Newquay railway station
Encyclopedia
Newquay railway station is the terminus of the Atlantic Coast Line
that runs from Par railway station
. It is operated by First Great Western
and is situated close to the town centre and beaches in Newquay
, Cornwall
, England, UK.
in stages between 1846 and 1849. The line was extended on 1 June 1874 by the Cornwall Minerals Railway
, goods trains now reaching Fowey
. A branch line from Tolcarn Junction, just outside Newquay, ran to Gravel Hill Mine near Treamble where there was an iron mine.
Passenger trains were introduced on 20 June 1876. The Great Western Railway
operated all the trains from 1 October 1877 and bought out the Cornwall Minerals Railway on 1 July 1896.
The original station had just a single platform and a turntable
at the end of the platform was used to release locomotives from incoming trains. The station was rebuilt in 1905 with two platforms serving three tracks. A new line was opened from Shepherds, on the Treamble branch, to Perranporth on 2 January 1905, which allowed a new service to run from Newquay to Truro
. The following year through carriages started to be run from London
using the direct line from Par.
The main departure platform was lengthened in 1928 and again in 1935; the second platform was lengthened in 1938. These enlargements were to accommodate the longer trains that were now bringing holidaymakers from London and elsewhere. Extensive carriage sidings were laid on the south side of the station to store these trains between services.
The station started to be run down following the closure of the line to Truro on 4 February 1963. The goods yard was closed in 1965; the roof on platforms 2 and 3 was removed in 1964. Platform 3 was shortened in 1966 and its locomotive release line taken out of use on 4 October 1972, by which time four of the carriage sidings had been removed.
On 5 October 1987 the signal box was closed, all the remaining signals were dismantled and the rails serving platform 1 were lifted. This platform had already become ruinous towards its outer end. At the same time the last of the carriage sidings were closed and lifted. The former Chacewater
platform, number 3, kept its rails a little longer, linked to the main line by a ground frame, although this was also removed by the mid 1990s and the land was sold right up the face of platform 3. The now-derelict station buildings on platform 1 were demolished in 1992 to make way for a new car park, and the signal box was destroyed in March 1997 as the result of an arson attack.
down the incline, which was in a tunnel dug out of the cliff. At the foot the track ran onto the eastern breakwater but a shunt-back and wooden trestle bridge gave access to the a jetty in the middle of the harbour.
After steam locomotives were introduced by the Cornwall Minerals Railway in 1874, wagons continued to be moved between Newquay railway station and the harbour incline by horses. Traffic handled at the harbour gradually declined and the line was taken out of use in 1926. Part of the route is now a footpath from opposite the station to the cliff tops above the beach.
that were built a few years later, and very different from the imposing granite Treffry Viaduct
built by Treffry for his Par tramway
.
The piers were raised and new wrought iron girders installed ready for the opening of the line for locomotives in 1874. This was replaced by the present masonry structure on 27 March 1939. It carried two tracks from 20 March 1946; the line to Tolcarn Junction was singled on 23 November 1964 but the second line was retained for shunting purposes until the rationalisation in the 1980s.
. It handles a number of intercity trains in the summer as well as local services, which is very unusual for a modern branch.
On summer Saturdays local services are entirely replaced by First Great Western
trains from London Paddington
and CrossCountry
trains from the Midlands
and the North of England, which do not stop at intermediate stations between Par and Newquay. On Sundays there are some local trains and also a small number of intercity services. As well as the weekend through trains, in peak summer months there is also a Monday-Friday through First Great Western
intercity service to and from London, but local trains continue on these days too. Traditionally, there was no Sunday service in the winter, even in the 'golden age' between both of the 20th century's world wars, but the line has a service of three trains each way on Sundays from 11 December 2011.
service, supported by marketing from the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership
. The route is promoted as the "Atlantic Coast Line
". The other Cornish branch lines are full Community Railways, but only the local service to Newquay is designated in this way, because the presence of intercity and clay trains make it impossible to designate the line itself.
Three pubs in Newquay take part in the Atlantic Coast Line rail ale trail
.
Atlantic Coast Line, Cornwall
The Atlantic Coast Line is a community railway line in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The line runs from the English Channel at Par, to the Atlantic Ocean at Newquay.-Route:The Atlantic Coast Line starts from Par station, in the village and port of Par...
that runs from Par railway station
Par railway station
Par Station is a railway station serving the village and port of Par, Cornwall, England in the United Kingdom. It is the junction for the Atlantic Coast Line to Newquay. The station is operated by First Great Western, and served by trains operated by both First Great Western and...
. It is operated by First Great Western
First 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 is situated close to the town centre and beaches in Newquay
Newquay
Newquay is a town, civil parish, seaside resort and fishing port in Cornwall, England. It is situated on the North Atlantic coast of Cornwall approximately west of Bodmin and north of Truro....
, 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, UK.
History
The first railway at Newquay was a horse-worked line from the harbour to Hendra Crazey. It was built by Joseph TreffryJoseph Treffry
Joseph Austen Treffry was an engineer, mining adventurer, and industrialist who became a significant landowner in Cornwall, United Kingdom.-Biography:...
in stages between 1846 and 1849. The line was extended on 1 June 1874 by the Cornwall Minerals Railway
Cornwall Minerals Railway
The Cornwall Minerals Railway operated a network of railway lines in Cornwall, United Kingdom. Based at St Blazey, its network stretched from Fowey to Newquay and lasted as an independent company from 1874 to 1896, after which it became a part of the Great Western Railway.-Authorisation:The...
, goods trains now reaching Fowey
Fowey railway station
The railway from Fowey to Newquay was opened by the Cornwall Minerals Railway on 1 June 1874. Fowey railway station was opened on 20 June 1876 when a passenger service was introduced, the next station being at Par....
. A branch line from Tolcarn Junction, just outside Newquay, ran to Gravel Hill Mine near Treamble where there was an iron mine.
Passenger trains were introduced on 20 June 1876. The Great Western Railway
Great 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...
operated all the trains from 1 October 1877 and bought out the Cornwall Minerals Railway on 1 July 1896.
The original station had just a single platform and a turntable
Turntable (railroad)
A railway turntable is a device for turning railroad rolling stock. When steam locomotives were still in wide use, many railroads needed a way to turn the locomotives around for return trips as their controls were often not configured for extended periods of running in reverse and in many...
at the end of the platform was used to release locomotives from incoming trains. The station was rebuilt in 1905 with two platforms serving three tracks. A new line was opened from Shepherds, on the Treamble branch, to Perranporth on 2 January 1905, which allowed a new service to run from Newquay to Truro
Truro railway station
Truro Station serves the city of Truro, Cornwall, UK. It is the situated on the Cornish Main Line and is the junction for the Maritime Line to Falmouth. The station is operated by First Great Western....
. The following year through carriages started to be run from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
using the direct line from Par.
The main departure platform was lengthened in 1928 and again in 1935; the second platform was lengthened in 1938. These enlargements were to accommodate the longer trains that were now bringing holidaymakers from London and elsewhere. Extensive carriage sidings were laid on the south side of the station to store these trains between services.
The station started to be run down following the closure of the line to Truro on 4 February 1963. The goods yard was closed in 1965; the roof on platforms 2 and 3 was removed in 1964. Platform 3 was shortened in 1966 and its locomotive release line taken out of use on 4 October 1972, by which time four of the carriage sidings had been removed.
On 5 October 1987 the signal box was closed, all the remaining signals were dismantled and the rails serving platform 1 were lifted. This platform had already become ruinous towards its outer end. At the same time the last of the carriage sidings were closed and lifted. The former Chacewater
Chacewater
Chacewater is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately three miles east of Redruth.-Village:...
platform, number 3, kept its rails a little longer, linked to the main line by a ground frame, although this was also removed by the mid 1990s and the land was sold right up the face of platform 3. The now-derelict station buildings on platform 1 were demolished in 1992 to make way for a new car park, and the signal box was destroyed in March 1997 as the result of an arson attack.
Newquay Harbour
The original terminus of the Newquay Railway was at the harbour. Horses hauled wagons along a line that wound between houses to reach the top of a 1 in 4½ incline that carried the line down to the harbour. Wagons were lowered on a cableCable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...
down the incline, which was in a tunnel dug out of the cliff. At the foot the track ran onto the eastern breakwater but a shunt-back and wooden trestle bridge gave access to the a jetty in the middle of the harbour.
After steam locomotives were introduced by the Cornwall Minerals Railway in 1874, wagons continued to be moved between Newquay railway station and the harbour incline by horses. Traffic handled at the harbour gradually declined and the line was taken out of use in 1926. Part of the route is now a footpath from opposite the station to the cliff tops above the beach.
Trenance Viaduct
Between Newquay station and Tolcarn Junction the line crosses the Trenance valley on a 154 yard (141m) viaduct. The first structure, opened on 29 January 1849, was a timber structure on stone piers. It was much lighter than the similarly-constructed Cornwall Railway viaductsCornwall Railway viaducts
The large number of Cornwall Railway viaducts were necessitated by the topography of Cornwall, United Kingdom, where hills and areas of high ground are separated by deep river valleys that generally run north or south...
that were built a few years later, and very different from the imposing granite Treffry Viaduct
Treffry Viaduct
The Treffry Viaduct is a historic dual-purpose railway viaduct and aqueduct, located close to the village of Luxulyan, Cornwall, England in the United Kingdom...
built by Treffry for his Par tramway
Par, Cornwall
Par is a town and fishing port with a harbour on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town is situated in the civil parish of Tywardreath and Par and is approximately east of St Austell. Par has a population of around 1,400.....
.
The piers were raised and new wrought iron girders installed ready for the opening of the line for locomotives in 1874. This was replaced by the present masonry structure on 27 March 1939. It carried two tracks from 20 March 1946; the line to Tolcarn Junction was singled on 23 November 1964 but the second line was retained for shunting purposes until the rationalisation in the 1980s.
Services
Newquay is the terminus of the branch line from ParPar railway station
Par Station is a railway station serving the village and port of Par, Cornwall, England in the United Kingdom. It is the junction for the Atlantic Coast Line to Newquay. The station is operated by First Great Western, and served by trains operated by both First Great Western and...
. It handles a number of intercity trains in the summer as well as local services, which is very unusual for a modern branch.
On summer Saturdays local services are entirely replaced by First Great Western
First 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 from London Paddington
Paddington station
Paddington railway station, also known as London Paddington, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex.The site is a historic one, having served as the London terminus of the Great Western Railway and its successors since 1838. Much of the current mainline station dates...
and CrossCountry
CrossCountry
CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...
trains from the Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
and the North of England, which do not stop at intermediate stations between Par and Newquay. On Sundays there are some local trains and also a small number of intercity services. As well as the weekend through trains, in peak summer months there is also a Monday-Friday through First Great Western
First 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....
intercity service to and from London, but local trains continue on these days too. Traditionally, there was no Sunday service in the winter, even in the 'golden age' between both of the 20th century's world wars, but the line has a service of three trains each way on Sundays from 11 December 2011.
Community rail
The local trains between Par and Newquay are 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...
service, supported by marketing from 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...
. The route is promoted as the "Atlantic Coast Line
Atlantic Coast Line, Cornwall
The Atlantic Coast Line is a community railway line in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The line runs from the English Channel at Par, to the Atlantic Ocean at Newquay.-Route:The Atlantic Coast Line starts from Par station, in the village and port of Par...
". The other Cornish branch lines are full Community Railways, but only the local service to Newquay is designated in this way, because the presence of intercity and clay trains make it impossible to designate the line itself.
Three pubs in Newquay take part in the Atlantic Coast 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...
.