Duffield railway station
![]() Duffield railway station looking south in 2009 | |
Location | Duffield, Borough of Amber Valley England |
Grid reference | SK345435 |
Managed by | East Midlands Railway |
Platforms | 3 |
Other information | |
Station code | DFI |
Classification | DfT category F2 |
History | |
Original company | North Midland Railway |
Pre-grouping | Midland Railway |
Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway |
Key dates | |
1841 | opened |
1867 | moved to junction with Wirksworth branch |
Passengers | |
2016/17 | ![]() |
2017/18 | ![]() |
2018/19 | ![]() |
2019/20 | ![]() |
2020/21 | ![]() |
Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road |
Duffield railway station serves the village of Duffield in Derbyshire, England. The station is located on the Midland Main Line from Derby to Leeds, 133 miles 8 chains (214.2 km) north of London St Pancras. It is also a junction with the former branch line to Wirksworth, which has now been reopened as the Ecclesbourne Valley heritage railway.
The unmanned station is served by East Midlands Railway, who operate local services from Derby to Matlock via the Derwent Valley Line. For journeys beginning at Duffield, the full range of tickets for travel for any destination in the country are purchased from the guard on the train at no extra cost. It is a penalty fare station however, so for East Midlands Railway a permit to travel must be bought from the machine installed on the Derby-bound side of the platform before joining the train.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Duffield_railway_station_with_jubilee_2010445_3772ff7b.jpg/220px-Duffield_railway_station_with_jubilee_2010445_3772ff7b.jpg)
History[]
From Derby, the railway proceeds along the broad flood plain of the River Derwent, passing Little Eaton Junction, where the Midland Railway later built a branch near one of the oldest lines in the country, the Little Eaton Gangway.
The first station at Duffield was built in 1841, a year after the line opened, by the North Midland Railway a few yards further north from its present position.
From 1840 there had been a number of proposals for a line from Manchester down the Churnet Valley to meet either the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway or the Midland Counties Railway, to go on to London. An amendment was put forward in 1844 bringing the line to the North Midland at Duffield, presumably via Ashbourne and the Ecclesbourne Valley. However, the line never materialised.
The Midland Railway, however, was looking for a path into Manchester, as an alternative to the former Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway from Ambergate to Rowsley which it leased jointly with the LNWR. It built a junction at Duffield which opened as far as Wirksworth in 1867.[1] Gaining sole control of the Ambergate line in 1871, the extension proved unnecessary. However, the Wirksworth branch (nowadays known as the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway) remained a busy line, with a regular passenger service and freight in the form of limestone from Wirksworth and milk from the farms along the line.
Accordingly, in 1867 a large new station was built in the vee of the junction, with platforms on each side of the double track. A signal box was provided to the east of the main line, replaced by Duffield Junction box around 1890 at the south end of Platform One. By this time the population of Duffield had increased with railway workers and management, as had traffic on the main line. In 1897 a goods line was laid in the up (southbound) direction, and a fourth, down goods, laid in 1904.
There were two platforms with a footbridge, the second being an island between the two passenger lines, and another for the branch. The two subsidiary platforms each had a waiting room, while the main platform building contained the waiting room, ticket and luggage offices. Next to the footbridge was a separate W.H.Smith bookstall. The station master's house was separate, being beside the track to the north, and there was small luggage store just outside the gate. The Wirksworth line having severed the main road, which had been diverted, a footbridge gave access across the line. To the north of the station, there was wide level crossing which, besides allowing luggage trolleys to cross, gave access for the farmer who owned the adjacent land. Next to this was a footbridge from the front of the station to the field behind, and between them two signal posts, with, until 1910 a Duffield Station signal box, supplementing Duffield Junction.
The line saw several historic moments, with new or experimental vehicles from Derby being tested on the line, such as "Number 10000", the first mainline LMS diesel-electric locomotive, which was tested on the line in late 1947. Subsequently, the Wirksworth branch saw Derby's first experiments with diesel railcars. The main line saw some initial test runs of the Advanced Passenger Train and, towards Derby, a length of experimental slip-paved concrete track was installed in the 70's. This can still be seen in the up line cess.
The station changed little over the years. In 1947 the signal posts were replaced with a fabricated steel gantry and upper-quadrant signals Some time later the passenger footbridge was rebuilt in brick, using the existing walkway. This is the only remaining part of the station after the buildings were removed in 1969, except for the station master's house, now a private residence, and the small luggage store which was just outside the gate. However these latter have now gone, the station master's house replaced by a modern construction, and the luggage store destroyed by the developer who has also built on the former right of way between the branch and main line platforms.
North of Duffield the main line passes under 'The Chevin' (aka Firestone Hill) through the Milford Tunnel.
In July 2005 the station was adopted by WyvernRail plc under a scheme promoted by the Friends of the Derwent Valley Line. WyvernRail undertook to provide care and maintenance of Duffield railway station on behalf of Central Trains who operated the station at that time (and continue to under East Midlands Trains).[2]
Stationmasters[]
- Samuel Jennings ca. 1851 ca. 1860[3] ca. 1867
- J. Skinner until 1877
- George E. Aldred 1877 - 1879 (formerly station master at Denby)
- Frederick Perry 1879 - 1908[4]
- Wlliam Cope 1909 - 1922 (formerly station master at Spondon, afterwards station master at Ashby de la Zouch)
- W. Clements 1922 - 1924 (afterwards station master at Apperley Bridge)
- J.G. Goss 1924 - 1931[5] (formerly station master at Bamford)
- J. Townson 1931[6] - 1933 (formerly station master at Great Longstone)
- J.W. Walker 1933 - ca. 1944
- George Henry Hill ca. 1955
Duffield station as it was[]
Duffield Station approaching down Station Approach.
Duffield Station booking office with accommodation crossing gate
Duffield Station Platform One waiting room with W.H.Smith bookstall behind
Duffield Station view south from accommodation footbridge
Duffield Station luggage shed by entrance gate
Duffield Station waiting room on platform two.
Duffield Station island platform rear view
Duffield Station waiting room on Wirksworth platform
Duffield Station accommodation bridge to field behind station
Duffield Station bridge detail
Services[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Duffield_Branch_Line_Platform_in_April_2011_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2423407.jpg/220px-Duffield_Branch_Line_Platform_in_April_2011_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2423407.jpg)
National Rail[]
National Rail services at Duffield are operated by East Midlands Railway using 156, 170 and 158 DMUs.
The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[7][8]
- 1 tph to Nottingham via Derby
- 1 tph to Matlock
On Sundays, there is a two-hourly service in the morning with services increasing to hourly from mid-afternoon onwards.
Ecclesbourne Valley Railway[]
The Ecclesbourne Valley Railway runs from Duffield station Platform 3 to Ravenstor via Hazelwood, Shottle, Idridgehay and Wirksworth[9] along the route of the old Midland Railway branch which closed to passengers in 1947 and goods in 1989.
This link was finally re-opened to passengers again in April 2011, allowing heritage services from Wirksworth to connect with the Midland Main Line. Through ticketing is available from all main line stations.[10]
Preceding station | ![]() |
Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Derby | East Midlands Railway Derwent Valley Line | |||
Historical railways | ||||
Terminus | Midland Railway Wirksworth Branch | Line open, station closed |
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Terminus | Ecclesbourne Valley Railway | Shottle |
References[]
- ^ Sprenger, Howard (2004). The Wirksworth Branch. London: Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-625-6.
- ^ "Duffield Scene Edition 153" (PDF). July 2005. Retrieved 10 April 2009.
- ^ "1859-1866". Midland Railway Miscellaneous Depts: 59. 1914. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
- ^ "After Forty Years Service". Belper News. England. 6 November 1908. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Stationmaster of Duffield". Derby Daily Telegraph. England. 13 August 1931. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Duffield Stationmaster". Derby Daily Telegraph. England. 3 September 1931. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Table 56 National Rail timetable, May 2020
- ^ "May 2021 Timetable Changes: Duffield". East Midlands Railway. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
- ^ "Duffield Station". www.e-v-r.com. Ecclesbourne Valley Railway (Wyvernrail PLC). Retrieved 25 November 2011.
- ^ "Royal opening of Duffield line". Rail.co. Archived from the original on 6 June 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
- Pixton, B., (2000) North Midland: Portrait of a Famous Route, Cheltenham: Runpast Publishing
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Duffield railway station. |
- Railway stations in Derbyshire
- Former Midland Railway stations
- Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1841
- Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1867
- Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1867
- Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway