Arnside railway station

Arnside
General information
Location	Arnside, Westmorland and Furness England
Coordinates	54°12′09″N 2°49′41″W
Grid reference	SD461788
Owner	Network Rail
Manager	Northern Trains
Platforms	2
Tracks	2
Other information
Station code	ARN
Classification	DfT category F2
History
Original company	Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway
Pre-grouping	Furness Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway British Rail (London Midland Region)
Key dates
1 August 1858	Opened
Passengers
2020/21	28,764
2021/22	0.100 million
2022/23	91,330
2023/24	0.106 million
2024/25	0.120 million
Location Arnside Location within the former South Lakeland district Arnside Location within Cumbria
Notes Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Arnside is a railway station on the Furness Line, which runs between Barrow-in-Furness and Lancaster. The station, situated 6 miles 21 chains (10.1 km) from Carnforth, serves the village of Arnside in Cumbria. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains, who operate services at the station.

History

The station was opened in August 1858 by the Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway (a company later taken over by the Furness Railway).

A short branch line to Sandside and Hincaster Junction on the West Coast Main Line once diverged from the main line here, which carried a Grange-over-Sands to Kendal local service from its opening in 1876 until 1942. The branch was also used by mineral trains from County Durham to the Barrow-in-Furness area, allowing them to avoid having to reverse direction at the busy junction at Carnforth. Local freight traffic continued as far as Sandside until final closure of the line in 1972.

Arnside viaduct

A short distance west of the station, the railway crosses the River Kent on an impressive 50-span viaduct that is some 1,558-foot (475 m) long. The current structure was opened in 1915, replacing the earlier viaduct from 1857. The historic structure underwent major repairs and refurbishment, including the complete replacement of the rail deck in 2011. The viaduct only carries the railway, but there has been a longstanding campaign to widen it for road vehicles.

Facilities

Whilst one building remains at the station, it is not in railway use. Shelters are provided for passengers on both platforms, but the only link between them is via a footbridge with stairs (no step-free access). Digital information screens, customer help points, timetable posters and automated announcements provide train running details. As the station is unstaffed, tickets can only be bought from the ticket machine or on the train.

Passenger volume

Passenger volume at Arnside

	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	2009–10	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14	2014–15	2015–16	2016–17	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25
Entries and exits	89,182	90,928	92,774	105,084	102,314	107,698	115,862	102,426	110,032	115,464	114,090	109,736	110,610	103,168	96,348	115,338	28,764	100,034	91,330	106,286	119,618

The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.

Services

Northern Trains Route 6
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

It is served by stopping trains between Lancaster and Barrow, with some continuing to Sellafield or Carlisle via the Cumbrian Coast Line in the northbound direction, and by some through services southbound to Preston and Manchester Airport. There is one train per hour in each direction on weekdays, although the varying nature of the stopping patterns of each service means the timetable is irregular. On Sundays there is a train every hour each way.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Grange-over-Sands		Northern Trains Cumbria–Manchester Airport		Carnforth
				Silverdale
Grange-over-Sands		Northern Trains Furness Line		Silverdale
	Disused railways
Grange-over-Sands		Furness Railway Hincaster Branch		Sandside

Community rail

The station, as with all others along the line, is part of Community Rail Cumbria, a Community rail scheme which supports the use and development of the line.

Bibliography

• Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
• Caton, Peter (2018). Remote Stations. Leicestershire: Matador. ISBN 978-1-78901-408-2.
• Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.
• Quick, Michael (2023). Railway Passenger Stations in Great Britain: A Chronology (PDF) (5th ed.). London: Railway and Canal Historical Society.

External links

• Train times and station information for Arnside railway station from National Rail
• Station on navigable Ordnance Survey map