The Woodhead Tunnels are three trans-Pennine railway tunnels which formerly carried a major rail link (usually known as the Woodhead Route) from Manchester to Sheffield in northern England. The western portals are at Woodhead in Derbyshire and the eastern portals are at Dunford Bridge, near Penistone, South Yorkshire. The tunnels are known as Woodhead 1, Woodhead 2 and Woodhead 3 and are currently owned by National Grid plc.
The first of the earl...
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The Woodhead Tunnels are three trans-Pennine railway tunnels which formerly carried a major rail link (usually known as the Woodhead Route) from Manchester to Sheffield in northern England. The western portals are at Woodhead in Derbyshire and the eastern portals are at Dunford Bridge, near Penistone, South Yorkshire. The tunnels are known as Woodhead 1, Woodhead 2 and Woodhead 3 and are currently owned by National Grid plc.
The first of the earlier twin tunnels (Woodhead 1 & 2) were completed by the Sheffield, Ashton-Under-Lyne and Manchester Railway in 1845, engineered by Charles Vignoles and Joseph Locke.
At the time of its completion in 1845, Woodhead 1 was one of the world's longest railway tunnels at a length of 3 miles 13 yards (4,840 m); it was the first of several trans-Pennine tunnels including the Standedge and Totley tunnels, which are only slightly longer.
Vignoles began work as soon as the line obtained its Act of Incorporation in Parliament in 1837. First the line was...
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