page_title: Queensbury lines
section_title: Halifax and Ovenden Junction Railway
hierarchical_section_title: Queensbury lines / Halifax and Ovenden Junction Railway
caption_attribution_description: English: Queensbury tunnel Queensbury tunnel (2501yds) is one of the longest and deepest railway tunnels in England. Queensbury was on the G.N.R line serving the Northern industrial towns of Bradford, Halifax &amp; Keighley. It was built in 1879, passenger services ceased in 1955. A big problem in the tunnel's history was giant icicles forming on cold winter nights, A steam engine used to be parked here overnight to prevent this in later years. The line used to be known as the Alpine route due to its hilly nature. For many more pictures see https://www.flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/sets/72157600232087942/detail/
context_page_description: The Queensbury lines was the name given to a number of railway lines in West Yorkshire, England, that linked Bradford, Halifax and Keighley via Queensbury. All the lines were either solely owned by the Great Northern Railway or jointly by the GNR and the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. The terrain was extremely challenging for railway construction, and the lines were very expensive to build. The lines were
  the Halifax and Ovenden Junction Railway, opened from 1874;
  the Bradford and Thornton Railway, opened in stages from 1876;
  the Halifax, Thornton and Keighley Railway from Holmfield to Queensbury and from Thornton to Keighley, opened in stages from 1878;
  the Halifax High Level Railway, opened from 1890, but closed to passengers in 1917..
  For some time the network was busy, both for passengers and goods, but carryings declined steeply, and passenger services were discontinued in 1955. Goods traffic ceased in 1974.
  The lines were marked with a number of major civil engineering works including several viaducts and tunnels. A feature of the line was the unusual station at Queensbury, which was on a triangular track layout, with two platforms on each of the three chords.
context_section_description: The first Halifax station on the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was opened in 1844. The main station, opened later, is approached from the north-east by a tunnel: it is located at the bottom of the town, which is hilly. From 1854 the Great Northern Railway had running powers to Halifax over the Leeds, Bradford and Halifax Junction Railway. Both the L&YR and the GNR were concerned about the difficulty of carting goods to and from the higher-lying districts, as well as congestion at the station itself. The Ovenden valley, north-west of the town, was a significant source of traffic, and a branch line there would potentially assist.
  A company was formed in 1863 to build a railway along the Thornton valley, to connect Halifax with Keighley. At the time this was considered to be a very ambitious project, and during its time in Parliament, the scheme was much reduced in scope, to connect Halifax and Holmfield through the Ovenden Valley. It was to be titled the Halifax and Ovenden Junction Railway, and it was incorporated on 30 June 1864, with capital of £90,000. The GNR and L&YR each subscribed £30,000 towards the capital, and were to work the line jointly.
  Construction of the line was much delayed; there was an Act of 12 August 1867, permitting a doubling of the authorised capital, some deviations of the route, and an extension of time. Nevertheless the depressed state of the money market meant that the scheme lay dormant until a further Act was obtained on 1 August 1870, sanctioning a second extension of time, and vesting the undertaking jointly in the GNR and L&YR. The concern was then renamed the Halifax and Ovenden Joint Railway. Soon afterwards, construction began from a junction with the L&YR at the north end of Halifax station, for 2 miles 48 chains (4.18 km) to Holmfield. The steepest gradient was 1 in 45 and the sharpest curve was 11 chains (220 m) radius. A masonry viaduct carried the line through Halifax, with 35 spans which varied from 35 to 44 feet (11 to 13 m). A short distance beyond that, the line crossed another viaduct of 11 spans which varied from 20 to 35 feet (6 to 11 m). There were two tunnels, North Bridge (403 yards, 369 m) and Lee Bank (267 yards, 244 m). Earthworks were heavy, with high retaining walls. Goods depots were opened at North Bridge and Holmfield. The line opened for goods between Halifax and North Bridge on 17 August 1874, to Holmfield on 1 September 1874, and was opened to passengers throughout on 1 December 1879.
caption: Queensbury tunnel
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