Whitehaven railway station

The first station at Whitehaven was opened on 19 March 1847 by the Whitehaven Junction Railway (WJR),^[1] as the terminus of their line from Maryport.^[2] This station lay to the south of the present station, with the main entrance on Bransty Row.^{[nb 1]}

On the southern side of the town, the first section of the Whitehaven and Furness Junction Railway (W&FJR) opened on 1 June 1849 from a terminus at Whitehaven (Preston Street) to Ravenglass, but there was no connection between this line and the WJR suitable for passenger trains. In between the two stations stood the town centre and, to the east of that, Hospital Hill; a tunnel 1,333 yards (1,219 m) long was built beneath the latter, being completed in July 1852. In 1854, the W&FJR passenger trains began using the WJR station at Whitehaven, with Preston Street becoming a goods-only station.^[3] In 1865, the W&FJR was absorbed by the Furness Railway (FR) and, in 1866, the WJR was absorbed by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR).^[2]

The LNWR station (formerly WJR) was replaced on 20 December 1874 by a new one named Whitehaven Bransty; it was jointly owned by the LNWR and the FR. This station had its name simplified to Whitehaven on 6 May 1968.^[1] The original buildings were demolished and replaced by a modern single-story ticket hall in the mid-1980s. The former goods yard site beyond and behind platform one is now occupied by a supermarket.

The station formerly had four operational platforms, but only two remain in use today (the former platforms three and four having lost their tracks when the layout was simplified and the buildings replaced). The double line from Parton becomes single opposite the station signal box, which still bears the original station name Whitehaven Bransty; it then splits into two: one runs into platform one (a bay used by most terminating services from Carlisle) and the other runs into platform two, which is the through line to Sellafield, Millom and Barrow. Trains heading south must collect a token for the single line section to St Bees from a machine on the platform (with the co-operation of the signaller) before they can proceed. Conversely, trains from Barrow must surrender the token upon arrival; the driver returns it to the machine before departing for Workington; only then can the signaller allow another train to enter the single line section.

A Sunday service over the whole length of the Coastal route operated on a one-off basis on Sunday 27 September 2009; the first time a revenue earning passenger Sunday service operated south of Whitehaven since May 1976. This celebrated the ACoRP Community Rail Festival. An improved Sunday service has been introduced as part of the current Northern franchise.^[4]

The ticket office is open six days per week and is closed evenings and Sundays; there is also a ticket machine available. Digital display screens, a passenger announcement system and information posters provide train running information. Step-free access is available through the main building to both platforms.^[5]

More information Northern TrainsRoute 6, Cumbrian Coast, Furness & Windermere lines ...

Northern Trains Route 6
v t e
Cumbrian Coast, Furness & Windermere lines
Carlisle Dalston Wigton Aspatria Maryport Flimby Workington Harrington Parton Whitehaven Corkickle St Bees Nethertown Braystones Sellafield Seascale Drigg Ravenglass Bootle Silecroft Millom Green Road Foxfield Kirkby-in-Furness Askam Barrow-in-Furness Roose Dalton Ulverston Cark & Cartmel Kents Bank Grange-over-Sands Arnside Silverdale Carnforth Windermere Staveley Burneside Kendal Oxenholme Lake District Lancaster Preston Chorley Bolton Deansgate Manchester Oxford Road Manchester Piccadilly Manchester Airport

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Northern Trains operates a generally hourly service northbound to Carlisle and southbound to Barrow-in-Furness; no late evening service operates south of here. A few through trains operate to/from Lancaster via the Furness line.^[6]

Northern Rail introduced a regular Sunday through service to Barrow via the coast at the May 2018 timetable change - the first such service south of Whitehaven for more than 40 years. Services run approximately hourly from mid-morning until early evening, with later trains starting and terminating here. This represented a major upgrade on the previous infrequent service of four per day each way to/from Whitehaven only.^[7][8] Repairs to the tunnel southwards to Corkickle and Millom/Barrow saw services beyond here suspended in July 2025, with a replacement bus service provided through the town to Corkickle for onward connections. This will remain until the old mine workings beneath the tunnel floor have been sealed and filled with grout - repairs are likely to continue until the spring of 2026.^[9] Services remain running to Workington and Carlisle.

More information Preceding station, National Rail ...

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Parton		Northern Trains Cumbrian Coast Line		Corkickle
	Historical railways
Parton		London and North Western Railway Whitehaven Junction Railway		Terminus
Terminus		Whitehaven and Furness Junction Railway		Corkickle

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