View source for Flitwick railway station

{{Short description|Railway station in Bedfordshire, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2015}}
{{Infobox station
| name                = Flitwick
| symbol_location     = gb
| symbol              = rail
| image               = Flitwick Main Building.jpg
| caption             = View across Flitwick station towards the main building on the Down side, 13 January 2007
| borough             = [[Flitwick]], [[Central Bedfordshire|District of Central Bedfordshire]]
| country             = England
| coordinates         = {{coord|52.004|-0.495|type:railwaystation_region:GB_scale:10000|display=inline,title}}
| grid_name           = [[Ordnance Survey National Grid|Grid reference]]
| grid_position       = {{gbmapscaled|TL034350|25|TL034350}}
| manager             = [[Thameslink and Great Northern|Thameslink]]
| platforms           = 4
| code                = FLT
| classification      = [[United Kingdom railway station categories|DfT category]] D
| mpassengers =
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2019/20 |passengers={{decrease}} 1.555 million}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2020/21 |passengers={{decrease}} 0.297 million}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2021/22 |passengers={{increase}} 0.829 million}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2022/23 |passengers={{increase}} 1.090 million}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2023/24 |passengers={{increase}} 1.207 million}}
| footnotes           = Passenger statistics from the [[Office of Rail and Road]]
}}
'''Flitwick railway station''' is in the centre of [[Flitwick]], in [[Bedfordshire]], [[England]]. The station is situated on the [[Midland Main Line]].  The station is managed by [[Thameslink and Great Northern|Thameslink]], who operate all trains serving it, and is served by [[Thameslink (route)|Thameslink route]] services between Bedford and Brighton.  As well as Flitwick itself, the station also serves the adjoining town of [[Ampthill]], which no longer has its own station.

From Flitwick, trains travel north and serve [[Bedford railway station|Bedford]] and southbound trains serve [[Luton railway station|Luton]], [[Luton Airport Parkway railway station|Luton Airport Parkway]], [[Harpenden]], [[St Albans City railway station|St Albans]], [[St Pancras railway station|London St Pancras]], [[Gatwick Airport railway station|Gatwick Airport]] and [[Brighton railway station|Brighton]].

==History==
It was built by the [[Midland Railway]] in 1870 on its extension to [[St Pancras railway station|St. Pancras]]. The original station buildings were restored in the early 1980s.<ref>Radford, B., (1983) ''Midland Line Memories: a Pictorial History of the Midland Railway Main Line Between London (St Pancras) & Derby'' London: Bloomsbury Books</ref>

There were originally platforms for two lines. This remained the case when the line was quadrupled. The up goods opened in 1893 and extended to [[Harlington, Bedfordshire|Harlington]] in 1894; and the down goods opened in 1895. It was not until 1960 that [[British Railways]] added extra platforms to cater for extended stopping services between Bedford and London.<ref>Preston Hendry, R., Powell Hendry, R., (1982) ''An historical survey of selected LMS stations : layouts and illustrations. Vol. 1'' Oxford Publishing</ref>

===Stationmasters===
{{div col}}
*William Hodgkinson 1870 - 1873<ref name=MR1871>{{cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=1871 |title=1871-1879 Coaching |url=https://www.ancestry.co.uk/imageviewer/collections/1728/images/32167_636897_0431-00306?ssrc=&backlabel=Return |journal=Midland Railway Operating, Traffic and Coaching Depts |volume= |issue= |pages=561 |doi= |access-date=6 March 2021}}</ref>
*G. Bowles 1873 - 1875
*George Croft 1875 - 1884<ref name=MR1881>{{cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=1881 |title=1881-1898 Coaching |url=https://www.ancestry.co.uk/imageviewer/collections/1728/images/32167_626640_0604-00375?ssrc=&backlabel=Return |journal=Midland Railway Operating, Traffic and Coaching Depts |volume= |issue= |pages=738 |doi= |access-date=20 February 2021}}</ref> 
*Thomas Edward Bowers 1884 - 1886<ref name=MR1881/>
*Simeon Marshall 1886 - 1891<ref name=MR1881/>
*Sheron Morton 1891 - 1894<ref name=MR1881/>
*G.J. Best 1894 - 1898<ref name=MR1881/>
*Frederick Brookes 1898<ref name=MR1881/> - 1902 (formerly station master at Southill)
*William George Hall 1902<ref name=MR1899>{{cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=1899 |title=1899-1908 Coaching; Piece 1027 |url=https://www.ancestry.co.uk/imageviewer/collections/1728/images/32167_636897_0432-00359?ssrc=&backlabel=Return |journal=Midland Railway Operating, Traffic and Coaching Depts |volume= |issue= |pages=721 |doi= |access-date=20 February 2021}}</ref> - 1926 (formerly station master at Henlow Camp)
*F.J. Newell until 1929<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Railway Staff Changes | url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000749/19290329/045/0003 |newspaper=Bedfordshire Times and Independent |location=England  |date=29 March 1929 |access-date=6 March 2021 |via=British Newspaper Archive |url-access=subscription  }}</ref>  (afterwards station master at Poplar)
*Harry Ariss from 1929 (formerly station master of Claydon)
{{div col end}}

==Services==
[[File:Flitwick (Southbound).jpg|thumb|right|Looking south towards the footbridge, from outside the main building on Platform 4]]
[[File:Flitwick railway geograph-2158239.jpg|thumb|Up direction freight at Flitwick in 1955]]

All services at Flitwick are operated by [[Govia Thameslink Railway|Thameslink]] using {{brc|700}} [[Electric multiple unit|EMUs]].

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:<ref>{{NRtimes|May 2022|52}}</ref>
* 4 tph to {{stnlnk|Bedford}}
* 2 tph to {{stnlnk|Brighton}}
* 2 tph to [[Three Bridges railway station|Three Bridges]] via {{stnlnk|Redhill}}

During the peak hours, the station is served by additional services to and from {{stnlnk|Rainham|Kent}}, {{stnlnk|Sutton|London}}, {{stnlnk|East Grinstead}}. A number of peak hour services run non-stop between Flitwick and {{stnlnk|Luton}}.

The station is also served by a half-hourly night service between Bedford and {{stnlnk|Three Bridges}} on Sunday to Friday nights.

{{rail start}}
{{s-rail-national|rows1=2|rowsmid=2|previous=Bedford|next=Harlington|toc=Thameslink|route={{smalldiv|[[Thameslink]]}}}}
{{s-rail-national|hide1=yes|hidemid=yes|previous=Bedford|next=Luton|note2={{smalldiv|Peak Hours Only}}|toc=Thameslink|route={{smalldiv|[[Midland Main Line]]}}}}
{{Historical Rail Insert}}
{{s-rail-national|previous=Ampthill|next=Harlington|toc=Midland Railway |notemid={{smalldiv|[[Midland Main Line]]}}|status=Historical|note2={{smalldiv|Line and station open}}|note={{smalldiv|Line open, station closed}}}}
{{s-end}}

==Facilities==
{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2023}}
Flitwick station has a waiting room, take away cafe, telephones, toilet and a car park.

The station has the [[PlusBus]] scheme where train and bus tickets can be bought together at a saving.  It is in the same area as [[Harlington railway station|Harlington]] station.

There is now{{As of?|date=November 2023}} only one entrance to the station: through the ticket office from Steppingley Road. The previous second entrance, situated directly onto the footbridge from Dunstable Road, which in 2016 had gates installed, is now permanently closed.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Flitwick railway station}}
{{stn art lnk|FLT|MK451DS}}

{{Railway stations in Bedfordshire}}
{{TSGN and SE Stations|CityFlyer=y|Ashford=y|SE None=y|SN None=y}}

[[Category:Flitwick]]
[[Category:Ampthill]]
[[Category:Railway stations in Bedfordshire]]
[[Category:DfT Category D stations]]
[[Category:Former Midland Railway stations]]
[[Category:Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1870]]
[[Category:Railway stations served by Govia Thameslink Railway]]