Engineers have started on a £4.2m project at Horton-in-Ribblesdale railway station on the Settle and Carlisle line.
The accessibility project, which has been made possible thanks to a £1m grant from the Department for Transport, will see a new footbridge with lifts installed to make crossing between platforms safer.
The work on the footbridge is expected to be completed by July 2024 and work to install lifts finished by September 2024.
Rail Minister Huw Merriman said: “Passengers deserve an inclusive, accessible railway and it’s great to see these essential upgrades are getting underway at Horton-in-Ribblesdale, made possible through the Government’s Access for All programme.
“This demonstrates our ongoing commitment to ensuring the rail network works for everyone, investing in infrastructure that will deliver easy and enjoyable journeys for passengers and encourage more people to travel by train.”
Kerry Peters, regional director for Northern, said: “Anything that improves the accessibility credentials of our stations is welcomed and this new bridge and lifts at Horton-in-Ribblesdale station will make a real difference to the travel experience of people visiting the area. We look forward to the work being complete and available for customers to use later this year.”
Julian Smith, MP for Skipton and Ripon, said: “It’s great to see investment going towards improving safety for passengers and walkers in this wonderful area. I’m pleased that the project keeps accessibility in mind too.”
Responses
Complete waste of money. Just put up a set of gates and provide interlocking.
I am quite sure there are other areas this money could be spent for a greater benefit.
This is a beautiful little picturesque station about to be totally ruined by this monstrosity of a structure. Who on earth believes that this is a good idea?
Sad indeed.
Over 100,000 walkers use the crossing every year. The railway is duty bound to comply with the H&SaW Act foremost for passengers but also the general public.
Presumably the station building is listed- how can a modern lift/ crossing blend in with the surroundings. Thankfully lifts never ever breakdown. Sorry,yes they do. And it’s miles from anywhere.
It’s in the middle of nowhere! How many passengers will this help? My guess it will cost about £40per passenger per day for the next 20 years. What a waste of money? Those who complain about walking need reminding “walking is good for you” wear decent footwear.
Although the village has a population of 405, it is very popular with walkers and cyclists due to proximity to Pennine Way and Three Peaks. The present barrow crossing is an accident waiting to happen. On two occasions we have got off a northbound train and twenty or more people crossed behind the train while it was stationary in the platform despite notices telling them not to do so. So any passing non-stop southbound train would be obscured from view by the stationary train and the track curvature to the left looking north. Line speed is 60mph, gradient 1 in 100/200 falling southbound, the approach would not be heard.
Provision of lift and footbridge is overkill. Anywhere else in the world there would be a locking gate with miniature traffic lights and klaxon, such as seen in France. Don’t expect to see a modern re-creation of a curved lattice painted maroon and cream befitting of the Midland Railway heritage such as those seen at Appleby, Kirkby Stephen and Settle. It will be straight lattice painted maroon (RAL 3005) and cream (RAL 9001) and box towers to suit. Click on the links below for background and planning information.
See ‘Proposed ISO View & Colour Scheme (Amended)’ (no 12 in the document list) or click the link below which will download a PDF to your computer.
https://onlineplanningregister.northyorks.gov.uk/Register/DisplayImage.aspx?doc=cmVjb3JkX251bWJlcj0xMTQ3Nz9maWxlbmFtZT1cXGNvdW50eS5ueWNjLmludGVybmFsXERhdGFcYmVzLWRhdGFcQXBwLU1hc3RlckdvdlxwbGFubmluZ1xOWS0yMDIyLTAwMDktUEFBXDMgRHJhd2luZ3NcNjA2MTEyNTMtQUVDLURSRy1FQ1YtNzAwMDA0IChQbGFubmluZykucGRmP2ltYWdlX251bWJlcj0xMy4wMDAwP2ltYWdlX3R5cGU9cGxhbm5pbmc/bGFzdF9tb2RpZmllZF9mcm9tX2Rpc2s9MjkvMDkvMjAyMiAxNjowMjowMA==
Garsdale Station is much more in need of a passenger crossing – at the moment passengers have to walk all the way around to the car park – hazardous down to the road (ice, running water, very ineven surface) then up the road to the turning to the other side which has a deep chasm to break your ankle on, if you are careless! : What about Garsdale and a proper foot crossing.?
Usefull at Clapham Junction but overkill at Horton. A level foot crossing should only cost a couple of million and wouldn’t destroy the Midland flavour.
I agree. Garsdale Station really needs a proper access/ exit at both it’s platforms. One of them is totally ridiculous for most people, especially disabled. In icy conditons the exit from one of the platforms is positively dangerous for all passengers.
I hope it is in keeping with the Midland Railway ambience at these stations. Not a huge steel monstrosity. Can a picture of the plans be posted please.
If it’s like the new bridge/monstrosity installed at Barnsley station was going to cost around £4.5m but so far has cost in excess of £13m and the lifts are still not working
Great to see money spent on the railway beyond London and the SE. Railway transport should be developed for the good of the country, the climate and our future prosperity.
At first blush this is a complete waste of money, but I’m told that it’s been driven by the reinstatement of the stone siding and associated movements in/out that will directly affect the current barrow crossing. Against that backdrop it’s understandable, but still not something I’d shout from the rooftops.
I don’t see the point. In stations in major towns which do have lifts it takes weeks to fix them when they break down. This station is in one of the most remote and windswept areas of the country prone to extreme weather conditions. They’re likely to be out of order a lot of the time. A properly monitored pedestrian level crossing or ramps would be better.
Just to prove the point have a look at the real time information on National Rail’s website. Both the lift at Bradford Forster Square and the one between platforms 3 and 4 at Ilkley have been out of order for weeks.
There is no platform 3&4, or a lift, at Ilkley!
It can only look utterly incongruous. What proportion of passengers actually needs this facility? Its the tail wagging the dog again. I can’t help thinking that this is an awful lot of money that could be better spent elsewhere. Nineteenth century platform lamps and groovy lifts hardly go together in a heritage station!
I dont get this whole disabled thing. For example, i have a chronic head for heights. Stand me on a table and I’ll go dizzy! So i dont stand on tables.
Hang on! Its my right to have fences put up all around the coast of Great Britain! Its discriminatory that I cant walk freely all around them without getting vertigo; a simple fence all the way round would save me from getting into terrible panics.
Is that too much to ask?
Or do I just accept that there are some things I simply can’t do?
What a potential waste of money.
Total waste of £££! Adding a footbridge and lifts to a station like this, which is virtually a heritage railway station, is tantamount to desecration and is bang out order! It’ll look absolutely hideous! There’s nothing wrong with the foot crossing. Most passengers that use Horton-in-Ribblesdale station are walkers anyway, so there’s simply no need waste huge amounts of cash on modern rubbish like this! This obsession with disabled access is getting out of hand.
Very good question!! No mention of good PR. on that front what will planners think? Is station listed?
Shame Network Rail/Northern have taken the opposite view at Garsdale Station where accessibility has been greatly reduced by removal of use of crossing making passengers go round a treacherous road/path route between the carpark and down platform
As a regolar local user of Garsdale station, I am in total agreement with Luke Shaw. The long, sloping, unlit route from the northbound platform to the other side where both car parking areas are situated is indeed very dangerous as soon as it’s dark. In particular there is a water channel running next to the road which deepens every time there’s heavy rain and this cannot be seen in darkness without a torch. The path down from the northbound platform is also badly potholed and rutted , and Canberra ice covered in winter. I am sure these all act a real and serious deterrent to more use of the trains by potential local passengers , especially in winter.
Will the design blend harmoniously with the Midland Railway ethos of the surroundings? Anything less would be crass.