Bedford
Bedford station, looking north in March 2024
General information
Location	Bedford,Borough of Bedford England
Coordinates	52°08′11″N00°28′46″W / 52.13639°N 0.47944°W /52.13639; -0.47944
Grid reference	TL041497
Managed by	Govia Thameslink Railway
Platforms	5
Tracks	6
Other information
Station code	BDM
Classification	DfT category C1
History
Original company	Midland Railway
Pre-grouping	Midland Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
1 February 1859 (1859-02-01)	Opened asBedford
1890	Avoiding lines built
2 June 1924	RenamedBedford Midland Road
8 May 1978	RenamedBedford Midland
5 May 1988	RenamedBedford
Passengers
2019/20	3.870 million
Interchange	54,944
2020/21	0.837 million
Interchange	10,947
2021/22	2.324 million
Interchange	29,922
2022/23	3.036 million
Interchange	40,131
2023/24	3.247 million
Interchange	41,248
Location
Notes Passenger statistics from theOffice of Rail and Road

Bedford railway station (formerlyBedford Midland Road and historically referred to on some signage asBedford Midland) is the larger of two railway stations in the town ofBedford, inBedfordshire, England. It is on theMidland Main Line, which connectsLondon St Pancras with theEast Midlands, and is the terminus of theMarston Vale line betweenBletchley andBedford St Johns.

The original station was built by theMidland Railway in 1859 on its line to theGreat Northern atHitchin. It was on land known as "Freemen's Common", approximately 200 yards (180 m) south of the current station on Ashburnham Road.

TheLondon and North Western Railway (LNWR) also had a station on its line betweenBletchley andCambridge. The Midland crossed it on the level and there was a serious collision when an LNWR train passed a red signal; curiously, both drivers were named John Perkins. Following this accident, the Midland built a flyover in 1885.^[1]

The extension toSt Pancras opened in 1868. The connection toHitchin ceased public services during 1961, but the line north of Bedford to Wigston Junction is still officially referred to as the Leicester to Hitchin line.^[2] At this time, the station was substantially altered, with the replacement of a level crossing by the Queen's Park overbridge. In 1890, fast lines were added to the west to allow expresses to bypass the station.

Serious damage occurred duringWorld War II when a bomb destroyed the booking hall's glass ceiling. The current station was built to replace it and was opened bySir Peter Parker (chairman ofBR) on 9 October 1978.^[3][4] The £1 million station, which was resited about 110 yards (100 m) north of the original 1857 station, had a large square concourse housing a ticket office, travel centre andTravellers Fare buffet.^[4] The station car park was enlarged to cater for 450 cars plus 52 short-wait spaces in the forecourt which had separate areas for cars and taxis to set down and pick up passengers.^[4] A covered walkway linked the station with bus stops in Ashburnham Road.^[4] As part of the modernisation work, the slow lines were realigned to the west next to the 1890 fast lines to pass between two new platforms.^[4]

Although the intention was for what remained of the old awnings to be transferred to theMidland Railway atButterley inDerbyshire, it proved impossible to save them. Nothing remains of the original station buildings.

Services over the Marston Vale line to/fromBletchley were transferred here from the old LNWR St Johns station in May 1984. A new connection, which runs along the formation formerly used by the abandoned line to Hitchin (closed to passenger traffic from 1 January 1962 and completely three years later), was laid from the Marston Vale branch up to the main line to permit this. The original St Johns station closed on 14 May 1984, with a replacement halt on the new chord opening the same day.^[5] Bletchley trains henceforth used a bay platform (numbered 1A) on the eastern side of the station.

By 1983, Midland Main Line electrification under British Rail reached Bedford andClass 317electric multiple units began running toMoorgate. The track through platform 4 towards the East Midlands remained unelectrified until the 2020sMidland Main Line railway upgrade.

The station has the following facilities:^[6]

• Two waiting rooms
• Cafe/newsagent/bar and coffee bar
• Telephones
• Post box
• ATM
• Ticket machines
• Toilets
• Car park
• Fully wheelchair accessible
• Ticket barriers

It lies in the Bedford zone of thePlusBus scheme, where train and bus tickets can be bought together to save money.

The station is served by threetrain operating companies:

• East Midlands Railway operates services that call at Bedford under theLuton Airport Express brand. This service started in May 2021 asEMR Connect and is operated byClass 360electric multiple units running on the twice hourly stopping service from London St Pancras toCorby. Occasional inter-city services call at Bedford during peak hours and on Sunday mornings toLeicester andNottingham without requiring a connection atKettering.^[7]

• Govia Thameslink Railway operates most services to Bedord, using theThameslink route. The station is the northern terminus with services operating to Brighton, viaSt Albans City andLondon Blackfriars. Services from the station also call at Luton Airport Parkway and Gatwick Airport. Additional services start or terminate at Gatwick Airport orThree Bridges. Thameslink also runs a few services a day toSutton on theSutton Loop Line, via bothWimbledon andMitcham Junction.^[8]

• London Northwestern Railway operates local services to Bletchley via theMarston Vale line.^[9] There is no Sunday service on this line.^[10]

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:

• 2tph toBrighton viaGatwick Airport (Govia Thameslink Railway)
• 2tph toThree Bridges viaRedhill (Govia Thameslink Railway)
• 2tph toLondon St Pancras (East Midlands Railway)
• 2tph toCorby (East Midlands Railway)
• 1tph toBletchley (London Northwestern Railway)

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Wellingborough		East Midlands Railway London to Corby Connect		Luton
Terminus		Thameslink Thameslink		Flitwick
Bedford St Johns towardsBletchley		London Northwestern Railway Marston Vale Line Monday–Saturday only		Terminus
	Disused railways
Terminus		London, Midland and Scottish Railway Bedford–Hitchin line		Cardington Line and station closed
Turvey Line and station closed		London, Midland and Scottish Railway Bedford–Northampton line		Terminus
	Historical railways
Oakley Line open, station closed		Midland Railway Midland Main Line		Ampthill Line open, station closed
	Future Services
Bedford St Johns		East West Rail Oxford to Cambridge		Tempsford

v t e Railways in Bedfordshire
Legend
Midland Main Line toKettering &Leicester Northampton–Market Harborough line to Market Harborough Northampton & Peterborough Rly toStamford &Peterborough Brixworth Wellingborough Spratton Ditchford Merry Tom Halt(proposed) Wellingborough London Road Pitsford and Brampton Rushden Northampton & Lamport Railway Rushden, Higham & Wellingboro' Rly Boughton Higham Ferrers Northampton loop toRugby viaLong Buckby Irchester Northampton Castle Ashby & Earls Barton Northampton St. John's Street Billing Northampton Bridge Street Sharnbrook Tunnel West Coast Main Line toRugby viaStowe Hill tunnel Hunsbury Hill Tunnel Blisworth Sharnbrook Roade Geismar Depot Tiffield Piddington Stoke Bruern Salcey Forest Towcester East & West Jct Rly toFenny Compton &Stratford Olney Northampton & Banbury Jct Rly toBanbury Merton Street Turvey Castlethorpe Newport Pagnell Oakley Great Linford Wolverton works │ Bradwell Wolverton Wolverton & Stony Stratford Tramway Stony Stratford Old Stratford East Coast Main Line toHuntingdon &Peterborough Deanshanger Varsity Line toCambridge Milton Keynes Central Sandy Bedford East Coast Main Line toHitchin &London King's Cross Bedford Gas Company Girtford Halt River Ivel Blunham Bedford Cauldwell Walk depot Willington Bedford St Johns Kempston and Elstow Halt Bedford St Johns (former) Kempston Hardwick Cardington Wootton Broadmead Halt Southill Forders (Stewartby) Shefford Stewartby Henlow Camp Millbrook Bedford–Hitchin line toHitchin &London King's Cross Lidlington Ridgmont Lafarge Stone Terminal Husborne Crawley Halt Wixams(under construction) Aspley Guise Ampthill Woburn Sands Flitwick Bow Brickhill Harlington Fenny Stratford Leagrave Midland Main Line toLuton &London St Pancras Bletchley West Coast Main Line toLeighton Buzzard &London Euston Newton Longville Newton Longvillelandfill Varsity Line (East West Rail) toOxford

v t e Stations around Bedford
Legend
Midland Main Line Bedford Bedford station sidings River Great Ouse Bedford Cauldwell Walk depot Bedford St Johns Bedford St Johns (former) Varsity Line Bedford–Hitchin line Marston Vale line Midland Main Line

v t e East West Rail
Legend
Cherwell Valley line toDidcot &Reading Oxford Cherwell Valley line toBanbury Oxford Parkway Islip Bicester Military Rly Bicester Village Western Section Phase 1 Phase 2 Chiltern Mainline HS2 toEuston HS2 to Birmingham Interchange Winslow West Coast Main Line toEuston Bletchley Flyover Bletchley Fenny Stratford Milton Keynes Central Bow Brickhill West Coast Main Line toGlasgow Central Woburn Sands Aspley Guise Ridgmont Not all stations between Bletchley and Bedford are expected to be served by East West Rail services[11] Lidlington Millbrook Stewartby Kempston Hardwick Midland Main Line toSt Pancras Bedford St Johns Bedford Western Section Central Section Midland Main Line toSheffield East Coast Main Line toSandy &King's Cross Tempsford East Coast Main Line toSt Neots &Edinburgh Cambourne Cambridge line toHitchin West Anglia Main Line toLiverpool Street Cambridge South[nb 1] Cambridge Central Section Eastern Section Dullingham Cambridge North Newmarket Waterbeach Ipswich–Ely line (not to be used by EWR) Kennett Ely Bury St Edmunds Hereward Line toPeterborough Fen Line toKing's Lynn Thurston Shippea Hill Lakenheath Elmswell Brandon Thetford Not all stations between Cambridge and Great Yarmouth are expected to be served by East West Rail services[11] Harling Road Eccles Road Attleborough Spooner Row Wymondham Great Eastern Main Line (not to be used by EWR) Stowmarket Needham Market Norwich East Suffolk line toFelixstowe branch line Bittern Line Ipswich Brundall Gardens Mayflower line toHarwich Town Brundall Manningtree Great Eastern Main Line Lingwood Acle Great Yarmouth
^New station not directly linked to EWR scheme

In common with other stations on the Marston Vale line, Bedford station is covered by the Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership. It aims to increase use of the Marston Vale line by getting local people involved with their local line.

A second CRP with Bedford Midland as its northern terminus - the Beds & Herts Community Rail Partnership (formerly the Bedford to St Albans City Community Rail Partnership) - has been set up, covering the eight stations on the Midland Main Line between Bedford Midland and St Albans City^[12]

The station will be the eastern terminus for Phase 2 ofEast West Rail, a plan to reopen the railway betweenOxford andCambridge. As of April 2025^[update], extension to Cambridge via "a new station in theTempsford area" isplanned but not scheduled. According to the East West Rail Company, tracks will need to be laid through and to the north of the station; if approved, this will require compulsory acquisition of all or part of 66 properties on the northern approach.^[13]

• Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership

Wikimedia Commons has media related toBedford railway station.

• Train times andstation information for Bedford railway station fromNational Rail

• Buildings and structures in Bedford
• Railway stations in Bedfordshire
• DfT Category C1 stations
• Former Midland Railway stations
• Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1859
• Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway
• Railway stations served by Govia Thameslink Railway
• Railway stations served by West Midlands Trains
• 1859 establishments in England
• Transport in Bedford
• Train driver depots in England
• East West Rail

• Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from March 2015
• Use British English from March 2015
• All Wikipedia articles written in British English
• Coordinates on Wikidata
• Articles with OS grid coordinates
• Pages with no open date in Infobox station
• Articles containing potentially dated statements from April 2025
• All articles containing potentially dated statements
• Commons category link is on Wikidata
• Pages using the Kartographer extension