History
Grimsby Town was opened on 29 February 1848, when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway opened its line from New Holland to Grimsby.[1] It also served as the terminus of the later East Lincolnshire Railway to Boston, until the closure of the ELR line to passengers in October 1970 following the Beeching cuts.
On 13 November 1907 a fireman was killed in an accident at the station: while oiling his locomotive, five trucks were shunted on to the end of the train. The impact sent the train forward and the fireman was trapped in the machinery. He could not be rescued without the engine being reversed and backed to its original place, and this action resulted in him being mangled in the machinery and he was killed.[2]
In a collision on 15 July 1930, 32 people were injured when a train from New Holland crashed into an express train from Sheffield which was stationary in Grimsby Station.[3]
The station's main roof, covering platforms 1 and 2, was renewed from its original as-built form in 1978.[4]
The station was substantially refurbished by then-franchise owners First TransPennine Express between 2007 and 2008, which involved the internal refurbishment of the ticket office and waiting areas, and the installation of updated departure boards and customer information screens, and a new 'ATOS Anne' public address system.[citation needed]
In 2011 an overbridge was added to the eastern side of the station between platforms 1 and 2, which was opened by then-Great Grimsby MP Austin Mitchell on 19 July that year.[citation needed] The overbridge's integrated lifts permit step-free access to all three platforms.[5]
The Yarborough Hotel
The Yarborough Hotel, adjacent to the station building, was constructed in 1851 to serve the railway; and takes its name from the Earl of Yarborough, who was a director of the railway company. The hotel opened with the promise of being 'replete with every accommodation' and offering 'warm, cold and shower baths'.[6] It is now owned and operated as a pub, restaurant and hotel by JD Wetherspoon.[7]
Station facilities
Grimsby Town has three platforms, all of which can be accessed via step-free means:
- Platform 1 is the main eastbound through platform, and contains the ticket office, a small café, toilets, and a waiting room.
- Platform 2 is used mainly for westbound trains (but is also signalled for eastbound services if needed)[citation needed] and also contains a waiting room.
- Platform 3 is a terminal platform on the southern face of the station, and is used by East Midlands Railway trains to Leicester.[8]
A self-service ticket machine is also available in the station forecourt for purchasing tickets and collecting pre-paid tickets, and customer help points are available on platforms 1 and 2. The station also features a not-for-profit indoor bicycle parking and repair facility at the Cycle Hub (formerly the station's parcels office), which is accessible both from inside the station and from the station exterior.[9]
The station is part of the PlusBus scheme which, when purchased along with a train ticket, permits unlimited use of Stagecoach buses in the Grimsby and Cleethorpes urban area.[10] Buses do not call at the station itself, but instead call at the stops on nearby Bethlehem Street and the Riverhead bus interchange: there is also a taxi rank located on Station Approach.
Services
Services at Grimsby Town are operated by TransPennine Express, East Midlands Railway, and Northern Trains.
- TransPennine Express operate an hourly service calling at Grimsby Town, between Cleethorpes and Liverpool Lime Street,[11] using Class 185 DMU trains.
- Prior to May 2022 this service called at Manchester Airport and terminated at Manchester Piccadilly; however, following the May 2022 timetable change, the service was amended to remove the direct link to Manchester Airport, and to instead extend the service to call at Liverpool Lime Street. This followed a January 2021 consultation by the Department for Transport, in order to improve the reliability of railway services around Manchester.[12]
- East Midlands Railway operate two services which call at Grimsby Town, both of which are two-hourly (one train every two hours) and use Class 170 and Class 158 DMU trains:[8][13]
- A service between Grimsby Town and Leicester;
- A service between Cleethorpes and Barton-on-Humber, which during the winter months does not operate on Sundays.
- Northern Trains operate a single train per day between Cleethorpes and Sheffield, using Class 150 DMU trains;[14] which calls at Grimsby Town once in the morning while enroute to Cleethorpes, and once in the afternoon while enroute to Sheffield.[15]
Future services
London North Eastern Railway will commence direct services between Cleethorpes and London King's Cross (via Lincoln) in May 2024, using bi-mode Class 800 trains,[16] following the previous withdrawal of the region's direct services to London in 1992.
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