Hope Valley Line
Encyclopedia
The Hope Valley Line is a railway line in England
linking Sheffield
with Manchester
. It was completed in 1894.
From Sheffield
, trains head down the Midland Main Line
to Dore
, where the Hope Valley Line branches off to run through the Totley Tunnel
(the second longest in England).
It emerges in the stunning scenery of the Hope Valley
of Derbyshire
, where it passes through the railway stations of Grindleford
, Hathersage
, Bamford
, Hope, and Edale
before entering the two-mile-long Cowburn Tunnel
.
From the western portal of the tunnel, the line runs through Chinley
, then splits. The northern branch runs via New Mills
toward Manchester Piccadilly. The southern branch passes through the Disley Tunnel
before merging with the Buxton
line and then heading to Stockport
to join the main line to Manchester.
Passenger services on the line are currently operated by Northern Rail
(previously First North Western
), East Midlands Trains
(previously Central Trains
) and TransPennine Express (previously Arriva Trains Northern).
This section was built by the Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee
as part of the Midland Railway
's drive to reach Manchester with its line from London
via Ambergate
and Millers Dale
. Initially, in 1867, it joined the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway
at Hyde Junction
, running into Manchester London Road, but in 1875 a more direct route was built through Bredbury
. When Manchester Central
was opened by the Cheshire Lines Committee
, a new line was built through Heaton Mersey
. This third route was closed along with Manchester Central, apart from the section through Disley Tunnel
to Hazel Grove
, where it now joins the old LNWR
line into Stockport
.
In 1872, the Midland Railway
's only route from Sheffield to Manchester was via Ambergate
. It had originally proposed a line to run from Dore to Hassop
meeting its extension from Rowsley
to Buxton
. However, the "Dore and Chinley Railway" was floated independently in 1872, and unsuccessfully, until the Midland took an interest, since it would provide a more direct route, connecting through Chinley into Manchester. The line was authorised in 1884 and work began in 1888.
The 21 miles (34 km) line took six years to build. The terrain through Hope Valley
and Edale
was easy enough by Midland standards, but at each end there were formidable obstacles, negotiated by means of the Totley
and Cowburn Tunnel
s.
, the line was running in competition with the recently modernised route through the Woodhead Tunnel
, and its closure was suggested. On appeal, British Rail, being required to keep the Hope Valley line open to passenger traffic, instead shut the Woodhead route to passengers (and then subsequently to freight).
system. While construction of Metrolink went ahead, the Hope Valley line was not included in the system completed in 1992. When in 2000, proposals for a large-scale extension of Metrolink were announced by the government, these still did not include conversion of the Hope Valley line; but subsequently, planning documents from Network Rail
and from the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority have suggested that this route might be appropriate for tram-train
operation, and as such it was suggested to the Department for Transport
as a possible location for a national tram-train pilot.
Network Rail, in partnership with South Yorkshire ITA
, will redouble the track between Dore Station Junction and Dore West Junction, at an estimated cost of £15 million. This costing is based on four additional vehicles in traffic to deliver the option, however, this will depend on vehicle allocation through the DfT rolling stock plan. This work will be programmed for between 2009–2016, subject to funding, is conjunction with signalling renewals in the Dore/Totley Tunnel area.
Other proposals include freight loops in the Hope and Grindleford areas, again, subject to funding, in order to fit in either a peak-busting, or all-day (07:00–19:00) hourly Manchester - Sheffield via New Mills Central service, by extending an existing Manchester - New Mills Central service.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
linking Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
with Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. It was completed in 1894.
From Sheffield
Sheffield Midland station
Sheffield station, formerly Pond Street and later Sheffield Midland, is a railway station in Sheffield, England and is the busiest station in South Yorkshire...
, trains head down the Midland Main Line
Midland Main Line
The Midland Main Line is a major railway route in the United Kingdom, part of the British railway system.The present-day line links London St...
to Dore
Dore
Dore is a village in South Yorkshire, England. The village lies on a hill above the River Sheaf, and until 1934 was part of Derbyshire, but it is now a suburb of Sheffield. It is served by Dore and Totley railway station on the Hope Valley Line...
, where the Hope Valley Line branches off to run through the Totley Tunnel
Totley Tunnel
Totley Tunnel is a tunnel on the former Midland Railway Manchester-Sheffield line between Totley on the outskirts of Sheffield and Grindleford in Derbyshire, England. It was completed in 1893 and was the longest mainline railway tunnel within the United Kingdom that ran under land for its entire...
(the second longest in England).
It emerges in the stunning scenery of the Hope Valley
Hope Valley
Hope Valley could refer to:*The Hope Valley, Derbyshire*The Hope Valley, Shropshire*Hope Valley, Rhode Island, a village*Hope Valley, Western Australia, a suburb of Perth*Hope Valley, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide...
of Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, where it passes through the railway stations of Grindleford
Grindleford
Grindleford is a village and parish in the county of Derbyshire, in the East Midlands of England. It lies at an altitude of in the valley of the River Derwent in the Peak District National Park. On the west side of the valley is the high Sir William Hill, and to the south-east lies the gritstone...
, Hathersage
Hathersage
Hathersage is a village in the Derbyshire Peak District, in England. It lies on the north bank of the River Derwent, approximately 10 miles west of Sheffield...
, Bamford
Bamford
Bamford is a village in the Derbyshire Peak District, England, close to the River Derwent. To the north-east is Bamford Edge, and to the south-east the location of the water treatment works covering the Ladybower, Derwent and Howden Reservoirs. Though locally Bamford is described as being in the...
, Hope, and Edale
Edale
Edale is a small Derbyshire village and Civil parish in the Peak District, in the Midlands of England. The Parish of Edale,area ,is in the Borough of High Peak....
before entering the two-mile-long Cowburn Tunnel
Cowburn Tunnel
The Cowburn Tunnel is a railway tunnel at the western end of the Vale of Edale in the Derbyshire Peak District of England.The tunnel is long. It was built in 1891 by the Midland Railway, under Colborne...
.
From the western portal of the tunnel, the line runs through Chinley
Chinley
Chinley is a rural village in High Peak Borough, situated on the western edge of the Peak District National Park in Derbyshire, England, with a population of around 2000. Before the railway, the area was economically dominated by agriculture and quarrying. Three textile mills were established in...
, then splits. The northern branch runs via New Mills
New Mills
New Mills is a town in Derbyshire, England approximately south-east of Stockport and from Manchester. It is sited at the confluence of the rivers Goyt and Sett, on the border of Cheshire. The town stands above the Torrs, a deep gorge, cut through Woodhead Hill Sandstone of the Carboniferous period...
toward Manchester Piccadilly. The southern branch passes through the Disley Tunnel
Disley Tunnel
Disley Tunnel [UK] was built by the Midland Railway in 1902 on its line between New Mills South Junction and Manchester Central, which was more direct than the congested and difficult lines through Stockport Tiviot Dale....
before merging with the Buxton
Buxton
Buxton is a spa town in Derbyshire, England. It has the highest elevation of any market town in England. Located close to the county boundary with Cheshire to the west and Staffordshire to the south, Buxton is described as "the gateway to the Peak District National Park"...
line and then heading to Stockport
Stockport railway station
Stockport railway station is in Greater Manchester, England, 8 miles south-east of Manchester Piccadilly station on the West Coast Main Line from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston. It was opened on 15 February 1843 by the Manchester and Birmingham Railway, following completion of the large...
to join the main line to Manchester.
Passenger services on the line are currently operated by Northern Rail
Northern Rail
Northern Rail is a British train operating company that has operated local passenger services in Northern England since 2004. Northern Rail's owner, Serco-Abellio, is a consortium formed of Abellio and Serco, an international operator of public transport systems...
(previously First North Western
First North Western
First North Western was a train operating company in the United Kingdom serving North West England. It operated from 1997 to 2004.The company when first privatised was known as North Western Trains and was owned by Great Western Holdings, a partnership between Great Western's management, First...
), East Midlands Trains
East Midlands Trains
East Midlands Trains is a British passenger train operating company. Based in Derby, it provides train services in the East Midlands, chiefly in the counties of Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Northamptonshire, and between the East Midlands and London...
(previously Central Trains
Central Trains
Central Trains was one of the original 25 train operating companies to emerge from the break-up of British Rail between 1994 and 1997. The company operated local, urban and secondary express services across central England and Mid Wales.-Overview:...
) and TransPennine Express (previously Arriva Trains Northern).
Sheffield and Midland Joint Section
Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee
The Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1869 as a joint venture between the Midland Railway and the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway.-Origins:...
as part of the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
's drive to reach Manchester with its line from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
via Ambergate
Ambergate railway station
Ambergate railway station is a railway station owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Trains Train operating company . It serves the village of Ambergate in Derbyshire...
and Millers Dale
Millers Dale railway station
Millers Dale railway station was a station situated in Millers Dale in the Peak District. It was built in 1863 by the Midland Railway on its extension of the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway from Rowsley....
. Initially, in 1867, it joined the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway
Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway
The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway was formed by amalgamation in 1847. The MS&LR changed its name to the Great Central Railway in 1897 in anticipation of the opening in 1899 of its London Extension.-Origin:...
at Hyde Junction
Hyde North railway station
Hyde North railway station lies north of Hyde, Greater Manchester, England. Hyde North is operated by Northern Rail.Originally "Hyde Junction" when opened in 1862, it was at the junction between the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway extension to New Mills, , and the...
, running into Manchester London Road, but in 1875 a more direct route was built through Bredbury
Bredbury railway station
Bredbury railway station serves Bredbury in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester.It was built by the Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee in 1875 on the line between New Mills and Manchester London Road ....
. When Manchester Central
Manchester Central railway station
Manchester Central railway station is a former railway station in Manchester City Centre, England. One of Manchester's main railway terminals between 1880 and 1969, it now houses an exhibition and conference centre named Manchester Central.-History:...
was opened by the Cheshire Lines Committee
Cheshire Lines Committee
The Cheshire Lines Committee was the second largest joint railway in Great Britain, with 143 route miles. Despite its name, approximately 55% of its system was in Lancashire. In its publicity material it was often styled as the Cheshire Lines Railway...
, a new line was built through Heaton Mersey
Heaton Mersey railway station
Heaton Mersey railway station served the Heaton Mersey district of Stockport between 1880 and 1961.-History:Heaton Mersey railway station was opened on 1 January 1880 by the Midland Railway and lay on the newly opened line from Heaton Mersey East Junction to Chorlton Junction and on to Manchester...
. This third route was closed along with Manchester Central, apart from the section through Disley Tunnel
Disley Tunnel
Disley Tunnel [UK] was built by the Midland Railway in 1902 on its line between New Mills South Junction and Manchester Central, which was more direct than the congested and difficult lines through Stockport Tiviot Dale....
to Hazel Grove
Hazel Grove railway station
Hazel Grove railway station is on the Stockport to Buxton / Sheffield line, serving the village of Hazel Grove, Greater Manchester, England. It was built for the Stockport, Disley and Whaley Bridge Railway by the London and North Western Railway and opened on 9 June 1857...
, where it now joins the old LNWR
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
line into Stockport
Stockport railway station
Stockport railway station is in Greater Manchester, England, 8 miles south-east of Manchester Piccadilly station on the West Coast Main Line from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston. It was opened on 15 February 1843 by the Manchester and Birmingham Railway, following completion of the large...
.
Dore and Chinley
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
's only route from Sheffield to Manchester was via Ambergate
Ambergate railway station
Ambergate railway station is a railway station owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Trains Train operating company . It serves the village of Ambergate in Derbyshire...
. It had originally proposed a line to run from Dore to Hassop
Hassop
Hassop is a village in the local government district of Derbyshire Dales in Derbyshire, England.It developed around a number of lead mines, with such names as "The Brightside", "Backdale", "Harry Bruce", "Waterhole" and "Whitecoe", which lasted until the mid-nineteenth century.The local landowners...
meeting its extension from Rowsley
Rowsley
Rowsley is a village on the A6 road in the English county of Derbyshire.It is at the point where the River Wye flows into the River Derwent and prospered from mills on both.-Overview:...
to Buxton
Buxton railway station
Buxton railway station is a railway station that serves the town of Buxton in Derbyshire. It is managed and served by Northern Rail. The station is 25¾ miles south east of Manchester Piccadilly and is the terminus of the Buxton Line.-History:...
. However, the "Dore and Chinley Railway" was floated independently in 1872, and unsuccessfully, until the Midland took an interest, since it would provide a more direct route, connecting through Chinley into Manchester. The line was authorised in 1884 and work began in 1888.
The 21 miles (34 km) line took six years to build. The terrain through Hope Valley
Hope Valley, Derbyshire
The Hope Valley is a rural area centred on the village of Hope, Derbyshire in the Peak District in the northern Midlands of England.The name also applies to the Post Town which includes the surrounding villages.-The Valley:...
and Edale
Edale
Edale is a small Derbyshire village and Civil parish in the Peak District, in the Midlands of England. The Parish of Edale,area ,is in the Borough of High Peak....
was easy enough by Midland standards, but at each end there were formidable obstacles, negotiated by means of the Totley
Totley Tunnel
Totley Tunnel is a tunnel on the former Midland Railway Manchester-Sheffield line between Totley on the outskirts of Sheffield and Grindleford in Derbyshire, England. It was completed in 1893 and was the longest mainline railway tunnel within the United Kingdom that ran under land for its entire...
and Cowburn Tunnel
Cowburn Tunnel
The Cowburn Tunnel is a railway tunnel at the western end of the Vale of Edale in the Derbyshire Peak District of England.The tunnel is long. It was built in 1891 by the Midland Railway, under Colborne...
s.
Recent history
At the time of the Beeching reviewBeeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, the line was running in competition with the recently modernised route through the Woodhead Tunnel
Woodhead Tunnel
The Woodhead Tunnels are three parallel trans-Pennine 3-mile long railway tunnels on the Woodhead Line, a former major rail link from Manchester to Sheffield in northern England...
, and its closure was suggested. On appeal, British Rail, being required to keep the Hope Valley line open to passenger traffic, instead shut the Woodhead route to passengers (and then subsequently to freight).
Metrolink proposals
In the early 1980s, proposals were put forward to convert the Piccadilly-Belle Vue-Rose Hill/Marple section of the Hope Valley Line to light rail operation for the proposed Manchester MetrolinkManchester Metrolink
Metrolink is a light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. It consists of four lines which converge in Manchester city centre and terminate in Bury, Altrincham, Eccles and Chorlton-cum-Hardy. The system is owned by Transport for Greater Manchester and operated under contract by RATP Group...
system. While construction of Metrolink went ahead, the Hope Valley line was not included in the system completed in 1992. When in 2000, proposals for a large-scale extension of Metrolink were announced by the government, these still did not include conversion of the Hope Valley line; but subsequently, planning documents from Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
and from the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority have suggested that this route might be appropriate for tram-train
Tram-train
A tram-train is a light-rail public transport system where trams run both on an urban tramway network and on main-line railways to combine the tram's flexibility and availability and the train's greater speed...
operation, and as such it was suggested to the Department for Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
as a possible location for a national tram-train pilot.
Future plans
Nottingham County Council and the Department for Transport are investigating the possibility of adding an additional service that does not call at Sheffield in order to improve the journey time between Nottingham and Manchester. It currently takes 115 minutes but the council believes it could be cut to 90 minutes by 2012. Improvements to allow faster speeds on a 2.5 mile stretch near Stockport could also shave off 2–3 minutes.Network Rail, in partnership with South Yorkshire ITA
South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive
The South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive is the Passenger Transport Executive for South Yorkshire in England. It is supervised by the South Yorkshire Integrated Transport Authority, which consists of representatives from the metropolitan boroughs of Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster, and...
, will redouble the track between Dore Station Junction and Dore West Junction, at an estimated cost of £15 million. This costing is based on four additional vehicles in traffic to deliver the option, however, this will depend on vehicle allocation through the DfT rolling stock plan. This work will be programmed for between 2009–2016, subject to funding, is conjunction with signalling renewals in the Dore/Totley Tunnel area.
Other proposals include freight loops in the Hope and Grindleford areas, again, subject to funding, in order to fit in either a peak-busting, or all-day (07:00–19:00) hourly Manchester - Sheffield via New Mills Central service, by extending an existing Manchester - New Mills Central service.