Great Eastern Main Line
Encyclopedia
The Great Eastern Main Line (GEML, sometimes referred to as the East Anglia Main Line) is a 212 Kilometre (133 mi) 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 Clacton-on-Sea
and Walton-on-the-Naze
. It is primarily a commuter railway that also attracts business and leisure passengers, and a freight route.
(Mile End
) and Romford
from 1839 and was built by the Eastern Counties Railway
(ECR). The London terminus was then moved to Bishopsgate railway station
(initially known as Shoreditch) on 1 July 1840 and the line was extended out to Brentwood
in the same year. A further 51 miles of route was added to link London with Colchester by 1843. The original gauge for the line was 5 feet, but this was converted to standard gauge
(4′8½″) in 1844.
The section of line between Colchester and Ipswich was built by the Eastern Union Railway
to standard gauge and opened for passenger traffic on 15 June 1846 and the route to Norwich (Norwich Victoria railway station
) opened in 1849.
Eastern Counties Railway and Eastern Union Railways and others were amalgamated to form the Great Eastern Railway
in 1862.
The London terminus was again moved, this time to Liverpool Street on 2 February 1874.
The line was 'grouped' into the London and North Eastern Railway
in 1923 and from 1948 formed part of the Eastern Region of British Railways
.
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 St's longer west side platforms without having to cross east side suburban traffic in the station throat. The new arrangement also facilitated cross-platform interchange
with the Central line
at Stratford, services commencing in 1946. Either side of Ilford Flyover, there are single-track connections between the slow and fast pairs of lines, with the westbound track extending to Manor Park railway station
and just beyond. A short fifth platform face serves the track at Manor Park, but it sees no normal use. The eastbound track extends as far as Ilford, connecting with that station's fifth (bay) platform, which does see limited passenger operations. It was also envisaged that a flyover would be built at the country end of Gidea Park Carriage Sidings to switch Southend Victoria trains from the mains to the electrics, instead of at Shenfield London end junction as they do now.
Plans were drawn up in the 1930s to electrify the suburban lines from Liverpool Street to Shenfield at 1500 V DC and work was started on implementing this. However, 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.
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 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 the route to obtain larger clearances. The route between Liverpool Street and Southend Victoria was converted to 25 kV AC between 1976 and 1980 Electrification was extended to Norwich by 1986.
In 1986 it became part of Network SouthEast
. Between 5 January 1997 and 31 March 2004, suburban and medium distance services were operated by First Great Eastern
, while fast mainline services were operated by Anglia Railways
. All services are now operated by National Express East Anglia.
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 a combination of GEC-Alsthom HW2000 and Smiths clamp-lock point machines.
The first signalbox to be closed and transferred to Liverpool Street IECC was Shenfield, which had only opened in 1982. The last boxes to be transferred were at Romford and Gidea Park, and were the oldest of those being transferred, having been opened under the GER/LNER 1924 resignalling scheme.
. It is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 7
, is composed of SRS's 07.01, 07.02 and 07.03, and is classified as a primary line. The line has a loading gauge of W10 between Liverpool Street
and Haughley junction and from there is W9 to Norwich
. It has a line speed of between 80-100 mph.
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.
In between Romford and Chadwell Heath there is a small Network Rail OLE depot adjacent to 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 OHL 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.
From Bethnal Green the GE has four lines to Bow Junction, where there is a complex set of switches and crossings. A line from the LTS route joins the up electric and there are a further two lines, the up and down Temple Mills, giving access to the North London line and Temple Mills . The GE is six tracks up to the London end of Stratford and the junction to Temple Mills, and there are five lines through the station dropping to four at the country end.
A flyover just west of Ilford
enables main line trains to utilise Liverpool St's longer west side platforms without having to cross east side suburban traffic in the station throat. This arrangement also facilitated cross-platform interchange with the Central line
at Stratford. Either side of Ilford Flyover, there are single-track connections between the slow and fast pairs of lines, with the westbound track extending to Manor Park railway station
and just beyond. A short fifth platform face serves the track at Manor Park, but it sees no normal use. The eastbound track extends as far as Ilford, connecting with that station's fifth (bay) platform, which does see limited passenger operations.
At Shenfield the line to Southend Victoria diverges and the main line route drops from four lines to two; this arrangement continues for the vast majority of the way to Norwich. There are several locations where the route has more than two lines, predominantly through stations such as Colchester and Ipswich, along with goods loops, such as at the London end of Ingatestone.
. The 361 yd (330 m) long tunnel was built by Peter Bruff
as part of the Ipswich to Ely Line
. 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 uncovered, including rhinoceros
, lion
, and, mammoth
; the site was known as 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 higher container trains.
Electric multiple unit
s for inner and outer suburban passenger trains and diesel multiple units for non-electrified lines. Electric and diesel hauled freight services.
and Stratford International
is expected to be complete. It is using the former North London Line
alignment that runs beside the Jubilee Line
and will directly link Stratford Regional to its international counterpart, local stations to the south and existing DLR branches in the Royal Docks
.
trains may serve Stratford International station
when the Docklands Light Railway
(DLR) extension to the station is completed in spring 2011 (see below). It may also be served by other cross channel operators currently looking at using the line (see High Speed 1#Future operations for details). This would provide, via a short walk, an interchange between the Great Eastern Main Line services and High Speed services to continental Europe
.
will be completed which will take over the Shenfield metro service and take it via a tunnel through central London and link up with the Great Western Main Line
as far as and Heathrow Airport. The Crossrail service will interchange with remaining Great Eastern Main Line services at (via new underground platforms), , and .
, published in December 2007 outlines a number of developments intended for the Great Eastern route. Other proposals have been announced separately.
, using the National Express East Anglia brand name. The franchise began under the 'one' railway brand on 1 April 2004. As of May 2007 two c2c
services operate during the late evening to Barking
. This is a throwback to BR days when London Fenchurch Street
closed early in the evening as a cost-saving exercise and all services operated from Liverpool Street.
Liverpool Street is the principal passenger destination, although Stratford, with connections to Canary Wharf
, has grown in significance.
The section between Stratford and Gidea Park follows the same route s the A118 road
.
National Rail
National Rail is a title used by the Association of Train Operating Companies as a generic term to define the passenger rail services operated in Great Britain...
, which connects Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street station
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...
in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
with destinations in east London and the East of England
East of England
The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its...
, including Chelmsford
Chelmsford
Chelmsford is the county town of Essex, England and the principal settlement of the borough of Chelmsford. It is located in the London commuter belt, approximately northeast of Charing Cross, London, and approximately the same distance from the once provincial Roman capital at Colchester...
, Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
, 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...
, Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
and several coastal resorts such as Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea is the largest town on the Tendring peninsula, in Essex, England and was founded in 1871. It is a seaside resort that attracted many tourists in the summer months between the 1950s and 1970s, but which like many other British sea-side resorts went into decline as a holiday...
and Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze is a small town in Essex, England, on the North Sea coast in the Tendring district. It is north of Clacton and south of the port of Harwich. It abuts Frinton-on-Sea to the south, and is part of the parish of Frinton and Walton. It is a resort town, with a permanent population of...
. It is primarily a commuter railway that also attracts business and leisure passengers, and a freight route.
History
The earliest section of the line operated between Devonshire Street railway stationDevonshire Street railway station
Devonshire Street railway station was a station in the parish of Mile End Old Town, in the East End of London. It was opened on 29 June 1839 as the temporary terminus for the Eastern Counties Railway from Romford prior to the construction of Bishopsgate...
(Mile End
Mile End
Mile End is an area within the East End of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross...
) and Romford
Romford
Romford is a large suburban town in north east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan...
from 1839 and was built by the Eastern Counties Railway
Eastern Counties Railway
The Eastern Counties Railway was an early English railway company incorporated in 1836. It was intended to link London with Ipswich via Colchester, and then on to Norwich and Yarmouth. Construction began in late March 1837 on the first nine miles, at the London end of the line.Construction was...
(ECR). The London terminus was then moved to Bishopsgate railway station
Bishopsgate railway station
Bishopsgate station was a railway station located on the eastern side of Shoreditch High Street in the modern London Borough of Tower Hamlets; the western edge of the East End. It was in use from 1840 to 1964 when it was destroyed by fire...
(initially known as Shoreditch) on 1 July 1840 and the line was extended out to Brentwood
Brentwood, Essex
Brentwood is a town and the principal settlement of the Borough of Brentwood, in the county of Essex in the east of England. It is located in the London commuter belt, 20 miles east north-east of Charing Cross in London, and near the M25 motorway....
in the same year. A further 51 miles of route was added to link London with Colchester by 1843. The original gauge for the line was 5 feet, but this was converted to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
(4′8½″) in 1844.
The section of line between Colchester and Ipswich was built by the Eastern Union Railway
Eastern Union Railway
The Eastern Union Railway was an early English railway, initially sanctioned by Act of Parliament on 19 July 1844, with authorised capital of £200,000 to build from Ipswich to Colchester. Further Acts of 21 July 1845 and 26 June 1846 authorised further increases in capital of £50,000 and £20,000...
to standard gauge and opened for passenger traffic on 15 June 1846 and the route to Norwich (Norwich Victoria railway station
Norwich Victoria railway station
Norwich Victoria was a railway station in Norwich in Norfolk and the former terminus of the Great Eastern Main Line. It was opened in 1849.The station was closed to passenger traffic in 1916 but remained open for goods traffic. After the Second World War it was used only to supply coal to the...
) opened in 1849.
Eastern Counties Railway and Eastern Union Railways and others were amalgamated to form the 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...
in 1862.
The London terminus was again moved, this time to Liverpool Street on 2 February 1874.
The line was 'grouped' into the London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
in 1923 and from 1948 formed part of the Eastern Region of British Railways
Eastern Region of British Railways
The Eastern Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s and was wound up at the end of 1992...
.
In the 1930s a flyover was constructed just west of Ilford
Ilford railway station
Ilford railway station is a suburban National Rail station located in Ilford in the London Borough of Redbridge. Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia and most trains run between Shenfield and Liverpool Street...
to switch the main and electric lines over, to enable main line trains to utilise Liverpool St's longer west side platforms without having to cross east side suburban traffic in the station throat. The new arrangement also facilitated cross-platform interchange
Cross-platform interchange
A cross-platform interchange is a type of interchange between different lines in a metro system. The term originates with the London Underground; such layouts exist in other networks but are not commonly so named...
with the Central line
Central Line
The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground...
at Stratford, services commencing in 1946. Either side of Ilford Flyover, there are single-track connections between the slow and fast pairs of lines, with the westbound track extending to Manor Park railway station
Manor Park railway station
Manor Park railway station is a railway station in Manor Park in the London Borough of Newham in east London.The station is between Forest Gate and Ilford on the Great Eastern Main Line and in Travelcard Zone 3 and Travelcard Zone 4...
and just beyond. A short fifth platform face serves the track at Manor Park, but it sees no normal use. The eastbound track extends as far as Ilford, connecting with that station's fifth (bay) platform, which does see limited passenger operations. It was also envisaged that a flyover would be built at the country end of Gidea Park Carriage Sidings to switch Southend Victoria trains from the mains to the electrics, instead of at Shenfield London end junction as they do now.
Plans were drawn up in the 1930s to electrify the suburban lines from Liverpool Street to Shenfield at 1500 V DC and work was started on implementing this. However, 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.
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 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 the route to obtain larger clearances. The route between Liverpool Street and Southend Victoria was converted to 25 kV AC between 1976 and 1980 Electrification was extended to Norwich by 1986.
In 1986 it became part of Network SouthEast
Network SouthEast
Network SouthEast was one of three passenger sectors of British Rail created in 1982. NSE principally operated commuter trains in the London area and inter-urban services in densely populated South East England, although the network reached as far west as Exeter...
. Between 5 January 1997 and 31 March 2004, suburban and medium distance services were operated by First Great Eastern
First Great Eastern
First Great Eastern was an award-winning train operating company that operated suburban, local and medium distance train services from London Liverpool Street via Romford to Essex and Ipswich in the United Kingdom on the Great Eastern Main Line railway.First Group gained the Great Eastern...
, while fast mainline services were operated by Anglia Railways
Anglia Railways
Anglia Railways was a British train operating company, owned by GB Railways, which between 5 January 1997 and 31 March 2004 operated mainline trains out of London Liverpool Street station and a number of local rail services in East Anglia....
. All services are now operated by National Express East Anglia.
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 a combination of GEC-Alsthom HW2000 and Smiths clamp-lock point machines.
The first signalbox to be closed and transferred to Liverpool Street IECC was Shenfield, which had only opened in 1982. The last boxes to be transferred were at Romford and Gidea Park, and were the oldest of those being transferred, having been opened under the GER/LNER 1924 resignalling scheme.
Accidents
- 1905 - Witham rail crashWitham rail crashWitham railway station was the scene of a serious accident on Saturday 1st September 1905.-Derailment:All 14 carriages of the 09:27 London Liverpool Street to Cromer express derailed whilst travelling through the station at speed...
; 11 killed, 71 injured - 1915 - Ilford rail crash; 10 killed, 500 injured
Infrastructure
The line is owned and maintained by Network RailNetwork Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
. It is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 7
Network Rail Route 7 (Great Eastern)
Strategic Route 7 - Great Eastern is the designation given by Network Rail to a grouping of railway lines in the East of England that encompasses the Great Eastern Main Line and its various branch lines...
, is composed of SRS's 07.01, 07.02 and 07.03, and is classified as a primary line. The line has a loading gauge of W10 between Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street station
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...
and Haughley junction and from there is W9 to Norwich
Norwich railway station
Norwich is a railway station serving the city of Norwich in the English county of Norfolk. The station is the northern terminus of the Great Eastern Main Line from London Liverpool Street. It is also the terminus of railway lines from Ely, Sheringham, Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft.-History:At one...
. It has a line speed of between 80-100 mph.
The main line is electrified
Railway electrification in Great Britain
Railway electrification in Great Britain started towards of the 19th century. A great range of voltages have been used in the intervening period using both overhead lines and third rails, however the most common standard for mainline services is now 25 kV AC using overhead lines and the...
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.
In between Romford and Chadwell Heath there is a small Network Rail OLE depot adjacent to 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 OHL 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
Ingatestone
Ingatestone is a small town in Essex, England, with a population of about 4500 people. To the immediate north lies the village of Fryerning, and the two form the civil parish of Ingatestone and Fryerning....
box, which has jurisdiction over several local level crossings.
Track layout
On leaving Liverpool Street, the route comprises two pairs of tracks, known as the Mains and the Electrics, with a further pair of tracks, the 'Suburbans', which carry the West Anglia Main Line alongside the GE to Bethnal Green Junction. It is possible for GE trains to use the 'Suburbans', but this is extremely rare because of the platform allocations at Liverpool Street.From Bethnal Green the GE has four lines to Bow Junction, where there is a complex set of switches and crossings. A line from the LTS route joins the up electric and there are a further two lines, the up and down Temple Mills, giving access to the North London line and Temple Mills . The GE is six tracks up to the London end of Stratford and the junction to Temple Mills, and there are five lines through the station dropping to four at the country end.
A flyover just west of Ilford
Ilford railway station
Ilford railway station is a suburban National Rail station located in Ilford in the London Borough of Redbridge. Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia and most trains run between Shenfield and Liverpool Street...
enables main line trains to utilise Liverpool St's longer west side platforms without having to cross east side suburban traffic in the station throat. This arrangement also facilitated cross-platform interchange with the Central line
Central Line
The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground...
at Stratford. Either side of Ilford Flyover, there are single-track connections between the slow and fast pairs of lines, with the westbound track extending to Manor Park railway station
Manor Park railway station
Manor Park railway station is a railway station in Manor Park in the London Borough of Newham in east London.The station is between Forest Gate and Ilford on the Great Eastern Main Line and in Travelcard Zone 3 and Travelcard Zone 4...
and just beyond. A short fifth platform face serves the track at Manor Park, but it sees no normal use. The eastbound track extends as far as Ilford, connecting with that station's fifth (bay) platform, which does see limited passenger operations.
At Shenfield the line to Southend Victoria diverges and the main line route drops from four lines to two; this arrangement continues for the vast majority of the way to Norwich. There are several locations where the route has more than two lines, predominantly through stations such as Colchester and Ipswich, along with goods loops, such as at the London end of Ingatestone.
Stoke tunnel
The only railway tunnel on the Great Eastern Main Line is just to the south of the current Ipswich railway stationIpswich 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...
. The 361 yd (330 m) long tunnel was built by Peter Bruff
Peter Bruff
Peter Schuyler Bruff , born in Portsmouth, England, was a civil engineer best known for founding the seaside resort town of Clacton on Sea, Essex, and for improving the lives of residents in the Essex towns of Walton-on-the-Naze, Colchester and Harwich...
as part of the Ipswich to Ely Line
Ipswich to Ely Line
The Ipswich to Ely Line is a railway line linking East Anglia to the English Midlands via Ely. There is also a branch line to . Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia...
. 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 uncovered, including rhinoceros
Rhinoceros
Rhinoceros , also known as rhino, is a group of five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. Two of these species are native to Africa and three to southern Asia....
, lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
, and, mammoth
Mammoth
A mammoth is any species of the extinct genus Mammuthus. These proboscideans are members of Elephantidae, the family of elephants and mammoths, and close relatives of modern elephants. They were often equipped with long curved tusks and, in northern species, a covering of long hair...
; the site was known as the 'Stoke Bone Beds'. The finds are considered important in understanding climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
during the Ice Age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
. This tunnel had the trackbed lowered so the line could accommodate higher container trains.
Rolling stock
Electric locomotive-hauled inter-city trains on Norwich to London service.Electric multiple unit
Electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
s for inner and outer suburban passenger trains and diesel multiple units for non-electrified lines. Electric and diesel hauled freight services.
- Class 315British Rail Class 315British Rail Class 315 alternating current electric multiple units were built by BREL at York works from 1980 to 1981. They were the fifth and final variety of British Rail's then-standard 1972 design for suburban EMUs, which eventually encompassed 755 vehicles and five Classes...
- 320 seats across four cars. Maximum speed 75 mph (121 km/h) - Class 321British Rail Class 321The British Rail Class 321 alternating current electric multiple units were built by BREL York in three batches from 1988-91. The design was successful and led to the development of the similar Class 320 and Class 322 units for use by Strathclyde PTE and Stansted Express respectively...
- 307 seats across four cars per trainset, 100 mph (161 km/h) - Class 360British Rail Class 360The British Rail Class 360 electric multiple units were built by Siemens in two sub-types from 2002-2003 and 2004-2005. These units are part of the Siemens Desiro family.The Siemens "Desiro UK" family also includes units of Classes 185, 350, 380, 444 and 450....
(Desiro) - four cars per trainset, 100 mph (161 km/h) - Class 90British Rail Class 90The British Rail Class 90 electric locomotives were built by BREL at Crewe from 1987-1990. Each locomotive weighs 84.5 tonnes and has a top speed of . They operate from 25 kV AC overhead wires and produce...
- Intercity express passenger trains, Maximum speed 110 mph, Running speed 100-105 mph - Class 170 - three cars per trainset, 100 mph (161 km/h) for Ipswich to Peterborough and Lowestoft services
2011 DLR extension
In summer 2011, the DLR extension from to Stratford RegionalStratford station
Stratford station is a large multilevel railway station in Stratford, east London. The station is served by the National Rail services National Express East Anglia, London Overground and c2c, by London Underground's Central and Jubilee lines, and by the Docklands Light Railway . Stratford is in...
and Stratford International
Stratford International station
Stratford International station is a main line railway and Docklands Light Railway station located in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham in northeast London, United Kingdom...
is expected to be complete. It is using the former North London Line
North London Line
The North London Line is a railway line which passes through the inner suburbs of north London, England. Its route is a rough semicircle from the south west to the north east, avoiding central London. The line is owned and maintained by Network Rail...
alignment that runs beside the Jubilee Line
Jubilee Line
The Jubilee line is a line on the London Underground , in the United Kingdom. It was built in two major sections—initially to Charing Cross, in central London, and later extended, in 1999, to Stratford, in east London. The later stations are larger and have special safety features, both aspects...
and will directly link Stratford Regional to its international counterpart, local stations to the south and existing DLR branches in the Royal Docks
Royal Docks
The Royal Docks comprise three docks in east London - the Royal Albert Dock, the Royal Victoria Dock and the King George V Dock. They are more correctly called the Royal Group of Docks to distinguish them from the Royal Dockyards, Royal being due to their naming after royal personages rather than...
.
International services from Stratford
EurostarEurostar
Eurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
trains may serve Stratford International station
Stratford International station
Stratford International station is a main line railway and Docklands Light Railway station located in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham in northeast London, United Kingdom...
when the Docklands Light Railway
Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...
(DLR) extension to the station is completed in spring 2011 (see below). It may also be served by other cross channel operators currently looking at using the line (see High Speed 1#Future operations for details). This would provide, via a short walk, an interchange between the Great Eastern Main Line services and High Speed services to continental Europe
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
.
Crossrail
In 2018, CrossrailCrossrail
Crossrail is a project to build a major new railway link under central London. The name refers to the first of two routes which are the responsibility of Crossrail Ltd. It is based on an entirely new east-west tunnel with a central section from to Liverpool Street station...
will be completed which will take over the Shenfield metro service and take it via a tunnel through central London and link up with the Great Western Main Line
Great Western Main Line
The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in Great Britain that runs westwards from London Paddington station to the west of England and South Wales. The core Great Western Main Line runs from London Paddington to Temple Meads railway station in Bristol. A major branch of the Great...
as far as and Heathrow Airport. The Crossrail service will interchange with remaining Great Eastern Main Line services at (via new underground platforms), , and .
Proposed developments
The Greater Anglia RUSNetwork Rail Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy
The Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy is a Route Utilisation Strategy published by Network Rail in December 2007. It was the sixth RUS to be produced. The area covered includes the whole of Route 5 West Anglia and Route 7 Great Eastern , which both focus for passenger purposes on London...
, published in December 2007 outlines a number of developments intended for the Great Eastern route. Other proposals have been announced separately.
- 68 additional carriages to provide longer trains will be introduced between December 2009 and December 2011.
- Extension of platform 10A at StratfordStratford, LondonStratford is a place in the London Borough of Newham, England. It is located east northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an agrarian settlement in the ancient parish of West Ham, which transformed into an industrial suburb...
to increase peak flow and capacity during the period 2009-2014. - Additional path on the ColchesterColchesterColchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
, ChelmsfordChelmsfordChelmsford is the county town of Essex, England and the principal settlement of the borough of Chelmsford. It is located in the London commuter belt, approximately northeast of Charing Cross, London, and approximately the same distance from the once provincial Roman capital at Colchester...
and Southend routes during the period 2009-2014. - A turn-back facility at Chadwell HeathChadwell HeathChadwell Heath is a place in the London Borough of Redbridge and the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, both in Greater London. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
during the period 2009-2014. - A new station at Great BlakenhamGreat BlakenhamGreat Blakenham is a small village near Ipswich, in Suffolk UK.The future ski centre, Snoasis, is planned to be built there and a train station. The Town 102 radio station is based there....
as part of the SnOasis developmentSnOasisSnOasis is a controversial proposed indoor winter sports resort in Great Blakenham near Ipswich, Suffolk currently scheduled to open in 'late 2014'. It is planned be the largest real snow indoor ski slope in the world with a 415 metres slope long, 70 metres wide run and a 100 metres drop...
near Ipswich, which received its final go-ahead on 6 November 2008. - In 2014 the 'Shenfield Metro' service will be absorbed managed by CrossrailCrossrailCrossrail is a project to build a major new railway link under central London. The name refers to the first of two routes which are the responsibility of Crossrail Ltd. It is based on an entirely new east-west tunnel with a central section from to Liverpool Street station...
and it will form part of its cross-London service from 2018.
Services
Nearly all trains are operated by the National Express GroupNational Express Group
National Express Group plc is a British transport group headquartered in Birmingham that operates bus, coach, rail and tram services in the UK, the US and Canada, Spain, Portugal and Morocco and long-distance coach routes across Europe...
, using the National Express East Anglia brand name. The franchise began under the 'one' railway brand on 1 April 2004. As of May 2007 two c2c
C2c
c2c is a British train operating company that is part of the National Express Group. It provides passenger rail services on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London to east London and the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway...
services operate during the late evening to Barking
Barking
Barking is a suburban town in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, in East London, England. A retail and commercial centre situated in the west of the borough, it lies east of Charing Cross. Barking was in the historic county of Essex until it was absorbed by Greater London. The area is...
. This is a throwback to BR days when London Fenchurch Street
Fenchurch Street railway station
Fenchurch Street railway station, also known as London Fenchurch Street, is a central London railway terminus in the south eastern corner of the City of London, England. The station is one of the smallest terminals in London in terms of platforms and one of the most intensively operated...
closed early in the evening as a cost-saving exercise and all services operated from Liverpool Street.
Liverpool Street is the principal passenger destination, although Stratford, with connections to Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
, has grown in significance.
Main line
Outer suburban and inter-city services utilise the main lines between Liverpool Street and Shenfield. Branch lines diverge at Romford, Shenfield, Witham, Marks Tey, Colchester, Ipswich, Stowmarket and Norwich, with through services operating to some destinations. All services share the same tracks from Shenfield to Colchester.| Station | District | Branches |
|---|---|---|
| London Liverpool Street Liverpool Street station Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England... |
City of London City of London The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of... |
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| Stratford Stratford station Stratford station is a large multilevel railway station in Stratford, east London. The station is served by the National Rail services National Express East Anglia, London Overground and c2c, by London Underground's Central and Jubilee lines, and by the Docklands Light Railway . Stratford is in... |
Newham London Borough of Newham The London Borough of Newham is a London borough formed from the towns of West Ham and East Ham, within East London.It is situated east of the City of London, and is north of the River Thames. According to 2006 estimates, Newham has one of the highest ethnic minority populations of all the... |
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| Romford Romford railway station Romford station is located in Romford, London Borough of Havering. It is situated between Chadwell Heath and Gidea Park. It is the western terminus of the Upminster branch line from Upminster.... |
Havering London Borough of Havering The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large... |
Romford to Upminster Line Romford to Upminster Line The Romford to Upminster Line or Upminster Branch Line is a branch line between Romford and Upminster in the London Borough of Havering. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 7, SRS 07.09, and is classified as a rural line... : Upminster |
| Shenfield Shenfield railway station Shenfield is a major station located in Shenfield in the borough of Brentwood in Essex, England. It lies on the Great Eastern Main Line and links Liverpool Street station in the City of London to places in the East of England. It was first opened by the Eastern Counties Railway on 29 March 1843 on... |
Brentwood Brentwood (borough) Brentwood is a local government district and borough in Essex in the East of England.-History & Geography:The borough is named after the town of Brentwood which is the main development in the area. There are still large areas of woodland including Shenfield Common, Hartswood , Weald Country Park,... |
Shenfield to Southend Line Shenfield to Southend Line The Shenfield to Southend Line is a railway line from Southend-on-Sea to Shenfield in Essex. Almost all trains continue through to London Liverpool Street along the Great Eastern Main Line... : Southend Victoria / Southminster |
| Ingatestone Ingatestone railway station Ingatestone railway station is a railway station serving the village of Ingatestone in Essex, England. The station and all trains serving it are operated by National Express East Anglia.-History:... |
Brentwood | |
| Chelmsford Chelmsford railway station Chelmsford railway station is a railway station serving the town of Chelmsford in Essex. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line.The station is served by National Express East Anglia... |
Chelmsford Chelmsford (borough) Chelmsford is a local government district and borough in Essex, England. It is named after its main settlement, Chelmsford, which is also the county town of Essex.-History:... |
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| Hatfield Peverel Hatfield Peverel railway station Hatfield Peverel serves the villages of Hatfield Peverel and Nounsley in Essex, England. This station and all trains serving it are operated by National Express East Anglia.-Train Services:The following services currently call at Hatfield Peverel:... |
Braintree Braintree (district) Braintree is a local government district in the English county of Essex. Its main town is Braintree.The main centres of population are Braintree, Witham and Halstead.... |
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| Witham Witham railway station Witham railway station is a railway station serving the town of Witham in Essex. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line and is also the junction of the Witham-Braintree line... |
Braintree | Braintree Branch Line Braintree Branch Line The Braintree Branch Line is a branch line from Witham to Braintree in Essex, England.The line diverges from the Great Eastern Main Line at Witham. Passenger services are currently operated by National Express East Anglia... : Braintree |
| Kelvedon Kelvedon railway station Kelvedon is a railway station serving the villages of Kelvedon and Feering in Essex. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line. It is also the closest station to the large settlements of Coggeshall and Tiptree... |
Braintree | |
| Marks Tey Marks Tey railway station Marks Tey is a railway station serving the village of Marks Tey in Essex, England. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line and is also a junction for the Sudbury Branch Line.The station is served by National Express East Anglia... |
Colchester Colchester (borough) Colchester is a local government district and borough in Essex, England, the district is named after its main town, Colchester. The borough covers an area of and stretches from Dedham Vale on the Suffolk border in the north to Mersea Island on the Colne Estuary in the south.The borough was formed... |
Gainsborough Line: Sudbury |
| Colchester Colchester railway station Colchester or Colchester North is the main railway station for Colchester in Essex, England. It is on the former Great Eastern Railway main line from London Liverpool Street to Norwich and is a junction for the line to Walton-on-the-Naze and Clacton-on-Sea, which diverges southwards from the main... |
Colchester | Sunshine Coast Line: Colchester Town / Clacton-on-Sea / Walton-on-the-Naze |
| Manningtree Manningtree railway station Manningtree is a railway station which serves the town of Manningtree in Essex, England. Services are provided by National Express East Anglia. The station is on the Great Eastern Main Line between London and Norwich and is the only station on the main line between Colchester and Ipswich.... |
Tendring Tendring Tendring is a local government district in North East Essex, England. It extends from the River Stour in the north, to the coast and the River Colne in the south, with the coast to the East and the town of Colchester to the west. Its council is based in Clacton-on-Sea. Towns in the district... |
Mayflower Line Mayflower Line The Mayflower Line is a branch railway line from Manningtree to Harwich in the county of Essex in England. Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia... : 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... |
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... |
Felixstowe Branch Line Felixstowe Branch Line The Felixstowe Branch Line is a railway line from Ipswich to Felixstowe in Suffolk. The line follows the East Suffolk Line from Ipswich to Westerfield, and then diverges to the south. Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia... : Felixstowe East Suffolk Line 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... : Lowestoft |
| Needham Market Needham Market railway station Needham Market is a railway station serving the town of Needham Market in Suffolk, England. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line from London Liverpool Street to Norwich.The station is served by National Express East Anglia.-History:... |
Mid Suffolk Mid Suffolk Mid Suffolk is a local government district in Suffolk, England. Its council is based in Needham Market, and the largest town is Stowmarket.The district was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the Borough of Eye, Stowmarket urban district, Gipping Rural District, Hartismere Rural District and... |
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| Stowmarket Stowmarket railway station Stowmarket is a railway station serving the town of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. The station is on the Great Eastern Main Line from London Liverpool Street to Norwich. It is also the junction of the line to Bury St Edmunds... |
Mid Suffolk | Ipswich to Ely Line Ipswich to Ely Line The Ipswich to Ely Line is a railway line linking East Anglia to the English Midlands via Ely. There is also a branch line to . Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia... : Ely / Cambridge |
| Diss Diss railway station Diss is a railway station which serves the town of Diss in Norfolk, England. The station is on the Great Eastern Main Line south of Norwich towards London Liverpool Street. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by National Express East Anglia... |
South Norfolk South Norfolk South Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in Long Stratton.-History:The district was formed on April 1, 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, as a merger of Diss Urban District, Wymondham Urban District, Depwade Rural District, Forehoe and Henstead... |
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| Norwich Norwich railway station Norwich is a railway station serving the city of Norwich in the English county of Norfolk. The station is the northern terminus of the Great Eastern Main Line from London Liverpool Street. It is also the terminus of railway lines from Ely, Sheringham, Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft.-History:At one... |
Norwich Norwich Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom... |
Wherry Lines Wherry Lines The Wherry Lines are railway lines in England, from Norwich to Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft. These lines pass through The Broads. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 7, SRS 07.11 and is classified as a rural line... : Great Yarmouth / Lowestoft Bittern Line Bittern Line The Bittern Line is a railway line from Norwich to Cromer then Sheringham in Norfolk, England. It is one of the most scenic in the East of England traversing the Norfolk Broads on its route to the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the North Norfolk Coast. The line is part of the Network Rail... : Sheringham Breckland Line Breckland Line The Breckland Line runs from Cambridge in Cambridgeshire to Norwich in Norfolk, in East Anglia, England. It is so called because it runs through the Breckland region of Norfolk. The line also passes through Thetford Forest. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 5, SRS 05.09 and part... : Cambridge |
The section between Stratford and Gidea Park follows the same route s the A118 road
A118 road
The A118 is a road in east London, England which links Bow with Gallows Corner, east of Romford. The section from Stratford to Gallows Corner formed the original route of the A12 until the designation was transferred to the Eastern Avenue soon after the latter opened in 1925...
.
Shenfield metro
A high-frequency service operates on the slow lines between Liverpool Street and Shenfield serving suburban stations. The off-peak service consists of six trains an hour. Some peak trains are scheduled to terminate at Ilford or Gidea Park. The line is mostly within Greater London, with two stations in the Brentwood borough of Essex.| Station | Zone | District |
|---|---|---|
| London Liverpool Street Liverpool Street station Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England... |
1 | City of London City of London The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of... |
| Stratford Stratford station Stratford station is a large multilevel railway station in Stratford, east London. The station is served by the National Rail services National Express East Anglia, London Overground and c2c, by London Underground's Central and Jubilee lines, and by the Docklands Light Railway . Stratford is in... |
3 | Newham London Borough of Newham The London Borough of Newham is a London borough formed from the towns of West Ham and East Ham, within East London.It is situated east of the City of London, and is north of the River Thames. According to 2006 estimates, Newham has one of the highest ethnic minority populations of all the... |
| Maryland Maryland railway station Maryland railway station is located in Maryland, an area of Stratford, in the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. It was originally known as Maryland Point, and is just east of Stratford station in Travelcard Zone 3, on the Great Eastern Main Line. It was first opened on 6 January... |
3 | Newham |
| Forest Gate Forest Gate railway station Forest Gate railway station is located in the London Borough of Newham, in east London. The station is located at It is in Travelcard Zone 3 on the Great Eastern Main Line, and was first opened in 1840, a year after the line was built, but closed in 1843, before re-opening after pressure from local... |
3 | Newham |
| Manor Park Manor Park railway station Manor Park railway station is a railway station in Manor Park in the London Borough of Newham in east London.The station is between Forest Gate and Ilford on the Great Eastern Main Line and in Travelcard Zone 3 and Travelcard Zone 4... |
3/4 | Newham |
| Ilford Ilford railway station Ilford railway station is a suburban National Rail station located in Ilford in the London Borough of Redbridge. Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia and most trains run between Shenfield and Liverpool Street... |
4 | Redbridge London Borough of Redbridge The London Borough of Redbridge is a London borough in outer north-east London. Its administrative headquarters is at Redbridge Town Hall in Ilford. The local authority is Redbridge London Borough Council.-Etymology:... |
| Seven Kings Seven Kings railway station Seven Kings railway station is a railway station at Seven Kings in the London Borough of Redbridge in east London. It was opened on 1 March 1899 by the Great Eastern Railway on their Main Line which opened sixty years earlier.... |
4 | Redbridge |
| Goodmayes Goodmayes railway station Goodmayes railway station is a railway station at Goodmayes in the London Borough of Redbridge in east London, opened on 18 February 1901 by the Great Eastern Railway on the Main Line from Liverpool Street. The station once had an extensive shunting yard for goods traffic but this fell into disuse... |
4 | Redbridge |
| Chadwell Heath Chadwell Heath railway station Chadwell Heath station is a railway station at Chadwell Heath. The station lies in the London Borough of Redbridge part of Chadwell Heath, which is also covered by London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in east London. It was opened on 11 January 1864, and is built on the site of Wangey House, one... |
5 | Redbridge |
| Romford Romford railway station Romford station is located in Romford, London Borough of Havering. It is situated between Chadwell Heath and Gidea Park. It is the western terminus of the Upminster branch line from Upminster.... |
6 | Havering London Borough of Havering The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large... |
| Gidea Park Gidea Park railway station Gidea Park railway station is a railway station at Gidea Park in the London Borough of Havering in east London. It was opened as Squirrels Heath & Gidea Park on 1 December 1910 by the Great Eastern Railway on their main line.... |
6 | Havering |
| Harold Wood Harold Wood railway station Harold Wood station is a railway station at Harold Wood in the London Borough of Havering in east London. It was first openedon 1 December 1868 by the Great Eastern Railway on their main line and two additional tracks were provided in 1934 under London and North Eastern Railway ownership.Train... |
6 | Havering |
| Brentwood Brentwood railway station Brentwood railway station is a railway station in Brentwood, Essex. It is on the electric line between between Shenfield and London Liverpool Street.... |
n/a | Brentwood Brentwood (borough) Brentwood is a local government district and borough in Essex in the East of England.-History & Geography:The borough is named after the town of Brentwood which is the main development in the area. There are still large areas of woodland including Shenfield Common, Hartswood , Weald Country Park,... |
| Shenfield Shenfield railway station Shenfield is a major station located in Shenfield in the borough of Brentwood in Essex, England. It lies on the Great Eastern Main Line and links Liverpool Street station in the City of London to places in the East of England. It was first opened by the Eastern Counties Railway on 29 March 1843 on... |
n/a | Brentwood |