Stevenage
The station in November 2021 looking north, with the new platform 5 on the far left
General information
Location	Stevenage, Borough of Stevenage England
Grid reference	TL234241
Owned by	Network Rail
Managed by	Great Northern
Platforms	5
Other information
Station code	SVG
Classification	DfT category C1
History
Opened	23 July 1973
Key dates
8 August 1850	Original station opened by GNR
22 July 1973	Station closed
23 July 1973	Relocated 73 chains(1.5km) south to present location and opened by BR
29 September 1973	Officially opened by Shirley Williams MP
Passengers
2018/19	4.795 million
Interchange	2.452 million
2019/20	4.634 million
Interchange	1.654 million
2020/21	1.228 million
Interchange	0.238 million
2021/22	3.385 million
Interchange	0.833 million
2022/23	4.050 million
Interchange	1.957 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Remains of old station

Stevenage railway station serves the town of Stevenage in Hertfordshire, England. The station is around 44.4 kilometres (27.6 miles) north of London King's Cross on the East Coast Main Line.^[1] Stevenage is served and managed by Great Northern, who operate Thameslink stopping services southbound to King’s Cross via stations such as Welwyn Garden City and Potters Bar, to Brighton and Horsham via central London and Gatwick Airport and to Moorgate via Watton-at-Stone, Hertford North and Enfield Chase and services northbound to Cambridge and Peterborough. It is also frequently served by London North Eastern Railway, who operate fast non-stopping services southbound towards London and northbound towards cities including York, Leeds and Edinburgh. Hull Trains and Lumo operate very limited services from the station.

The present station was opened for trains on 23 July 1973.^[2] It was officially opened on 26 September 1973 by Shirley Williams,^[3] then MP for Stevenage, replacing the previous station, which was 73 chains (1,500 m) to the north,^[1] and further away from the centre of the new town. The station was built by British Rail.

History

The original Stevenage railway station was built in 1850 by the Great Northern Railway, despite the apparent hostility towards the railway being built there at that time due to the inevitable decline it would cause to local coach businesses,^[4] which all ended shortly after the station was opened.

In 1946, Stevenage became one of the first New Towns, which resulted in a new town centre. In 1973, the railway station was relocated 73 chains (1.47 km) south, within walking distance (220 yd, 200 m) of the new town centre.^[5]

In 2021, a tactile map was installed, in collaboration with the Royal National Institute of Blind People, to help blind and partially sighted passengers navigate the station.^[6]

Facilities

The station has two separate ticket offices (Great Northern and London North Eastern Railway), but in practice, each also sells the other's tickets. There are also seven ticket machines. There are toilets at street level (but not on the platforms) and lifts from the station building to both platforms.

Southbound view of the station from Platform 2 in January 2015, before the construction of platform 5

The station also has automatic ticket barriers, which were installed by First Capital Connect (the previous train operator) shortly after it took over the route, as a revenue protection exercise, and to improve security at the station. There is a snack bar, at street level, and two coffee bars at platform level, with one per platform. The newsagent previously at street level closed in March 2014, pending the redevelopment of the station which has since been completed. Since December 2013, the previous train operator, First Capital Connect started refurbishing the station completely, introducing passenger lifts between platform and street level, and refurbishing the concourse area plus retail units. The works were due to be completed by April 2014, but were delayed. Since Great Northern took over the franchise in September 2014, these works have been completed.

Both island platforms have indoor waiting rooms that were refurbished in May 2012 as part of a wider scheme to refurbish and add waiting rooms across the Great Northern Route, and there is also outdoor seating along the length of the platforms.

The station is a short walk on a walkway from Stevenage Bus Station and is opposite a leisure complex that includes the Gordon Craig Theatre.

Services

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
London King's Cross		Great Northern London-Peterborough/Huntingdon (fast)		Biggleswade
Watton-at-Stone		Great Northern London-Stevenage		Terminus
London King's Cross		London North Eastern Railway London-North East & Scotland		Peterborough
London King's Cross		London North Eastern Railway London-Leeds and West Yorkshire		Peterborough
				Grantham
London King's Cross		Hull Trains London-Hull/Beverley		Grantham
Finsbury Park		Thameslink Horsham to Peterborough		Hitchin
Finsbury Park		Thameslink Brighton to Cambridge
Knebworth		Thameslink London to Cambridge
London King's Cross		Lumo London to Edinburgh		Newcastle

London North Eastern Railway

London North Eastern Railway
Inverness Carrbridge Aviemore Kingussie Newtonmore Blair Atholl Pitlochry Dunkeld & Birnam Perth Gleneagles Dunblane Stirling Falkirk Grahamston Aberdeen Stonehaven Montrose Arbroath Dundee Leuchars Kirkcaldy Inverkeithing Glasgow Central Motherwell Haymarket Edinburgh Waverley Dunbar Reston Berwick-upon-Tweed Alnmouth Morpeth Sunderland Newcastle Durham Darlington Middlesbrough Thornaby Northallerton Skipton Keighley Bradford Forster Square York Shipley Harrogate Horsforth Hull Paragon Brough Selby Leeds Wakefield Westgate Doncaster Retford Lincoln Newark Northgate Grantham Peterborough Stevenage London King's Cross

London North Eastern Railway generally serve Stevenage with two trains per hour in each direction during the day. The station is served by an hourly service between London King's Cross and Leeds, with a train every two hours continuing to Harrogate. The station is also served by an hourly service from London King's Cross, alternating northbound between terminating at Lincoln or York via Retford.^[9]

During the peak hours, a small number of the services to Leeds are extended to and from Bradford Forster Square.

The station is also served by a small number of early morning and late evening services to and from Newcastle and Edinburgh Waverley.

Services are operated using Class 800 bi-mode trains and Class 801 EMUs.

Hull Trains

Hull Trains: Beverley & Hull to London
Beverley Cottingham Hull Paragon Brough Howden Selby Doncaster Retford Grantham Stevenage London King's Cross
Most trains run fast between Grantham and London King's Cross.

Hull Trains operate a limited service at Stevenage on Sunday afternoons only. The station is served by one northbound service to Hull and two southbound services to London King's Cross.^[10] Services are operated using Class 802 bi-mode trains.

See also

• Nala, a cat who is popular with commuters and known to sit on the ticket barriers at the station

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stevenage railway station.

• Train times and station information for Stevenage railway station from National Rail

51°54′07″N 0°12′25″W / 51.902°N 0.207°W / 51.902; -0.207