Opening Date For Final Delayed Station Confirmed
The title of this post is the same as that in this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
The opening date for the final station on a reopened railway line has finally been announced.
These four paragraphs give more details.
The Northumberland Line between Ashington and Newcastle began carrying passengers in December 2024, decades after the old service ended, but Bedlington and Northumberland Park stations remained unfinished.
It was announced in January Northumberland Park would open on 22 February, and now Northumberland County Council has announced Bedlington will officially open to passengers on 29 March.
Conservative leader Glen Sanderson thanked the local community for bearing with the “inevitable disruption”.
The overdue opening of Bedlington was blamed on ageing stonework and a water pipe under the car park, and in August an extra £37.9m was provided to ensure the project was completed.
Will It Be The Day Of The Dogs?
I wonder how many Bedlington terriers will turn up!
I asked Google AI,”Will Bedlington Terriers be going to the opening of Bedlington station?” and received this reply.
Based on current information, it is not confirmed whether the dog breed Bedlington Terriers will be attending the opening of the new Bedlington station, which is expected to open in early 2026 as part of the Northumberland Line. While the town is famous for the breed, no official event details have confirmed their presence at the opening.
If they did, the story would spread everywhere.
Will The Builders Move On To The Leamside Line?
The Leamside Line could be the next one to be rebuilt, as it’s just on the other side of the Tyne.
Or they could extend the Northumberland Line to Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.
But who knows with this Government?
Formal Bid To Extend Railway Line
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
A formal bid to extend a railway line which has seen more than 900,000 passenger journeys in the year since it reopened has been submitted.
These three paragraphs add more detail.
Northumberland County Council asked the North East Combined Authority to extend the Northumberland Line, which connects south-east Northumberland to Tyneside, to Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.
Conservative leader of the council Glen Sanderson said the total cost of the scheme was yet to be worked out, adding: “It is going to be very expensive, but I’m sure it will be worthwhile.”
Labour North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said she would like to see the line extended further into the county. She said: “We’ll support a business case to see what is possible.”
I wrote more about this extension in Onward To Newbiggin-by-the-Sea For The Northumberland Line?
I certainly believe it is an extension, that should be properly costed.
New Station Openings In Early 2026
This post is for two reasons.
I needed an answer to my query.
I wanted to explore the competence of Google AI.
When I typed the title of this post into Google AI, I received this answer.
Several new railway stations in the UK are scheduled to open or begin passenger services in early 2026, primarily in the West Midlands, Northumberland, Devon, and Cambridgeshire.
- Darlaston (between Walsall and Wolverhampton)
- Willenhall (between Walsall and Wolverhampton)
- Kings Heath (Camp Hill line, Birmingham)
- Moseley Village (Camp Hill line, Birmingham)
- Pineapple Road (Camp Hill line, Birmingham)
- Bedlington
- Northumberland Park (interchange with Tyne and Wear Metro)
- Cambridge South (Cambridgeshire) – Expected to open in June 2026, connecting the biomedical campus to London, Birmingham, Stansted, and Gatwick airports.
- Okehampton Interchange (Devon) – This new park and ride station, part of the Devon Metro plan, is planned to open in spring 2026.
- Magna (Rotherham) – A new tram-train and park & ride stop is due to open in early 2026.
- Darlington Station redevelopment (County Durham) – Major redevelopment works are “on target” for completion in spring 2026.
It looks to me, that Google AI made a good fist of my question.
Beaulieu Park Station – 30th October 2025
I went to Beaulieu Park station this morning and took these pictures.
Note.
Rail Line To Reopen After 60 Years In £120m Project
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
An Oxford railway line closed to passengers since 1963 is being reopened.
These three paragraphs add detail to the story.
The Cowley Branch Line is currently only used by freight going to and from the BMW Mini Plant, but new stations will be opened in Cowley and Littlemore in south-east Oxford.
The government has pledged £120m in funding, part of a £500m investment in infrastructure to link up Oxford and Cambridge and turn the region into the “European Silicon Valley”.
Anneliese Dodds, MP for East Oxford, said the Cowley Branch Line was “finally going to become a reality”.
Have the Government finally got the message that reopened branch lines are good for growth, like I believe the Dartmoor and Northumberland Lines have been?
The Wycombe Railway
The Cowley Branch Line was originally the Wycombe Railway and ran all the way via Thame, Princes Risborough, Saunderton, West Wycombe, High Wycombe, Marlow and Bourne End to Maidenhead station, as detailed by a map in its Wikipedia entry.
It looks to me, that this was a railway, that could have been developed, rather than closed.
I Shall Be Going To The Opening Of Blyth Bebside Station On Sunday, the 19th October
In Railway Station Opening Date Announced, I said that Blyth Bebside station will open on October 19th.
I intend to go and add my travel times, when I book tickets.
Should New Stations Be Shown On Google Maps With Opening Dates?
I recently posted a comment on The Times recently, where I suggested a guy was opening one of his coffee shops in a town, that was getting a new railway station.
Another, who commented, suggested that I look at Google Maps to see their relative positions.
The coffee shop was shown, but the station wasn’t.
Surely, once the position of the station is known, it should be marked on Google Maps with an opening date, as this could help people take important decisions about their life.
Blyth Bebside station on the new Northumberland Line between Newcastle and Ashington is already shown with the familiar logo, despite not opening until the 19th of October.
The other two unopened stations on the line, which are Northumberland Park and Bedlington, are going to open next year, are also shown with familiar logos, but no opening date.
Someone in Network Rail, needs to be given the responsibility to make sure that details like this are correct.
In the case of Blyth Bebside station, I can see two different captions indicating the station on Google Maps.
- Before October 19th 2025 – Blyth Bebside – Opens 19th Octopber 2025.
- After October 19th 2025 – Blyth Bebside – Opened 19th Octopber 2025.
Detailed labeling may even help deliveries during construction.
Leven Station – 15th May 2025
I was only at Leven station for a few minutes, but I was able to take these pictures.
Note.
- There are two platforms, one each side of a wide island.
- The platforms are 205 metres long.
- As four-car Class 385 trains are 93.3 metres long, each platform will be able to take a pair of four-car Class 385 trains.
- Will the station platforms be used to stable four trains overnight.
- The car park has 134 spaces.
- On approach to Leven station, there appears to be a crossover, which allows trains to use either platform.
From the Wikipedia entry for Leven station, it appears a second hourly service starts on the 18th May 2025, with services alternating between going via Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath.
It also appears that last night (17th May 2025) two trains spent the night in Platform 1 at Leven station.
In The Lack Of Information At Edinburgh Waverley Cost Me £55.10, I explain, why the chaos at Waverley station didn’t give me enough time to do more on Thursday.
Wigan Wallgate To Headbolt Lane – 10th May 2025
I was now running late and decided to go back to Liverpool via the Kirkby Branch Line, with a change of train at Headbolt Lane.
I took these pictures along the route.
Note.
- Wigan Wallgate station could be refurbished into a quality station.
- Manchester to Wigan Wallgate is likely to be electrified, as I wrote in Bolton-Wigan £78m Rail Electrification Project Announced.
- Headbolt Lane station is a new station.
- The other stations on the line are fairly rudimentary affairs.
- Only Headbolt Lane station is step-free, as all platforms are on the same level.
The Kirkby Branch Line runs across the flat Lancashire countryside.
This Google Map shows the unusual layout of Headbolt Lane station.
Note.
- Liverpool is to the South-West.
- Wigan and Manchester are to the North-East.
- The station buildings and the car parks are on the North side of the tracks.
- There are two platforms pointing towards Liverpool.
- There is a single platform pointing towards Wigan.
- There is a second track pointing towards Wigan, that has no platform.
- None of the tracks are electrified.
- Three red buffer stops can be picked out.
- Trains to Liverpool are run by battery-electric Class 777 multiple units.
- Trains to Wigan and Manchester are run by diesel multiple units.
All platforms are the same level and you can walk from one side of the station to the other between the buffer stops.
It is effectively a step-free three-platform station without lifts or escalators.
I have never seen another station like it!
Modernising The Route Between Wigan Wallgate And Headbolt Lane
Consider.
- With the exception of Headbolt Lane station, there is no step-free access on this line and that needs to be addressed.
- Wigan Wallgate station has an island platform, with steps to the street.
- With the exception of Headbolt Lane station, there is very little parking.
- The Class 150 diesel multiple units are forty years old.
The distance between Wigan Wallgate and Headbolt Lane stations is about 15 miles.
The Anonymous Widower 