Ashton-under-Lyne railway station

Ashton-under-Lyne railway station serves Ashton-under-Lyne, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the Huddersfield Line 6½ miles (10 km) east of Manchester Victoria and is operated by Northern.

Ashton-under-Lyne
The station's island platform, looking towards Manchester.
Location
PlaceAshton-under-Lyne
Local authorityTameside
Coordinates53.4913°N 2.0943°W / 53.4913; -2.0943
Grid referenceSJ938993
Operations
Station codeAHN
Managed byNorthern
Number of platforms2
DfT categoryE
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15 0.380 million
2015/16 0.362 million
2016/17 0.387 million
2017/18 0.325 million
2018/19 0.327 million
Passenger Transport Executive
PTEGreater Manchester
History
Original companyAshton, Stalybridge and Liverpool Junction Railway
Pre-groupingLancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
13 April 1846 (1846-04-13)Opened as Ashton
1874Renamed Ashton (Charlestown)
6 May 1968Renamed Ashton-under-Lyne
National Rail – UK railway stations
  • Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Ashton-under-Lyne from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

The station is a short walk from Ashton-under-Lyne bus station and Ashton-under-Lyne tram stop which opened in 2013, and is served by trams to Droylsden, Manchester, and Eccles.

History
Local train approaching Ashton (Charlestown) Station in 1951

The station, known originally as Ashton, was opened by the Ashton, Stalybridge and Liverpool Junction Railway (AS&LJR) on 13 April 1846.[1][2] The AS&LJR was absorbed by the Manchester and Leeds Railway in 1847, which was then renamed the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (LYR).[3] The LYR renamed it Ashton (Charlestown) in 1874.[1] The LYR amalgamated with the London and North Western Railway at the start of 1922, and these in turn amalgamated with several other companies on 1 January 1923, to form the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the 1923 Grouping. It then passed to the London Midland Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. It was renamed Ashton-under-Lyne on 6 May 1968.[1]

When Sectorisation was introduced in the 1980s, the station was served by Regional Railways under arrangement with the Greater Manchester PTE until the Privatisation of British Railways. Usage at this time was relatively low and trains called only rarely (see BR timetable 1974, 1975 et seq.). The train service was not regular and in essence operated at peak times only.

Other stations in Ashton
1912 map of railway lines in the area

There were once three stations in the town: Charlestown, Park Parade and Oldham Road. Also, Guide Bridge, a few miles away, was known as Ashton & Hooley Hill and then Ashton in its earliest years.

Charlestown Station — the present Ashton-under-Lyne station — was owned by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, who ran services between Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge. The London and North Western Railway also ran services along the line, most only calling at Ashton and Stalybridge before continuing to Leeds. The station once sported a large booking hall, where the car park is currently, as well as a substantial canopy.[4]

Park Parade Station was located on the Guide Bridge–Stalybridge line; the only remains of the station is the "Station Inn", a short stroll away.

Oldham Road Station was located on the line to Oldham (originally owned by the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge Railway), which continued to Park Bridge before reaching Clegg Street, Oldham.

Facilities

Ashton-under-Lyne station consists of a single island platform, accessible via a ramp from the underpass at street level, it is wheelchair accessible and also has a passenger lift. This was installed due to the 1-in-8 gradient between street level and platform level[5] Facilities of the station include a waiting room, ticket desk, wheelchair-accessible toilet and a hot-drinks vending machine.

A 3-week engineering blockade in July 2017 saw the track through the station re-aligned and a road underbridge replaced to allow for faster line speeds. Replacement buses were provided, with through trains diverted or terminating short at Stalybridge.[6]

Services

Monday to Saturdays, there are two trains per hour in each direction – to Manchester Victoria westbound (with one train per hour extended to Southport) – and to Stalybridge eastbound. On Sundays there is an hourly service to both Manchester and Stalybridge.[7]

  • Station entrance
  • The station platform and building.
  • The waiting area on platform 1.
  • A Northern Class 150 waits at platform 2.

References
  1. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 20. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Marshall, John (1969). The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway, volume 1. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. pp. 61, 63. ISBN 0-7153-4352-1.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  3. Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. London: Guild Publishing. pp. 59, 90–91. CN 8983.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  4. http://buffetbar.i8.com/photo.html - A selection of useful photographs showing this booking hall, as well as the platform.
  5. The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Society, LYR Branchline 14 - "The Ashton and Stalybridge Branch", by Robert F Hartley. (Page 44)
  6. Ashton train station set for temporary closure Higgins, Adam Tameside Reporter news article 27 June 2017; Retrieved 27 July 2017
  7. Table 39 National Rail timetable, May 2018
  • Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.
  • The Manchester and Leeds Railway by Martin Bairstow
  • The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Society, LYR Branchiline 14 - "The Ashton and Stalybridge Branch", by Robert F Hartley.
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Manchester Victoria   Northern
Huddersfield Line		   Stalybridge
Disused railways
Droylsden
Line open, station closed		   Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Ashton, Stalybridge and Liverpool Junction Railway		   Stalybridge (L&Y)
Line and station closed
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