East and West Yorkshire Junction Railway

The application to form "The East and West Yorkshire Junction Railway" was made in November 1845,[1] and the company was incorporated by Act of Parliament on 16 July 1846,[2] this authorising £200,000 of capital (8,000 x £25 shares[3]) and £66,600 of debt.

[3][4] The line branched from the GNE 1 mile 47 chains (2.55 km) from York station and passed through Poppleton, Hessay, Marston Moor, Hammerton, Cattal, Allerton and Goldsborough (originally Flaxby[5]) to Knaresborough.

[7] Construction began in 1847, works including a tunnel under part of Knaresborough and a viaduct over the River Nidd.

[9] On 11 March 1848 the nearly completed viaduct over the Nidd collapsed,[8] and a temporary wooden station was constructed east of Knaresborough on Hay-A-Park Lane[5] to allow the line to partially opened on 30 October 1848.

[18] Formal application to merge the railway with the Y&NMR was made in 1851[19] and the Act passed on 28 May 1852.