| Seaton Carew | |
| Symbol Location: | gb |
| Symbol: | rail |
| Borough: | Seaton Carew, Borough of Hartlepool |
| Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 54.658°N -1.2006°W |
| Map Type: | United Kingdom County Durham |
| Grid Name: | Grid reference |
| Owned: | Network Rail |
| Manager: | Northern Trains |
| Platforms: | 2 |
| Tracks: | 2 |
| Code: | SEC |
| Classification: | DfT category F2 |
| Original: | Stockton and Hartlepool Railway |
| Pregroup: | North Eastern Railway |
| Postgroup: | |
| Years: | 10 February 1841 |
| Events: | Opened as Seaton |
| Years1: | 1872 |
| Events1: | Renamed Seaton Carew |
| Footnotes: | Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road |
Seaton Carew is a railway station on the Durham Coast Line, which runs between Newcastle and Middlesbrough via Hartlepool. The station, situated 14miles north-east of Middlesbrough, serves the seaside village of Seaton Carew, Hartlepool in County Durham, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.
The station is unmanned and has no permanent buildings (the old NER buildings on the southbound side were demolished back in the 1970s). As with other stations on this line, new fully lit waiting shelters, digital information screens and CCTV cameras have been installed (the former replacing the old brick structures), whilst the long-line Public Address system (PA) has been renewed and upgraded with pre-recorded train announcements (running information can also be obtained by telephone and timetable poster boards). Tickets can be bought on board the train (or prior to travel), or at the station at a digital ticket machine operated by Northern Rail. Two Harrington Humps have been installed at the station to raise platform heights at specific points on the platforms and so improve access to trains.[1] Step-free access is also available to each platform via ramps from the nearby road.[2]
In 2009 the station underwent maintenance work to re-develop the station and its looks. The station has already seen the cutting down of trees to allow more natural light.
Starting in 2006, Seaton Carew was mentioned within the Tees Valley Metro scheme. This was a plan to upgrade the Tees Valley Line and sections of the Esk Valley Line and Durham Coast Line to provide a faster and more frequent service across the North East of England. In the initial phases the services would have been heavy rail mostly along existing alignments with new additional infrastructure and rollingstock. The later phase would have introduced tram-trains to allow street running and further heavy rail extensions.[3] [4] [5] [6]
As part of the scheme, Seaton Carew station would have received improved service to Nunthorpe and Hartlepool, possibly a street-running link to Guisborough and the Headland, as well as new rollingstock.
However, due to a change in government in 2010 and the 2008 financial crisis, the project was ultimately shelved.[7] Several stations eventually got their improvements and there is a possibility of improved rollingstock and services in the future which may affect Seaton Carew.[8]
As of the winter 2023 timetable change, the station is served by an hourly service between Newcastle and Middlesbrough. Most trains continue to Hexham (or Carlisle on Sunday) and Nunthorpe. Two trains per day (three on Sunday) continue to Whitby. Two trains operate directly between Hartlepool and Darlington on Sunday. All services are operated by Northern Trains.
Rolling stock used: Class 156 Super Sprinter and Class 158 Express Sprinter