managed by | Northern Trains | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | PFY | ||||
| Classification | DfT category E | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 15 July 1840 | Original station opened | ||||
| 1896 | New station on realigned route | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2018/19 |  0.433 million | ||||
| 2019/20 | 0.547 million | ||||
| 2020/21 |  0.106 million | ||||
| 2021/22 | 0.425 million | ||||
| 2022/23 | 0.510 million | ||||
| |||||
| |||||
The station has two platforms: westbound trains (to Blackpool) arrive and depart from platform 1; eastbound trains (to Preston and beyond) arrive and depart from platform 2.
History
edit
The original station was about 400 yards (400 m) north-east of the current location, at "The Breck".[1][2] The railway to the fishing town of Fleetwood, via Burn Naze, passed along a straight line east of the town. From 1846, there was a junction to Blackpool just north of the station, with tight connecting curves facing either way. In 1893 a fatal accident occurred when a train took the curve too fast.[3][4] Subsequently, in 1896, the tracks were realigned to follow a much gentler westward curve to Blackpool, with the new station halfway along the curve. The Fleetwood branch then curved to the east to rejoin the original alignment. The old station continued to be used as a goods station until 1968.[5]
Passenger services to Fleetwood were withdrawn by British Rail on 1 June 1970 during railway restructuring, although a freight service continued to the ICI plant at Burn Naze Halt until 1999. The line is still extant (albeit overgrown and disused), but the junction with the Blackpool line west of the station was removed in April 2017 in preparation for electrification of the route.[6] Since June 2006, there have been plans by Poulton & Wyre Railway Society to restore (and preserve) the passenger rail link towards Fleetwood via Thornton & Cleveleys, as a heritage railway.[7]
Facilities
edit
The station has a ticket office, at street level, which is staffed throughout the week (Monday to Saturday 06:10 to 19:30 and Sunday 06:40 to 18:10). There is also a self-service ticket machine provided for use outside these times and for collecting pre-paid tickets. There is a waiting room at platform level, along with toilets, bench seating and timetable posters. Train running information is offered via automatic announcements and digital display screens. Step-free access is available via lifts from the entrance to the platform when the ticket office is staffed.[8]
Services
edit
As of December 2022 the station is served by four Northern trains per hour to and from Blackpool North westbound (via platform 1), and trains to Manchester Airport (two per hour), Liverpool Lime Street, and York via the Calder Valley line in the eastbound direction (platform 2).[9] On Sundays the service is reduced to three trains per hour in each direction, with only one train per hour to Manchester Airport.
Additionally, on weekdays until May 2023 one Avanti West Coast train per day to London Euston called at the station in the southbound direction only, departing at 05:36. This was replaced in the May 2023 timetable change by a Sunday-only service to Preston calling at Kirkham and Wesham, departing at 18:28.[10]
The station was also served by a single DalesRail service to Carlisle via Settle during the summer months and to Hellifield (for onward travel to Settle and Carlisle) for the remainder of the year. Since December 2022, though, this service has been withdrawn. In 2024, it was announced that the route was set to return.[11]
Modernisation
editThe modernisation and electrification of the Preston to Blackpool North line, and hence Poulton-le-Fylde station was announced in December 2009.[12] The modernisation included completely new signalling of the entire line along with rationalisation of the lines and removal of the connection into the Fleetwood branch. The removal of the signal box along with four others along the line was included as part of the works.[13] This resulted in a total blockade of the line from 11 November 2017 until 25 March 2018 but subsequently extended to 16 April 2018 due to bad weather.[14]
Visual reporting point
editThe station is a visual reporting point (VRP) for general aviation aircraft in the local Blackpool airspace.[15]
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Mitchell & Hartley, p.59
- ^ "Historical images of Poulton-le-Fylde take you back to a long lost era". Blackpool Gazette. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
- ^ Welch, p.27
- ^ Suggitt, p.38
- ^ Suggitt, pp.37–38
- ^ "Passengers and neighbours thanked as weekend work in Poulton is completed on time" VolkerRail press release 6 April 2017; Retrieved 23 May 2017
- ^ "£30,000 feasibility study for Poulton to Fleetwood line could go ahead" (PDF). Railway Herald. No. 239. 20 September 2010. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 21 September 2010.
- ^ Poulton-le-Fylde station facilities National Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 24 February 2017
- ^ Table 102 National Rail timetable, December 2022
- ^ "Scheduled timetable book for 21 May 2023 to 9 December 2023" (PDF). Avanti West Coast.
- ^ "DalesRail service over the Settle to Carlisle line set to return as HS2 cash is re-routed" – The Yorkshire Post
- ^ "Railway lines to be electrified". 14 December 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- ^ "Network Rail confirms Blackpool electrification plans | Railnews | Today's news for Tomorrow's railway". www.railnews.co.uk. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- ^ "Blackpool to Preston route to reopen after major 5-month transformation". www.railtechnologymagazine.com. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- ^ Visiting by air – Blackpool Airport
References
edit- Mitchell, L. & Hartley, S. (2005) "Lancashire Historic Town Survey—Poulton-le-Fylde". Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 December 2009. (19.1 MiB), Lancashire County Council Environment Directorate, accessed 30 October 2007
- Suggitt, G. (2003, revised 2004) Lost Railways of Lancashire, Countryside Books, Newbury, ISBN 1-85306-801-2
- Welch, M.S. (2004) Lancashire Steam Finale, Runpast Publishing, Cheltenham, ISBN 1-870754-61-1
External links
edit
- Train times and station information for Poulton-le-Fylde railway station from National Rail
- Blackpool & Fylde Rail Users’ Association—Poulton, accessed 17 October 2007
- Poulton & Wyre Railway Society, working towards restoring the passenger rail link to Fleetwood.
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avanti West Coast Limited service | ||||
| Northern Trains | ||||
| Northern Trains | ||||
Sunday only |
||||
| Northern Trains | Monday to Saturday |
|||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Bispham | Preston and Wyre Joint Railway Blackpool Branch Line |
Singleton | ||
| Disused railways | ||||
| Thornton for Cleveleys | Preston and Wyre Joint Railway Fleetwood Branch Line |
Singleton | ||