page_title: Queensbury lines
section_title: Halifax, Thornton & Keighley Railway
hierarchical_section_title: Queensbury lines / Halifax, Thornton & Keighley Railway
caption_attribution_description: English: Hewenden Viaduct Viaduct across the Hewenden Beck valley on the dismantled railway line southeast of Cullingworth, looking north from the Millennium Way near the northeast corner of Hewenden Reservoir.
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: In 1864 and again in 1867 moves were made independently (seeking Midland Railway support) for a rail link between Huddersfield, Halifax and Keighley, but these were unsuccessful. In 1872 another attempt was made, but the Midland Railway was implacable in refusing to assist. The GNR also rebuffed the promoters at first, and they decided to go it alone; however on 23 December 1872 agreement was reached. The GNR would not support a line from Halifax to Huddersfield, (which was now finally dead), but undertook to adopt the proposal as between Halifax and Keighley, if the independent supporters would find half the cost. The GNR's financial commitment was £640,000.
  The Great Northern Railway (Halifax, Thornton & Keighley Railway) Act was passed on 5 August 1873. The route was to start from the almost-completed Halifax and Ovenden line at Holmfield, and join the Bradford and Thornton Railway at Queensbury, making a triangular junction there. It would then extend that line from Thornton on to Keighley. There was to be a separate terminus at Keighley near the Midland station, but this was later changed.
  Between Queensbury and Holmfield the 1,033-yard-long (945 m) and 59-foot-deep (18 m) Strines cutting caused even greater difficulties with water-bearing strata than had the tunnel, and held up opening of this section to passengers until 1 December 1879.
caption: Hewenden Viaduct
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