| Wharfedale line | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Class 333 at Milnerwood Junction in 2009 | |||
| Overview | |||
| Owner | Network Rail | ||
| Locale | West Yorkshire Yorkshire and the Humber | ||
| Service | |||
| Operator(s) | Northern Trains | ||
| Depot(s) | Neville Hill (On theLeeds to Selby Line | ||
| Rolling stock | British Rail Class 333 British Rail Class 331 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)standard gauge | ||
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| †not served by Wharfedale Line trains | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TheWharfedale line is one of the rail services in theWest Yorkshire Metro area of northern England. The service connectsIlkley withLeeds andBradford, and is operated byNorthern Trains.[1] West Yorkshire Metrocards are available for use on the line, covering Zones 3–5.[2] The line is served predominantly by four-coachClass 333electric multiple units as well as some three-coachClass 331 EMUs.[3]
The line was originally owned by theMidland Railway from Leeds toBurley-in-Wharfedale. At this point the line became joint property, with theNorth Eastern Railway, and was known as theOtley & Ilkley Joint Railway (O&IJt).[4] The two lines from Leeds and Bradford come together atEsholt Junction[5] – the location of an 1892crash[6] – south ofGuiseley.
The route fromLeeds leaves the main line nearCalverley and continues along theAire valley until climbing a hill to:
A new station,Kirkstall Forge, opened in 2016 on the Aire Valley section of the route between Leeds and Guiseley.[7][8] The station at Kirkstall Forge provides a service on the Wharfedale line outside of peak hours only.[9] Plans also exist to reinstate the O&IJt branch line toOtley fromMilner Wood Junction, between Menston and Burley.[10]
The first section of the route fromBradford Forster Square is also used by theAiredale andLeeds–Bradford lines. The service to Ilkley branches north ofShipleyrailway station to:
The line was electrified throughout using 25 kV AC Overhead[5] between 1994 and 1995 byBritish Rail.[11]The now-closed and liftedSkipton-Ilkley line continued west of Ilkley viaAddingham,Bolton Abbey and Embsay toSkipton. The section from Embsay to Bolton Abbey has been reopened by enthusiasts who operate steam locomotives as theEmbsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway.[12]
