Significant signalling changes for the York-Scarborough Line 

Along with the loss of gate boxes and signalling at Marston Moor and Hessay on the Harrogate Line, described in my June 2026 feature, another North-East route where significant signalling changes are planned is the 42-mile long York-Scarborough Line, where mechanical signalling currently survives at four of the seven signal and gate boxes on this route. 

Changes due to take place early in 2027 will see abolition of a small gate box at Howsham, with the removal of semaphores here and at nearby Barton Hill Signal Box, with the latter box being retained, and a signalling panel and crossing barriers installed that will allow the box to assume control of the level crossing at Howsham Gates.

That would leave just two locations along the route with semaphore signalling, at Kirkham Abbey and Weaverthorpe, with both locations boasting Grade II-Listed North Eastern Railway signal boxes dating from 1873 and, quite remarkably, both also retaining wheel-worked level crossing gates. 

Having photographed the fine collection of semaphores at Marston Moor and Hessay, my challenge on 28/29 July 2026 was to try to photograph the doomed semaphores at Barton Hill and Howsham Gates, and to pay a visit to Kirkham Abbey, with the aim of photographing its signals, and seeking out its two motor-worked distant signals, K1 in the up direction and K15 on the down line.

So after a comfortable Grand Central trip from King’s Cross to York I took an 840 Coastliner bus to a stop on the A64 near the village of Whitwell-on-the-Hill, and then a 15-minute walk down to the attractive signal box at Kirkham Abbey. From the level crossing here my OS map showed footpaths leading north and south, close to the railway line, that might allow me to get shots of its two distant signals.

Kirkham Abbey Signal Box is a very attractive Grade II-Listed red brick structure with a slate roof that is a North Eastern Railway design dating from 1873. Apart from its picturesque location close to the ruined Kirkham Priory, what is striking about the box is how wooden steps and sash windows have been retained, rather than replaced by the unsightly modern uPVC windows, as seen at many other historic signal boxes. 

Besides its blue level crossing wheel, Kirkham Abbey Signal Box houses a 16-lever McKenzie & Holland frame, as seen below, on which its semaphores comprise three in the up direction, K1 (distant), K2 (home) and K3, a section signal with sighting board behind it that stands on the right hand side of the line and can be seen looking south from the level crossing. 

There are just two semaphores in the down (Scarborough) direction, with home signal K14 standing close to the signal box and level crossing, and near to up section signal K3, with down distant signal K15 out of sight some way beyond to the south. One other notable feature of the Kirkham Abbey frame (as seen below) is its brown and white King Lever (11), which could lock the crossover points (8) enabling it to be operated as a gate box.

Sadly my attempts to find and photograph distant signals K15 and K1 ended in failure, but for those who enjoy walking I can recommend the wooded walk from Kirkham Abbey north to the hamlet of Crambeck (30 minutes) and another well-signed and wooded walk from Howsham Gates to Kirkham Abbey (35 minutes).

Regular passenger traffic passing Kirkham Abbey comprises hourly TransPennine Express services operating between Manchester and Scarborough and mainly formed of three-car Class 185 units, with the current weekday timetable seeing up and down services passing the signal box at the same time (around 26/27 minutes past each hour). 

Returning by bus to Whitwell-on-the Hill on 29 July, I headed back towards Kirkham Abbey, before taking a right turn and continuing on through the village of Crambe for about 1½ miles until I reached the remote and rather delightful Howsham Gates Crossing, where there is a single-storey North Eastern Railway dating from 1873.

Howsham Gates is a delightful little box that sadly faces demolition once it closes next year. It contains an original 1873 eight-lever frame, as seen below, of which levers 2-7 remain, with its two semaphores being H5 in the down direction and H7 on the up line. The space where lever 1 would have been was apparently for a long-since removed gate wheel.

In stark contrast to the 1873-vintage boxes at Kirkham Abbey and Howsham Gates, Barton Hill Signal Box looks positively futuristic, being an LNER design dating from 1936, with a flat roof and one notable feature being its lifting level crossing barriers, which are wheel-worked from the signal box. An up home signal stands (BH14) close to the box, with the down home signal just west of the nearby A64 over-bridge (BH8).

Work is already well underway here to replace the wheel-worked barriers, with posts already installed that show the new barrier on the northern (down-side) will be considerably closer to the track that the existing mechanical barrier. 

Being set back so far from the railway currently makes photographing an up train passing the box and its up home signal impossible here, but I did find a great vantage point from the A64 over-bridge, as seen in the top photo, although crossing the busy road and looking south from this bridge, the down home signal is largely hidden behind an encroaching lineside tree.

For anyone tempted to savour the signalling in this delightful corner of North Yorkshire I can highly recommend the Coastliner 840/843 buses, which provide a twice-hourly service from York railway station towards Whitby (840) and Scarborough (843) which get you to stops on the A64 at Barton Hill and then Whitwell-on-the-Hill in about 48/50 minutes.

After a couple of days walking and photographing the signalling scene in extremely hot weather, I found a welcome hydration break at the Wetherspoon-owned Punch Bowl, just a five-minute walk from York railway station, where in a change from my favoured dark beers I enjoyed a couple of refreshing pints of Black Sheep Brewery Respire IPA (4.0%/£2.55).

My sincere thanks to Network Rail Local Operations Manager Mike Haxby for authorising my box visits on 29 July 2026 and to signallers Kev Horton at Howsham Gates and Alistair Mitchell at Kirkham Abbey for their hospitality and wisdom.