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Penistone Station - A picture from the 1970s. The Woodhead Line electrification scheme continued for a short distance on to the Huddersfield line.
Dr Beeching's Axe
Former ICI boss Dr. Richard Beeching (Wiki) became the most famous (or infamous) Chairman of British Railways (BR) in the nineteen-sixties, during a time when the costs of running Britain's railways was spiralling out of control. His 1963 'The Reshaping of British Railways' report (The 'Beeching Report') recommended the closure of many railway lines in the country which were considered to be unviable. Once the lines or stations were closed, there was the possibility that they could never be re-opened or returned to railway use. (See the National Archives - The Beeching Axe for an overview)
For many years, Penistone Station had been an important junction, with its own cafe, toasty waiting room and in walking distance of the hotels and bars of Penistone. Unfortunately, the Manchester to Sheffield (via Penistone) Woodhead Line was not the only trans-Pennine passenger route on the railways and cuts were on their way. The passenger service on the Woodhead Line would receive the unwanted attention of 'Beeching's Axe', leaving only freight on the route.
The closure process was that Beeching did not actual close the lines but gave an opportunity for local communities and authorities to keep those lines open. Many did not respond and the closures proceeded. Local passengers would still have the Huddersfield to Sheffield route through Penistone.
Scheduled passenger trains between Manchester and Sheffield via Penistone ended in 1969. This was a bitter blow to the Penistone area but the Manchester - Sheffield passenger traffic had been in decline over a long time. On a personal note, as a regular traveller around this time to Manchester, I could recite the station names with ease: Hadfield, Dinting (for Glossop), Mottram, Godley, Guide Bridge, Gorton, Ashburys and Manchester Piccadilly (London Road).
The timetable shown above-right (click it for train times) was the last one designated for the Woodhead Line. It also included times for the alternative Trans-Pennine route which started from Sheffield Midland, through the scenic Hope Valley (about 20 miles south of Penistone) to terminate at Manchester Victoria.
Electrified Line
Although plans for the electrification of the Woodhead Line had started in 1935, and gantries were being fitted to the old Woodhead tunnel just before the war, the DC electrification system would take some more years to implement. The first hurdle was that the old 'up' and 'down' tunnels from the mid-19th century were now in very poor condition, with walls bulging in in some places. Following the end of the war, the new two-way tunnel would be built. It was opened with the pioneering electrified system in 1954.
The new system used a 1,500 Volts DC overhead catenary system, which was considered to be state-of-the-art at the time. The locomotives picked up power from the overhead cable with a pair of pantograph collectors, one at each end. They also employed regenerative braking which made them energy-efficient. There were some significant inclines on the Woodhead route where descending trains could use engine braking (using the electric motors as generators) to return some energy into the system towards that needed for those locomotives climbing the inclines. The current Sheffield Supertram uses a similar energy-recovery method. It worked well but was doomed in the end.
A 25kV AC system developed in France was gradually being adopted through most of Europe with the notable exception of Holland. It was easier to implement than DC as did not need as many electrical substations. The higher voltage could allow lower electrical losses in the overhead cables using the same principle as used by the National Grid, where electrical distribution is transformed to very high voltages to reduce the wastage (actually heat) due to the electrical resistance of long cables. For any given power being used, a higher voltage means less current, the calculation being Volts x Amps = Watts. Resistive losses in the electrical conductors relate to current alone, so a high current makes the cables get hot. Another way of looking at it is that the voltage loss is proportional to the current (amps) but that voltage loss is less important (a smaller percentage) when using a higher voltage.
After a time, the DC system became non-standard. The estimated £44m cost of upgrading the 1.5kv DC supply system and modifications to locomotives to the much higher voltage AC system introduced to other parts of the UK was deemed too expensive.
Although passenger services had been a long time finished on the Woodhead Line, on 21st April 1981, a specially-commissioned electric-hauled (76025) passenger train from Manchester to Sheffield passed through Penistone. It had been commissioned by The Locomotive Club of Great Britain (North West). This would be the last-ever passenger train to traverse the full Woodhead Line. Ref.: 'The Sheffield Star Railway Album' (2008), ISBN 978-1-84547-206-1, p 56.
By 1980, the line had been operating at about one-third capacity, with around 40 freight trains a day, with most of the later trains hauled by 'Deltic' locomotives. The last freight train on the line was 16th July, 1981. The Woodhead Line officially closed without due ceremony on 24th July 1981. The Dutch railways had used a similar DC system to the Woodhead Line and our locomotives would be sold on to them.
A competing Sheffield to Manchester line through the Hope Valley was able to take freight that might otherwise have travelled on the Woodhead Line and it also carried (still carries) passenger trains.
Sheffield Victoria
Following the demise of the Woodhead line to Manchester Piccadily, the line to Sheffield Victoria station would continue for a long time. Sheffield
Victoria station had a long steep approach road from near the River Don close
to where the Hilton Hotel is now.
Here are both sides of a half-ticket which I
purchased for a 'cheap day return.' The guard on the train would either tear it
in two or punch a 'V' - shaped notch in it. Mine was torn in two. The tickets were made of stout cardboard and the Penistone station ticket office had a punching machine that you could never quite see properly. The ticket officer would do something odd with his arm and the machine would make a peculiar noise which only made you more curious about how it worked.
In the 1970s, it became possible to buy tickets from High Street travel agents and other shops as easily as a ticket office. If memory serves, Smith's sweet shop (now the PO) on Market Street, Penistone, acted as a booking place for coach day trips, and could issue railway tickets.
After the demise of the Manchester end of the line, the Sheffield end was re-routed to Sheffield Midland station, after passing through the rather depressing sight of the old dilapidated Victoria station. Considering that the Sheffield Victoria to Dunford Bridge line had opened in July 1845, it was particularly sad to see the old disused station. The train would stop for a few minutes and change direction at Nunnery junction points, to reverse into the Midland Station.
The railway from Penistone used to go via Oughibridge (spelt Oughty Bridge when it had a station) and so on to Sheffield Victoria station, a quick journey. The 08:21 from Penistone would arrive at Sheffield Victoria at 08:36, taking just a quarter-hour.
In May 1983, the new route from Penistone to Sheffield Midland opened, following an old South Yorkshire Railway route. It operated via Oxspring viaduct, Barnsley and Elsecar to arrive at Sheffield Midland. An extra station was added in the nineties to give access to the Meadowhall shopping centre. Now the 08:41 train from Penistone would arrive at Barnsley station at 08:57 and finally arrive at Sheffield Midland station at 09:28, taking 47 minutes from Penistone to Sheffield.
Much of the old Woodhead Line fell out of use and would ultimately become the current Trans-Pennine Trail for recreational use. Work started on the trail in 1999, ready for the millennium. The Woodhead tunnels would be re-used for electrical power conductors in the National Grid.
Youtube
'The Disused Woodhead Line' - Some walking and drone views of Penistone Station and Woodhead by 'Borders and Beeching.'
Groucho Marx - 'I never forget a face, but in your case I'll be glad to make an exception.'