News

‘ExploreMore’ goes live at Ribblehead Visitor Centre.

A new way of looking at the Settle Carlisle line has gone live at the refurbished Ribblehead Visitor Centre. Using a touch screen you can now view the line between Settle and Blea Moor tunnel using aerial photography and 3D models. By clicking on the main features of the line (Ribblehead, Horton and Settle stations, Blea Moor and Settle signal boxes, Helwith Bridge quarry etc) you can explore further. Each feature has a gallery of images and stories including personal reminisences.

Northern have informed us that the refurbishment of their fleet continues apace and at the present time there can be as many as six units in works undergoing refurbishment.

The refurbishment of each unit will be done in two stages and as such work will be spread over several months ahead.

With so many units out of traffic this may lead to some services being formed of a lesser number of carriages than normal.

The front panels of the northbound waiting shelter at Ribblehead station have been replaced by volunteers from the Friends of the Settle-Carlisle Line and the Settle and Carlisle Railway Trust working in partnership with Network Rail.  Although the shelter Is only some 20 years old, dating from the building of a new northbound platform to replace the one demolished to make way for the quarry siding, it had seriously deteriorated and the timber decayed.

Popular as ever, our three holiday lets, the Station Master’s House at Ribblehead and cottages in Kirkby Stephen Station are booking up fast for 2017.

Book with us today to enjoy the sun and steam of a Settle-Carlisle summer

Our wonderful self-catering accommodation on the S&C means you can step right onto the train from your chosen cottage/house and explore this beautiful line.

Don’t forget your FoSCL discount - just let Rachel know your membership number when booking.

The RMT have called for further industrial action on 8, 9 and 10 July.  Rail services through Northern’s franchise area will be affected. You can find out more about the services being operated on these three days at Northern’s website

Tullie House Museum and the Settle-Carlisle Line are jointly working on a project to promote Carlisle's railway heritage.  This may lead to a bid for funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund,

On Saturday 8th July at 1.45 pm there is a public consultation meeting at Tullie House Museum, chaired by Eric Robson, presenter of BBC Radio 4 Gardeners' Question Time. All welcome.

See http://www.foscl.org.uk/content/carlisle-railway-heritage-poster

The 6th annual Ride 2 Stride festival of walks, talks and music has been declared a resounding success with over 800 people joining the walks and attending the walks.  The festival, organised jointly by Friends of the Settle Carlisle Line, Friends of Dalesrail, Friends of a Dales Highway and other organisations was held during the last week of April culminating on May Day Bank Holiday Monday.  Despite some uncertainty on the Friday due to planned industrial action by some rail staff all the events were well supported.  This year film makers David Halsall and Bridget Izod brou

After weeks of social media pestering of Northern by FoSCL, spearheaded by former Chairman Mark Rand and supported by an increasing number of others, including RAIL's editor Nigel Harris we have had a top level response from Northern's interim MD Alan Chaplin today.

The offending material is being removed from the 158 windows 'immediately'.   They had tried to remove the entire wrap but found that paint was coming off as well so decided to reveal the windows only at this stage.

This link takes you to a seven minute timelapse video of the Eden Brows Story, culminating in the passing of Flying Scotsman on Friday last.
 

Enthralling to watch, and a full record of this project from start to finish.

http://www.storycontracting.com/project/eden-brows-repair-works/
 
 
 

As of 31st March, the line is fully open again.  A normal timetable is in operation.  On Friday 31st March, people flocked to the lineside to see Flying Scotsman travel from Keighley to Carlisle and back. 

The 0550 from Carlisle was the first train southbound and was packed with people wanting to take part in a historic occasion, not to mention all the media recording the event.

And the trains were packed throughout the day, a sure sign of the importance of the line to local people. 

Keighley and Worth Valley Railway, who are running a special charter hauled by Flying Scotsman from Oxenhope in the Worth Valley to Carlisle and back on Friday 31st March, have finally been able to release the planned timings.  See http://kwvr.co.uk/kwvr-news-items/flying-scotsman-timings/

Ribblehead Visitor Centre tearoom will be open from 31st March, a day earlier than usual because of Flying Scotsman. 

The Exhibition at the Centre is being refurbished, it is planned that it will reopen in May.  We'll publicise it when the date is known.

There will be several special events on Friday 31st March to celebrate the full reopening of the Settle-Carlisle Line. 

Keighley and Worth Valley Railway are organising a special excursion hauled by Flying Scotsman from Keighley to Carlisle and return.  This train is already fully booked.  Timings have still not been announced but keep an eye on http://kwvr.co.uk/flyingscotsman/ 

The producers of two of our DVDs, Creative Imagineers Ltd, have secured transmissions on one of the Sky channels for both A Journey on The Settle Carlisle Railway and The Saving of The Settle-Carlisle Railway.

The channel is taking more than 15 hours of programming from them, with multiple transmissions over the three year period of the contract. Hopefully, the programmes will provide a small reminder that this spectacular railway is a wonderful day out, and help to reinvigorate it after the re-opening.
 

Based on feedback from a FoSCL member, most of the reserved seats for the Tornado hauled trains on 14, 15 & 16 February are now booked.  He writes:

February 14th, 15th and 16th on the Settle Carlisle railway.

Twelve Northern services will be steam-hauled, seven-carriage trains. They will pass over the ‘roof of England’ behind Britain’s newest steam locomotive, Tornado. The world-famous line carves its way through the spectacular scenery of Cumbria’s Eden Valley, the Yorkshire Dales and crosses the majestic Ribblehead viaduct.

There is a very big Valentine's Week treat in store on February 14, 15 and 16 on the world famous Settle-Carlisle railway.

On those three days a total of twelve scheduled Northern services will be replaced by eight coach steam hauled trains.   Four trains each day will traverse the line over the 'roof of England' hauled by Britain's newest steam locomotive Tornado.

Settle & Carlisle Re-opening Special

The Keighley & Worth Valley Railway is delighted to announce the running of a commemorative railtour from Oxenhope to Carlisle on 31st March behind ‘Flying Scotsman’, in conjunction with Northern, Network Rail and Friends of the Settle & Carlisle. The train, which will be operated by West Coast Railways, will form part of the re-opening celebrations of the Settle & Carlisle line which is scheduled to re-open on this day.

The 4th annual ride2stride festival will take place between 25th April and 1st May 2017

ride2stride is a festival of walks, talks and music along the fabulous Settle-Carlisle railway line.

It's a week long celebration of the wonderful landscape and culture of the western Dales and Eden Valley.

Martin Pearson's ground-breaking new book on the history and saving of the Settle-Carlisle Line is available for delivery, including dociuments never before published.  Order now for Christmas!