The Aln Valley Railway is a preserved railway which runs along the route of the former Alnwick to Allmouth Branch line.
Aln Valley Railway - Aln Valley Railway
The East Coast main line between London and Edinburgh was constructed in the 1840's. Sections were completed in sections by various companies. The York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway (YN&BR) was an English railway company formed in 1847 by the amalgamation of the York and Newcastle Railway and the Newcastle and Berwick Railway.
The section between Morpeth and Chathill was opened on 1st July 1847, the route bypassing Alnwick. The original plan was to route through Alnwick, however the Duke of Northumberland objected. As the railways gained greater prominence, the Duke decided that would be appropriate that Alnwick had a station. A branch line was constructed between between Alnwck and Alnmouth opening 5th August 1850.
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| Alnwick Station 1887 |
The Branch flourished and by 1911 there were 45 passenger trains a day over the Alnwick to Alnmouth. The Branch was also busy with freight traffic.
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| Alnwick Station |
As the century progressed and road traffic increased, passenger and freight traffic declined. The Branch closed to Passenger services 29th January 1968, and goods services 7th October 1968.
Plans for a preserved railway to run over the branch were launched in 1997. The project would have required bridging the the A1 dual carriageway to the east of Alnwick, but insufficient funding was obtained to do so. It was therefore decided to build a new station on a greenfield site in Lloyd’s Field, adjacent to the Lionheart Enterprise Park just outside Alnwick.
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| Lionheart Station |
The plan is to extend the line to Alnmouth. Currently the line terminates at short of Alnmouth at a station built by the Aln Valley Railway, Greenrig.