Beccles railway station
Encyclopedia
Beccles is a railway station on the East Suffolk Line
and serves the town of Beccles
in Suffolk
. There is generally a two hourly service to Lowestoft
and Ipswich
.
and the line was then extended to Ipswich and Great Yarmouth
in 1859. The Beccles to Lowestoft line opened in the same year. The Waveney Valley Line
from Tivetshall on the Great Eastern Main Line
reached Beccles in 1863, making the town an important junction on the expanding Great Eastern Railway
network.
The Waveney Valley Line
closed to passengers in 1954 and the Yarmouth-Beccles Line line closed to passengers in 1959. The Waveney Valley Line was then closed to freight traffic in 1963.
The engine shed was demolished in 2006, and the island platform is now overgrown. There are traces of the turntable in the ground.
(Cornwall) would be used at Beccles when the loop is constructed. This would have negated the use of a footbridge. Trains in both directions would then have used the existing single platform. By March 2010 however a new track next to the previously disused platform had been constructed. As of March 30, 2010 however this new track is not connected to the existing single line with points or signalling. The bulk of the loop therefore is in situ but the essential (and expensive) connections have not been made. The line between Beccles and Halesworth is single-track.
East Suffolk Line
The East Suffolk Line is an un-electrified secondary railway line running between Ipswich and Lowestoft in Suffolk, England. The traffic along the route consists of passenger services operated by National Express East Anglia, while nuclear flask trains for the Sizewell nuclear power stations are...
and serves the town of Beccles
Beccles
Beccles is a market town and civil parish in the Waveney District of the English county of Suffolk. The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 Blythburgh and A12 road, northeast of London as the crow flies, southeast of Norwich, and north northeast of the county town of...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. There is generally a two hourly service to Lowestoft
Lowestoft
Lowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...
and Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
.
History
The East Suffolk Railway, opened in 1854 operating as far as HalesworthHalesworth
Halesworth is a small market town in the northeastern corner of Suffolk, England. It is located south west of Lowestoft, and straddles the River Blyth, 9 miles upstream from Southwold. The town is served by Halesworth railway station on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line...
and the line was then extended to Ipswich and Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
in 1859. The Beccles to Lowestoft line opened in the same year. The Waveney Valley Line
Waveney Valley Line
The Waveney Valley Line was a branch line running from in Norfolk to Beccles in Suffolk connecting the Great Eastern Main Line at Tivetshall with the East Suffolk Line at . It provided services to Norwich, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Ipswich and many other smaller towns in Suffolk with additional...
from Tivetshall on the Great Eastern Main Line
Great Eastern Main Line
The Great Eastern Main Line is a 212 Kilometre major railway line of the British railway system, which connects Liverpool Street in the City of London with destinations in east London and the East of England, including Chelmsford, Colchester, Ipswich, Norwich and several coastal resorts such as...
reached Beccles in 1863, making the town an important junction on the expanding Great Eastern Railway
Great Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia...
network.
The Waveney Valley Line
Waveney Valley Line
The Waveney Valley Line was a branch line running from in Norfolk to Beccles in Suffolk connecting the Great Eastern Main Line at Tivetshall with the East Suffolk Line at . It provided services to Norwich, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Ipswich and many other smaller towns in Suffolk with additional...
closed to passengers in 1954 and the Yarmouth-Beccles Line line closed to passengers in 1959. The Waveney Valley Line was then closed to freight traffic in 1963.
The engine shed was demolished in 2006, and the island platform is now overgrown. There are traces of the turntable in the ground.
Train Services
The following services currently call at Beccles:| Operator | Route | Material | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NXEA | (Harwich International Harwich International railway station Harwich International is a railway station serving Harwich International Port in Essex, England. The station is located on the electrified Mayflower Line from Manningtree to Harwich Town... -) Ipswich Ipswich railway station Ipswich railway station is a railway station serving the town of Ipswich in Suffolk, England. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line 68¾ miles east of London Liverpool Street towards Norwich... - Westerfield Westerfield railway station Westerfield is a railway station in Westerfield Suffolk, England. The station is a junction of the Felixstowe Branch Line to Felixstowe, and the East Suffolk Line to Lowestoft 6 km east of Ipswich. Westerfield is a small village north of Ipswich and the station is situated on the south side... - Woodbridge Woodbridge railway station Woodbridge is a railway station serving the town of Woodbridge in Suffolk. The station is located on the East Suffolk Line .-History:... - Melton Melton railway station Melton is a railway station serving the village of Melton in Suffolk, England. The station is located on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line... - Wickham Market Wickham Market railway station Wickham Market is a railway station located in the village of Campsea Ashe in Suffolk, approximately two miles east of Wickham Market itself. The station is located on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line.... - Saxmundham Saxmundham railway station Saxmundham is a railway station which serves the town of Saxmundham in Suffolk, England. It is located on the East Suffolk Line and is 36 km east of Ipswich.... - Darsham Darsham railway station Darsham is a railway station which serves the villages of Darsham and Yoxford in Suffolk, lying midway between the two communities, each of which is about one mile from the station. It is located on the East Suffolk Line between Lowestoft and Ipswich... - Halesworth Halesworth railway station Halesworth is a railway station serving the town of Halesworth in Suffolk. The station is located on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line.It is the nearest station to the town of Southwold, although some passengers from Southwold prefer to use Darsham station.The station is served by National... - Brampton Brampton (Suffolk) railway station Brampton is a railway station serving the villages of Brampton and Redisham in Suffolk, which is approximately 1½ miles away. The station is located on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line.... - Beccles - Oulton Broad South Oulton Broad South railway station Oulton Broad South is one of two railway stations serving Oulton Broad, a suburb of Lowestoft in Suffolk, England.The station is located on the Ipswich-Lowestoft East Suffolk Line... - Lowestoft Lowestoft railway station Lowestoft railway station, formerly known as Lowestoft Central railway station, is a staffed railway station serving the town of Lowestoft in Suffolk. It is the terminus of the Wherry Line from Norwich and the East Suffolk Line from Ipswich. It is the easternmost station on the National Rail network... |
Class 170 | Every 2 Hours | Service to Harwich 1x per day |
Beccles loop
There are plans to construct a passing loop at Beccles to allow hourly services to operate on the line. At first this was believed to involve restoration of the island platform. It was then assumed that the same (novel) arrangement as used at Penryn railway stationPenryn railway station
Penryn station is on the Maritime Line from Truro to Falmouth Docks, and serves the town of Penryn, Cornwall. The services are operated by First Great Western.-History:The station was opened by the Cornwall Railway in 1863...
(Cornwall) would be used at Beccles when the loop is constructed. This would have negated the use of a footbridge. Trains in both directions would then have used the existing single platform. By March 2010 however a new track next to the previously disused platform had been constructed. As of March 30, 2010 however this new track is not connected to the existing single line with points or signalling. The bulk of the loop therefore is in situ but the essential (and expensive) connections have not been made. The line between Beccles and Halesworth is single-track.