Blaydon railway station

Blaydon railway station is a railway station serving Blaydon in Tyne and Wear, northern England. It is located on the Tyne Valley Line (which runs from Newcastle upon Tyne to Carlisle) 5 ¹⁄₂ miles (8.9 km) west of Newcastle Central and is managed by Northern.

Blaydon
Location
Place	Blaydon
Local authority	Gateshead
Coordinates	54.9658°N 1.7130°W / 54.9658; -1.7130
Grid reference	NZ184635
Operations
Station code	BLO
Managed by	Northern
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	F2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15	11,880
2015/16	13,466
2016/17	15,128
2017/18	14,116
2018/19	21,428
Passenger Transport Executive
PTE	Tyne and Wear (Nexus)
History
Key dates	Opened 10 March 1835 (10 March 1835)
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Blaydon from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

History

The station was constructed by the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (N&CR), and opened on 9 March 1835 as the line's initial eastern terminus.[1] Through running to Redheugh (Gateshead) on the south bank of the River Tyne began in 1837 and the line was completed through to Carlisle the following year.[2] A second cross-river line via Scotswood to a temporary terminus near the site of Newcastle Central was opened in 1839 (diverging immediately east of the station), although it was not until January 1851 that Central station was accessible via this route.[3] It was enlarged on the opening of the Lanchester Valley Extension line in 1867, with Blaydon Junction opening to its east; this enabled trains to run to Blackhill, Consett and through to Durham. The station was substantially rebuilt in 1912[3] with new red brick station buildings and glass canopies. Passenger services over the Derwent Valley line ended in 1954 and it closed completely in 1963.

In 1969, Blaydon became an unstaffed station,[3] and the canopies were removed. The station buildings were demolished in 1977 due to neglect and persistent vandalism. Services over the route via the Scotswood Bridge were withdrawn on 4 October 1982[3] and the line closed (few traces of this now remain, though the position of the station signal box gives a clue as to the old alignment); all services were henceforth diverted over the original 1837 route along the south bank of the Tyne and then onward through Dunston, Bensham Junction and then over the King Edward VII Bridge, a route that had previously only been used by freight traffic.

Facilities

As noted above, the station is unmanned and has a single ticket machine on the westbound platform. There are basic shelters on both platforms, which are linked by a footbridge. Train running information is offered by timetable posters and audio announcements. Step-free access is possible on both platforms, although the eastbound platform is only accessible via a considerable detour across the adjacent level crossing. There is limited space for car parking adjacent to the westbound platform with further spaces available next to Blaydon Signal box. A pedestrian footbridge links the station with Blaydon Shopping Centre and bus interchange.[4]

Services

Northern Trains Route 4: Tyne Valley Line
West Coast Main Line to Edinburgh & Glasgow Glasgow South Western Line to Glasgow Carlisle Cumbrian Coast Line to Barrow-in-Furness & West Coast Main Line to London Euston Settle to Carlisle Line Wetheral Brampton Haltwhistle Bardon Mill Haydon Bridge Hexham Corbridge Riding Mill Stocksfield Prudhoe Wylam Blaydon MetroCentre Dunston East Coast Main Line to London King's Cross Newcastle East Coast Main Line to Edinburgh Durham Coast Line to Middlesbrough

Blaydon railway station in 1965.

View in 1989

Up until the beginning of December 2013, the service there was infrequent compared to others on the line - three services on Monday to Friday to Hexham and three to Newcastle, whilst on Saturdays there were three to Hexham and two to Newcastle & no service at all on Sundays.[5]

In the December 2013 timetable change, the station began to receive a much improved service with calls every two hours in each direction (by Middlesbrough - Hexham trains) and extra departures at peak times. There was also a Sunday service for the first time since the early 1970s.[6][7] As of May 2018, the station now receives at least an hourly service during the day in each direction, and half hourly calls at peak times.[8]

The Office of Rail & Road estimates of station usage attributes the sharp rise in passenger numbers as down to the timetabling improvements.[9]

References

1. Body, G Railways of the Eastern Region Volume 2, 1988, Patrick Stephens Ltd, Wellingborough, ISBN 1-85260-072-1, p.133
2. South Tynedale Railway Preservation Society - A Brief History Of The Newcastle & Carlisle Railway STRPS website article; Retrieved 25 September 2013
3. "Blaydon". Disused Stations. 2 October 2013.
4. Blaydon station facilities National Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 2 February 2017
5. GB National Rail Timetable, May - December 2013 Edition, Table 48
6. Northern Rail Timetable 4: Carlisle - Hexham - Newcastle - Sunderland 5 October - 12 December 2015 Archived 9 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine Northern Rail; Retrieved 1 October 2015
7. Table 48 National Rail timetable, December 2016
8. Table 48 National Rail timetable, December 2019
9. "Estimate of Station Usage 2014 - 2015". ORR. ORR. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2015.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
MetroCentre		Northern Tyne Valley Line		Wylam