The Welland Viaduct on the route through Northamptonshire

Midland Main Line

Legend Leeds Wakefield Westgate East Coast Main Line Barnsley River Dearne, Doncaster East Coast Main Line - to Huddersfield Cudworth - from Sheffield - from Grimethorpe - to Houghton Colliery Darfield Wath North Dearne Valley Line, Wakefield Line, Sheffield-Hull, Swinton Kilnhurst West Parkgate and Rawmarsh Rotherham Masborough M1 motorway, Canklow Shed Hallam Line, Penistone Line Meadowhall Wincobank and Meadowhall station - to Tinsley Marshalling Yard Brightside, Treeton Sheffield & Rotherham Railway to Sheffield Wicker Attercliffe Road, Woodhouse Mill River Don Sheffield-Lincoln Line Sheffield Midland Porter Brook, Beighton Heeley Millhouses Shed, Killamarsh Millhouses, Eckington Beauchief Dore Dore junction, Hope Valley Line to Manchester Picc. Bradway Tunnel Dronfield, to Bolsover Unstone, Barrow Hill Sheepbridge, Whittington Derwent Valley Line to Matlock and Peak Rail Ambergate, Chesterfield Robin Hood Line Alfreton Belper Langley Mill Robin Hood Line Nottingham to Grantham, to Lincoln 126 Derby, Beeston Toton TMD, Attenborough Erewash Valley Line, Attenborough Junction Long Eaton Sinfin, Sinfin branch line Castle Donnington Line Crewe to Derby Line, Trent Junction Burton upon Trent River Trent Birmingham+Derby Junc. Rly., Cross Country East Midlands Parkway (Under construction) Coalville Depot (closed), Loughborough Great Central Railway North Syston Junction, Old Dalby test track Leicester and Swannington, Birmingham to Peterborough Leicester Birmingham to Peterborough Line Market Harborough, Corby Kettering Wellingborough Bedford Marston Vale Line to Bletchley Bedford St Johns Flitwick Harlington Leagrave - to Dunstable Luton Luton Airport Parkway Chiltern Green Harpenden St Albans Napsbury M25 motorway Radlett Elstree & Borehamwood M1 motorway Mill Hill Broadway Hendon Dudding Hill Line Cricklewood West Hampstead Thameslink Gospel Oak to Barking Line Kentish Town Thameslink cross-London route North London Line North London Line, ECML, HS1 Regent's Canal London St. Pancras

The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in the United Kingdom, part of the British railway system.

The 'Modern' line links London St. Pancras International to Sheffield Midland station in northern England via Luton, Bedford, Kettering, Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Chesterfield.

Historically the line has extended further north to Manchester in the north west, Leeds in the north east and trains through to both Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland. The straighter east coast main line initially saw the demise of midland trains to Leeds and ultimately Scotland due to the longer journey times. Later, electrification of the west coast mainline and the Beeching cuts, saw Manchester trains withdrawn from the midland and transferred to the west coast.

Network Rail engineers started work to build a new station, East Midlands Parkway between Loughborough and Trent Junction, to serve East Midlands Airport in December 2007.

Express passenger services on the line are operated by the East Midlands Trains train operating company (toc). The section between St Pancras and Bedford is electrified and forms the northern half of the Thameslink suburban service (operated by First Capital Connect), which provides a through service from Bedford to Brighton.

The northern part of the route between Derby and Sheffield is shared with CrossCountry, whilst the route between Sheffield and Leeds is shared with, Northern, Transpenine Express and National Express East Coast. East Midlands Local also operates regional and local services between Nottingham and Leicester / Derby / Sheffield.

History

The Midland Main Line was built in stages between the 183