Esk Valley Line
The Esk Valley Line is the railway line from Middlesbrough to Whitby in North Yorkshire, England. The route follows the course of the River Esk for much of the Eastern half of its route, and the source of the River Leven. It is operated by Northern Rail using Class 142 and Class 156 DMUs. Previously Class 144 DMUs used to be worked on this line on a frequent basis. It is one of the most rural railway lines in the United Kingdom and except for a connection with the preserved North Yorkshire Moors Railway at Grosmont its one main line link is via Middlesbrough.
The route that we see today is actually formed from four separate railway lines:
1. Whitby (Town) - Grosmont (for Pickering)
2. Grosmont - Battersby (for Picton)
3. Battersby - Nunthorpe Junction
4. Nunthorpe Junction (for Guisborough) - Middlesbrough
1. Whitby (Town) - Grosmont
The first to be built was the line from Whitby to Pickering, built by George Stephenson and opened from Whitby to Grosmont in 1835 (reaching Pickering a year later). It was originally worked by horses, and was converted to take steam locomotion in 1845, having been taken over by the York and North Midland Railway Company. In 1954 it became part of the NER. The section between Grosmont and Pickering was closed under the Beeching cuts in 1965, but was one of the first to be taken into private hands as a heritage line, worked by the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. At Grosmont, the network line runs west following the river Esk up the valley towards Battersby.
2. Grosmont - Battersby
The second railway line ran east from Picton (where it met what is now the East Coast Main Line) and was built by the North Yorkshire and Cleveland, absorbed into the NER in 1858. The section between Grosmont and Castleton was the last to be opened, on 2 October 1865. The line was built in stages, opening to mineral traffic as far as Battersby on 6 April 1858 and to passenger traffic from Stokesley to Castleton on 1 April 1861. The section between Battersby and Picton closed to passengers in 1954. From Battersby, goods trains also ran south to Ingleby where a cable pulley system raised wagons up a steep incline and across the moors to iron ore workings at Rosedale and Farndale.
3. Battersby - Nunthorpe
This is the youngest section of the route, being the last to be constructed in 1864 to connect the Picton - Grosmont line to the Middlesbrough - Guisborough line. It leaves Battersby heading east with the Grosmont route, before making a sharp turn north to reach the Guisborough line at Nunthorpe junction.
4. Nunthorpe Junction - Middlesbrough
This section of line was constructed by the Middlesbrough & Guisborough Railway (MGR) in 1854 to serve the town of Guisborough and the area around the Eston Hills. A line was constructed south from Middlesbrough heading through Nunthorpe from where it curved east via Guisborough and on towards the coast to join the Whitby Redcar and Middlesbrough Union Railway (see below). It also served a number of quarries in the area. Dispite its close proximity to the Picton - Battersby line, it was another 10 years before a link was built between the two (see section 3 above). The line from Nunthorpe Junction to Guisborough closed in 1964 leaving the section from Middlesborough open to Battersby.
Today Battersby may only have one railway line, however it still takes the shape of a "Y" junction, with trains pulling into a station which is now effectively a terminus (The old line towards Picton continues on through the station and disappears round a bend before it ends). The driver has to then change ends to drive towards either Whitby or Middlesbrough. The Esk Valley line is rare in that is still uses a system known as token working. Cabinets at Whitby, Glaisdale & Battersby along with a signalman at Nunthorpe pass on "keys" which allow the unlocking of line sections, ensuring only one train can run on a section at a time. Up until the mid 1980s, most of the line as far as Castleton had two tracks, but these were removed between Whitby and Nunthorpe. Trains can still pass at Glaisdale and Battersby, although Glaisdale is now the only station along the single track section that still regularly uses both platforms for "up" and "down" line trains. Between Nunthorpe and Guisborough Junction the railway has been single track since the mid 1980s although Nunthorpe retains double track with separate "up" and "down" platforms.
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway has been running steam trains between Whitby and Glaisdale in the past few years, using hired locomotives and stock insured for use on Network Rail track. It is planning a share scheme to raise capital for operating services direct from Whitby Station (again on the existing network rail infastructure). This would involve work on signalling facilities, improvements to rolling stock and ticket facilites at Whitby. Plans to allow through running of trains directly from the North Yorkshire Moors line could involve adding two new section of token working between Whitby - Grosmont & Grosmont - Glaisdale (the current section is between Whitby & Glaisdale). At present for steam services to Whitby to operate from the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, a signalman has to drive to Glaisdale to pick up / return a token key.
The line was once part of a large network covering the area, much of which was destroyed by Dr Beeching's cuts. At Whitby Town, the line had its terminus, and from here a single track branched up a steep incline to Prospect Hill Junction from which trains could reach Whitby West Cliff Station and journey north along the coast to Saltburn and on to Middlesbrough along the WRMU (Whitby Redcar and Middlesbrough Union Railway), or south across the towering red brick Larpool Viaduct towards Scarborough. The WRMU line was closed in the 1960s, however the northern section of the line was retained and is still in operation with passenger services between Middlesborough and Saltburn. From Saltburn to Boulby, the line is also still operational as a goods route for potash and rock salt from Boulby mine.
Between Glaisdale and Lealholm, work was begun by the railway engineer John Wardell on a branch across the moors to make the most of the iron ore in these parts. Originally intended to meet the Guisborough line, which branched off the WRMU near Boulby, a collapse in the price of the ore meant the line was never finished. At various points along the route you can see the remains of vast earthworks forming unfinished embankments and cuttings. The line was to have one station at Stonegate and nearby a tunnel dug using the "cut and cover" method. The only bridge completed on the line is at Rake Farm, between Lealholm & Glaisdale at the route's junction with the Esk Valley line. The line is still known today as "Paddy Wardell's Railway" due to the number of Irish navvies used in its construction.
Route
- Middlesbrough
- Marton
- Gypsy Lane
- Nunthorpe
- Great Ayton
- Battersby - reverse direction
- Kildale
- Commondale
- Castleton Moor
- Danby
- Lealholm
- Glaisdale
- Egton
- Grosmont - junction
- Sleights
- Ruswarp
- Whitby
Image gallery
Esk Valley Line, passing near Berwick Hills near Middlesbrough
