News

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!

The Building and Saving of a Great Railway A Line of Critical Decisions
by Martin Pearson with a Foreword by Michael Portillo  Paperback     £13 inc P+P

Please note: there has been a delay at the printers of Martin Pearson's new book, The Settle-Carlisle Railway 1850-1990, which means that we have not yet been able to fulfill the many orders that we have had.  We hope to start sending them out during the week beginning 28 November.

Railways have an enormous impact on our lives. A recent BBC programme claimed that railways made a bigger impact than the Internet. So it is important to record the story of our railways. That is why we are creating an archive of material about the Settle Carlisle Line. We have recently moved all our archives, and collection of small objects, to our own room at The Folly in Settle. We plan to put as much material as possible on-line. To discover what is already on-line visit http://www.settle-carlisle.co.uk/heritage/

Fancy a little trip across the Yorkshire Dales by bus?  'All aboard: The country bus' is a real time 2 hour journey from Richmond to Ingleton using the Northern Dalesman bus filmed earlier this year and due to be broadcast on BBC4 at 8pm on Bank Holiday Monday 29th August.

The Northern Dalesman is a service often used by FoSCL Guided Walks on Sundays.  The bus meets the 09.00 train from Leeds at Ribblehead and takes walkers to Hawes or over the Buttertubs Pass into Swaledale.

The first of the season’s three Jericho Walks was a great success, thanks to everyone that helped make it a success. 
 

Following the successful 'slow TV' episodes featuring canal journeys and sled rides BBC4 has commissioned a third programme which will feature the 'Northern Dalesman' bus service from Richmond in N Yorkshire to Ingleton.  River valleys, ancient meadows, agricultural pastures and ancient mining villages and the 19th century Ribbleshead viaduct are all part of the scenery.

Not so much a news item as a reminder that we regularly lead guided geology walks from the stations along the Settle-Carlisle Line.  And if you'd like to read a great explanation of the geology all along the line, see http://www.see.leeds.ac.uk/misc/scienceandtourism/Final%20copy%20leaflets/9388-Settle-Carlisle%20Booklet3.pdf 

From Sunday 15 May 2016, a Settle Carlisle Line Day Ranger ticket will be available.  This will reduce the cost of travel for many journeys on the Settle Carlisle line.

The offer is being introduced to encourage people to travel on the world-famous railway, which remains open while essential repairs are carried out between Appleby and Carlisle in Cumbria.

Recently screened historical drama ‘Jericho’ has encouraged many viewers to find out more about the real history of the Navvy site at Ribblehead in the stunningly beautiful Yorkshire Dales.

This summer, call in at Ribblehead Visitor Centre and see you yourself how the famous viaduct was built.

http://sandctrust.org.uk/Jericho/ for more information.

THE REAL JERICHO EXPERIENCE

The FoSCL AGM will take place on Saturday 16th April at the Hallmark Hotel, Carlisle (just in front of the station).  It will start at 11.45 and finish around 15.30.  Speakers will be Alex Hynes, Managing Director of Arriva Rail North, and Simon Walton, former Chairman of the Campaign for Borders Rail.

Trains on the Settle-Carlisle Line are running as far as Appleby, there is a good express bus service to Carlisle that meets every train. 

Network Rail have agreed a plan to repair the section of line closed as a result of a major landslip at Eden Brows between Carlisle and Armathwaite.

Over 500,000 tons of embankment have slipped towards the river Eden below the line as a result of bad weather during December and January. 

The work is likely to take many months and as a result buses are replacing trains between Carlisle and Appleby.  Trains are running normally between Appleby and Leeds.

Network Rail has announced that the railway between Carlisle and Appleby will be completely closed "for many months" whilst work is being undertaken in the Armathwaite area, where there was a landslip in December.  Trains are running between Leeds and Appleby to a revised timetable and a replacement bus service is operating between Appleby and Carlisle.  The full statement from Network Rail can be found at http://www.networkrail.co.uk/news/2016/feb/railway-carlisle-apple

The newly refurbished Flying Scotsman will not be hauling the Cumbrian Mountain Express this Saturday 23 January due to problems discovered with the locomotive's braking system.  A statement from the Railway Touring Company explains that problems were discovered on recent trips on the East Lancs railway and unfortunately these cannot be resolved in time for the loco's scheduled trip along the Settle to Carlisle Line.  The full statement can be viewed here

The Department for Transport announced on 9th December that the next Northern franchise, starting on 1st April 2016, will be run by Arriva. 

Carlisle's Citadel Station is to get a £15 million pound upgrade and work will commence on Monday 30 November.  The majority of the investment will be spent on replacing the roof.  Glass falling from the roof has forced the closure of some platforms in the past years, prompting calls from unions for action to address safety concerns.

For a full report see