COCKERMOUTH, KESWICK AND PENRITH RAILWAY

The 'Cockermouth, Keswick and Penrith Railway' (CK&PR) was incorporated by Act of Parliament on 1 August 1861, for a line connecting the town of Cockermouth with the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) West Coast Main Line at Penrith. Arrangements for the use of the stations at either end (Cockermouth was already served by the ''Cockermouth and Workington Railway'') (C&WR) were included. Traffic was worked by the LNWR and (originally) by the Stockton and Darlington Railway (later the North Eastern Railway), both of whom had shares in the company. The line was 31.5 miles (50km) in length, and had eight intermediate stations.

Contents

Stations

History

Stations

From west to east:

★ Cockermouth: the second station in Cockermouth, after Cockermouth and Workington Railway station; there was some animosity between these two railways at the time.

★ Embleton

★ Bassenthwaite Lake: the line skirted the lake for a considerable distance

★ Braithwaite

★ Keswick

★ Threlkeld

★ Troutbeck

★ Penruddock

★ Blencow

★ Penrith

History

The line opened on 2 January 1865: trains from Penrith began to work through to Whitehaven along the CK&PR/C&WR route from 1 July 1865, when the C&WR station was closed: that railway was absorbed by the LNWR in 1866. Although the LNWR provided the passenger services, the CK&PR continued to operate as a separate company until the 1923 Grouping, when it was absorbed by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.
There is a proposal to reopen the line as a modern railway and a feasibility study has been commissioned by CKP Railways to examine the business case. However, Eden District Council appears to be against the reopening plan and are allowing development at Flusco Business Park to straddle the trackbed.