Liskeard railway station
Encyclopedia
Liskeard station serves the town of Liskeard
in Cornwall
, England
. The station is 17.75 miles (29 km) west of Plymouth
on the Cornish Main Line
and it is the junction
for the Looe Valley Line
.
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on 4 May 1859. It was described at the time as occupying "an elevated position nearly a mile to the south of the town", the main building "stands considerably above the rails, the descent to which is by a long flight of steps, which will be hereafter, we understand, entirely covered in. The building is of stone, having a large verandah projecting over the road. On the opposite side of the line is the arrival station, which is also a stone erection; and to the south of this, is the goods shed, which is a timber structure, having warehouses and offices at the ends".
Traffic at the new station was sufficient to warrant additional goods sidings before the end of the year. There is no evidence that the steps from the booking office were ever covered, instead they were replaced with a slope in 1866.
from Moorswater
, in the valley west of Liskeard, since 27 December 1860. On 25 February 1901 the Liskeard and Looe Railway
was extended up to the Great Western Railway station, this extension line opening to passengers on 15 May 1901.
The Liskeard and Looe Railway arrived at right angles to the main line at a dedicated platform with its own buildings; Liskeard therefore has, in essence, two stations. Trains start their journey by travelling northwards, away from Looe. They swing round towards the south, descend gradients as steep as 1 in 40 to pass below the Liskeard Viaduct, swing back towards the north, and then reverse at Coombe Junction for the remainder of their journey to Looe. In the days of steam locomotive
s, there was an extended stop at Coombe to enable the locomotive to run around to the front of the train when reversing direction. If someone just missed a train leaving Liskeard for Looe, it was possible to run down the hill to Coombe and pick up the train from there.
A connection in the goods yard allowed goods trains and empty carriages to be exchanged between the main line and the branch. A separate Liskeard Branch signal box was opened with the loop line to control trains going to Coombe Junction. It was closed on 15 March 1964, since when the connection to the main line is operated from a ground frame.
on 1 July 1889 and the Liskeard and Looe Railway did the same on 1 January 1923. The Great Western Railway was nationalised into British Railways from 1 January 1948 which was in privatised in the 1990s.
The station was modernised in 2004. A brick extension to the original Brunel
-designed building was replaced by a light and airy glass structure. This work was entered into annual National Railway Heritage Awards in 2005 and won the Network Rail Partnership Award. In 2007 the signs on the Looe Valley platform were replaced with brown and cream signs in the style used by the Western Region of British Railways
in the 1950s and 1960s.
In April 1863 a goods train was incorrectly sent into a siding where it collided with some wagons standing there. The impact sent these through the buffer stop
and over the edge of the embankment.
On 15 June 1906, five empty carriages ran away from the branch platform during shunting operations. They ran down the gradient to Coombe Junction and along the line to Moorswater where they ran into the shed, knocking down the shed wall.
and has an unusual layout.
The main line platforms
flank the double-track line in a deep cutting, which is crossed at high level by a road bridge and at lower level by the station footbridge. At each end of the platforms, the line dips down towards flanking viaducts, the Liskeard viaduct to the east and the Moorswater viaduct to the west.
The Isambard Kingdom Brunel
-designed booking office is at high level next to the road and there is step-free access to all platforms. Trains towards use the northern platform nearest the booking office, those towards use the southern platform across the footbridge. Trains to Looe leave from a separate terminal platform at a right angle
s to the main platforms at the eastern end of the northern platform. The Looe platform is separated from the rest of the station by an an access road
between them, and has its own range of station buildings.
The station retains semaphore signalling worked from a signal box
at the Plymouth end of the westbound platform. Cross-overs at either end of the main line platforms permit main line trains to reverse at Liskeard, and a sharply curved link line permits freight trains and empty passenger trains to reach the Looe line.
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
trains on the Cornish Main Line
between Penzance
and Plymouth
. Some trains run through to or from London Paddington station, including the Night Riviera
overnight sleeping car service and the Golden Hind which offers an early morning service to London and an evening return. Other fast trains are the mid-morning Cornish Riviera
and the afternoon Royal Duchy. There are a limited number of CrossCountry
trains providing a service to Scotland
in the morning and returning in the evening. The basic service on the Cornish Main Line
is one train an hour to either Penzance
or Plymouth
.
The Looe Valley Line
services run a regular service to but only two or three each day call at . There is no Sunday service in the winter.
line. It is supported by marketing provided by the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership
and promoted under the "Looe Valley Line
" name. The signs on the Looe Valley platform were replaced in 2007 with brown and cream signs in the style used by the Western Region of British Railways
in the 1950s and 1960s.
The "Old Stag Inn" opposite the station is included in the Looe Valley Line rail ale trail
, as is the "White Horse" in the town centre.
Liskeard
Liskeard is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.Liskeard is situated approximately 20 miles west of Plymouth, west of the River Tamar and the border with Devon, and 12 miles east of Bodmin...
in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The station is 17.75 miles (29 km) west of Plymouth
Plymouth railway station
Plymouth railway station serves the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. It is situated on the northern edge of the city centre close to the North Cross roundabout...
on the Cornish Main Line
Cornish Main Line
The Cornish Main Line is a railway line in the United Kingdom, which forms the backbone for rail services in Cornwall, as well as providing a direct line to London.- History :...
and it is the junction
Junction (rail)
A junction, in the context of rail transport, is a place at which two or more rail routes converge or diverge.This implies a physical connection between the tracks of the two routes , 'points' and signalling.one or two tracks each meet at a junction, a fairly simple layout of tracks suffices to...
for the Looe Valley Line
Looe Valley Line
The Looe Valley Line is an community railway from Liskeard to Looe in Cornwall, United Kingdom, that follows the valley of the East Looe River for much of its course...
.
History
Cornwall Railway
The station opened with the Cornwall RailwayCornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The section from Plymouth to Truro opened in 1859, the extension to Falmouth in 1863...
on 4 May 1859. It was described at the time as occupying "an elevated position nearly a mile to the south of the town", the main building "stands considerably above the rails, the descent to which is by a long flight of steps, which will be hereafter, we understand, entirely covered in. The building is of stone, having a large verandah projecting over the road. On the opposite side of the line is the arrival station, which is also a stone erection; and to the south of this, is the goods shed, which is a timber structure, having warehouses and offices at the ends".
Traffic at the new station was sufficient to warrant additional goods sidings before the end of the year. There is no evidence that the steps from the booking office were ever covered, instead they were replaced with a slope in 1866.
Looe branch
A railway had run to LooeLooe railway station
Looe railway station serves the twin towns of East and West Looe, in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The station is the terminus of the scenic Looe Valley Line south of Liskeard.- History :...
from Moorswater
Moorswater railway station
Moorswater railway station was the centre of operations for the Liskeard and Caradon Railway and the Liskeard and Looe Railway. The two railways made an end on junction here...
, in the valley west of Liskeard, since 27 December 1860. On 25 February 1901 the Liskeard and Looe Railway
Looe Valley Line
The Looe Valley Line is an community railway from Liskeard to Looe in Cornwall, United Kingdom, that follows the valley of the East Looe River for much of its course...
was extended up to the Great Western Railway station, this extension line opening to passengers on 15 May 1901.
The Liskeard and Looe Railway arrived at right angles to the main line at a dedicated platform with its own buildings; Liskeard therefore has, in essence, two stations. Trains start their journey by travelling northwards, away from Looe. They swing round towards the south, descend gradients as steep as 1 in 40 to pass below the Liskeard Viaduct, swing back towards the north, and then reverse at Coombe Junction for the remainder of their journey to Looe. In the days of steam locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s, there was an extended stop at Coombe to enable the locomotive to run around to the front of the train when reversing direction. If someone just missed a train leaving Liskeard for Looe, it was possible to run down the hill to Coombe and pick up the train from there.
A connection in the goods yard allowed goods trains and empty carriages to be exchanged between the main line and the branch. A separate Liskeard Branch signal box was opened with the loop line to control trains going to Coombe Junction. It was closed on 15 March 1964, since when the connection to the main line is operated from a ground frame.
Later history
The Cornwall Railway was amalgamated into the Great Western RailwayGreat Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
on 1 July 1889 and the Liskeard and Looe Railway did the same on 1 January 1923. The Great Western Railway was nationalised into British Railways from 1 January 1948 which was in privatised in the 1990s.
The station was modernised in 2004. A brick extension to the original Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
-designed building was replaced by a light and airy glass structure. This work was entered into annual National Railway Heritage Awards in 2005 and won the Network Rail Partnership Award. In 2007 the signs on the Looe Valley platform were replaced with brown and cream signs in the style used by the Western Region of British Railways
Western Region of British Railways
The Western Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s and was wound up at the end of 1992...
in the 1950s and 1960s.
Accidents
Two unusual accidents have occurred at Liskeard due to its elevated position. No one was hurt in either incident.In April 1863 a goods train was incorrectly sent into a siding where it collided with some wagons standing there. The impact sent these through the buffer stop
Buffer stop
A buffer stop or bumper is a device to prevent railway vehicles from going past the end of a physical section of track.The design of the buffer stop is dependent in part upon the kind of couplings that the railway uses, since the coupling gear is the first part of the vehicle that the buffer stop...
and over the edge of the embankment.
On 15 June 1906, five empty carriages ran away from the branch platform during shunting operations. They ran down the gradient to Coombe Junction and along the line to Moorswater where they ran into the shed, knocking down the shed wall.
Description
The railway station is situated approximately 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) south-west of Liskeard town centre. It operated by First Great WesternFirst Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
and has an unusual layout.
The main line platforms
Railway platform
A railway platform is a section of pathway, alongside rail tracks at a train station, metro station or tram stop, at which passengers may board or alight from trains or trams. Almost all stations for rail transport have some form of platforms, with larger stations having multiple platforms...
flank the double-track line in a deep cutting, which is crossed at high level by a road bridge and at lower level by the station footbridge. At each end of the platforms, the line dips down towards flanking viaducts, the Liskeard viaduct to the east and the Moorswater viaduct to the west.
The Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
-designed booking office is at high level next to the road and there is step-free access to all platforms. Trains towards use the northern platform nearest the booking office, those towards use the southern platform across the footbridge. Trains to Looe leave from a separate terminal platform at a right angle
Right angle
In geometry and trigonometry, a right angle is an angle that bisects the angle formed by two halves of a straight line. More precisely, if a ray is placed so that its endpoint is on a line and the adjacent angles are equal, then they are right angles...
s to the main platforms at the eastern end of the northern platform. The Looe platform is separated from the rest of the station by an an access road
Road
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...
between them, and has its own range of station buildings.
The station retains semaphore signalling worked from a signal box
Signal box
On a rail transport system, signalling control is the process by which control is exercised over train movements by way of railway signals and block systems to ensure that trains operate safely, over the correct route and to the proper timetable...
at the Plymouth end of the westbound platform. Cross-overs at either end of the main line platforms permit main line trains to reverse at Liskeard, and a sharply curved link line permits freight trains and empty passenger trains to reach the Looe line.
Passenger volume
Liskeard is the busiest of the Cornish junction stations, with more than ¼ million passengers each year. Comparing the year from April 2007 to that which started in April 2002, passenger numbers increased by 31%.| 2002-03 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entries | 103,865 | 115,051 | 117,968 | 133,449 | 137,309 | 161,400 | 144,638 |
| Exits | 106,010 | 117,218 | 119,145 | 134,415 | 136,781 | 161,400 | 144,638 |
| Interchanges | unknown | 32,745 | 31,479 | 38,868 | 36,997 | 38,783 | 42,754 |
| Total | |265,014 | |306,732 | |361,583 | 332,030 |
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
Liskeard is served by most First Great WesternFirst Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
trains on the Cornish Main Line
Cornish Main Line
The Cornish Main Line is a railway line in the United Kingdom, which forms the backbone for rail services in Cornwall, as well as providing a direct line to London.- History :...
between Penzance
Penzance railway station
Penzance railway station serves the town of Penzance, Cornwall, UK. The station is the western terminus of the Cornish Main Line from London Paddington station. The current journey time to or from London is about five hours....
and Plymouth
Plymouth railway station
Plymouth railway station serves the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. It is situated on the northern edge of the city centre close to the North Cross roundabout...
. Some trains run through to or from London Paddington station, including the Night Riviera
Night Riviera
The Night Riviera is a sleeper train service operated by First Great Western. It is one of only two remaining sleeper services on the railway in Great Britain...
overnight sleeping car service and the Golden Hind which offers an early morning service to London and an evening return. Other fast trains are the mid-morning Cornish Riviera
Cornish Riviera Express
The Cornish Riviera Express is a British express passenger train that has run between London and Penzance in Cornwall since 1904. Introduced by the Great Western Railway, the name Cornish Riviera Express has been applied to the late morning express train from London Paddington station to Penzance...
and the afternoon Royal Duchy. There are a limited number of CrossCountry
CrossCountry
CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...
trains providing a service to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in the morning and returning in the evening. The basic service on the Cornish Main Line
Cornish Main Line
The Cornish Main Line is a railway line in the United Kingdom, which forms the backbone for rail services in Cornwall, as well as providing a direct line to London.- History :...
is one train an hour to either Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
or Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
.
The Looe Valley Line
Looe Valley Line
The Looe Valley Line is an community railway from Liskeard to Looe in Cornwall, United Kingdom, that follows the valley of the East Looe River for much of its course...
services run a regular service to but only two or three each day call at . There is no Sunday service in the winter.
Community rail
The railway between Liskeard and Looe is designated as a community railCommunity rail
In the United Kingdom, a community rail line is a local railway which is specially supported by local organisations. This support is usually through a Community Rail Partnerships – comprising both the railway operator, local councils and other community organisations – or sometimes by...
line. It is supported by marketing provided by the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership
Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership
The Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership is the largest Community Rail Partnership in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1991 to promote the use of, and improvements to, rural railways in Devon and Cornwall, and also to promote the places served in order to improve the local economy.The...
and promoted under the "Looe Valley Line
Looe Valley Line
The Looe Valley Line is an community railway from Liskeard to Looe in Cornwall, United Kingdom, that follows the valley of the East Looe River for much of its course...
" name. The signs on the Looe Valley platform were replaced in 2007 with brown and cream signs in the style used by the Western Region of British Railways
Western Region of British Railways
The Western Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s and was wound up at the end of 1992...
in the 1950s and 1960s.
The "Old Stag Inn" opposite the station is included in the Looe Valley Line rail ale trail
Rail ale trail
A rail ale trail is a marketing exercise in the United Kingdom that is designed to promote tourism to a rural area, by encouraging people to visit a series of pubs that are close to railway stations along a railway line. Participants are rewarded for visiting the pubs by train. In doing this they...
, as is the "White Horse" in the town centre.