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Notes
	Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Location
	Heighington railway station Location in County Durham Heighington railway station Location in England Heighington railway station Location in the United Kingdom Heighington railway station Location in Europe

Heighington
Heighington
General information
Location	Heighington, County Durham; England
Coordinates	54°35′50″N 1°34′54″W / 54.5971091°N 1.5817510°W
Grid reference	NZ271224
Owned by	Network Rail
Managed by	Northern Trains
Platforms	2
Tracks	2
Other information
Station code	HEI
Classification	DfT category F2
History
Original company	Stockton and Darlington Railway
Pre-grouping	North Eastern Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway; British Rail (North Eastern Region);
Key dates
April 1826	Opened as Aycliffe Lane (horse-drawn)
1833	Operating 100% steam locomotives
1847	Renamed Aycliffe and Heighington
1 July 1871	Renamed Aycliffe
1 September 1874	Renamed Heighington
Passengers
2019/20	25,278
2020/21	11,626
2021/22	29,072
2022/23	35,028
2023/24	34,084
Location
Location
	Heighington railway station Location in County Durham Heighington railway station Location in England Heighington railway station Location in the United Kingdom Heighington railway station Location in Europe
Notes
Notes
	Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Heighington is a railway station on the Tees Valley Line, which runs between Bishop Auckland and Saltburn via Darlington. The station, situated 5 miles 62 chains (9.3 km) north-west of Darlington, serves the villages of Aycliffe and Heighington in County Durham, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains. It is possibly the world's first railway station, according to Historic England.

The station is on the Bishop Line^[1] which is a community railway from Bishop Auckland to Darlington.^[2] It is somewhat unusual in that its platforms are staggered, sited either side of a level crossing.^[3] The station has kept its listed manual signal box (which supervises the aforementioned crossing, the connection into the Hitachi plant and the single line section south of here through to Darlington), but this had its semaphore signals replaced by colour lights when the connection into the Hitachi factory was installed and commissioned in November 2014.^[4]

History

The station lies on the route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR), the first public railway to use locomotives and the first to carry passengers and mixed goods as part of its Act of Parliament, and so it is widely accepted as the first modern railway, providing a model which soon spread around the world. The station used horse-drawn coaches until 1833 when it became a fully steam traction railway like the Liverpool and Manchester Railway which opened in 1830.^[5]

It was here in 1825 that Locomotion No. 1, designed by George Stephenson, was placed on the track prior to its first journey.^[6] Once it was placed on the line and all was ready, it was found that nobody had means of lighting the boiler. Stephenson sent a messenger to get a lit lantern. However, at this point a navvy called Robert Metcalf stepped forward and offered use of his "burning glass" (a piece of glass similar to a magnifying glass) which he used to light his pipe. It was with this that Stephenson was able to light the boiler for that first journey.^[7]

The main line of the S&DR was opened on 27 September 1825 from Phoenix Colliery at Etherley to Stockton.^[8] Heighington Station was built in 1826 and opened in 1827 to meet the demand from passenger and railway users for facilities and in effect became the world's first railside station built by a railway company. Originally named Aycliffe Lane, it was subsequently renamed three times: first to Aycliffe and Heighington, later, on 1 July 1871, it became Aycliffe, although this name lasted for just over three years, because on 1 September 1874 it gained the present name of Heighington.^[9]

The grade II listed signal box was opened in 1872 and was originally commissioned by the North Eastern Railway Central Division. It is one of the earliest signal boxes in the country still in existence and it is believed that at the most only four pre-date it. The design was possibly by Thomas Prosser, the company's architect. The building fits the earliest Central Division design, which the Signalling Study Group classified as Type C1.^[6]

The original signal lever frame mechanism was replaced 1906. At the time of its inspection prior to gaining listed status in 2007 this 1906 mechanism was still in use. The lever frame was extended around 1912. The extension to both mechanism and building is believed to have been done in order to fit signalling controls for a new electrified line. The lever system was to the current 11 levers in 1987.^[6]

On the opposite side of the railway line are the Grade II* listed original station buildings dating from around 1826-27.^[10] The original design called for a public house which would act as a waiting room. The buildings no longer form part of the modern station and the pub, called the Locomotion Number 1, closed in 2017.^[11] A cobbled area outside the pub is believed to be part of the original 1825 station platform.^[10]

Since the closure of the pub in 2017, the site has become derelict, and has been affected by vandalism and criminal damage. After the failure of rescue attempts by local authorities, the Friends of the Stockton & Darlington Railway launched a fund-raising campaign to purchase and restore the station. In November 2024, Historic England placed the site on the Heritage at Risk Register.^[12]

Accidents and incidents

On 1 July 1828, the boiler of Locomotion No. 1 exploded, killing the driver.^[13]

Facilities

The station is unmanned and has a card-only ticket machine, so all passengers wanting to buy tickets with cash must buy on board the train or prior to travel. The amenities here were improved as part of the Tees Valley Metro project in 2013. The package for this station included new fully lit waiting shelters, renewed station signage, digital CIS displays and the installation of CCTV (all of the Tees Valley line stations apart from Teesside Airport and British Steel Redcar have been upgraded and provided with CIS displays).^[14] The long-line public-address system (PA) has been renewed and upgraded with pre-recorded train announcements. Running information can also be obtained by telephone and timetable poster boards. Step-free access is available to both platforms via ramps from the crossing.^[15]

Services

Northern Trains
Tees Valley Line

Bishop Auckland – Saltburn
via Darlington & Middlesbrough

					Bishop Auckland
					Shildon
					Newton Aycliffe
					Heighington
					North Road
					Darlington
					Dinsdale
					Allens West
					Eaglescliffe
					Thornaby
					Middlesbrough
					South Bank
					Redcar Central
					Redcar East
					Longbeck
					Marske
					Saltburn

As of the May 2021 timetable change, the station is served by an hourly service between Saltburn and Bishop Auckland via Darlington. All services are operated by Northern Trains.^[16]

Rolling stock used: Class 156 Super Sprinter and Class 158 Express Sprinter

Intercity Express Programme factory

The new Hitachi Intercity Express Programme train assembly plant was built not far from the station in the Aycliffe Business Park and opened in 2015.^[17] Work commenced on the £82 million facility in March 2014 and it was officially opened on 3 September 2015 by UK Prime Minister David Cameron.^[18] The factory has a rail connection to the running line controlled from the station signal box to allow for delivery of the new sets once completed (there are also 4.3 miles (7 km) of sidings and a 0.62 mi (1 km) long electrified test track within the plant).^[19] The new class 800/801 IEP sets will be built or fitted out here for use on the East Coast Main Line and Great Western Main Line, along with class 385 (AT200) commuter EMUs destined for use on Scottish suburban routes around Glasgow and Edinburgh.^[20]

References

^ "Heighington". Bishop Line.
^ "Bishop Community Rail Line". GOV.UK. 14 April 2020.
^ "Heighington railway station, County Durham - 2009 Thompson, N, Geograph.org; Retrieved 1 August 2018
^ "Hitachi's New Railway" Archived 1 August 2018 at the Wayback MachineRail Engineer news article 23 October 2014; Retrieved 1 August 2018
^ "The world's first railway station identified". 18 October 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c Historic England. "Heighington Signal Box (1391940)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
^ "Stockton to Darlington Railway". Hansard.
^ Allen, Cecil J. (1974) [1964]. The North Eastern Railway. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 24. ISBN 0-7110-0495-1.
^ Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. pp. 22, 117. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
^ ^a ^b Historic England. "The former Stockton and Darlington Railway's Heighington and Aycliffe Railway Station and attached workers' housing (1322808)". National Heritage List for England.
^ "World's oldest railway station needs £500,000 rescue after falling into 'shocking state'". The Telegraph.
^ White, Andrew (14 November 2024). "World's oldest railway station in County Durham is officially 'at risk'". The Northern Echo. Newsquest Media Group. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
^ Hewison, Christian H. (1983). Locomotive Boiler Explosions. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 26. ISBN 0-7153-8305-1.
^ "Report of meeting with Steve Payne, Tees Valley Unlimited" North East Coastliners news article 29 June 2015; Retrieved 17 February 2017
^ Heighington station facilities National Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 16 February 2017
^ "Train times: Bishop Auckland and Darlington to Middlesbrough and Saltburn" (PDF). Northern Trains. 16 May 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
^ "Newton Aycliffe's Hitachi train plant opens". BBC News. 3 September 2015.
^ Denholm-Hall, Rupert (3 September 2015). "Multi-million pound factory opens to produce trains of the future for the Great Western Mainline". Wales Online. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
^ Keighley, Tom (25 March 2015). "Hitachi Rail Europe's Newton Aycliffe train factory connected to national rail network". The Journal. Archived from the original on 1 August 2018. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
^ Hitachi's Class 385 Enters Service Archived 1 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine Shires, D, Rail Engineer news article 24 July 2018; Retrieved 1 August 2018

External links

Media related to Heighington railway station at Wikimedia Commons
Train times and station information for Heighington railway station from National Rail

Preceding station	National Rail		Following station
North Road		Northern Trains Tees Valley Line	Newton Aycliffe
	Historical railways
Darlington North Road		North Eastern Railway Stockton and Darlington Railway	Shildon

[1] "Heighington". Bishop Line.

[2] "Bishop Community Rail Line". GOV.UK. 14 April 2020.

[3] "Heighington railway station, County Durham - 2009 Thompson, N, Geograph.org; Retrieved 1 August 2018

[4] "Hitachi's New Railway" Archived 1 August 2018 at the Wayback MachineRail Engineer news article 23 October 2014; Retrieved 1 August 2018

[5] "The world's first railway station identified". 18 October 2023.

[:0-6] Historic England. "Heighington Signal Box (1391940)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 30 January 2018.

[7] "Stockton to Darlington Railway". Hansard.

[8] Allen, Cecil J. (1974) [1964]. The North Eastern Railway. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 24. ISBN 0-7110-0495-1.

[9] Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. pp. 22, 117. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.

[:1-10] Historic England. "The former Stockton and Darlington Railway's Heighington and Aycliffe Railway Station and attached workers' housing (1322808)". National Heritage List for England.

[11] "World's oldest railway station needs £500,000 rescue after falling into 'shocking state'". The Telegraph.

[12] White, Andrew (14 November 2024). "World's oldest railway station in County Durham is officially 'at risk'". The Northern Echo. Newsquest Media Group. Retrieved 14 November 2024.

[Hewison-13] Hewison, Christian H. (1983). Locomotive Boiler Explosions. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 26. ISBN 0-7153-8305-1.

[14] "Report of meeting with Steve Payne, Tees Valley Unlimited" North East Coastliners news article 29 June 2015; Retrieved 17 February 2017

[15] Heighington station facilities National Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 16 February 2017

[16] "Train times: Bishop Auckland and Darlington to Middlesbrough and Saltburn" (PDF). Northern Trains. 16 May 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2021.

[17] "Newton Aycliffe's Hitachi train plant opens". BBC News. 3 September 2015.

[18] Denholm-Hall, Rupert (3 September 2015). "Multi-million pound factory opens to produce trains of the future for the Great Western Mainline". Wales Online. Retrieved 13 December 2016.

[19] Keighley, Tom (25 March 2015). "Hitachi Rail Europe's Newton Aycliffe train factory connected to national rail network". The Journal. Archived from the original on 1 August 2018. Retrieved 13 December 2016.

[20] Hitachi's Class 385 Enters Service Archived 1 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine Shires, D, Rail Engineer news article 24 July 2018; Retrieved 1 August 2018

[North_Yorkshire-21] Stations in Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, and Stockton-on-Tees are considered part of North East England, while stations in the unitary areas of York and North Yorkshire are considered part of Yorkshire and the Humber.

[22] Stations in North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire are considered part of Yorkshire and the Humber, while all other stations are considered part of the East Midlands.

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PROFILPELAJAR.COM

Heighington railway station

History

Accidents and incidents

Facilities

Services

Intercity Express Programme factory

References

External links

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