Coventry to Leamington Line
| Coventry to Leamington Line | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Overview | |
| System | National Rail |
| Status | Operational |
| Locale | West Midlands (region) |
| Termini | Coventry Leamington Spa |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 1851 |
| Owner | Network Rail |
| Operator(s) | CrossCountry |
| Rolling stock |
Class 220 Class 221 |
| Technical | |
| Number of tracks | 1-2 |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
The Coventry to Leamington Line is a railway line linking the city of Coventry with the town of Leamington Spa. The line was opened in 1844 by the London and Birmingham Railway, initially only as far as Milverton. The line was extended to Leamington Spa Avenue in 1851. A connecting line to Berkswell opened in 1884.
Late in the 19th century most of the route was doubled to increase capacity. Only a small section just outside Kenilworth, at Gibbet Hill, remained single track.
The line currently serves two stations: Leamington Spa and Coventry with CrossCountry services. Formerly there were two more railway stations along the route, both of which were closed in 1965 as a result of Reshaping of British Railways report.
In 2013, the line was scheduled to be re-doubled and electrified as part of the Electric Spine project.
Previously, in 1977 the Parliamentary Select Committee on Nationalised Industries recommended considering electrification of more of Britain's rail network, and by 1979 BR presented a range of options to electrifying numerous routes by 2000. Some of these options included the Coventry to Leamington line as part of a scheme to electrify the Cherwell Valley Line and the Banbury — Birmingham section of what is now the Chiltern Main Line. Under the 1979–90 Conservative governments that succeeded the 1976–79 Labour government the proposal was not implemented.
Today most of the line is single track which limits the number of services using it. What remains of double track includes a passing loop at Kenilworth, and the lines out from Coventry and Leamington Spa to Gibbet Hill Junction and Milverton respectively, the former being extended back from Park Junction (now removed) on 29 August 2007 by 1.75 miles (2.8 km).
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