| Symbol: | rail |
| Luton Airport Parkway | |
| Manager: | Thameslink |
| Locale: | Park Town, Luton |
| Borough: | Borough of Luton |
| Railexits1516: | 3.188 |
| Railexits1617: | 3.820 |
| Railexits1718: | 3.965 |
| Railint1718: | 0.127 |
| Railexits1819: | 4.149 |
| Railint1819: | 0.119 --> |
| Railexits1920: | 4.201 |
| Railint1920: | 0.126 |
| Railexits2021: | 0.694 |
| Raillowint2021: | 25,227 |
| Railexits2122: | 1.991 |
| Railexits2223: | 3.768 |
| Railexits2324: | 4.344 |
| Raillowint2122: | 74,151 |
| Raillowint2223: | 5,783 |
| Raillowint2324: | 6,576 |
| Platforms: | 6 (4 National Rail 2 Luton DART) |
| Railcode: | LTN |
| Dft Category: | D |
| Years1: | 21 November 1999 |
| Events1: | Mainline station opened |
| Gridref: | TL105205 |
| Coordinates: | 51.873°N -0.396°W |
| Map Type: | Bedfordshire |
| Access: | yes |
| Events2: | DART station opened |
| Years2: | 27 March 2023 |
Luton Airport Parkway station is on the Midland Main Line in England, serving south Luton and Luton Airport in Bedfordshire. The station is situated in Luton's Park Town district, being 29.27miles from London St Pancras between to the south and to the north. Its three-letter station code is LTN, also the IATA code for the airport.
The station is served by Thameslink operated trains on the Thameslink route and by East Midlands Railway.
It is situated approximately west of the airport. Luton DART, a light rail/people mover transit, links the station to the airport terminal.
The Bedford–London section of the Midland Main Line was opened on 1 October 1868 by the Midland Railway to provide a new direct route into London St Pancras.[1] The Midland Main Line had stations in the Luton area at, and .
Luton Municipal Airport was opened on 16 July 1938 by the Secretary of State for Air, Kingsley Wood. During World War Two, the airport served as an RAF base for No. 264 Squadron RAF, but the airport returned to civilian use after the war. From the 1950s and 1960s, the airport's business increased with the growth of the package holiday market (later assisted by a popular 1977 television advert for Campari featuring Lorraine Chase which mentioned the airport).[2] [3] The nearest railway station to Luton Airport was Luton railway station, approximately 2miles away in Luton town centre; although the Midland Main Line line passed close to Luton Airport, for the first 60 years of the airport's operation there was no dedicated railway station. To support the increasing passenger traffic, Luton Airport provided a shuttle bus service from Luton to the airport terminal.[4]
In 1999, Luton Airport Parkway was opened. Although it was designed specifically to serve Luton Airport, it was also given the parkway name, a title applied to British railway stations that have been designed as a park and ride railway station with motorists in mind, providing car parking facilities for commuters travelling onwards into London.[5] Because the parkway station was located approximately 1miles to the west of Luton Airport, and airport was at the top of a hill, it was still necessary to link to the airport with shuttle buses. Initially these were operated by National Car Parks on behalf of the airport's owners and provided passengers with a free transfer.[6] In January 2008 the free shuttle bus service was replaced by a more frequent, but chargeable, service provided by First Capital Connect.
With the opening of the cross-London Thameslink route 11 years earlier, the new station provided a direct rail link from Luton Airport to central and south London, Gatwick Airport and, as well as the Midland Mainline Routes to the East Midlands.[7] In November 2008, the station became the first on the Thameslink route to have its platforms extended in order to accommodate twelve-coach trains as part of the Thameslink Programme.[8] In April 2013, a new northern entrance was opened on Kimpton Road, Luton.
Contactless bank cards (but not Oyster cards) became valid for journeys to and from London from October 2019.[9] [10]
Services at Luton Airport Parkway are operated by East Midlands Railway and Thameslink mostly using and EMUs.
East Midlands Railway
East Midlands Railway runs most of their services under the EMR Connect / Luton Airport Express banner, after it became an official separate brand in 2023.[11]
The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[12]
On Sundays only, a limited number of intercity East Midlands Railway services between and and London St Pancras International call at the station using DMUs.
On Weekdays, a very limited early morning and late evening service between and Nottingham and London St Pancras International calls at the station.[13] [14]
Thameslink
The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:
During the peak hours, the station is served by additional services to and from,, and .
Thameslink also operate a half-hourly night service between Bedford and on Sunday to Friday nights.
See main article: Luton DART. Luton DART, a 1.4miles light rail/ automated guided people mover line, provides a five-minute transfer between Luton Airport Parkway station and Luton Airport. It operates 24 hours a day.[15] The DART platforms are located in a terminus building above the Parkway station, connected to the main-line rail platforms via lifts and escalators and a footbridge.[16] [17]
The DART transit was officially opened by King Charles III in December 2022.[18] It opened to passengers on 10 March 2023 and has replaced the shuttle bus service.[19]
The single fare for the DART is £4.90. Rail tickets marked "Luton Airport" include the price of the DART transit.[20] Concessions are given to Luton residents, and free travel is provided for holders of concessionary travel passes and disabled blue badge holders, and for airport workers.[21]
The station is served by Arriva buses A, F70, F77 and 100 between the town centre and airport from the DART's Kimpton Road exit. The main entrance is served by the more rural Centrebus routes 230, 366, 44 and 45 as well as Grant Palmer's 30.[22]
Until March 2023 a dedicated airport shuttle bus service was in operation to convey air passengers from the Parkway station to the airport terminal. The single fare was £2.40, and the return fare was £3.80. Rail tickets marked "Luton Airport" included the bus fare.[23] [24] The shuttle bus has now been replaced by the Luton DART light rail transit.[19]