New Mills Central railway station

New Mills Central
265px New Mills Central in 2009
Location
Place	New Mills
Local authority	High Peak
Grid reference	SJ997853
Operations
Station code	NMC
Managed by	Northern Rail
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	E
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2004/05	81,551
2005/06	77,644
2006/07	81,078
2007/08	83,717
2008/09	133,004
2009/10	140,558
2010/11	146,018
2011/12	156,248
2012/13	213,648
2013/14	205,274
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at New Mills Central from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

New Mills Central railway station serves the town of New Mills in Derbyshire, England. It is on the Hope Valley Line between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield. The locality is also served by New Mills Newtown station on the Buxton to Stockport and Manchester line.

History

File:1970 New Mills Central station.jpg

the sign and canopy have changed since this 1970 photo

In the mid-eighteenth century, the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway ran as far as Rowsley, and was extended by the Midland Railway to Buxton, in its aim to run as far as Manchester. The MS&LR also wished to extend southwards from its main line through Woodhead Tunnel to Sheffield, and had built a branch to Hyde. The London and North Western Railway meanwhile had constructed their own line to Buxton from Whaley Bridge (with a station at Newtown) which effectively blocked the other two.

An agreement was reached whereby the MS&LR would build their proposed "Marple, New Mills and Hayfield Junction Railway", while the Midland would extend its line to New Mills from Millers Dale via Chinley. Passenger services began to Hayfield in 1868 and the line came under joint control as the Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee in 1870, while the Midland's line opened in 1867.

Whilst the Hayfield branch is now closed, as is the tunnel (though a stub of the old branch line through the tunnel was used for some years afterwards as a turnback siding for trains terminating here), you can still travel most of its route, along what is now known as the Sett Valley Trail.

Station

File:New Mills Cent 5 80.jpg

New Mills Central station, May 1980

The station lies at the junction of what was the Hayfield branch and the Midland line, the two appearing through tunnels, on a ledge blasted out of the cliff face, some forty feet above the River Goyt.

The buildings on the down side still exist, as does the stationmaster's house built in 1864. The London line from Millers Dale closed in 1967 and the Hayfield branch closed in January 1970, but the station still supports the Hope Valley Line local service from Sheffield to Manchester. Stopping trains from Sheffield formerly terminated here and those passengers wishing to travel onwards to Manchester had to change trains (most express services from Sheffield to Manchester ran through without stopping). This practice ceased, however, when through trains were diverted via Hazel Grove and Stockport in 1986. The station does, however, remain a terminus for many services from the Manchester direction — these can now return directly from the eastbound platform following signalling alterations in 2007 that also saw the remaining semaphore signals at the station replaced by colour lights.

Services

There is now a half-hourly daytime service to Manchester Piccadilly northbound on weekdays (hourly in the evenings) and a two-hourly service stopping service to Sheffield.

On Saturdays there is an hourly service to both Manchester & Sheffield. Sundays see a two-hourly service each way.

References

• Radford, B., (1988) Midland Though The Peak Unicorn Books

External links

• Train times and station information for New Mills Central railway station from National Rail
• RAILSCOT - New Mills Central

Preceding station		National Rail		Following station
Chinley		Northern Rail Hope Valley Line		Strines
Terminus		Northern Rail Hope Valley Line		Strines
	Historical railways
Buxworth Line open, station closed		Midland Railway		Strines Line and station open
	Disused railways
Birch Vale Line and station closed		Great Central Railway Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee		Strines Line and station open
		Midland Railway Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee