| Great Ayton | |
| Symbol Location: | gb |
| Symbol: | rail |
| Borough: | Great Ayton, Hambleton |
| Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 54.4894°N -1.1151°W |
| Map Type: | United Kingdom North Yorkshire |
| Grid Name: | Grid reference |
| Owned: | Network Rail |
| Manager: | Northern Trains |
| Platforms: | 1 |
| Tracks: | 1 |
| Code: | GTA |
| Classification: | DfT category F2 |
| Original: | North Eastern Railway |
| Pregroup: | North Eastern Railway |
| Postgroup: | |
| Years: | 1 April 1868 |
| Events: | Opened as Ayton |
| Years1: | 1874 |
| Events1: | Renamed Great Ayton |
| Footnotes: | Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road |
Great Ayton is a railway station on the Esk Valley Line, which runs between Middlesbrough and Whitby via Nunthorpe. The station, situated 8miles south-east of Middlesbrough, serves the village of Great Ayton, Hambleton in North Yorkshire, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.
On 1 June 1864, the North Eastern Railway opened a short line which linked, on their route between Picton and, with on the Middlesbrough and Guisborough Railway – a subsidiary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.
This link line was initially used solely by mineral trains. Passenger trains along the route began four years later,[1] and a station at Great Ayton was opened on 1 April 1868.[2]
The station is on the single track rail line between and [3] and there are only a few trains per day. The goods yard at the station closed down in July 1965 along with many other stations on the Esk Valley line.[4] Until the 1950s, trains used to run from the station to Stokesley, Whitby Town and but only the latter two destinations are now served.[5]
Next to Great Ayton station is the village garage and towing service. The station had, until 1934, a full station building complete with booking office and waiting room, this however was demolished to save costs.
As of the May 2021 timetable change, the station is served by five trains per day (four on Sunday) towards Whitby, with two trains per day (Monday to Saturday) running as far as Battersby. Heading towards Middlesbrough via Nunthorpe, there are seven trains per day (four on Sunday). Most trains continue to Newcastle via Hartlepool. All services are operated by Northern Trains.[6]
Rolling stock used: Class 156 Super Sprinter and Class 158 Express Sprinter