Leeds and Bradford Extension Railway
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The Leeds and Bradford Extension Railway was an early British railway company in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It built a line from Shipley near Bradford through Keighley and Skipton to Colne. The Skipton–Colne Line closed in 1970, but the remainder of the line is still in use today, and once formed part of the Midland Railway's main line route from London to Glasgow.
History
Authorisation
The Leeds and Bradford (Shipley–Colne Extension) Railway Act of 30 June 1845
Opening
The first section of the line was from Shipley, at a triangular junction with the Leeds and Bradford Railway, to Keighley. A tender for construction was let on 15 October 1845 and the section opened on 16 March 1847. The line included a 151-yard (138 m) tunnel at Bingley.[1]
A second section from Keighley to Skipton opened on 7 September 1847, initially as a single track, but doubled by the end of the year. Trains ran between Bradford and Skipton; passengers to and from Leeds changed at Shipley.[1]
The final section between Skipton and
Little North Western Railway
The
Partial closure
The Beeching cuts of 1963 reduced the services along the Skipton–Colne Line, and on 2 February 1970 this section of line closed.[8] The
Surviving section
The Shipley to Skipton Line is still in use as part of the
Notes
References
- Awdry, C. (1990), Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies, Patrick Stephens Ltd., Wellingborough, ISBN 1-85260-049-7
- Bairstow, M. (2000), The "Little" North Western Railway, Martin Bairstow, Leeds, ISBN 1-871944-21-X
- Binns, D. (1984), Steam in Airedale, Wyvern Publications, Skipton, ISBN 0-907941-11-7
- Dewick, T. (2002), Complete Atlas of Railway Station Names, Ian Allan Publishing, Hersham, ISBN 0-7110-2798-6, Maps 21 and 42
- Suggitt, G. (2004 reprint), Lost Railways of Lancashire, Countryside Books, Newbury, ISBN 1-85306-801-2