As construction work at our Ashington station is nearing completion, we thought we’d take the opportunity to look back at the old station and re-create some historic images. We’d like to thank local rail historian Ed Orwin for his help and allowing us to use images from his collection.
The station first opened in June 1878 and for its first 12 years, was known as Hirst for Ashington. The station remained open until the 2nd November 1964, with the last train running late in the evening on Saturday 30th October.
Back in 1887, a journey from Hirst to Newcastle would have taken 1 hour and 3 minutes on the train. When the Northumberland Line opens in Summer 2024, that same journey to Newcastle Central Station will only take you 35 minutes.
Staying in 1887, there were 5 trains each weekday from Hirst to Newcastle. When the Northumberland Line opens in Summer 2024, we’ll have 32 trains each weekday – a huge improvement in both frequency and journey time.
Ashington station enjoyed it’s busiest year in 1911, with 257,883 journeys starting from the town. The development of the local bus network in the early 1920’s started to erode the number of passengers using the line as the buses were more frequent to many of the local communities. By 1951, those passenger journeys had dropped to just 39,778 in that year. When the line was reviewed for closure in early 1964, it was identified that there were only 54 regular users of the station.
Your new Ashington station is really taking shape and it will feature:
Full access to people with reduced mobility
249 Parking Spaces (of which 16 spaces will be for Blue Badge Users & 14 spaces for EV Charging)
Bike Storage
CCTV Cameras
Seating and Shelter
Ticket Machines
Audio Frequency Induction Loops
Audio & Visual Information on Train departures and arrivals