History of the Peaks and Dales Railway
The Peaks and Dales Railway is part of the former Midland Mainline between Derby and Manchester, which ran through the Peak District National Park.
1840
First trains run between Derby and Ambergate.
1867
First trains ran along the whole route between Derby and Manchester.
Until 1923, the service was run by the Midland Railway.
1923-1948
During LMS ownership, the Peaks and Dales line was the direct route from London to Manchester and saw an express service called the Palatine (starting in Manchester), and its counterpart, the Peaks Express (starting in London), with stops on the Peaks and Dales line at Millers Dale and Matlock (image courtesy of Colin Boocock).
British Railways
Following Nationalisation in 1948, the Peaks and Dales line continued to see the Palatine and the Peaks Express trains until they were withdrawn in 1964.
BR also instigated the Midland Pullman (pictured - image courtesy of Colin Boocock) - with its striking blue trains - which ran from 1960 - 1966.
Beeching Report
A short-sighted report into the declining revenues and numbers of passengers on Britain’s railways, known as the Beeching Report, was published in 1963.
Devastating nationally, the effect on the Peaks and Dales line was the phased withdrawal of passenger services from the route between 1964 and 1967. Some freight services continued during this period, as the Beeching Report had recommended.
The line was eventually closed by the then Minister for Transport, Barbara Castle, in 1968.
Peak Rail
The country should be extraordinarily grateful to the visionary and far-sighted volunteers and supporters of Peak Rail for preserving so much of the Peaks and Dales line.
Their tireless dedication has ensured that heritage trains run between Matlock and Rowsley South, paving the way for a full reinstatement of the whole route.
Monsal Trail
Largely thanks to the Peak District National Park and its 9.9 million visitors each year, 8.5 miles of the track-bed between Blackwell Mill and Bakewell is also well-preserved and currently supports the Monsal Trail - which includes several former railway tunnels and the iconic railway viaduct at Monsal Head (pictured - image courtesy of Colin Boocock).
MEMRAP
Manchester and East Midlands Rail Action Partnership (MEMRAP) has been campaigning for the reinstatement of the Peaks and Dales line since 2018.
Peaks and Dales Railway is very pleased to be working with MEMRAP to promote the reinstatement of this vital piece of Britain’s railway infrastructure.
Please consider becoming a member of MEMRAP to help support our reinstatement proposals.