Sileby railway station

52°43′52.42″N 1°6′34.42″W / 52.7312278°N 1.1095611°W / 52.7312278; -1.1095611

Sileby
National Rail
General information
LocationSileby, Charnwood
England
Grid referenceSK602151
Managed byEast Midlands Railway
Platforms2
Tracks4
Other information
Station codeSIL
ClassificationDfT category F2
Key dates
1840Opened
4 March 1968Closed
27 May 1994Reopened
Passengers
2018/19Increase 127,642
2019/20Decrease 124,242
2020/21Decrease 28,462
2021/22Increase 72,410
2022/23Increase 109,414
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Sileby railway station serves the industrial village of Sileby in Leicestershire, England. The station is located on the Midland Main Line, 106 miles 50 chains (171.6 km) north of London St Pancras.

History

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The original station was built in 1840 for the Midland Counties Railway, which in 1844 joined the North Midland Railway and the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway to form the Midland Railway.[1]

The line cut the village in two connecting the halves with a substantial stone bridge.

There were complaints from local residents about the facilities provided at the station. In 1897 the parish council were petitioning the company for improvements, but the Midland Railway company were resistant.[2] By 1910 the council raised a petition to the company to resolve five issues[3]

  • The dangerous level crossing, stating the several accidents had been narrowly avoided.
  • The need of better accommodation for vehicular traffic. The number of vehicles using the station had increased and blocking of the road, especially by milk carts, was a danger as well as an inconvenience
  • The want of a comfortable waiting room on the up platform. There was only an open shelter with no provision for a fire in cold weather.
  • The lowness of the platforms, which were thought to be the cause of a passenger suffering a fractured ankle when alighting from a train.
  • The need for an entrance from Brook Street.

This time the council were more successful as early in 1912 they received a letter from the Railway Company confirming the improvements which would be made.[4]

  • Access from King Street to the up platform without passengers having to cross the running lines.
  • Improved vehicular access to the station
  • The additional waiting room
  • Raising and lengthening the platforms
  • Footpath access from Brook Street.
 
Down empties south of Sileby in 1962

The platform structures were of timber construction and very little remains of the original station apart from the station house.[5]

It reopened on 27 May 1994 as part of phase one of the Ivanhoe Line.

Station masters

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  • William F. Jacques until 1861[6]
  • Benjamin Preston 1861 - 1874[7]
  • W. Mee 1874 - 1876[7]
  • Eli Crofts 1876[7] - 1888
  • William J. Martin 1888 - 1892
  • Walter George Fudge 1892 - 1898[8] (formerly station master at Wixford, afterwards station master at Wigston Magna)
  • Henry Dring 1898 - 1907
  • Thomas William Bloore 1907 - 1915[9]
  • Edward Arnold ca. 1920 (afterwards station master at Whittington Moor)
  • Arthur Fourt 1922[10] - ???? (formerly station master at Borrowash)
  • J.W. Flint 1937[11] - ????

Facilities

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The station is unstaffed and facilities are limited although there is a self-service ticket machine for ticket purchases and shelters on both platforms.[12]

Step-free access is not available to either of the platforms at the station.

Services

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All services at Sileby are operated by East Midlands Railway using Class 158 and 170 DMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[13][14]

Fast trains on the Midland Main Line pass by the station but do not stop.

The station is closed on Sundays.

Preceding station   National Rail Following station
East Midlands Railway
Ivanhoe Line
Monday-Saturday only

References

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  1. ^ Higginson, M, (1989) The Midland Counties Railway: A Pictorial Survey, Derby: Midland Railway Trust.
  2. ^ "Sileby Parish Council". Leicester Chronicle. England. 30 October 1897. Retrieved 10 February 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  3. ^ "Sileby Parish Council. Suggested improvements at the Railway Station". Uppingham News. England. 24 November 1910. Retrieved 10 February 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. ^ "Sileby Railway Station". Leicester Daily Post. England. 23 February 1912. Retrieved 10 February 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  5. ^ Radford, B., (1983) Midland Line Memories: a Pictorial History of the Midland Railway Main Line Between London (St Pancras) & Derby London: Bloomsbury Books
  6. ^ "1859-1866". Midland Railway Miscellaneous Depts: 147. 1914. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  7. ^ a b c "1871-1879 Coaching". Midland Railway Operating, Traffic and Coaching Depts: 459. 1871. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  8. ^ "Sileby". Leicester Chronicle. England. 12 March 1898. Retrieved 9 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ^ "Sileby". Melton Mowbray Mercury and Oakham and Uppingham News. England. 25 March 1915. Retrieved 9 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ^ "Borrowash". Derby Daily Telegraph. England. 13 December 1922. Retrieved 9 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  11. ^ "L.M.S. Appointments". Nottingham Evening Post. England. 17 June 1937. Retrieved 9 March 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  12. ^ "Sileby station information". East Midlands Railway. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  13. ^ Table 53 National Rail timetable, May 2020
  14. ^ "May 2021 Timetable Changes - Sileby". East Midlands Railway. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
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