82-675: Stoke Tunnel may refer to: Stoke Tunnel (Ipswich) , on the Great Eastern Main Line in Suffolk, England Stoke Tunnel (Lincolnshire) , on the East Coast Main Line in Lincolnshire, England Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Stoke Tunnel . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
164-607: A branch to Harwich under construction. Negotiations began between the EUR and ECR and on 1 January 1854 the ECR took over the working of the EUR although this was not formally ratified until the Act of Parliament of 7 August 1854. The two companies did not formally merge until they amalgamated with other railways to form the Great Eastern Railway in 1862. The Harwich branch whilst built by the EUR
246-498: A combination of Smiths clamp-lock and GEC-Alsthom HW2000 point machines. The first signal box to be closed and transferred to Liverpool Street IECC was Shenfield in 1992, which had only opened 10 years earlier. The last boxes to be transferred were at Romford and Gidea Park in 1998; these were the oldest of those being transferred, having been opened under the GER/LNER 1924 resignalling scheme. A number of fatal accidents have occurred on
328-848: A direct rail link between the GEML and the Great Western Main Line . The first section of the line, built by the Eastern Counties Railway (ECR), opened in June 1839 between a short-lived temporary terminus at Devonshire Street in the East End of London and Romford , then in the Havering Liberty in Essex. The London terminus was moved in July 1840 to Shoreditch (later renamed Bishopsgate), after 1900 in
410-645: A distance of 51 miles (82 km) to Shoreditch station; the route is now part of the Great Eastern Main Line . In 1843, the ECR directors were approached with a proposal to build a line from Stratford to the River Thames with the intention of sending out agricultural produce by rail with coal forming the bulk of the traffic the other way. A bill came before Parliament sponsored by the Eastern Counties, Stratford and Thames Junction Railway Company and it
492-526: A flyover would be built at the country-end of the carriage sidings at Gidea Park to allow trains bound for the Southend line to change from the main line to the electric line, instead of at the London-end of Shenfield as they do now. Plans were drawn up in the 1930s to electrify the suburban lines from Liverpool Street to Shenfield at 1,500 V DC and work was started on implementing this. However,
574-622: A junction just north of Stratford on the Cambridge line. In 1859, the East Suffolk Railway finished building a series of lines in Suffolk and south east Norfolk. These were all taken over by the ECR on opening day 1 June 1859. The ECR line from Ipswich (East Suffolk Junction) to Woodbridge (at the south end of the ESR) also opened on this day giving a through route between Ipswich, Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth (South Town). The final railway opened by
656-730: A limited number of c2c trains, were all operated by National Express East Anglia . Since 2012, the franchise has been operated by Abellio Greater Anglia ; in May 2015, the Shenfield "metro" stopping service transferred to TfL Rail , as a precursor to Elizabeth Line services. Liverpool Street IECC replaced signal boxes at Bethnal Green (closed 1997), Bow (closed 1996), Stratford (GE panel closed 1997), Ilford (closed 1996), Romford (closed 1998), Gidea Park (closed 1998), Shenfield (closed 1992) and Chelmsford (closed 1994). The system uses BR Mark 3 solid state interlockings, predominantly four-aspect signals and
738-507: A new junction at Haughley to Norwich Victoria opened in December 1849, although the position of the latter station was poor and a spur to allow some trains to operate into Norwich (Thorpe) station was opened to regular traffic in November 1851. In the late 19th century, the double-track main line was expanded with additional tracks being added to cope with more traffic. In 1854, a third track
820-569: A number of coastal towns including Southend-on-Sea , Clacton-on-Sea , Walton-on-the-Naze and Lowestoft . Its main users are commuters travelling to and from London, particularly the City of London , which is served by Liverpool Street, and areas in east London, including the Docklands financial district via the London Underground and Docklands Light Railway connections at Stratford . The line
902-467: A proposal, in 1980, to electrify the remainder of the Great Eastern Main Line. The early 1980s saw track rationalisation and signalling work carried out in the Ipswich area and, on 9 April 1985, the first electric train consisting of two Class 305 electric multiple units (EMUs) worked into Ipswich station. The previous year, another member of the class had been dragged to Ipswich by a diesel locomotive and
SECTION 10
#1732844381623984-487: A small class of 2-4-0 (known as Z class) built by Rothwell and Co. These were locomotives numbered 301 to 306. As can be seen from the table above, he inherited a mixed bag of locomotives and set out on a road of standardisation. Perhaps the best example of this was his Y class 2-4-0 introduced in 1859, which when finished (in Great Eastern days and after Sinclair had departed the company) numbered 110 locomotives. Although
1066-477: A tunnel through central London and link up with the Great Western Main Line to Reading and Heathrow Airport . The first new Class 345 rolling stock entered service on the service on 22 June 2017. The new trains, built at Bombardier's Derby factory, provide air conditioned walk-through carriages, intelligent lighting and temperature control, closed-circuit television and passenger information displays showing travel information, including about onward journeys. It
1148-418: Is 100 mph (160 km/h). The main line is electrified at 25 kV AC using overhead wires and comes under the control of Romford Electrical Control Room. The branches to Upminster , Southend Victoria , Southminster , Braintree , Clacton-on-Sea , Walton-on-the-Naze and Harwich Town are also electrified. Between Romford and Chadwell Heath , there is a Network Rail maintenance depot adjacent to
1230-585: Is also heavily used by leisure travellers, as it and its branches serve a number of seaside resorts, shopping areas and countryside destinations. The route also provides the main artery for substantial freight traffic to and from Felixstowe and Harwich , via their respective branch lines. Trains from Southend Airport also run into London via the GEML. The Elizabeth line, which fully opened in November 2022, operates services from Shenfield to London Paddington via Liverpool Street , connecting Essex with Central London and West London . Additionally, it provides
1312-573: The East Anglia Main Line ) is a 114.5-mile (184.3 km) major railway line on the British railway system which connects Liverpool Street station in central London with destinations in east London and the East of England , including Shenfield , Chelmsford , Colchester , Ipswich and Norwich . Its numerous branches also connect the main line to Southminster , Braintree , Sudbury , Harwich and
1394-531: The House of Commons on 19 February 1836, and after a stormy passage (two rival schemes had also surfaced in the interim as well as continuing opposition from land owners), it was authorised by an act of Parliament , the Eastern Counties Railway Act 1836 ( 6 & 7 Will. 4 . c. cvi) on 4 July 1836. Construction of the line began in late March 1837 and progress east of Stratford was relatively easy as
1476-533: The Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green , and at the eastern end the line was extended 6 miles (9.7 km) out to Brentwood in the same year. A further 34 miles (55 km) of track was added out to Colchester by 1843. The original gauge for the line was 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ), but this was converted to 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ) standard gauge in 1844. The section of line between Colchester and Ipswich
1558-493: The North London Line and Temple Mills. The GEML has six tracks up to the London-end of Stratford and the junction to Temple Mills; there are five lines through the station, dropping to four at the country end. At Shenfield , the line to Southend Victoria diverges and the main line route drops from four tracks to two; this arrangement continues for the vast majority of the way to Norwich. There are several locations where
1640-498: The Northern and Eastern Railway whose line to Broxbourne opened, although at first the N&;ER trains were not permitted to call at Stratford. By 1840, it was clear that additional money would be required to complete the ECR line to Colchester . This stretch included 64 bridges or viaducts in addition to numerous culverts, embankments and cuttings. A successful application for more capital
1722-554: The "Stoke Bone Beds". The finds are considered important in understanding climate change during the Ice Age . This tunnel had the trackbed lowered so the line could accommodate taller freight trains. Steam-hauled inter-city trains on the London-Norwich service were replaced by diesel power in the 1960s; locomotives from classes 40 , 37 and 47 hauled services until the mid-1980s. Electric locomotives replaced diesel haulage from
SECTION 20
#17328443816231804-460: The 1860s, the railways in East Anglia were in financial trouble and most were leased to the ECR; they wished to amalgamate formally, but could not obtain government agreement for this until 1862, when the Great Eastern Railway (GER) was formed out of the consolidation. From November 1872, Bishopsgate (Low Level) became a temporary terminus to relieve the main high level Bishopsgate station while
1886-500: The EAR, but it proved so unprofitable that they threatened to withdraw from the arrangement in October 1849. In the end operation by the ECR restarted with them paying the EAR 25 shillings per day to do so. The financial depression of 1847–48 saw the ECR rein back some of its ambitions although the loop line from St Ives to March was opened on 1 February 1848 and the ECR took over the working of
1968-560: The ECR before the incorporation of the GER in 1862 took place on 12 April 1860, when the Leiston branch in East Suffolk was extended to Aldeburgh. The first engine shed was located at Whalebone Lane, Chadwell Heath opening in 1839 with the railway. Following the extension of the ECR to Brentwood in 1840, a "railway factory" at Romford (between the current stations of Chadwell Heath and Gidea Park (on
2050-467: The ECR or the railways it took over; for example Ipswich engine shed which was built by the Eastern Union Railway . In order to build the line, the ECR purchased four 0-4-0 ballast locomotives delivered in late 1838 and named Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex and Middlesex. These and the next six engines ordered were built by Braithwaite, Milner and Co. Six 2-2-0 locomotives (original numbers 1 to 6) were
2132-531: The ECR refused access so that the passengers had to change stations by horse-bus. However, shareholder opposition within the GNR and EAR were the real reason why the GNR withdrew from the arrangement allowing the ECR to take over operation of the EAR. In 1853, the Eastern Union Railway was in serious financial trouble having built lines to Norwich, Bury St Edmunds (as the Ipswich and Bury Railway), Sudbury and had
2214-544: The ECR to extend northwards towards Ipswich led to the formation of the Eastern Union Railway , who opened their line between Colchester and Ipswich in 1846. Other ECR openings in 1847 included to Wisbech East on 3 May and on 17 August, Cambridge to St Ives where a junction with the East Anglian Railway 's (EAR) St Ives to Huntingdon line was created. In fact the ECR operated the St Ives to Huntingdon line on behalf of
2296-547: The ECR to extend to Cambridge and Brandon in Norfolk where an end on connection with the Norfolk Railway would offer a through route to Norwich . This route opened on 29 July 1845. In 1845, the ECR was surveying towards Ardleigh with the intention of extending to Harwich although this scheme failed to get parliamentary backing. Late in 1845, George Hudson was invited by the ECR shareholders to become chairman and an upswing in
2378-477: The ECR took over operation of the East Anglian Railway . The company's property had been taken over by the receiver in June 1850 and the EAR was leased to the Great Northern Railway (GNR). The GNR had running powers over the ECR line between Peterborough, March and Wisbech (opened 1847). Unfortunately, they had not applied for running rights over the line that linked the ECR and EAR stations at Wisbech and
2460-469: The ECR) was the five strong X class 2-4-0WT introduced in 1862 and built at Stratford Works . Numbered 120 to 124 (noting the similarly numbered locomotives in the above table had been renumbered or withdrawn) these were deployed on the line to North Woolwich. The Railway Act 1844 laid down standards for third-class carriages. Facilities were very spartan with wooden benches seating 46 passengers who could access
2542-480: The East Anglian railways. In 1862 ECR was merged with a number of other companies to form the Great Eastern Railway . In 1835, a surveyor called Henry Sayer presented a plan for a new railway from London to York via Cambridge to London solicitors Dimes & Boyman. Together with John Clinton Robertson who was to become the first secretary of the ECR and engineers John Braithwaite it was concluded that this scheme
Stoke Tunnel - Misplaced Pages Continue
2624-623: The Eastern Counties Railway had opposed the extension to Cambridge). The line was completed in 1851 and initially the GNR, who had leased the Royston and Hitchin Railway in the interim, ran a connecting horse-drawn omnibus service. This proved unsuccessful so the new line and the line to Hitchin were leased to the Eastern Counties Railway for 14 years, with a connection at Shepreth to enable the ECR to run trains from Cambridge to Hitchin. In 1852,
2706-593: The GEML at Stratford (on the Cambridge line platforms). The GER was grouped in 1923 into the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER). In 1931–32, the LNER quadrupled the tracks to Shenfield which became the terminus for inner-suburban operation. In the 1930s, a flyover was constructed just west of Ilford to switch the main and electric lines over, to enable main line trains to utilise Liverpool Street's longer west side platforms without having to cross east side suburban traffic in
2788-717: The GEML. However, not everyone was a fan; British Railways' chairman Sir Michael Barrington Ward exclaimed "What? Send the first British Railways standard engines to that tramline? No!" Twenty-three Britannias were allocated to the GE section and, in summer 1951, the Liverpool Street–Norwich service went over to an hourly clockface interval service. The British Railways 1955 Modernisation Plan called for overhead line systems in Great Britain to be standardised at 25 kV AC. However, due to low clearances under bridges,
2870-472: The GER was building its new permanent terminus at Liverpool Street . The latter opened in stages from February 1874, beginning with the first four platforms, until it was fully open from November 1875. At that time the original 1840 Bishopsgate station closed to passengers and was converted into a goods yard. By the 1870s, suburbia in the Forest Gate area was developing quickly and in 1872 suburban trains (this
2952-477: The Great Eastern Main Line, with its easy access to the Port of Felixstowe . A pool of Class 90s, including most of the locomotives that operated inter-city services on the GEML, provide electric haulage with Class 66 and Class 70 providing diesel power. In 2015, TfL Rail , the precursor of Crossrail , took over operation of the Shenfield stopping "metro" service and, from 2022, the full Crossrail service will run via
3034-799: The Jutsums Lane overbridge. In addition, at the London-end of the depot, is Network Rail's Electrical Control Room that controls the supply and switching of the overhead line system for the whole of the former Anglia Region. Signalling is controlled by two main signalling centres: Liverpool Street IECC (opened in 1992) and Colchester PSB (opened in December 1983). Liverpool Street IECC controls signalling up to Marks Tey , where it fringes with Colchester PSB, which has control to Norwich . There are also several small signal boxes that control local infrastructure, such as Ingatestone box, which has jurisdiction over several local level crossings. Line-side train monitoring equipment includes hot axle box detectors (HABD) on
3116-568: The L&;BR directors asked George Parker Bidder to approach the ECR with regard to a joint bill. There were no additions to the ECR network in 1850, and in 1851 a short branch from what is now Shepreth Branch Junction near Shelford to Shepreth was built. Back in 1848 Parliament granted authority to the Royston and Hitchin Railway to extend their line from Royston. Although Cambridge was its goal, Parliament sanctioned only an extension as far as Shepreth (as
3198-502: The London & Blackwall Railway. They had built the London & Blackwall Extension Railway from Stepney East which was supposed to have a junction with the ECR at Bow Junction. This was not connected and an ill-served interchange station called Victoria Park & Bow lasted until 1850. Both the L&BR and the ECR had been promoting railways to Tilbury and it was in September 1851 that
3280-504: The N&ER from 1 January 1844 paying rent and dividing the profits until this railway was finally acquired by the Great Eastern Railway in 1902. Following the acquisition of the N&ER the ECR concentrated on building the line towards Newport (Essex) and on 4 July 1844, Parliament passed the Eastern Counties Railway Company (Ely, Brandon and Peterborough Extension) Act 1844 ( 7 & 8 Vict. c. lxii) authorising
3362-547: The Norfolk Railway on 2 May which extended the ECR empire to Fakenham, Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth. Construction also started on a branch to Maldon East in March 1847 and the first goods trains ran in August 1848 followed by the opening to passenger trains on 2 October of the same year. By 1849, things were going poorly for ECR chairman George Hudson, and following his non-attendance at the AGM
Stoke Tunnel - Misplaced Pages Continue
3444-865: The ageing Class 86s and rolling stock was updated with refurbished former West Coast Main Line Mark 3 coaches, following the introduction of the Class 390 Pendolino stock on that route. By March 2020, new Class 745 EMUs had fully replaced Class 90 and Mark 3 coaches; thereby ending locomotive operation on the inter-city services on the Great Eastern Main Line. Electric multiple units are used for inner and outer suburban passenger trains and diesel multiple units are used on non-electrified branch lines. The main passenger units utilised are: On weekends and when engineering work occurs, c2c run services into Liverpool Street via Stratford using Class 357 electric multiple units (EMU). Freight services also operate frequently on
3526-409: The down main and down electric lines near Brentwood (17 miles 35 chains from Liverpool Street) and on the up main near Margaretting (25 miles 78 chains). Other equipment includes wheel impact load detectors (WILD) ‘Wheelchex’ on the down main and up main west of Church Lane level crossing (24 miles 75 chains). On leaving Liverpool Street, the route comprises two pairs of tracks, known as the mains and
3608-546: The east side of the line) was built being fully operational by 1842. The most significant task the factory undertook was the gauge conversion of the ECR stock in 1844. As the ECR, grew it became apparent that a new site would be needed and land was acquired at Stratford between the ECR Colchester line and the N&ER line to Cambridge. The N&ER had already established an engine shed at this location when their line to Broxbourne had opened in 1840. At this stage, Stratford
3690-538: The electrics, with a further pair of tracks, the suburbans, which carry the West Anglia Main Line alongside the GEML to Bethnal Green . From Bethnal Green, the GEML has four lines to Bow junction, where there is a complex set of switches and crossings. A line from the LTS (Fenchurch Street) route joins the "up" (London-bound) electric and there are a further two lines, the "up" and "down" Temple Mills, giving access to
3772-400: The first 9 miles (14 km) at the London end. Construction was beset by engineering and other problems, leading to severe financial difficulties. As a result, the project was truncated at Colchester in 1843 but through a series of acquisitions (including the Eastern Union Railway who completed the link between Colchester and Norwich) and opening of other lines, the ECR became the largest of
3854-436: The first ECR passenger engines and had a poor reputation with regard to derailments. Braithwaite, Milner and Co supplied another similar locomotive in 1839 which was number 7. Two 0-4-0 goods engines (8 and 9) were also ordered from Braithwaite, Milner and Co in 1840 lasting until 1849 when they were sold. In 1841 Lancashire firm Jones, Turner and Evans supplied four 2-2-0 locomotives (Nos 12 to 15) which lasted until 1850. Later
3936-564: The gauge conversion of late 1844 when many of these engines were converted to UK standard gauge at the Romford factory. As described above, the ECR grew up in piecemeal fashion at times ordering its own locomotives, and then acquiring other companies' locomotives when the firms were taken over. This makes the history quite complex and the table below is an overview of the company's locomotives in 1856. Robert Sinclair took over as Locomotive Superintendent after Gooch’s departure. In 1858, he designed
4018-524: The general design was the same the locomotives were built by a number of different companies including Kitsons, Vulcan and in 1865 (in GER days) the French railway firm Schneider at cie. The ECR sent the first Y class No 327 (an example built by Stephenson) to the 1862 International Exhibition where it caught the eye of the Egyptian government who ordered 11 similar locomotives. Sinclair’s only other design (for
4100-580: The hour. Summer Saturdays in 1950 also saw the introduction of the Holiday Camps Express workings to Gorleston, near Lowestoft. The latter half of 1950 and early 1951 saw the testing of new EM1 electric locomotives for use over the Woodhead Line between Manchester and Sheffield . January 1951 saw the introduction of the Britannia class 4-6-2 express locomotives and a speeding up of services on
4182-626: The land was largely arable. Indeed, a good number of windmills had to be demolished in order to get the railway built. West of Stratford the line had to cross the unstable Bow Marshes and after that, the built-up nature of the area meant that the railway had to be built on expensive viaducts. The two-track railway opened on 20 June 1839 from a temporary terminus at Devonshire Street in Mile End , Middlesex , as far as Romford in Essex . On opening day, two trains topped and tailed by locomotives proceeded along
SECTION 50
#17328443816234264-399: The likes of Heathrow Airport and Reading . Instead, these services start from Abbey Wood , The Elizabeth line's southeast branch. Eastern Counties Railway The Eastern Counties Railway ( ECR ) was an English railway company incorporated in 1836 intended to link London with Ipswich via Colchester , and then extend to Norwich and Yarmouth . Construction began in 1837 on
4346-568: The line as far as Manningtree became part of Network SouthEast , although some NSE services actually terminated at Ipswich, whilst longer-distance Norwich services were operated by InterCity. Local services operating from the Ipswich and Norwich areas were operated by Regional Railways . Between 1997 and 2004, services into Essex and some into Suffolk were operated by First Great Eastern , whilst services into Norfolk and other Suffolk services were operated by Anglia Railways . Between 2004 and 2012, services out of Liverpool Street, except for
4428-448: The line is immediately south of Ipswich station. The 361-yard (330 m) long tunnel was built by Peter Bruff as part of the Ipswich & Bury Railway . It was completed in 1846 and it is thought to be the earliest driven on a sharp continuous curve. During the excavation of the tunnel, many important fossils were discovered, including rhinoceros, lion and mammoth; the site was known as
4510-419: The line throughout its history: The line is owned and maintained by Network Rail . It is part of Network Rail Strategic Route 7 , which is composed of SRSs 07.01, 07.02 and 07.03, and is classified as a primary line. The GEML has a loading gauge of W10 between Liverpool Street and Haughley Junction (approximately 13 miles 63 chains north of Ipswich) and from there is W9 to Norwich . The maximum line speed
4592-531: The line watched by crowds of people. Guests of the company enjoyed a sumptuous banquet at Romford enlivened by the sound of cannon and the band of the Coldstream Guards . The strain of building the initial line and continuing disputes with landowners continued to take its toll on the company's finances. ECR backers in Norfolk and Suffolk were demanding work start in their area and the company was forced to go to Parliament to increase its capital, although this move
4674-431: The lines finances resulted. Hudson then proposed various schemes designed to take the ECR towards York and Lincoln joining up with his North Midland Railway at South Milford. One scheme that came to fruition was the line from Peterborough via March to Ely which opened on 14 January 1847. Increasing passenger numbers at Bishopsgate (renamed from Shoreditch in 1846) saw that station extended in the same year. The refusal of
4756-486: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Stoke_Tunnel&oldid=836225995 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Stoke Tunnel (Ipswich) The Great Eastern Main Line ( GEML , sometimes referred to as
4838-578: The mid-1980s, when the remainder of the GEML was electrified north of Colchester; their utilisation continued until March 2020. Class 86 locomotives powered the service from 1985 until 2005, with rakes of Mark 2 coaches. Push-pull services were introduced during their tenure, initially using a DBSO coach at the Norwich end and latterly with Mark 3 Driving Van Trailers , cascaded from the West Coast Main Line . From 2004, Class 90 locomotives replaced
4920-522: The outbreak of the Second World War brought the project to a temporary halt and it was not until 1949 that the scheme was completed with electrification being extended to Chelmsford in 1956. During World War II , the long-distance named trains were withdrawn, and these returned after the war with the reintroduction of the "Hook Continental" and "Scandinavian" boat trains to Harwich Parkeston Quay in 1945. The East Anglian (Liverpool Street – Norwich)
5002-524: The route has more than two tracks, predominantly through stations such as Colchester and Ipswich, along with goods loops, such as at the London end of Ingatestone . There is also a short stretch of single track on approach to Norwich, as the line passes over the River Wensum on the Trowse Bridge. Major civil engineering structures on the Great Eastern Main Line include the following: The only tunnel on
SECTION 60
#17328443816235084-408: The route to obtain larger clearances. The route between Liverpool Street and Southend Victoria was converted to 25 kV AC between 1976 and 1980. By the late 1970s, the costs of running the dated mechanical signalling systems north of Colchester was recognised and, in 1978, a scheme for track rationalisation and re-signalling was duly submitted to the Department of Transport. This was followed by
5166-411: The route was electrified at 6.25 kV AC. The section between Liverpool Street and Southend Victoria was completed in November 1960. Extensive testing showed that smaller electrical clearances could be tolerated for the 25 kV system than originally thought necessary. As a result, it was now possible to increase the voltage without having to either raise bridges or lower the tracks along
5248-435: The same year Burys supplied two 0-4-2 passenger locomotives (Nos 10 and 11) to the ECR. Numbers 16 and 17 were 2-2-0 passenger singles ordered from Bury and Co and were in service in early 1842. Later in 1842 The ECR board ordered eight more Bury singles (Nos 18 to 26). Some of these engines survived until 1859–60. These were all the locomotives purchased before the acquisition of the Northern and Eastern Railway in 1844 and
5330-464: The shareholders, who had received a very small dividend, set up a committee to look into his financial management of the company. A short branch to Enfield was opened on 1 March 1849. This linked to the current Angel Road station (then called Edmonton). Later the same month the Dereham to Fakenham line, the building of which had been started by the Norfolk Railway, was opened by the ECR on 20 March 1849. The ECR did not enjoy good relations with
5412-405: The station throat. The new arrangement also facilitated cross-platform interchange with the Central line at Stratford , with services commencing in 1946. Either side of the Ilford flyover there are single-track connections between each pair of lines, with the westbound track extending to Manor Park and just beyond. The eastbound track extends as far as Ilford station. It was also envisaged that
5494-406: The three compartments through three doors. The middle compartment seated 18 passengers whilst the end compartments seated 14 each. It is known that carriages were built at Stratford Works and Fairfield Works in Bow. An ECR first class carriage has survived and is part of the UK national collection. Goods traffic on the ECR was largely agricultural in nature. The table below shows a breakdown of
5576-428: Was a largely rural location with plenty of land being available and in connection with this move the ECR built 300 new houses for the work force. Stratford engine shed and Stratford Works initially shared this site and it was not until the 1860s that the GER moved the engine sheds to the other side of the Cambridge line. Various other engine sheds grew up around the expanding ECR network either being constructed by
5658-412: Was added between Bow Junction and Stratford to help accommodate London, Tilbury and Southend Railway services which at that time were operating via Stratford. Until 1860, trains serving the town of Ipswich used a station called Ipswich Stoke Hill which was located south of the Stoke tunnel. The town's current station is located to the north of the tunnel. The ECR had leased the EUR from 1854 but by
5740-404: Was built by the Eastern Union Railway (EUR) to standard gauge and opened to passenger traffic in June 1846. Its sister company, the Ipswich and Bury Railway, built a line to Bury St Edmunds and this was completed in November 1846. Both companies shared the same office, many directors and key staff, and started operating as a unified company with the EUR name from 1 January 1847. An extension from
5822-402: Was built to help accommodate this traffic and ECR services had running rights into Fenchurch Street via the London and Blackwall Railway extension route. A line was also provided linking Victoria Park station on the North London Railway with Stratford Low Level and Stratford Market stations which was primarily for goods traffic. The Loughton branch of the ECR was opened on 22 August 1856 with
5904-445: Was extended back to James Street Junction (near Globe Road station which opened the same year) in 1884, but Bethnal Green to James Street did not follow until 1891. It was also in this year that two extra tracks were added between Bethnal Green and Liverpool Street which were for the use of West Anglia Main Line services. These tracks were built through the basement warehousing associated with Bishopsgate station located above. The line
5986-497: Was made to Parliament and work continued. The winter of 1841 proved very wet and delayed work even further. Finally on 25 February 1843, a special inspection train left Shoreditch for Colchester. However, the train was stopped at Brentwood as a timber viaduct at Mountnessing had subsided and it was unsafe to continue. On 7 March 1843, goods trains started operation followed by the commencement of passenger services on 29 March. The costs were as follows: The line ran to Colchester ,
6068-637: Was opened by the ECR, the following week on 15 August. The ECR also took over the Newmarket Railway in 1854 which linked Cambridge with Ipswich Bury St Edmunds. In 1854, the ECR/L&;BR owned London Tilbury and Southend Railway started operating over the Forest Gate Junction to Bow Junction and onto Fenchurch Street . Early trains split at Stratford with a portion of the train to Bishopsgate station. A third line between Stratford and Bow Junction
6150-528: Was planned that by September 2017, half of the services between Shenfield and Liverpool Street will have switched to the new Class 345 trains. From May 2015, Crossrail services (re-branded as TfL Rail ) have an interchange with existing GEML services at Liverpool Street (via new underground platforms) as well as Stratford , Romford and Shenfield . In November 2022, Crossrail services began to operate between Shenfield and London Paddington via Farringdon . However no services operate further than Paddington onto
6232-556: Was quadrupled to Ilford in 1895, and in 1899 out to Seven Kings . In 1902, the quadruple track was extended from Seven Kings to Romford, but it wasn't until 1913 that four-tracking out to Shenfield was suggested and the First World War caused delay to this plan. In 1903, the Fairlop Loop opened and a number of services that had previously terminated at Ilford were extended onto it. These services generally looped round and back to
6314-569: Was rejected. Later in 1839 shareholders decided a call for £3 per share should be made (in effect an additional payment by them) although this was reduced to £2 per share in January 1840 which released enough money for the ECR to continue construction. On 1 July 1840, the ECR opened an extension at the London end to its permanent terminus at Shoreditch (renamed Bishopsgate in 1846) and at the country end to Brentwood . The line between Stratford and Shoreditch was, from 15 September 1840, used by trains of
6396-477: Was restored in October 1946, and in 1947 the "Day Continental" which pre-war had operated as the "Flushing Continental", recommenced operation. After nationalisation in 1948, the GEML formed part of the Eastern Region of British Railways . The Summer 1950 timetable saw the introduction of a regular interval service between Liverpool Street and Clacton, which left Liverpool Street on the half-hour and Clacton on
6478-479: Was the ECR that built the line through to North Woolwich opening on 14 June 1847. As mentioned, the N&ER had built a line from Stratford – Broxbourne and shared the ECR Shoreditch terminus. This railway had extended to Bishop's Stortford in 1842 and Hertford East in 1843 and was in the process of extending its line towards Cambridge . Following on from negotiations in 1843, the ECR took over operation of
6560-519: Was the first distinctive suburban service on the main line as previously main line trains had performed this duty) terminated at a bay platform at Forest Gate . These were followed by trains from Fenchurch Street in 1877. By 1882, these services had been extended and were terminating at Ilford, Romford or Brentwood. In 1877, a fourth track was added between Bow Junction and Stratford and two goods-only tracks were added between Stratford and Maryland Point . The four-track Bow Junction to Stratford section
6642-487: Was too optimistic and a scheme from London to Norwich via Colchester and Ipswich would be more viable. A tour of the key towns on the route followed where considerable opposition from landowners, from sections of the press and members of the public was encountered. Despite this the prospectus of the Grand Eastern Counties Railway was first prepared in 1834 by John Braithwaite . The bill was introduced into
6724-486: Was used for crew training. The first passenger carrying train was formed of Class 309 EMUs, which ran on 17 April 1985. InterCity electric-hauled trains commenced on the route on 1 May 1985. Class 86 locomotives initially only powered services between Liverpool Street and Ipswich; after a switchover, Class 47s would complete the journey between Ipswich and Norwich. This last section was finally energised in May 1987, when through electric services commenced. In 1986,
#622377