Northampton and Lamport Railway

Northampton & Lamport Railway
Peckett 0-4-0ST Works No. 2104 with a train
Locale	England
Terminus	Pitsford and Brampton
Commercial operations
Name	Northampton to Market Harborough line ("Harborough Line")
Built by	London and North Western Railway
Original gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Preserved operations
Operated by	Northampton & Lamport Railway Preservation Society
Stations	1
Length	1 1⁄2 miles (2.4 km)
Preserved gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Commercial history
Opened	1858
Closed	1981
Preservation history
1984	Work started at (and around) Pitsford and Brampton station site
1995	Light Railway Order, Granted with First public passenger train operated
1996	Grand Re-opening (NLR re-opened, officially)
Headquarters	Pitsford and Brampton
Website
www.nlr.org.uk

Northampton and Lamport Railway
Brampton Valley Way Railway legend Trails legend
MP (Milepost) former route to Northampton Boughton Crossing Brampton Valley Way (Terminus) Boughton (Terminus) Passing Loop Boughton Sidings Community Woodland footpath crossing horse farm crossing Bridge 11 end of passenger services 4½ Pitsford Sidings footpath and vehicle crossing summit 4¾ Bridge 12 Pitsford Road footpath crossing Pitsford and Brampton plant crossing 5¾ Station Loop Bridge 12A River Nene Pitsford and Brampton siding Bridge 13 5¼ farm crossing Bridge 14 Merry Tom Halt (proposed) Merry Tom Lane former route to Market Harborough Brampton Valley Way continues

The Northampton & Lamport Railway is a standard gauge heritage railway in Northamptonshire, England. It is based at Pitsford and Brampton station, near the villages of Pitsford and Chapel Brampton, roughly 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Northampton.

Overview

The line between Northampton and Market Harborough was finally closed (by British Rail) on 16 August 1981, the intermediate stations on the route having been closed for many years.

In 1984 (just 3 years after the line's closure) a group was formed by Michael William Papworth (of Northampton) with the intention of re-opening a section of the line as a heritage railway. The site opened to the public shortly afterwards. Following the granting of a Light Railway Order, the line carried its first fare-paying passengers in November 1995. The official Grand Opening Ceremony took place (just 4 months later) on 31 March 1996.

Currently, passenger trains operate on a section of line approximately 1 ¹⁄₂ miles (2.4 km) in length, departing from and arriving at the only station, Pitsford and Brampton.

However, As of November 2013, An extension south had currently been under construction which adds another ¹⁄₂ mile (0.80 km) of running line, with around 90% of track-relaying completed around Spring 2012. Once complete it will include a station with sidings and run-round loop at the former Boughton Crossing on the A5199 at the Northamptonshire village of Boughton.

A northern extension of the N&LR currently remains within the planning stage, but before work can start, however, extensive repairs are needed to Bridge 14 which carries the track over the River Nene. In addition Northamptonshire County Council, which owns the former trackbed, will not grant a lease on the land required for the extension until the NLR's southern extension (to as far as Boughton) is completed. The previous extension opened after several years' work and around £50,000 was spent on repairs to Bridge 13, (the same amount required for Bridge 14, when the NLR turns its intention northwards).

The signalling system, with two working signal boxes (and a third under construction), makes it one of the most comprehensive and detailed on any heritage railway of its size, within Preservation. The Booking Office at Pitsford and Brampton station was built using the disused Lamport signal box, originally located around 5 ¹⁄₂ miles (8.9 km) away on/up the same line. It had since been converted in such a way that it can be easily converted back into a signal box if whenever required in the future.

A third signal box has been installed at the Boughton Terminus; the former Betley Road signal box from Crewe is being used following its restoration.

The Brampton Valley Way is a "linear park" offering a traffic-free route for walkers, cyclists and pedestrians, and which runs alongside the railway, separated by a stout safety fence. Access is also available to horse riders on other sections away from the railway.

The railway is open for viewing from 10:00 to 17:00 on Sundays. Train rides are available on Sundays from March to October, diesel hauled with steam-hauled trains for special events (subject to availability). Open from March to October and throughout December for Santa's visit.

Events

A number of special events take place throughout the year, the popular Santa Specials run throughout the month of December.

On 18 July 2007 the Railway at War Weekend, an event held at the railway every September, was named Best Event in the 2007 Northamptonshire Renaissance Heritage Awards.^[1]

Locomotives

Gallery

• 
  The booking office and platform at Pitsford and Brampton
• 
  The platform at Pitsford and Brampton Station
• 
  Pitsford and Brampton signal box
• 
  Pitsford Sidings signal box
• 
  Steam locomotive 7646 "Northampton" officially named by the Mayor of Northampton
• 
  Peckett 0-4-0ST Works No. 2104 in the yard, preparing for a day's use on passenger trains
• 
  The first passenger train to cross Bridge 13, with nameplate from 1981 (Class 117 51402 has since moved to the Strathspey Railway)
• 
  Boughton — end of the Brampton Valley Way which runs alongside the railway
• 
  JCB excavator used in the railway's construction
• 
  Stanley Steamer visiting an event at the railway
• 
  Hunslet 0-6-0ST 'Ring Haw' and a short goods train
• 
  Santa Special hauled by № 7646
• 
  Last train from Northampton to Market Harborough. This was a one off special before the closure of the line back in 1981.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Northampton & Lamport Railway.

References

External links

• Homepage of the Northampton & Lamport Railway

Coordinates: 52°17′36″N 0°55′24″W / 52.29333°N 0.92333°W / 52.29333; -0.92333