Regular freight services
​A variety of freight traffic uses the Ribble Valley line. Limestone and wood trains pass through whilst cement traffic flows both north and south from Clitheroe's cement works. There is a short branch line into the works just north of Clitheroe (the Horrocksford Branch) and we have an article on that elsewhere on the website.
The 'log train' runs from near Carlisle to Kronospan's plant near Wrexham where most of the wood is shredded and used for the likes of kitchen surfaces and flooring. There's a link to a short Kronospan video below.
Kronospan Chirk : Operations and Products (4 mins)
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There are a couple of fairly recent limestone services – writing this in late 2024. Heavy trains of blue GBRf tub wagons carry limestone through the Ribble Valley from the quarries around Ribblehead and from Rylstone on the former Grassington branch near Skipton to Liverpool and Leyland. Heidelberg Materials, who run the Castle Cement plant in Clitheroe, are responsible for some of the stone traffic.
You can find more information – such as route and times – about these services on the Real Time Trains website https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/