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Historic station's refurb on track for completion

Charles Heslett/BBC A red and yellow sign with black lettering spelling out Keighley and another sign underneath with Worth Valley written in white letters on a maroon background. There is white metal fencing and the canopied entrance to the station in the background. Charles Heslett/BBC
Keighley Station is still surrounded by fencing and scaffolding although the renovation is almost finished

The £10m renovation of a 130-year-old railway station in West Yorkshire has been "substantially completed", Network Rail has said.

Work on the Grade II listed Keighley Station, used as both a mainline station and by the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway (KWVR), began in 2023 and has included an upgrade of the building's front canopy and a new roof.

Rail users have faced disruption during the works which were due to finish by the end of 2024, but that was delayed due to problems with the old roof's structure.

Jonathan Taylor, from Network Rail, said: "Work is progressing well on upgrading this historic station, and we are looking forward to completing the project."

"While the scheme has not been without its challenges, we are pleased with the progress made," he added.

Mr Taylor, portfolio manager for Network Rail's eastern region, said that while work on the main areas of the station was almost finished, some smaller tasks and work on the waiting room were expected to be finished in early 2025.

Charles Heslett/BBC A man in a grey overcoat and wearing a red tie and white shirt underneath standing in the foreground with a large black locomotive with smoke coming out of it in the background.Charles Heslett/BBC
Noel Hartley, from KWVR, says the refurbishment of the station is "just fantastic"

Calls for Network Rail to invest in much-needed improvements at Keighley Station have stretched back years.

Local rail user groups and the town's then Labour MP John Grogan supported a long campaign calling for the work to be carried out.

That culminated in Network Rail's announcement in October 2019 that it would carry out the necessary upgrades.

Since then, Keighley's current Conservative MP Robbie Moore has pushed the firm to deliver the scheme.

Charles Heslett/BBC The outside of a Yorkshire stone building with a metal walkway painted in maroon and yellow. A date stone on a chimney stack above reads 1885.Charles Heslett/BBC
Problems with rot in the old roof structure have delayed the work, according to Network Rail

Noel Hartley, business and operations manager for KWVR, which runs steam and diesel heritage rail services to and from the station, said: "The fact Network Rail has invested millions into Keighley, it's just fantastic.

"We've spent years and years and years trying to get the other stations on the line up to standard."

Mr Hartley said he welcomed the fact that Network Rail had not demolished the station and rebuilt it in a modern style, as had happened at other stations such as Blackburn.

The refurbishment was "really great from our perspective", he said.

"It's been seen as something that actually will bring people to the area, make it a nice experience to be on the railway and travel to Leeds and also on our railway as well."

Charles Heslett/BBC A green and black liveried locomotive inside one of the sheds at the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway's HQ in HaworthCharles Heslett/BBC
The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway had to stop using the station during part of the renovations

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