The Shadows of Beeching's cuts: How 1960s rail decisions still reshape Yorkshire's tracks

In the early 1960s, Richard Beeching was appointed to British Railways in order to improve fortunes. He felt that a good deal of the losses was the result of unprofitable lines leftover from the development of the railways.

His report, The Reshaping of British Railways, appeared in March 1963 and called for 6,000 miles of lines with over 2,000 stations to close. Yorkshire’s railways were affected by the changes as much as anywhere in the country.

Nine years earlier, The ‘Modernisation Plan’, had been published by the British Transport Commission. It was commissioned as part of an attempt to stem the losses felt by British Railways due to competition from road and air traffic.

It called for £1.2 billion to be loaned by the Government and was largely for: the replacement of the steam fleet with new diesel locomotives, improved carriages and wagons, complete reorganisation of freight yards, resignalling and track improvement, and reconstruction of some stations.

In 1955, BR began the Pilot Scheme for diesel locomotives, ordering a number of Types according to power classifications. Also, several classes of Diesel Multiple Units were authorised for construction, with some tailored for specific areas.

In the early 1960s, Richard Beeching was appointed to British Railways in order to improve fortunes. He felt that a good deal of the losses was the result of unprofitable lines leftover from the development of the railways. His report ‘The Reshaping of British Railways’, appeared in March 1963 and called for 6,000 miles of lines with over 2,00 stations to close.

Yorkshire’s railways were affected by the changes as much as anywhere in the country. Many of the new diesel locomotives were seen at work around the county on both passenger and freight duties. Often, they worked alongside steam locomotives.

The Hunslet Engine Co., Leeds, built nearly 70 diesel shunters (Class 05) for use in the Eastern Region and Scotland. These later became surplus to requirements whilst Type 1 diesel hydraulic shunters unwanted by the Western Region were sent to the Hull area briefly before their own withdrawal.

Some unique diesel electric locomotives were present in Yorkshire for a time. English Electric Type 5 no. DP1 Deltic was originally tested on the West Coast Main Line but rejected in favour of electrification and transferred to the Eastern region. Yorkshire Post photographers took pictures of the unique locomotive in certain areas of the county: Leeds, Wakefield and Skipton. The authorities were impressed and ordered a small group (Class 55) that was used on expresses. English Electric Type 4 no. DP2 had similar story and was the forerunner of the Class 50. The locomotive’s career ended prematurely in Yorkshire following a serious rail crash at Thirsk during 1967.

The last steam locomotive was built at Doncaster Works in 1957 and the final repair took place in 1963. Switching over to maintenance of the new diesel fleet necessitated reorganisation of the workshops and several changed roles, such as the creation of a glass fibre shop. As part of the switchover, a test house was built at the works in 1965. The building had two roads capable of handling 4,000 horsepower locomotives at full load to ascertain all systems were functional before sent to traffic. Doncaster Works built 40 out of the 100 AL6 electric locomotives that were used on the West Coast Main Line. Quite a large number of steam locomotives were scrapped in Doncaster throughout the late 1950s and into the 1960s.

Many branches and connecting lines were closed across Yorkshire and a number of stations made redundant. Ben Brooksbank, railway photographer and former Senior Researcher for the British Medical Council, captured many Yorkshire stations before their demise. These included ones at Bawtry, Carnaby, Bainton, and Birdwell & Hoyland Common. The approx. 16 miles between Market Weighton and Driffield were joined by a railway in 1890. Bainton station was the penultimate stop northbound to Driffield. According to disused-stations.org.uk, Bainton station closed to passenger on September 9, 1954 and closed completely January 1, 1964. Ben Brooksbank pointed his camera at the station on April 18, 1961.

Leeds had two stations and the decision was made to concentrate services at Leeds City, resulting in the closure of Leeds Central on Saturday, 29 April 1967. Similarly, Sheffield Midland was favoured over Sheffield Victoria, despite the Woodhead electrification scheme carried out in the 1950s, and closed in the late 1960s.

Yorkshire Post photographers were busy at various locations around the county during the changeover period. A view was taken inside Leeds Marsh Lane signal box in 1951 with the signalman and train recorder. One of around 40 boxes used across Leeds, Marsh Lane was an early closure when resignalling occurred in the mid-1960s. The box was near Marsh Lane goods station and had levers on either side of the room.

Whereas BR quickly switched over to diesel shunters, Yorkshire’s colliery locomotives remained steam operated for a number of years – into the 1970s and 1980s. Noted transport photographers Bill Reed, Geoff Warnes and John Law took pictures of steam locomotives still in use at Askern, Cadeby, Peckfield, Manvers, South Kirkby and Wheldale collieries. John Law’s picture at Edlington’s Yorkshire Main colliery shows Hudswell Clark locomotive Eddie. Built in 1916, it arrived at the colliery from Scunthorpe Steel Works in 1950, and was employed to 1972 when scrapped at Edlington.

Several types of DMUs arrived in Yorkshire such as Classes 101, 105, 108, 110 and 114. The Class 110 was specifically intended to operate between Yorkshire and Lancashire. The influx of the new diesels and DMUs resulted in the closure of many steam sheds in the 1950s and 1960s. A few were converted, such as Leeds Holbeck, for diesels and Bradford Hammerton Street for DMUs. Knottingley shed was built specifically to service diesel locomotives working to several nearby power stations.

As part of the Modernisation Plan, improvements were identified as being necessary in the Sheffield area. Traffic to the steel works and associated industries accounted for 10% of the nation’s freight movement and a new marshalling yard was planned at Tinsley, as well as servicing facilities for visiting locomotives. Opened in April 1964, Tinsley depot was home to a large range of locomotives for local and national traffic. Tinsley Marshalling Yard was ready by October 1965 and on the 29th was opened by Dr Richard Beeching. Initially, 3,000 wagons could be handled daily. Healey Mills was a similar facility opened near Ossett for east/west traffic, also during the 1960s.

Before the demise of steam on BR in 1968 quite a few steam specials were organised, particularly by the Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. On June 23, 1957, the Society called at Easingwold station, passengers being conveyed in goods wagons. From the 1920s and 1930s, passenger traffic had declined on the branch, extending from Alne, and when goods followed suit in the 1950s, closure soon occurred.

The RCTS’s ‘South Yorkshireman No. 5 Rail Tour’, which took place on October 23, 1965, was photographed by Geoff Warnes during a pause to change engines at Wrangbrook Junction. Steam locomotive no. 48202 began the day at Leeds and worked via Wakefield and Cudworth to Wrangbrook Junction where a diesel no. D5561 took over. The locomotive then used the South Yorkshire joint Line to head southward via Rotherham and Darnall to Shireoaks. Later, the tour took the SYJR to Doncaster, then returning to Leeds.

The 1950s and 1960s were a challenging time for the railways and the decisions made then are still felt today. Some routes have reopened or new stations provided where the original was culled by Dr Beeching, whilst locals campaign for lines to be reinstated owing to growth of the area in the meantime. A small number of lines were rescued, like the North Yorkshire Moors Railway between Whitby and Pickering, to celebrate the history of the railways. Both steam and diesel locomotives have been saved and work together just as they did in the important transitional period between the Modernisation Plan and the end of steam traction.

Yorkshire Railways from Steam to Modern Traction by Peter Tuffrey is available from www.ypbookoffer.co.uk or call 01274 735056.