Grange-over-Sands railway station

Grange-over-Sands is a railway station on the Furness Line, which runs between Barrow-in-Furness and Lancaster. The station, situated 15+1⁄2 miles (25 km) north-west of Lancaster, serves the town of Grange-over-Sands in Cumbria. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.

Grange-over-Sands
General information
Location	Grange-over-Sands, South Lakeland England
Coordinates	54°11′45″N 2°54′09″W
Grid reference	SD411781
Owned by	Network Rail
Managed by	Northern Trains
Platforms	2
Tracks	2
Other information
Station code	GOS
Classification	DfT category E
History
Original company	Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway
Pre-grouping	Furness Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway British Rail (London Midland Region)
Key dates
1 September 1857	Opened as Grange
1 June 1916	Renamed Grange-over-Sands
2 April 1923	Renamed Grange
1 October 1930	Renamed Grange-over-Sands
Passengers
2018/19	0.135 million
2019/20	0.158 million
2020/21	41,274
2021/22	0.132 million
2022/23	0.128 million
Listed Building – Grade II
Feature	Original Furness Railway station building
Designated	2 May 1975
Reference no.	1269659[1]
Location Grange-over-Sands Location in South Lakeland, Cumbria Show map of the former South Lakeland district Grange-over-Sands Location in Cumbria, England Show map of Cumbria
Notes Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

History

The station was opened as Grange on 1 September 1857 by the Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway.^[2][3]

The station was renamed several times, alternating between Grange and Grange-over-Sands, the current name being settled on by the London Midland and Scottish Railway in October 1930.^[3]

The station building was designed by the Lancaster architect E. G. Paley for the Furness Railway Company in about 1864.^[4]

Two camping coaches were positioned here by the London Midland Region from 1954 to 1964, and four coaches from 1965 to 1970.^[5]

At one time the line carried a very heavy industrial traffic to support the iron and steel industry of the Furness area, including coke from County Durham.

Location

The station is adjacent to the Grange-over-Sands Promenade which runs along the edge of Morecambe Bay (until the River Kent changed its course, it was alongside the promenade - it is now further out in the bay towards Arnside).

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Kents Bank		Northern Trains Furness Line		Arnside

Facilities

A Northern Class 158 calls with a service to Preston

The station booking office is on the "up" (Lancaster) platform and is staffed all week; the "down" (Barrow-in-Furness) platform features a second-hand book-shop named Oversands Bookshop. There is step-free access to both platforms.^[6] Digital information screens, customer help points and automatic announcements provide train running information.

There is a small car park at the station, and a bus-stop for local services. The X6 bus operated by Stagecoach also travels to Ulverston and Barrow (westbound) and Kendal (eastbound), departing every hour during the day.^[7]

The station was awarded 'Heritage Station of the Year' in 2012.

Services

Northern Trains Route 6
v t e
Cumbrian Coast, Furness & Windermere lines
Carlisle Dalston Wigton Aspatria Maryport Flimby Workington Harrington Parton Whitehaven Corkickle St Bees Nethertown Braystones Sellafield Seascale Drigg Ravenglass Bootle Silecroft Millom Green Road Foxfield Kirkby-in-Furness Askam Barrow-in-Furness Roose Dalton Ulverston Cark & Cartmel Kents Bank Grange-over-Sands Arnside Silverdale Carnforth Windermere Staveley Burneside Kendal Oxenholme Lake District Lancaster Preston Chorley Bolton Deansgate Manchester Oxford Road Manchester Piccadilly Manchester Airport
Braystones & Nethertown are request stops.

It is primarily served by local services from Lancaster to Barrow-in-Furness, with some continuing to Sellafield or Carlisle via the Cumbrian Coast Line. A number of southbound services run through to Preston and Manchester Airport. There is normally one train an hour in each direction on weekdays & Saturdays (with peak extras) and an hourly service on Sundays.^[8] Since the May 2018 timetable change, there is a Sunday service on the Cumbrian Coast and a handful of through trains operate (three each way - connections are available at Barrow at other times).

See also

• List of non-ecclesiastical works by E. G. Paley

References

1. Historic England. "Grange-Over-Sands Railway Station (Grade II) (1269659)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 14 March 2021.
2. Quick, Michael (2022) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (PDF). version 5.04. Railway & Canal Historical Society. p. 215. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 November 2022.
3. Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 108. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
4. Brandwood, Geoff; Austin, Tim; Hughes, John; Price, James (2012), The Architecture of Sharpe, Paley and Austin, Swindon: English Heritage, p. 221, ISBN 978-1-84802-049-8
5. McRae, Andrew (1997). British Railway Camping Coach Holidays: The 1930s & British Railways (London Midland Region). Vol. Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part One). Foxline. pp. 50 & 84–85. ISBN 1-870119-48-7.
6. Grange-over-Sands Station Details Northern Station pages; Retrieved 25 November 2016
7. "Stagecoach Bus X6".
8. GB eNRT May 2023 Edition, Table 100 (Network Rail)

External links

• Cumbria portal

• Media related to Grange-over-Sands railway station at Wikimedia Commons
• Train times and station information for Grange-over-Sands railway station from National Rail