Huddersfield railway station

Huddersfield railway station serves the town of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England.

The station is managed by First TransPennine Express, which provides trains between the North East, North and East Yorkshire, and Leeds to the east and Manchester Piccadilly and North West.

It is also served by local Northern Rail trains on the Huddersfield Line, between Leeds/Wakefield Westgate and Manchester Victoria station.

Additionally the Penistone Line to Sheffield (where the Midland Main Line is reached for services to Leicester and London) and more recently the Caldervale Line for trains towards Halifax and Bradford Interchange.

The station building
Designed by the architect James Pigott Pritchett and built by the firm of Joseph Kaye in 1846–50 using the neo-classical style, the station is well known in architectural circles for its classical-style facade, with a portico of the Corinthian order, consisting of six columns in width and two in depth, which dominates St George's Square. It faces out towards Lion Buildings. It is a grade I listed building. The station frontage was described by John Betjeman as the most splendid in England and by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as 'one of the best early railway stations in England'.

Two pubs are within the station frontage, to each side of the main entrance: The Head Of Steam and The King's Head (previously known as The Station Tavern). Both facilities are accessible from Platform 1. At the building's entrance, the booking office is to the left and to the right are the train timetables and a newsagent. Platforms 4 to 8 are located via a lift or subway, accessed from Platform 1. The public conveniences are located through this subway at the top of the steps to Platforms 4–8. The platforms are all covered by a large canopy. To the rear of the station are some sidings.

Location
The station is situated on St George's Square, which was refurbished in 2009. The square has been made a pedestrian zone. No automobile parking is available in front of the station entrance, but it is nearby on Brook Street.

The station is situated some distance from Huddersfield bus station, so interchange facilities are limited. The Huddersfield FreeCityBus connects the railway station with the bus station, as well as the University of Huddersfield and other areas of the town centre.



There are six platforms:
 * Platform 1 &mdash; Express services to Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Airport and Liverpool.
 * Platform 2 &mdash; Terminus platform for Penistone Line services to/from Sheffield.
 * Platform 4 &mdash; Stopping services to Leeds (4a) and Manchester Victoria (4b). (One evening train from Hull terminates at Platform 4a.)
 * Platforms 5 and 6 &mdash; Terminus platforms for local services to/from Leeds (via the Caldervale Line) and Wakefield Westgate.
 * Platform 8 &mdash; Express services to Leeds, Hull, York, Scarborough, Middlesbrough and Newcastle.

Development
In 2010, Network Rail and First TransPennine Express completed a series of improvements to the station in order to provide better access for passengers. This consisted of two new lifts, and a new staircase to the subway on Platform 1. The new staircase replaced the existing staircase inside the booking hall. As well as this each platform received new information screens.

In early 2011, further improvement works were carried out to the concourse and waiting area. This phase of improvements was funded by the Railway Heritage Trust, Metro, Kirklees council and the National Station’s Improvement Programme. The main purpose of this was to reduce bottlenecks at peak times as well as general crowding. The redundant stable block on Platform 1 was also turned into a staff training centre and toilets.

In May 2013, ticket barriers were installed at the station.

Services
During Monday to Friday daytimes, TransPennine Express operate hourly services to Newcastle (Journey time approx. 2 hours 10 mins), Hull (approx. 1 hour 20 mins), Scarborough (approx. 1 hour 45 mins) and Middlesbrough (approx. 2 hours 20 mins), all of which call at Leeds (approx. 20 mins), which creates a fast service every 15 minutes. These are supplemented by stopping MetroTrain services. There are four trains per hour to Manchester Piccadilly (approx. 35 mins); two continue to Manchester Airport (approx. 15 mins from Manchester Piccadilly); and another continues to Liverpool (approx. 50 mins from Manchester Piccadilly).

Northern Rail operates hourly services to Sheffield (approx. 1 hour 20 mins), Manchester Victoria (approx. 50 mins), Wakefield Westgate (approx 35 mins), Selby via Bradford Interchange (approx. 1 hour 40 mins) and Leeds (approx. 40 mins).

Steam trains
In keeping with the on-site Head of Steam railway pub, several steam trains still pass through Huddersfield station, including the Cotton Mill Express and the Scarborough Flyer.

On the disused side of Platform 2, an old carriage is bolted to the ground. Set in its window is a plaque commemorating 100 years of Steamtrain Hoorn Medemblik, a Dutch steam train.