Hull Paragon Interchange is a transport complex in the centre of the city of Kingston upon Hull

Kingston upon Hull

Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...

 (usually known as Hull), England, which opened in September 2007. It integrates the city's railway station with the formerly separate bus and coach station. All are now under one roof, so that passengers may move between the train platforms and the bus stands under cover from the weather.

Rail

The railway station was historically called "Hull Paragon", and has always been referred to by locals as "Paragon station", but "Paragon" was dropped from the official name many years ago and railway timetables refer simply to "Hull" station. Currently it is operated by First TransPennine Express

First TransPennine Express

First TransPennine Express is a British train operating company. It is a joint operation between First Group and Keolis . It operates regular passenger services in northern England, including services linking the west and east coasts across the Pennines...

, who provide train services along with 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...

, First Hull Trains and East Coast

East Coast (train operating company)

East Coast is a British train operating company running high-speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland...

.

The station was used as a location in the film Clockwise

Clockwise (film)

Clockwise is a 1986 British comedy film starring John Cleese. It was directed by Christopher Morahan, written by Michael Frayn and produced by Michael Codron. The film was co-produced by Moment Films and Thorn EMI Screen Entertainment...

with John Cleese

John Cleese

John Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...

. It also featured heavily in an early episode of Agatha Christie's Poirot

Agatha Christie's Poirot

Agatha Christie's Poirot is a British television drama that has aired on ITV since 1989. It stars David Suchet as Agatha Christie's fictional detective Hercule Poirot. It was originally made by LWT and is now made by ITV Studios...

entitled 'The Plymouth Express' (from Poirot's Early Cases

Poirot's Early Cases

Poirot's Early Cases is a short story collection written by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by Collins Crime Club in September 1974. The book retailed at £2.25...

), made by LWT and starring David Suchet

David Suchet

David Suchet, CBE, is an English actor, known for his work on British television. He is recognised for his RTS- and BPG award-winning performance as Augustus Melmotte in the 2001 British TV mini-drama The Way We Live Now, alongside Matthew Macfadyen and Paloma Baeza, and a 1991 British Academy...

.

Bus station

The former 'Hull Coach Station', which was only partially covered over, used to be shared by Hull Corporation Transport (later KHCT), operating within the city boundaries, and East Yorkshire Motor Services

East Yorkshire Motor Services

East Yorkshire Motor Services is a large bus and coach operator which operates throughout Kingston upon Hull, the East Riding of Yorkshire, the North Yorkshire coast and the North York Moors. In and around Scarborough, EYMS operates as Scarborough & District Motor Services...

 (EYMS), linking all parts of the former East Riding. EYMS is still the main bus company for routes throughout East Yorkshire, but the city routes, and a few beyond the city, are now run by Stagecoach in Hull

Stagecoach in Hull

Stagecoach in Hull is the sector of the Stagecoach Group that operates buses in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest bus fleet in the city.-History:...

.
Other, smaller operators include Alpha Bus and Coach and CT Plus.

History of the railway station

The original station at Manor House Street (closer to the Humber Estuary) opened in 1840. The current station of 2.5 acres (10,117.2 m²) was opened by the York and North Midland Railway

York and North Midland Railway

The York and North Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1839, connecting York, with the Leeds and Selby Railway and in 1840 with the North Midland Railway at Normanton near Leeds.-Origins:...

 as "Hull Paragon Street station" on 8 May 1848 (though not officially until 1851) as a centrally-located railway terminal for Hull, with a three-bay pitched-roof trainshed. The name Paragon Station derives from a nearby street name. The adjacent hotel, named the Royal Station Hotel after a stay by Queen Victoria in 1854, but later renamed the Royal Hotel was added in 1851. Both the station and the hotel were designed by George Townsend Andrews

George Townsend Andrews

George Townsend Andrews was an English architect born in Exeter. He is noted for his buildings designed for George Hudson's railways, especially the York and North Midland Railway...

, who died in 1853, young and in poverty, four years after the decline in fortune and death of George Hudson

George Hudson

George Hudson , English railway financier, known as "The Railway King", was born, the fifth son of a farmer, in Howsham, in the parish of Scrayingham in the East Riding of Yorkshire, north of Stamford Bridge, east of York. He is buried in Scrayingham...

, the 'Railway King'.

The Y&NMR became part of the North Eastern Railway

North Eastern Railway (UK)

The North Eastern Railway , was an English railway company. It was incorporated in 1854, when four existing companies were combined, and was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923...

, created in 1854 by merger with other railway companies. The NER changed the station name to "Hull Paragon". Half a century later the NER rebuilt and expanded the station, creating the last of Britain's great barrel-vaulted glass-and-iron railway stations, being reopened in 1904 with a five-bay trainshed (see picture above right) and two additional barrel vault bays at right angles covering the concourse (see picture below right).

Some(???) of the four railway lines on the south side of the station and outside the canopy (see right-hand side of the top picture) were used by passengers, notably those fleeing the pogroms of eastern Europe in the 19th century, transiting from Europe to the USA via Liverpool. Because of the cholera outbreaks in Hull of 1832 and 1849 and the sensitivity of the city to the reintroduction of this disease many left from a quarantine building next to the southern most of these four lines. This building still exists and fronts on to Anlaby Road. A small ticket office still exists on the platform next to the northernmost of these four lines.

The Royal Station Hotel was subsequently enlarged in a style somewhat unsympathetic with the elegant and coherent appearance of the original 1851 building, this also necessitating some shortening of the adjacent main station entrance portico which had been part of the 1904 station rebuild and extension. This portico was swept away completely in the early 1960s to be replaced by Paragon House, a typical 1960s concrete and glass structure, which in turn was demolished in 2007. The hotel was significantly damaged in a fire and then rebuilt in 1990.

On 14 February 1927 it was the site of a head-on train collision in which 12 passengers were killed and 24 seriously injured, caused by a signalling error.

The station has survived the bombing of two world wars and subsequent decades of redevelopment. The new transport interchange was officially opened by the Queen

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 and the Duke of Edinburgh

Duke of Edinburgh

The Duke of Edinburgh is a British royal title, named after the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, which has been conferred upon members of the British royal family only four times times since its creation in 1726...

 when they unveiled a plaque on 5 March 2009 after arriving at the station on the Royal Train

British Royal Train

The Royal Train is a set of railway carriages dedicated for the use of the British Monarch, other members of the Royal Family, and their staff. The train enables members of the Royal Family to carry out busy schedules over an extended period, in a secure environment which minimises disruption and...

.

First TransPennine Express was awarded Station Excellence Of The Year at the HSBC Rail Business Awards 2007 for the interchange.

Philip Larkin statue

A life-size bronze statue of Hull resident Philip Larkin

Philip Larkin

Philip Arthur Larkin, CH, CBE, FRSL is widely regarded as one of the great English poets of the latter half of the twentieth century...

 was unveiled by the Lord Mayor of Hull at a ceremony at Hull Paragon Interchange on 2 December 2010, marking the 25th anniversary of the poet's death. The statue was designed by Martin Jennings and cost £100, 000 which was raised at a number of local charity events and auctions held in Hull. It is located near the Royal Hotel, one of Larkin's favourite haunts. Visitors to Hull will now be greeted by the statue which has been installed to blend in with the historic station's fabric.

Rail services

The typical Monday-Friday off-peak service from Hull Paragon is:

East Coast

East Coast (train operating company)

East Coast is a British train operating company running high-speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland...

• 1 train per day (the Hull Executive) to London King's Cross (at 07:00), calling at:
  • Brough, Selby, Doncaster, Grantham and Peterborough
    Peterborough railway station
    Peterborough railway station serves the city of Peterborough, England. It is located approximately north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line...
    
    

First Hull Trains

• 7 trains a day to London King's Cross, of which:
  • 1 calls at Brough
    Brough railway station
    Brough railway station serves the town of Brough in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is managed by First TransPennine Express, and also served by Northern Rail, First Hull Trains and East Coast....
    
    , Howden
    Howden railway station
    Howden railway station serves the town of Howden in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north of the town in the hamlet of North Howden. The station is managed by Northern Rail, but is also served by First TransPennine Express and First Hull Trains.The station was...
    
    , Selby
    Selby railway station
    Selby railway station serves the town of Selby in North Yorkshire, England. The station is on the Hull-York Line south of York, Leeds-Hull Line east of Leeds and west of Hull....
    
    , Doncaster
    Doncaster railway station
    Doncaster railway station serves the town of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the East Coast Main Line north of London Kings Cross, and is about five minutes walk from Doncaster town centre. The station is managed by East Coast...
    
     and Grantham
    Grantham railway station
    Grantham railway station serves the town of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England and lies on the East Coast Main Line north of London Kings Cross.-Description:Junctions near the town also connect to branches to Nottingham, and to Sleaford and Skegness...
    
    
  • 1 calls at Brough, Howden, Selby, Doncaster, Grantham and Stevenage
    Stevenage railway station
    Stevenage railway station serves the town of Stevenage in Hertfordshire, England. The station is 27¼ miles north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line. Stevenage is managed and served by First Capital Connect...
    
     (to set down only)
  • 2 call at Brough, Howden, Selby, Doncaster, Retford
    Retford railway station
    Retford railway station serves the town of Retford in Nottinghamshire, England. and is 223 km north of London Kings Cross and 28 km south of Doncaster on the East Coast Main Line...
    
    , Grantham and Stevenage (to set down only)
  • 3 call at Brough, Howden, Selby, Doncaster, Retford and Grantham

First TransPennine Express

First TransPennine Express

First TransPennine Express is a British train operating company. It is a joint operation between First Group and Keolis . It operates regular passenger services in northern England, including services linking the west and east coasts across the Pennines...

• 1 train per hour to Manchester Piccadilly
  Manchester Piccadilly station
  Manchester Piccadilly is the principal railway station in Manchester, England. It serves intercity routes to London Euston, Birmingham New Street, South Wales, the south coast of England, Edinburgh and Glasgow Central, and routes throughout northern England...
  
  , calling at:
  • Brough, Selby, Leeds and Huddersfield
    Huddersfield railway station
    Huddersfield railway station serves the town of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England.The station is managed by First TransPennine Express who provide trains between the North East, North and East Yorkshire, and Leeds to the east and Manchester Piccadilly and North West.It is also served by local...
    
    

There is also an early morning service to Liverpool Lime Street

Liverpool Lime Street railway station

Liverpool Lime Street is a railway station serving the city centre of Liverpool, England. The station lies on a branch of the West Coast Main Line from London Euston, and on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network...

 which returns in the evening.
Some evening and Sunday services start/terminate at Leeds and call at South Milford. Some services at peak times make an additional stop at Howden.

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...

• 1 train per hour to Bridlington
  Bridlington railway station
  Bridlington railway station serves the town of Bridlington in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services....
  
   (slow), calling at:
  • Cottingham
    Cottingham railway station
    Cottingham railway station serves the village of Cottingham in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services....
    
    , Beverley
    Beverley railway station
    Beverley railway station serves the town of Beverley in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services...
    
    , Arram
    Arram railway station
    Arram railway station serves the small village of Arram in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services...
    
    , Hutton Cranswick
    Hutton Cranswick railway station
    Hutton Cranswick railway station serves the village of Hutton Cranswick in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services.-Services:...
    
    , Driffield
    Driffield railway station
    Driffield railway station serves the town of Driffield in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail, providing all passenger train services.-History:...
    
     and Nafferton
    Nafferton railway station
    Nafferton railway station serves the village of Nafferton in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail that provides all passenger train services. It was built for the rail magnate George Hudson who lived nearby and was "an...
    
    
• 1 train per hour to Bridlington or Scarborough
  Scarborough railway station
  Scarborough railway station serves the seaside town of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. It lies east of York and is one of the eastern termini on the North TransPennine route operated by First TransPennine Express...
  
   (fast), calling at:
  • Cottingham, Beverley, Driffield, Bridlington, Bempton
    Bempton railway station
    Bempton railway station serves the village of Bempton in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services...
    
    , Hunmanby
    Hunmanby railway station
    Hunmanby railway station serves the village of Hunmanby in North Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services...
    
    , Filey
    Filey railway station
    Filey railway station serves the town of Filey in North Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Yorkshire Coast Line and is operated by Northern Rail who provide all passenger train services....
    
     and Seamer
    Seamer railway station
    Seamer railway station serves the village of Seamer in North Yorkshire, England. It lies near the end of the Scarborough branch on the First TransPennine Express North TransPennine route, east of York at its junction with the northern end of the Yorkshire Coast Line...
    
    
• 1 train per hour to Doncaster, calling at:
  • Brough, Gilberdyke, Saltmarshe
    Saltmarshe railway station
    Saltmarshe railway station is a railway station on the Sheffield-Hull Line between Goole and Gilberdyke stations. It serves the village of Laxton in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England...
    
    , Goole, Thorne North
    Thorne North railway station
    Thorne North railway station is one of two stations serving the north of the town of Thorne in South Yorkshire, England. The station is north east of Doncaster on the Sheffield to Hull Line. The other station in the town is Thorne South for services towards Scunthorpe.-Service:Stopping services...
    
    , Hatfield & Stainforth
    Hatfield and Stainforth railway station
    Hatfield and Stainforth railway station serves the Doncaster suburbs of Hatfield and Stainforth in South Yorkshire, England.The original station, known until the 1990s as "Stainforth and Hatfield" and was built in 1866 as a replacement for the South Yorkshire Railway's Stainforth when their line...
    
     and Kirk Sandall
    Kirk Sandall railway station
    Kirk Sandall railway station serves the suburb of Kirk Sandall in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The station is north of Doncaster on the Sheffield to Hull Line.-Service:...
    
    
• 1 train per hour to Sheffield, calling at:
  • Brough, Goole
    Goole railway station
    Goole railway station serves the town of Goole in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England.The service is operated and the station is managed by Northern Rail...
    
    , Doncaster and Meadowhall
• 1 train per 2 hours to York
  York railway station
  York railway station is a main-line railway station in the city of York, England. It lies on the East Coast Main Line north of London's King's Cross station towards Edinburgh's Waverley Station...
  
  , of which:
  • 1 call at Brough, Gilberdyke
    Gilberdyke railway station
    Gilberdyke railway station serves the village of Gilberdyke in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The station, and all but three trains serving it, are operated by Northern Rail. There are also three westbound services per day which are operated by First TransPennine Express, these trains...
    
    , Eastrington
    Eastrington railway station
    Eastrington railway station serves the village of Eastrington in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The station is 19¼ miles west of Hull on the Hull-York Line...
    
    , Howden, Wressle
    Wressle railway station
    Wressle railway station is a railway station that serves the village of Wressle in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England.-Services:Up to six trains a day call at Wressle; three to York and two to Hull with an extra Hull train on weekdays...
    
    , Selby and Sherburn-in-Elmet
    Sherburn-in-Elmet railway station
    Sherburn-in-Elmet railway station serves the village of Sherburn-in-Elmet near Selby in North Yorkshire, England. The station is located approximately from the village and is south of York....
    
    
  • 1 call at Brough, Gilberdyke, Howden and Selby
  • 4 calls at Brough and Selby only

External links

• The Royal Hotel