Railways around Peterborough and The National Rail Network & Heritage railways in the UK
UK National railway
ukrailways1970tilltoday.me.uk
The Peterborough To Leicester Railway Line
About
Peterborough to Leicester
Heritage Railways
About The Peterborough to Leicester line
These pages on this part of this website are about this line outside of Peterborough and Leicester. Both Peterborough and Leicester have there own web pages. This page is not a full history.
The line has now been made ready for the larger containers. This work required bridges and line side signals to be raised or moved. The track has been upgraded and trains can now run faster.
Most passenger trains are 170 or 158 units from Birmingham via Leicester to Peterborough March Ely and Cambridge and on to Stanstead airport. Container trains and stone hoppers and Ballast are the main freight trains.
Class 45 on a train of coal in a mixture of 16T open and 20T hoppers from Stamford into Peterborough in BR days. It has just come under Westwood Bridge and is about to come under Spittle Bridge. The line to Helpston runs along side the ECML
Near Spittle Bridge in Peterborough was an engine shed were the Midland and later LMS steam engines used on this line were housed at Peterborough. This shed was were the power signal box is now.
For more on Peterborough railways, this web site has many pages
| Perborough 1970s till 1999 (BR) | Peterborough 2000 till 2013 | Peterborough 2014 till today |
Peterborough to Helpston
This Midland later LMS line leaves Peterborough station as two separate tracks along side the ECML till Helpston when it heads for Stamford.There were separate Midland later LMS signal boxes and crossing gates on this section. Today (2009) the down track as far as Helpston is also used as the Down Slow for the ECML and is wired. The up track has no wires as the ECML up trains do not use this line as it has a up slow.
Class 31 past the site of Walton station on the Peterborough to Leicester line
Walton
There was a small station at Walton with platforms on the Midland line only. Walton was on the edge of Peterborough then. This station closed in the early 1950s. There were two signal boxes and two sets of gates at Walton, One Midland box and a small GNR box for the ECML. The crossing has been closed and part of the road is still left at the time the above was taken. Both the signal boxes had been replaced with the gate box above. when the road closed the gate box was also closed leaving just the concrete foot bridge.
...
Werrington
There was a level crossing at Werrington but it now just has a foot bridge as the road was closed.
...
Helpston
Helpston had a station that is now closed with platforms on this line only. There is still a GN signal box at Helpston between this line and the ECML. This is now just a gate box and works one set the lifting barriers for both lines. There was also a MR signal box here, and was also in between the two lines but on the other side of the road next to the Peterborough to Leicester line.
...
Uffington
There is still a signal box at Uffington in 2014.
....
Stamford
Stamford is the next station still open along this line. Stamford has its own pages
Ketton
The Ketton cement works has a short freight only branch which is still open in 2014 Class 66s are used today on these cement trains today.
Ketton village has a Ketton signal box and level crossing. There was a station at Ketton .
....
North Luffenham
Luffenham used to have a station. Luffenham now has only a level crossing
....
Manton Junction
Manton used to have a station it now just has a signal box Manton junction
The line to Corby and Kettering leaves the Peterborough line at Manton junction which is controlled by Manton Junction signal box
At Manton junction freight to and from the line to Corby and Kettering also use the line to Syston Junction . Freight trains sometimes use the line to miss out Leicester. Corby steel works use to make lots of traffic for the line with iron ore in and and finished steel trains. There are still a few trains from Corby but little is now left of the once huge steel works at Corby
...
Oakham
The town of Oakhan has a station and most passenger trains stop here
....
Langham Juction
There is still a signal box at Langham
Cottesmore Branch
A branch ran to the iron ore quarries at Cottesmore. This line closed in 1974. Part of which was reopened as The Rutland Railway Museum. This has now been renamed as Rocks by Rail
Ashwell
Ashwell now has only a level crossing and signal box
....
Whissendine
Whissendine now has only a level crossing and signal box.
....
Melton Mowbray
Melton Mowbray has a station and a signal box
There is a railway Test track just to the west of the Melton Mowbray station. Some trains used the station sidings to clear the line be for gaining access to the line, The junction being west facing and trains to be tested often coming from Derby.
Frisby station signal box
There was a station at Frisby with the signal box being the only clue.
Syston Junction
Syston South Junction signal box when it was open.
Photo taken from a train.
Syston Junction is north of Leicester. It is on the MML from Leicester To Nottingham. Syston Junction is a triangular junction. Syston station is now re opened but is not used by Peterborough Leicester trains or the Midland Main Line trains. It is only used by local Leicester To Nottingham trains.
The signal boxes at Syston went in the early 1980s
....
Leicester
Midland Mainline HST in Leicester station.
All of the Leicester to Peterborough passenger trains stop at Leicester station. This large station is on the Midland Main line from London to Sheffield
