Bakewell has no railway station. Matlock is the one to use: what is there, step-free access, and the Transpeak bus from the Interchange to Bakewell.
Bakewell lost its trains when the railway through the town closed in 1968. The old station building still stands on Station Road, but the trackbed beside it is now the Monsal Trail, so it is where walks and bike rides begin, not journeys by rail. Trains come no nearer than Matlock, about 11 km south-east of Rutland Square as the crow flies, and the last stretch is by bus.
Matlock is the station the route pages use because the Transpeak bus leaves from the interchange next to its car park and runs into the middle of Bakewell. For the trains themselves and how the whole trip fits together, see London to Bakewell.
Matlock has a single platform, level with the main entrance in Station Yard, so there is no footbridge or subway between the train and the street. East Midlands Railway manages the station, but no one is posted there to help: National Rail lists staff help as unavailable on every day of the week, with assistance provided by the crew on the train.
The platform has seating under a canopy, departure screens and announcements made both visually and audibly, and a help point stands close by. That is most of it. National Rail lists no waiting room, no toilets of any kind, no baby changing, no refreshments and no public Wi-Fi, so plan comfort stops around the journey rather than the station.
Peak Rail, the preserved railway, also runs from Matlock station. Its running days are published on peakrail.co.uk.
Matlock has no ticket office. The ticket machine on Platform 1 sells tickets and prints those bought online, and National Rail notes space in front of it to manoeuvre a wheelchair.
Matlock is a PlusBus area, and the station’s onward-travel poster marks Bakewell as a PlusBus destination. A Buxton or Matlock PlusBus (Peak District) ticket, added to the rail fare, gives bus travel across that zone on the participating operators, and plusbus.info names High Peak and trentbarton among them. Check the current price and operators there before relying on it.
The stop is Matlock Interchange, the bus station beside the station car park off Derwent Way. High Peak lists its Transpeak calling at the Interchange from stand 1.
High Peak’s TP3 is the Transpeak route that matters here: Matlock to Buxton via Bakewell, Ashford-in-the-Water, Taddington and Harpur Hill. Leaving the Interchange it runs through Darley Dale and Rowsley, calls at Haddon Hall, and reaches the Matlock Street stop in Bakewell, a short walk from Rutland Square. Despite its name, Matlock Street is the Bakewell stop to get off at.
The 6.1 from trentbarton links the same two stops. Its route runs from Derby through Belper, Wirksworth and Matlock to Bakewell, calling at Matlock Interchange and at Matlock Street.
Matlock also has an older bus station on Bakewell Road in the town centre. For these two routes, start from the Interchange beside the railway. High Peak and trentbarton publish the bus times, and the route pages show how the bus fits with the trains.
For a taxi, plan ahead. National Rail’s station page describes a taxi rank reached by a controlled road crossing, but its onward-travel poster for Matlock says the station has no taxi rank or cab office and that booking in advance is essential. Book one before setting off for Matlock rather than expecting a car to be waiting in Station Yard.
National Rail places Matlock in step-free category A, which it explains as “there is step-free access to all platforms”. With one platform at entrance level, the station has no lifts and needs none. Tactile warnings mark the platform edge, induction loops are fitted at designated listening areas, and boarding ramps are carried on the train.
Passenger Assist here is delivered by the train crew. The meeting point is the platform: wait in view of the staff and make yourself known when the train arrives. Booking ahead matters at a station with no staff on hand; National Rail takes requests up to two hours before a journey starts, at any time of day.
The station car park, run by East Midlands Railway, has 34 spaces and is open 24 hours a day. National Rail lists nine accessible bays reached via Derwent Way, seven of them short stay and two long stay. Charges apply and RingGo payment is available at Matlock; check the tariff board for current prices. National Rail lists no dedicated drop-off or pick-up point.
Bikes go in 14 stands, covered by CCTV but not sheltered. There is no cycle hire at the station.
Each route has its own page with the day's trains, the changes and a link to times and fares.