.jpg) Locomotives at Basford Hall Yard, Crewe | |
 | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | Crewe, Cheshire, England |
| Coordinates | 53°04′30″N 2°25′41″W / 53.075°N 2.428°W |
| OS grid | SJ714532 |
| Characteristics | |
| Owner | Network Rail |
| Operator | Freightliner Group |
| Type | Freight yard |
| Routes served | West Coast Main Line |
| History | |
| Opened | 1901 |
| Original | London and North Western Railway |
| Post-grouping | London Midland Scottish Railway |
| BR region | Midland Region |
Basford Hall Yard is a railway marshalling yard near the town of Crewe, Cheshire, England. The yard, which is 0.93 miles (1.5 km) south of Crewe railway station, was opened in 1901 by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). Initially used to marshal trains, the site now acts as a hub mainly for Freightliner intermodal trains, but also houses departmental sidings (track engineering works) as used by Freightliner Heavy Haul, and other operators. For a period in the 1930s, Basford Hall was the busiest marshalling yard in Europe, handling between 28,000 and 47,000 wagons every week.
The yard is a nationally important node on the West Coast Main Line (WCML), with most freight trains routed through the yard in order to avoid congesting the nearby Crewe railway station, which is also an important junction on the WCML for passengers. The yard is now one of the busiest in Great Britain for freight traffic.