page_title: Midland Main Line
section_title: Midland Counties early developments
hierarchical_section_title: Midland Main Line / History / Midland Counties early developments
caption_attribution_description: English: Simple overview map of the WCML, ECML, Midland Main Line and CTRL.
context_page_description: The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in England from London to Nottingham and Sheffield in the north of England. The line is under the Network Rail description of Route 19; it comprises the lines from London's St Pancras station via Leicester, Derby/Nottingham and Chesterfield in the East Midlands.
  Express passenger services on the line are operated by East Midlands Railway. The section between St Pancras and Bedford is electrified and forms the northern half of Thameslink, with a semi-fast service to Brighton and other suburban services.
  A northern part of the route, between Derby and Chesterfield, also forms part of the Cross Country Route operated by CrossCountry. Tracks from Nottingham to Leeds via Barnsley and Sheffield are shared with Northern. East Midlands Railway also operates regional and local services using parts of the line.
context_section_description: The Midland Main Line was built in stages between the 1830s and the 1870s. The earliest section was opened by the Midland Counties Railway between Nottingham and Derby on 4 June 1839. On 5 May 1840 the section of the route from Trent Junction to Leicester was opened.
  The line at Derby was joined on 1 July 1840 by the North Midland Railway to Leeds Hunslet Lane via Chesterfield, Rotherham Masborough, Swinton and Normanton.
  On 10 May 1844 the North Midland Railway, the Midland Counties Railway and the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway merged to form the Midland Railway.
caption: The Midland Main Line (green) in relation to other main lines
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