Railway line names

A (one day) comprehensive listing

Last update 26 May 2021

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This page intends to draw together the multitude of line names used for marketing purposes by the train operating companies. Most (though not all) named lines will tend to be rural and/or relatively lightly used routes, or used for local journeys rather than as part of a much longer journey. Obvious names defined by places at each end (e.g. Settle & Carlisle Line) or by the terminus (e.g. Severn Beach Line) do not need a 'translation', and are not included here. Traditional line names are beyond the scope of this page, unless they are used for marketing purposes, though may be added in future. Many cases are subjective (particularly examples such as 'Northampton Line'), so certain favourites may not appear here, or some lines may be included that perhaps ought not.

Line name Route
Abbey Line Watford - St Albans Abbey
Airedale Line Leeds - Skipton
Argyle Line Milngavie/Dalmuir - Larkhall/Motherwell/Lanark lines
Arun Valley Line Three Bridges - Horsham - Arundel
Atlantic Coast Line Newquay branch
Avocet Line Exmouth branch
Berks & Hants Line Reading - Westbury
BedPan Line Bedford - St Pancras route not 100% sure that this was used on marketing material
Bentham Line Leeds - Morecambe via Lancaster
Bishop Line Darlington - Bishop Auckland
Bittern Line Sheringham branch
Borderlands Line Wrexham - Bidston
Calder Vale Line Leeds - Halifax - Huddersfield/Todmorden lines
Cambrian Line Shrewsbury - Aberystwyth
Cambrian Coast Line Pwllheli branch
Castle Line Nottingham - Lincoln
Catford Loop Victoria - Bromley via Catford
Cathedrals Route London Liverpool Street - Cambridge - Ely - Lincoln - Doncaster (- York) Great Eastern Railway marketing
Chase Line Wolverhampton - Rugeley
Chiltern Line Marylebone - Aylesbury/Banbury
CityFlyer Bedford - Brighton
City Line Liverpool - Wigan
City Line Cardiff - Fairwater - Radyr
CityMetro Luton - Sutton - Wimbledon loop
Coastway Hastings - Brighton - Portsmouth
Coastway East Hastings - Brighton
Coastway West Brighton - Portsmouth
Conwy Valley Line Llandudno Junction - Blaenau Ffestiniog
Cotswold Line Oxford - Worcester
Cotswolds And Malverns Line Oxford - Worcester - Hereford
Cross City Line Lichfield - Redditch
Crouch Valley Line Southminster branch
Cumbrian Coast Line Barrow-in-Furness - Carlisle
Daffodil Line Ledbury and Gloucester Railway not 100% sure that this was used on marketing material
Dartmoor Line Exeter to Okehampton
Dearne Valley Line York - Sheffield
Derwent Valley Line Derby - Matlock
Durham Coast Line Middlesbrough - Sunderland
East Coast Main Line London Kings Cross - Edinburgh
East Lancashire Line Colne - Preston
East Suffolk Line Ipswich - Lowestoft
Erewash Valley Nottingham - Sheffield
Esk Valley Line Whitby branch
Far North Line Inverness - Wick including Thurso branch
Fen Line Cambridge - Kings Lynn
Fife Circle Edinburgh - Dunfermline - Kirkcaldy - Edinburgh loop
Flitch Line Braintree branch
Furness Line Barrow-in-Furness - Carnforth
Fylde Line Blackpool South branch
Gainsborough Line Sudbury branch
Golden Valley Line Gloucester - Swindon
Great Eastern Liverpool Street - Ipswich and Branches
Great Northern King's Cross/Moorgate - Peterborough/Cambridge
Hallam Line Sheffield - Leeds
Harlequin Line Euston - Watford DC lines
Heart of Wales Line Llanelli - Craven Arms
Heart of Wessex Line Bristol - Weymouth
Hereward Line Peterborough - Ely
Heritage Line Darlington - Bishop Aukland - (Stanhope)
Hope Valley Line Sheffield - Manchester
Humber Linc Line Cleethorpes - Barton
Icknield Line Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway
Inverclyde Line Glasgow - Gourock/Wemyss Bay
Island Line Isle of Wight
Ivanhoe Line Leicester - Loughborough
Kennet Valley Line Reading - Bedwyn/Newbury (Berks & Hants Line now used)
Kent Coast Victoria/Charing Cross/Cannon Street to and around Kent coast
Kent Link Victoria/Charing Cross/Cannon Street suburban services to Kent
Lakes Line Oxenholme - Windermere
Lea Valley Line Hackney Downs - Tottenham Hale - Cheshunt line
London Tilbury & Southend Line Fenchurch Street - Southend
Lovejoy Line Sudbury branch
Marches Line Newport - Shrewsbury
Maritime Line Falmouth branch
Marshlink Line Hastings - Ashford
Marston Vale Line Bedford - Bletchley
Mayflower Line Harwich branch
Medway Valley Line Paddock Wood - Strood
Mid-Cheshire Line Chester - Manchester via Northwich
Midland Electrics Bedford - St Pancras
Midland Main Line St Pancras - Sheffield
Northampton Line Euston - Northampton; Bletchley - Bedford
North & West Line Cardiff - Manchester
North Clyde Electrics Drumgelloch/Coatbridge - Helensburgh/Balloch
North Downs Reading to Gatwick/Tonbridge via Redhill
Northern Heights Finsbury Park - Edgware/High Barnet/Alexandra Palace Great Northern Railway marketing
Northern Line Hunts Cross - Kirkby/Ormskirk/Southport
Northern Suburban Line Glasgow - Maryhill - Anniesland
North London Line Richmond - North Woolwich (later to Stratford only)
North London Lines Euston - Watford; Watford - St. Albans; North Woolwich - Richmond; Barking - Gospel Oak
North Staffordshire Line Crewe - Derby via Stoke on Trent
Oxford Canal Line Oxford - Banbury
Poacher Line Grantham - Skegness
Primrose Line South Devon Railway
Regatta Line Henley-On-Thames Branch
Ribble Valley Line Blackburn - Clitheroe (sometimes used from Manchester Victoria)
Riviera Line Exeter - Paignton
Robin Hood Line Nottingham - Worksop
Shakespeare Line Jewellery Quarter - Shirley - Stratford-upon-Avon
Solent & Wessex Waterloo - Portsmouth/Weymouth
South Fylde Line Preston - Blackpool South
South London Lines Victoria/London Bridge suburban services to Surrey/Sussex
South Western Lines Waterloo Suburban services to Berkshire, Hampshire and Surrey
Stour Line Rugby - Birmingham - Stafford
Stour Valley Line Sudbury Branch
Strawberry Line Shepton Mallet to Clevedon not 100% sure that this was used on marketing material
Sunshine Coast Line Walton/Clacton branches
Sussex Coast Victoria/London Bridge to and around Sussex coast
Tamar Valley Line Gunnislake branch
Tarka Line Barnstaple branch
Tees Valley Line Bishop Aukland - Saltburn
Thames Line Paddington - Reading and branches
Thameslink Sevenoaks/Brighton/Guildford via Elephant & Castle/London Bridge and Blackfriars - Bedford, including Moorgate - Farringdon This is as the service started, and is significantly different from the Thameslink map as it is now
Trent Valley line Rugby - Stafford (direct)
Tyne Valley Line Newcastle - Carlisle
Vale of Glamorgan Line Cardiff - Rhoose - Bridgend
Varsity Line Oxford - Cambridge
WatEus Line Suggested name for Watford - Euston suburban route, named in similar manner to BedPan line. Believed (but not certain) never seriously considered or used, Harlequin Line used instead
West Anglia Liverpool Street - Kings Lynn and branches
West Coast Main Line Euston - Glasgow
West Highland Line Craigendoran - Fort William
West Of England Waterloo - Exeter via Salisbury
Wharfedale Line Ilkley branch
Wherry Line Norwich - Great Yarmouth/Lowestoft
Wirral Line Liverpool - New Brighton/West Kirby/Ellesmere Port/Chester
Yorkshire Coast Line Hull - Scarborough