The
London, Tilbury and Southend Railway is an English railway line linking
Fenchurch Street railway stationFenchurch 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...
in the
City of LondonThe 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 northeast
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and the entire length of the northern
Thames GatewayThe Thames Gateway is an area of land stretching east from inner east London on both sides of the River Thames and the Thames Estuary. The area, which includes much brownfield land, has been designated a national priority for urban regeneration, taking advantage of the development opportunities...
area of southern
EssexEssex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. It is currently known as the
Essex Thameside Route by
Network RailNetwork 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...
and forms part of
strategic route 6Strategic Route 6 - North London Line and Thameside is the designation given by Network Rail to a grouping of railway lines in Greater London and the East of England region that encompasses the London, Tilbury and Southend Line and overground commuter lines within London...
. It is classified as a London and South East commuter line. Train services on the line are currently operated by
c2cc2c 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...
, a
train operating companyThe term train operating company is used in the United Kingdom to describe the various businesses operating passenger trains on the railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand...
that is part of the
National Express GroupNational 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...
.
The main route from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness via Basildon is 39.5 miles (63.57 km) and the fastest timetabled journey time from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness is 58 minutes giving an average speed of 40.7 mph, although the route can be done in 47 minutes, giving an average speed of 50 mph.
http://www.railperf.org.uk/fast/C2C.pdf A
loop lineLoop Line has several meanings.* A less important line which leaves a main line and then rejoins it later, continuing in the same direction. Significantly longer than a Passing loop, its purpose may be purely to provide a bypassing route, or it may provide a goods or passenger service in its own...
serving
TilburyTilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
provides an alternative connection from London to Southend; and a
branch lineA branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
connecting the two via
Chafford HundredChafford Hundred is a recent UK housing brownfield just outside Greater London between Grays and South Ockendon in the Borough of Thurrock. It is immediately adjacent to Lakeside Shopping Centre and West Thurrock...
forms a third route. The line currently has a maximum speed limit of 75 mph (120.7 km/h), although the
Class 357 ElectrostarThe British Rail Class 357 "Electrostar" alternating current electric multiple units were built by ADtranz at their Litchurch Lane Works in Derby, England, in two batches from 1999 to 2002 at a cost of approximately £292 million...
trains which run on it are capable of a maximum speed of 100 mph (160.9 km/h).
The line was authorised in 1852 and the first section was opened in 1854 by the
London, Tilbury and Southend Railway Company, which was a joint venture between the
London and Blackwall RailwayOriginally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway was a railway line in east London, England. It ran from the Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, thus connecting central London to many of London's docks in the 19th and 20th centuries...
and the
Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
. The line was extended in phases and partnerships were formed with the
Midland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and
Metropolitan District RailwayThe Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
to provide through services. The line was purchased by the Midland Railway in 1912 and became part of the
London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
in 1923.
Initial construction
Construction of the line was authorised by Parliament on 17 June 1852. The first section, constructed by Peto and Grissell, was opened between
Forest GateForest 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...
junction on the
Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
and
TilburyTilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
, via
BarkingBarking 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...
and
GraysGrays is the largest town in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex and one of the Thurrock's traditional parishes...
on 13 April 1854. Services initially ran from Fenchurch Street and
BishopsgateBishopsgate 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...
stations over existing lines to
StratfordStratford 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...
and Forest Gate junction. The line was extended from Tilbury to
SouthendSouthend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
in 1856. In 1858 a more direct route to Fenchurch Street was constructed through Bromley,
PlaistowPlaistow is a place in the London Borough of Newham in east London. It formed part of the County Borough of West Ham in Essex until 1965.Plaistow is a mainly residential area, including several council estates; the main road is the A112 - Plaistow Road, High Street, Broadway, Greengate Street and...
and
East HamEast Ham is a suburban district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Newham. It is a built-up district located 8 miles east-northeast of Charing Cross...
, connecting with the London and Blackwall Extension Railway at Bow; and the service from Bishopsgate was withdrawn. Under the management of civil engineer Arthur Lewis Stride the line was extended from Southend to
ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a town in southeast Essex, England, situated at the mouth of the river Thames Estuary. It is within the borough of Southend-on-Sea, and is situated at the far east of the borough, around east of Southend town centre...
in 1884. A more direct route from Barking to
PitseaPitsea is a small town in the east of the Basildon district of south Essex, England. It comprises five sub-districts: Eversley, Northlands Park Neighbourhood , Chalvedon, Pitsea Mount and Burnt Mills. Vange is located to the west of Pitsea, Bowers Gifford and North Benfleet to the east and Nevendon...
via
UpminsterUpminster is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan, and comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential...
was constructed between 1885 and 1888, completing the current main route. A single line branch was constructed between
RomfordRomford 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...
and Grays via Upminster during 1892 and 1893.
Route development
In 1902 the Whitechapel and Bow Railway was constructed as a joint venture with the
Metropolitan District RailwayThe Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
, connecting the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway at Bow with the Metropolitan District at Whitechapel. The connection allowed through running of Metropolitan District trains from the tunnels under central London to provide local services to Upminster from 2 June 1902. When the Metropolitan District and Whitechapel and Bow Railway lines were electrified, an additional pair of tracks were constructed between Bow and East Ham and the service was cut back to there on 30 September 1905. The electrified tracks were extended to Barking and opened on 1 April 1908. Delayed by
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the electric tracks were extended to Upminster and
District lineThe District line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. It is a "sub-surface" line, running through the central area in shallow cut-and-cover tunnels. It is the busiest of the sub-surface lines. Out of the 60 stations served, 25 are underground...
services started on 12 September 1932. The London Plan Working Party Report of 1949 envisaged as its Route G the LTSR electrified and diverted away from Fenchurch Street to the Bank and on through the
Waterloo & City LineThe Waterloo & City line is a short underground railway line in London, which was formally opened on 11 July 1898. It has only two stations, Waterloo and Bank...
tunnels to Waterloo and its suburban lines. Of course, the Waterloo & City tunnels would have had to be bored out to main line size for this "Crossrail" to happen. However, electrification went ahead from 1961 to 1962 and direct passenger services from Bromley, Plaistow, Upton Park, East Ham, Becontree, Dagenham and Hornchurch to Fenchurch Street were withdrawn. In 1974 a station opened to serve the new town of
BasildonBasildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
and in 1995 a station was built at
Chafford HundredChafford Hundred is a recent UK housing brownfield just outside Greater London between Grays and South Ockendon in the Borough of Thurrock. It is immediately adjacent to Lakeside Shopping Centre and West Thurrock...
to serve the new community there and
Lakeside Shopping CentreThe Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London...
. Platforms were reestablished and opened at
West Ham stationWest Ham station is an interchange station located on the corner of Manor Road and Memorial Avenue in the West Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. The station is served by London Underground, National Rail and Docklands Light Railway services...
in 1999 to provide interchange with the extended
Jubilee lineThe 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...
.
Ownership and management
The railway was initially jointly promoted by the
Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
and
London and Blackwall RailwayOriginally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway was a railway line in east London, England. It ran from the Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, thus connecting central London to many of London's docks in the 19th and 20th centuries...
and was leased for 21 years to
Peto, Brassey and BettsPeto, Brassey and Betts was a civil engineering partnership between Samuel Morton Peto, Thomas Brassey and Edward Betts. They built a supply and casualty transport railway from Balaclava port to the siege lines south east of Sevastopol in 1855 during the Crimean War. The supply line was...
. The
Midland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and London, Tilbury and Southend Railway jointly constructed the
Tottenham and Forest Gate RailwayThe Tottenham & Forest Gate Railway was a railway line in north London, formed by an Act of Parliament of 1890 and built as joint venture between the Midland Railway and the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway...
, which enabled through running of trains between
St Pancras railway stationSt Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
and Tilbury Docks. In 1912 the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway was purchased by the Midland Railway. At grouping in 1923, the line became part of the
London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway was nationalised into British Railways in 1948 and in 1949 became part of the
Eastern RegionThe 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 1986 the route was transferred to the
Network SouthEastNetwork 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...
sector of
British RailBritish Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
. On privatisation in 1996, ownership passed to
RailtrackRailtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from its formation in April 1994 until 2002...
and
Prism RailPrism Rail was established in 1995 to acquire passenger rail franchises being made available under the Government's rail privatisation programme. It bid for 17 franchises, was shortlisted for 12 and was ultimately awarded 4, which were LTS Rail, Wales and West, WAGN and Valley Lines Trains.Of the...
took over operations; marketing the route as LTS Rail. Ownership passed to
Network RailNetwork 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...
in 2002. Prism Rail were bought out by
National Express GroupNational 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...
in 2000 and in 2002 the line was rebranded as
c2cc2c 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...
.
Rolling stock
The line was known for its use of 4-4-2 tank engines which were later displaced by 2-6-4Ts after it had been absorbed into the
London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
(LMS) in 1923. In 1958 an
accident at Dagenham EastThe Dagenham East rail crash was a railway accident on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line of British Railways which occurred at Dagenham, United Kingdom....
caused the loss of 10 lives.
Modernisation
During the early 1990s proposals were put forward to convert the whole line into a guided busway, however these plans were quickly dismissed when British Rail announced a complete re-signalling of the line. Over the years the LTS had been used in an almost experimental fashion and contained a whole host of different signalling systems (e.g. geographical, WESTPAC and relay
interlockingIn railway signalling, an interlocking is an arrangement of signal apparatus that prevents conflicting movements through an arrangement of tracks such as junctions or crossings. The signalling appliances and tracks are sometimes collectively referred to as an interlocking plant...
s). In 1995 work got underway to replace everything from signals and
point machineA point machine is a device for operating railway turnouts especially at a distance.-Overview:In the earliest times, railway turnouts were operated manually by simple levers...
s to whole junctions.
The main contractor for the work was GEC Alsthom who provided a Mark 3
Solid State InterlockingSolid State Interlocking is the brand name of the first generation processor-based interlocking developed in the 1980s by British Rail's Research Division, GEC-General Signal and Westinghouse Signals Ltd in the UK.- Interlocking hardware :...
(SSI) system with SEMA providing the
IECCThe Integrated Electronic Control Centre was developed in the late 1980s by the British Rail Research Division for UK-based railway signalling centres, although variations exist around the world...
element at Upminster that replaced all signal boxes on the whole line. Main line running signals mostly became 4 aspect colour lights (replacing searchlight signals amongst others), all point machines were replaced with HW2000 machines and the whole line had a complete fibre optic network installed. All
level crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s were renewed with full barriers to be CCTV controlled by a designated workstation at Upminster.
The main line between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness was also bi-directionally signalled (with 3 aspect signalling) along most parts, with the bi-directional section alternating from one track to the other between certain stations, to provide maximum flexibility for continuing operations should disruption occur.
The line was re-signalled over the Easter weekend 1996 when all the signal boxes from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness (via Basildon)were switched out and control was transferred to Upminster IECC. This was later followed over the 1996 August bank holiday when Upminster took control from the remaining boxes on the Tilbury Loop.
Stations
| |
Station |
Local authority |
Fare zone |
Usage |
Start |
TPH |
Connections |
| Main route |
|London Fenchurch StreetFenchurch 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...
|
City of LondonThe 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...
|
1 |
15.976 |
1854 |
8 |
Tower Hill tube stationTower Hill is a London Underground station at Tower Hill in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.The station is in Travelcard Zone 1 and near the Tower of London...
and Tower Gateway DLR stationTower Gateway is a Docklands Light Railway station near the Tower of London. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. It adjoins the tracks to Fenchurch Street station and is on the site of the closed Minories railway station....
|
|LimehouseLimehouse station is a railway station located in the Limehouse district of east London. The station is in Travelcard Zone 2 and is served by Docklands Light Railway services and by National Rail services operated by c2c out of Fenchurch Street station...
|
Tower HamletsThe London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks...
|
2 |
2.480 |
1854 |
6 |
DLR |
|West HamWest Ham station is an interchange station located on the corner of Manor Road and Memorial Avenue in the West Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. The station is served by London Underground, National Rail and Docklands Light Railway services...
|
NewhamThe 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...
|
3 |
1.176 |
1901 |
8 |
District line, Hammersmith and City line, Jubilee line, DLR |
| |Barking Barking station is a railway station served by National Rail and London Underground services. It is located in Barking in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in east London, England. The station is in Zone 4, has nine platforms, and is managed by c2c. It has been proposed that ownership of...
|
Barking and Dagenham In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough had a total population of 1,937; and the area was characterised by farming, woodland and the fishing fleet at Barking. This last industry employed 1,370 men and boys by 1850, but by the end of the century had ceased to exist; replaced by...
|
4 |
3.559 |
1854 |
8 |
Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop, District line, Hammersmith and City line, Gospel Oak to Barking LineThe Gospel Oak – Barking Line is a railway line in north and east London which connects Gospel Oak in North London and Barking in East London as part of the London Overground network. It is sometimes known as the Goblin , although this is a nickname rather than an official title...
|
| |Upminster Upminster station is a London Underground and National Rail station located in Upminster in the London Borough of Havering and in London fare zone 6. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is the easternmost station on the London Underground network and the eastern terminus of the District...
|
HaveringThe 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...
|
6 |
2.617 |
1885 |
6 |
Upminster to Grays branch, District 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...
|
| |West Horndon West Horndon station is a railway station located in West Horndon on the boundary between the boroughs of Brentwood and Thurrock, with the railway line forming a continuation of the boundary....
|
BrentwoodBrentwood 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,...
|
outside zones |
0.349 |
1888 |
2 |
|
|LaindonLaindon is railway station located in Laindon in the Basildon district of Essex, England.The station was opened in 1888 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway as part of a new direct route from Barking to Pitsea, avoiding Tilbury. It is located down the line from Fenchurch Street. The station...
|
BasildonBasildon is a local government district in south Essex in the East of England, centred around the town of Basildon. The district was formed under the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974 from the former area of Basildon Urban District and the part of Thurrock Urban District that was within the...
|
outside zones |
1.764 |
1888 |
4 |
|
| |Basildon Basildon is railway station located in Basildon, Essex, England. The station was opened in 1974. The Station is managed by and all train services are operated by c2c...
|
Basildon |
outside zones |
2.538 |
1974 |
4 |
|
| |Pitsea Pitsea station is a railway station located in Pitsea in Basildon, Essex, England.The station was opened on 1 July 1855 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway The original station was replaced by another on an adjacent site on 1 June 1888. It is 26 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch...
|
Basildon |
outside zones |
1.046 |
1855 |
4 |
Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop |
| |Benfleet Benfleet railway station, or Benfleet railway station for Canvey Island, serves the towns of South Benfleet and Canvey Island in Essex, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by c2c. The station opened in 1855.- Facilities :...
|
Castle Point Castle Point is a local government district and borough in south Essex. The borough comprises the towns of Canvey Island, Hadleigh, South Benfleet, and Thundersley which also provides the site of the council headquarters.-History:...
|
outside zones |
2.989 |
1855 |
6 |
|
| |Leigh on Sea |
Southend-on-SeaSouthend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
|
outside zones |
1.791 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Chalkwell Chalkwell railway station serves the suburb of Chalkwell in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The station was opened on 11 September 1933. This station and all trains serving it are run by c2c.The station is next to the beach.- Ticket Office :...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.313 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Westcliff Westcliff railway station is on the main London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line between London Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness railway station. It is located on Station Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, SS0 7SB, and was opened in 1895...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.026 |
1895 |
6 |
|
|Southend CentralSouthend Central is a railway station on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by the National Express Group train operating company c2c...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.904 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Southend East |
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.459 |
1932 |
4 |
|
|Thorpe BayThorpe Bay is a railway station in Southend-on-Sea, on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by c2c. The station is 37 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch Street.- Layout :...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
0.752 |
1884 |
4 |
|
|ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a railway station located in the small town of Shoeburyness in the borough and unitary district of Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England. The station serves as the eastern terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London,...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
0.599 |
1884 |
4 |
|
| Upminster to Grays branch |
| |Ockendon Ockendon station is a railway station located in South Ockendon in the borough of Thurrock, England. The station is located between Upminster and Chafford Hundred and is down the line from its London terminus at Fenchurch Street. The station is located on a passing loop of a single track branch...
|
ThurrockThurrock is a unitary authority with borough status in the English ceremonial county of Essex. It is part of the London commuter belt and an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The local authority is Thurrock Council....
|
G |
0.618 |
1892 |
2 |
|
|Chafford HundredChafford Hundred railway station is a National Rail station located in Chafford Hundred in the borough of Thurrock in Essex, England. The station is owned by Network Rail and is managed by the c2c train operating company...
|
Thurrock |
G |
2.066 |
1993 |
2 |
|
| Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop |
| |Dagenham Dock Dagenham Dock is a railway station located in Dagenham in northeast London, England. The station is managed by c2c and all train services calling at the station are operated by the company. The station is in Zone 5. It is next to the A13 road and the closest station to the local Ford Dagenham plant...
|
Barking and Dagenham |
5 |
0.641 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |Rainham Rainham railway station is located in Rainham, in the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. It is in London fare zone 6 and is managed, and passenger train services are provided, by c2c. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the original route of the London, Tilbury and...
|
Havering |
6 |
1.825 |
1854 |
2 |
|
|PurfleetPurfleet is a railway station located in Purfleet, Thurrock, Essex in the East of England. It is situated just north of London Road, and a level crossing is provided for traffic. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway and is located down the line from...
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Thurrock |
G |
0.433 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |Grays Grays railway station is a railway station located in the town of Grays in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England. Although outside London fare zones 1 to 6, the station became part of the Oyster card pay-as-you-go rail network in January 2010.-History:It was opened in...
|
Thurrock |
G |
2.884 |
1854 |
4 |
Upminster to Grays branch |
|Tilbury TownTilbury Town railway station is a railway station located in the town of Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.537 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |East Tilbury East Tilbury railway station is a railway station located in the village of East Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.337 |
1936 |
2 |
|
|Stanford-le-HopeStanford-le-Hope railway station is a railway station located in the town of Stanford-le-Hope in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.939 |
1854 |
2 |
|
Millions of entries and exits during the 2007/08 financial year Year station first served by London, Tilbury and Southend Railway service (could be served earlier by another company) Off-peak Monday-Saturday trains per hour frequency in the December 2009 timetable Service suspended in 1913 and reintroduced in 1999
Diversion to Liverpool Street
When necessary, due to engineering work or other problems, trains can be diverted at Barking over the
Gospel Oak to Barking LineThe Gospel Oak – Barking Line is a railway line in north and east London which connects Gospel Oak in North London and Barking in East London as part of the London Overground network. It is sometimes known as the Goblin , although this is a nickname rather than an official title...
and then the
Great Eastern Main LineThe 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...
to call at
StratfordStratford 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
Liverpool StreetLiverpool 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...
. Trains diverted at Barking, having passed Stratford, can also rejoin the London, Tilbury and Southend line before Limehouse (avoiding West Ham) and continue to Fenchurch Street. This diversionary route is less often used and consists of a short section of single track at Bow. From May 1985 to May 2007, the weekday evening service after 22:30 operated from Liverpool Street. As of May 2010, most through services now start and terminate at Fenchurch Street, with a limited number of early morning and late night services operating to and from Liverpool Street.
Line guide
The
London, Tilbury and Southend Railway is an English railway line linking
Fenchurch Street railway stationFenchurch 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...
in the
City of LondonThe 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 northeast
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and the entire length of the northern
Thames GatewayThe Thames Gateway is an area of land stretching east from inner east London on both sides of the River Thames and the Thames Estuary. The area, which includes much brownfield land, has been designated a national priority for urban regeneration, taking advantage of the development opportunities...
area of southern
EssexEssex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. It is currently known as the
Essex Thameside Route by
Network RailNetwork 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...
and forms part of
strategic route 6Strategic Route 6 - North London Line and Thameside is the designation given by Network Rail to a grouping of railway lines in Greater London and the East of England region that encompasses the London, Tilbury and Southend Line and overground commuter lines within London...
. It is classified as a London and South East commuter line. Train services on the line are currently operated by
c2cc2c 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...
, a
train operating companyThe term train operating company is used in the United Kingdom to describe the various businesses operating passenger trains on the railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand...
that is part of the
National Express GroupNational 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...
.
The main route from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness via Basildon is 39.5 miles (63.57 km) and the fastest timetabled journey time from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness is 58 minutes giving an average speed of 40.7 mph, although the route can be done in 47 minutes, giving an average speed of 50 mph.
http://www.railperf.org.uk/fast/C2C.pdf A
loop lineLoop Line has several meanings.* A less important line which leaves a main line and then rejoins it later, continuing in the same direction. Significantly longer than a Passing loop, its purpose may be purely to provide a bypassing route, or it may provide a goods or passenger service in its own...
serving
TilburyTilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
provides an alternative connection from London to Southend; and a
branch lineA branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
connecting the two via
Chafford HundredChafford Hundred is a recent UK housing brownfield just outside Greater London between Grays and South Ockendon in the Borough of Thurrock. It is immediately adjacent to Lakeside Shopping Centre and West Thurrock...
forms a third route. The line currently has a maximum speed limit of 75 mph (120.7 km/h), although the
Class 357 ElectrostarThe British Rail Class 357 "Electrostar" alternating current electric multiple units were built by ADtranz at their Litchurch Lane Works in Derby, England, in two batches from 1999 to 2002 at a cost of approximately £292 million...
trains which run on it are capable of a maximum speed of 100 mph (160.9 km/h).
The line was authorised in 1852 and the first section was opened in 1854 by the
London, Tilbury and Southend Railway Company, which was a joint venture between the
London and Blackwall RailwayOriginally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway was a railway line in east London, England. It ran from the Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, thus connecting central London to many of London's docks in the 19th and 20th centuries...
and the
Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
. The line was extended in phases and partnerships were formed with the
Midland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and
Metropolitan District RailwayThe Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
to provide through services. The line was purchased by the Midland Railway in 1912 and became part of the
London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
in 1923.
Initial construction
Construction of the line was authorised by Parliament on 17 June 1852. The first section, constructed by Peto and Grissell, was opened between
Forest GateForest 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...
junction on the
Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
and
TilburyTilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
, via
BarkingBarking 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...
and
GraysGrays is the largest town in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex and one of the Thurrock's traditional parishes...
on 13 April 1854. Services initially ran from Fenchurch Street and
BishopsgateBishopsgate 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...
stations over existing lines to
StratfordStratford 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...
and Forest Gate junction. The line was extended from Tilbury to
SouthendSouthend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
in 1856. In 1858 a more direct route to Fenchurch Street was constructed through Bromley,
PlaistowPlaistow is a place in the London Borough of Newham in east London. It formed part of the County Borough of West Ham in Essex until 1965.Plaistow is a mainly residential area, including several council estates; the main road is the A112 - Plaistow Road, High Street, Broadway, Greengate Street and...
and
East HamEast Ham is a suburban district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Newham. It is a built-up district located 8 miles east-northeast of Charing Cross...
, connecting with the London and Blackwall Extension Railway at Bow; and the service from Bishopsgate was withdrawn. Under the management of civil engineer Arthur Lewis Stride the line was extended from Southend to
ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a town in southeast Essex, England, situated at the mouth of the river Thames Estuary. It is within the borough of Southend-on-Sea, and is situated at the far east of the borough, around east of Southend town centre...
in 1884. A more direct route from Barking to
PitseaPitsea is a small town in the east of the Basildon district of south Essex, England. It comprises five sub-districts: Eversley, Northlands Park Neighbourhood , Chalvedon, Pitsea Mount and Burnt Mills. Vange is located to the west of Pitsea, Bowers Gifford and North Benfleet to the east and Nevendon...
via
UpminsterUpminster is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan, and comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential...
was constructed between 1885 and 1888, completing the current main route. A single line branch was constructed between
RomfordRomford 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...
and Grays via Upminster during 1892 and 1893.
Route development
In 1902 the Whitechapel and Bow Railway was constructed as a joint venture with the
Metropolitan District RailwayThe Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
, connecting the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway at Bow with the Metropolitan District at Whitechapel. The connection allowed through running of Metropolitan District trains from the tunnels under central London to provide local services to Upminster from 2 June 1902. When the Metropolitan District and Whitechapel and Bow Railway lines were electrified, an additional pair of tracks were constructed between Bow and East Ham and the service was cut back to there on 30 September 1905. The electrified tracks were extended to Barking and opened on 1 April 1908. Delayed by
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the electric tracks were extended to Upminster and
District lineThe District line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. It is a "sub-surface" line, running through the central area in shallow cut-and-cover tunnels. It is the busiest of the sub-surface lines. Out of the 60 stations served, 25 are underground...
services started on 12 September 1932. The London Plan Working Party Report of 1949 envisaged as its Route G the LTSR electrified and diverted away from Fenchurch Street to the Bank and on through the
Waterloo & City LineThe Waterloo & City line is a short underground railway line in London, which was formally opened on 11 July 1898. It has only two stations, Waterloo and Bank...
tunnels to Waterloo and its suburban lines. Of course, the Waterloo & City tunnels would have had to be bored out to main line size for this "Crossrail" to happen. However, electrification went ahead from 1961 to 1962 and direct passenger services from Bromley, Plaistow, Upton Park, East Ham, Becontree, Dagenham and Hornchurch to Fenchurch Street were withdrawn. In 1974 a station opened to serve the new town of
BasildonBasildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
and in 1995 a station was built at
Chafford HundredChafford Hundred is a recent UK housing brownfield just outside Greater London between Grays and South Ockendon in the Borough of Thurrock. It is immediately adjacent to Lakeside Shopping Centre and West Thurrock...
to serve the new community there and
Lakeside Shopping CentreThe Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London...
. Platforms were reestablished and opened at
West Ham stationWest Ham station is an interchange station located on the corner of Manor Road and Memorial Avenue in the West Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. The station is served by London Underground, National Rail and Docklands Light Railway services...
in 1999 to provide interchange with the extended
Jubilee lineThe 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...
.
Ownership and management
The railway was initially jointly promoted by the
Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
and
London and Blackwall RailwayOriginally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway was a railway line in east London, England. It ran from the Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, thus connecting central London to many of London's docks in the 19th and 20th centuries...
and was leased for 21 years to
Peto, Brassey and BettsPeto, Brassey and Betts was a civil engineering partnership between Samuel Morton Peto, Thomas Brassey and Edward Betts. They built a supply and casualty transport railway from Balaclava port to the siege lines south east of Sevastopol in 1855 during the Crimean War. The supply line was...
. The
Midland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and London, Tilbury and Southend Railway jointly constructed the
Tottenham and Forest Gate RailwayThe Tottenham & Forest Gate Railway was a railway line in north London, formed by an Act of Parliament of 1890 and built as joint venture between the Midland Railway and the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway...
, which enabled through running of trains between
St Pancras railway stationSt Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
and Tilbury Docks. In 1912 the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway was purchased by the Midland Railway. At grouping in 1923, the line became part of the
London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway was nationalised into British Railways in 1948 and in 1949 became part of the
Eastern RegionThe 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 1986 the route was transferred to the
Network SouthEastNetwork 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...
sector of
British RailBritish Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
. On privatisation in 1996, ownership passed to
RailtrackRailtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from its formation in April 1994 until 2002...
and
Prism RailPrism Rail was established in 1995 to acquire passenger rail franchises being made available under the Government's rail privatisation programme. It bid for 17 franchises, was shortlisted for 12 and was ultimately awarded 4, which were LTS Rail, Wales and West, WAGN and Valley Lines Trains.Of the...
took over operations; marketing the route as LTS Rail. Ownership passed to
Network RailNetwork 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...
in 2002. Prism Rail were bought out by
National Express GroupNational 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...
in 2000 and in 2002 the line was rebranded as
c2cc2c 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...
.
Rolling stock
The line was known for its use of 4-4-2 tank engines which were later displaced by 2-6-4Ts after it had been absorbed into the
London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
(LMS) in 1923. In 1958 an
accident at Dagenham EastThe Dagenham East rail crash was a railway accident on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line of British Railways which occurred at Dagenham, United Kingdom....
caused the loss of 10 lives.
Modernisation
During the early 1990s proposals were put forward to convert the whole line into a guided busway, however these plans were quickly dismissed when British Rail announced a complete re-signalling of the line. Over the years the LTS had been used in an almost experimental fashion and contained a whole host of different signalling systems (e.g. geographical, WESTPAC and relay
interlockingIn railway signalling, an interlocking is an arrangement of signal apparatus that prevents conflicting movements through an arrangement of tracks such as junctions or crossings. The signalling appliances and tracks are sometimes collectively referred to as an interlocking plant...
s). In 1995 work got underway to replace everything from signals and
point machineA point machine is a device for operating railway turnouts especially at a distance.-Overview:In the earliest times, railway turnouts were operated manually by simple levers...
s to whole junctions.
The main contractor for the work was GEC Alsthom who provided a Mark 3
Solid State InterlockingSolid State Interlocking is the brand name of the first generation processor-based interlocking developed in the 1980s by British Rail's Research Division, GEC-General Signal and Westinghouse Signals Ltd in the UK.- Interlocking hardware :...
(SSI) system with SEMA providing the
IECCThe Integrated Electronic Control Centre was developed in the late 1980s by the British Rail Research Division for UK-based railway signalling centres, although variations exist around the world...
element at Upminster that replaced all signal boxes on the whole line. Main line running signals mostly became 4 aspect colour lights (replacing searchlight signals amongst others), all point machines were replaced with HW2000 machines and the whole line had a complete fibre optic network installed. All
level crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s were renewed with full barriers to be CCTV controlled by a designated workstation at Upminster.
The main line between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness was also bi-directionally signalled (with 3 aspect signalling) along most parts, with the bi-directional section alternating from one track to the other between certain stations, to provide maximum flexibility for continuing operations should disruption occur.
The line was re-signalled over the Easter weekend 1996 when all the signal boxes from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness (via Basildon)were switched out and control was transferred to Upminster IECC. This was later followed over the 1996 August bank holiday when Upminster took control from the remaining boxes on the Tilbury Loop.
Stations
| |
Station |
Local authority |
Fare zone |
Usage{{ref|a|a}} |
Start{{ref|b|b}} |
TPH{{ref|c|c}} |
Connections |
| Main route |
|London Fenchurch StreetFenchurch 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...
|
City of LondonThe 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...
|
1 |
15.976 |
1854 |
8 |
Tower Hill tube stationTower Hill is a London Underground station at Tower Hill in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.The station is in Travelcard Zone 1 and near the Tower of London...
and Tower Gateway DLR stationTower Gateway is a Docklands Light Railway station near the Tower of London. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. It adjoins the tracks to Fenchurch Street station and is on the site of the closed Minories railway station....
|
|LimehouseLimehouse station is a railway station located in the Limehouse district of east London. The station is in Travelcard Zone 2 and is served by Docklands Light Railway services and by National Rail services operated by c2c out of Fenchurch Street station...
|
Tower HamletsThe London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks...
|
2 |
2.480 |
1854 |
6 |
DLR |
|West HamWest Ham station is an interchange station located on the corner of Manor Road and Memorial Avenue in the West Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. The station is served by London Underground, National Rail and Docklands Light Railway services...
|
NewhamThe 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...
|
3 |
1.176 |
1901{{ref|d|d}} |
8 |
District line, Hammersmith and City line, Jubilee line, DLR |
| |Barking Barking station is a railway station served by National Rail and London Underground services. It is located in Barking in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in east London, England. The station is in Zone 4, has nine platforms, and is managed by c2c. It has been proposed that ownership of...
|
Barking and Dagenham In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough had a total population of 1,937; and the area was characterised by farming, woodland and the fishing fleet at Barking. This last industry employed 1,370 men and boys by 1850, but by the end of the century had ceased to exist; replaced by...
|
4 |
3.559 |
1854 |
8 |
Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop, District line, Hammersmith and City line, Gospel Oak to Barking LineThe Gospel Oak – Barking Line is a railway line in north and east London which connects Gospel Oak in North London and Barking in East London as part of the London Overground network. It is sometimes known as the Goblin , although this is a nickname rather than an official title...
|
| |Upminster Upminster station is a London Underground and National Rail station located in Upminster in the London Borough of Havering and in London fare zone 6. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is the easternmost station on the London Underground network and the eastern terminus of the District...
|
HaveringThe 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...
|
6 |
2.617 |
1885 |
6 |
Upminster to Grays branch, District 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...
|
| |West Horndon West Horndon station is a railway station located in West Horndon on the boundary between the boroughs of Brentwood and Thurrock, with the railway line forming a continuation of the boundary....
|
BrentwoodBrentwood 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,...
|
outside zones |
0.349 |
1888 |
2 |
|
|LaindonLaindon is railway station located in Laindon in the Basildon district of Essex, England.The station was opened in 1888 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway as part of a new direct route from Barking to Pitsea, avoiding Tilbury. It is located down the line from Fenchurch Street. The station...
|
BasildonBasildon is a local government district in south Essex in the East of England, centred around the town of Basildon. The district was formed under the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974 from the former area of Basildon Urban District and the part of Thurrock Urban District that was within the...
|
outside zones |
1.764 |
1888 |
4 |
|
| |Basildon Basildon is railway station located in Basildon, Essex, England. The station was opened in 1974. The Station is managed by and all train services are operated by c2c...
|
Basildon |
outside zones |
2.538 |
1974 |
4 |
|
| |Pitsea Pitsea station is a railway station located in Pitsea in Basildon, Essex, England.The station was opened on 1 July 1855 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway The original station was replaced by another on an adjacent site on 1 June 1888. It is 26 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch...
|
Basildon |
outside zones |
1.046 |
1855 |
4 |
Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop |
| |Benfleet Benfleet railway station, or Benfleet railway station for Canvey Island, serves the towns of South Benfleet and Canvey Island in Essex, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by c2c. The station opened in 1855.- Facilities :...
|
Castle Point Castle Point is a local government district and borough in south Essex. The borough comprises the towns of Canvey Island, Hadleigh, South Benfleet, and Thundersley which also provides the site of the council headquarters.-History:...
|
outside zones |
2.989 |
1855 |
6 |
|
| |Leigh on Sea |
Southend-on-SeaSouthend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
|
outside zones |
1.791 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Chalkwell Chalkwell railway station serves the suburb of Chalkwell in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The station was opened on 11 September 1933. This station and all trains serving it are run by c2c.The station is next to the beach.- Ticket Office :...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.313 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Westcliff Westcliff railway station is on the main London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line between London Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness railway station. It is located on Station Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, SS0 7SB, and was opened in 1895...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.026 |
1895 |
6 |
|
|Southend CentralSouthend Central is a railway station on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by the National Express Group train operating company c2c...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.904 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Southend East |
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.459 |
1932 |
4 |
|
|Thorpe BayThorpe Bay is a railway station in Southend-on-Sea, on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by c2c. The station is 37 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch Street.- Layout :...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
0.752 |
1884 |
4 |
|
|ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a railway station located in the small town of Shoeburyness in the borough and unitary district of Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England. The station serves as the eastern terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London,...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
0.599 |
1884 |
4 |
|
| Upminster to Grays branch |
| |Ockendon Ockendon station is a railway station located in South Ockendon in the borough of Thurrock, England. The station is located between Upminster and Chafford Hundred and is down the line from its London terminus at Fenchurch Street. The station is located on a passing loop of a single track branch...
|
ThurrockThurrock is a unitary authority with borough status in the English ceremonial county of Essex. It is part of the London commuter belt and an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The local authority is Thurrock Council....
|
G |
0.618 |
1892 |
2 |
|
|Chafford HundredChafford Hundred railway station is a National Rail station located in Chafford Hundred in the borough of Thurrock in Essex, England. The station is owned by Network Rail and is managed by the c2c train operating company...
|
Thurrock |
G |
2.066 |
1993 |
2 |
|
| Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop |
| |Dagenham Dock Dagenham Dock is a railway station located in Dagenham in northeast London, England. The station is managed by c2c and all train services calling at the station are operated by the company. The station is in Zone 5. It is next to the A13 road and the closest station to the local Ford Dagenham plant...
|
Barking and Dagenham |
5 |
0.641 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |Rainham Rainham railway station is located in Rainham, in the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. It is in London fare zone 6 and is managed, and passenger train services are provided, by c2c. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the original route of the London, Tilbury and...
|
Havering |
6 |
1.825 |
1854 |
2 |
|
|PurfleetPurfleet is a railway station located in Purfleet, Thurrock, Essex in the East of England. It is situated just north of London Road, and a level crossing is provided for traffic. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway and is located down the line from...
|
Thurrock |
G |
0.433 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |Grays Grays railway station is a railway station located in the town of Grays in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England. Although outside London fare zones 1 to 6, the station became part of the Oyster card pay-as-you-go rail network in January 2010.-History:It was opened in...
|
Thurrock |
G |
2.884 |
1854 |
4 |
Upminster to Grays branch |
|Tilbury TownTilbury Town railway station is a railway station located in the town of Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.537 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |East Tilbury East Tilbury railway station is a railway station located in the village of East Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.337 |
1936 |
2 |
|
|Stanford-le-HopeStanford-le-Hope railway station is a railway station located in the town of Stanford-le-Hope in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.939 |
1854 |
2 |
|
Millions of entries and exits during the 2007/08 financial year Year station first served by London, Tilbury and Southend Railway service (could be served earlier by another company) Off-peak Monday-Saturday trains per hour frequency in the December 2009 timetable Service suspended in 1913 and reintroduced in 1999
Diversion to Liverpool Street
When necessary, due to engineering work or other problems, trains can be diverted at Barking over the
Gospel Oak to Barking LineThe Gospel Oak – Barking Line is a railway line in north and east London which connects Gospel Oak in North London and Barking in East London as part of the London Overground network. It is sometimes known as the Goblin , although this is a nickname rather than an official title...
and then the
Great Eastern Main LineThe 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...
to call at
StratfordStratford 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
Liverpool StreetLiverpool 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...
. Trains diverted at Barking, having passed Stratford, can also rejoin the London, Tilbury and Southend line before Limehouse (avoiding West Ham) and continue to Fenchurch Street. This diversionary route is less often used and consists of a short section of single track at Bow. From May 1985 to May 2007, the weekday evening service after 22:30 operated from Liverpool Street. As of May 2010, most through services now start and terminate at Fenchurch Street, with a limited number of early morning and late night services operating to and from Liverpool Street.
Line guide
{{BS-header|London, Tilbury & Southend Line}}
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{{BS2|KBHFa>
|ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a railway station located in the small town of Shoeburyness in the borough and unitary district of Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England. The station serves as the eastern terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London,...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Thorpe BayThorpe Bay is a railway station in Southend-on-Sea, on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by c2c. The station is 37 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch Street.- Layout :...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Southend East}}
{{BS2|BHF |
|Southend CentralSouthend Central is a railway station on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by the National Express Group train operating company c2c...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Westcliff Westcliff railway station is on the main London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line between London Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness railway station. It is located on Station Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, SS0 7SB, and was opened in 1895...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Chalkwell Chalkwell railway station serves the suburb of Chalkwell in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The station was opened on 11 September 1933. This station and all trains serving it are run by c2c.The station is next to the beach.- Ticket Office :...
}}
{{BS2|BHF |
|Leigh-on-Sea Leigh-on-Sea railway station serves the town of Leigh-on-Sea near Southend. This station serves as a park and ride facility. The station is run and served solely by c2c.- History :...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Benfleet Benfleet railway station, or Benfleet railway station for Canvey Island, serves the towns of South Benfleet and Canvey Island in Essex, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by c2c. The station opened in 1855.- Facilities :...
}}
The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway is an English railway line linking Fenchurch Street railway stationFenchurch 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...
in the City of LondonThe 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 northeast LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and the entire length of the northern Thames GatewayThe Thames Gateway is an area of land stretching east from inner east London on both sides of the River Thames and the Thames Estuary. The area, which includes much brownfield land, has been designated a national priority for urban regeneration, taking advantage of the development opportunities...
area of southern EssexEssex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. It is currently known as the Essex Thameside Route by Network RailNetwork 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...
and forms part of strategic route 6Strategic Route 6 - North London Line and Thameside is the designation given by Network Rail to a grouping of railway lines in Greater London and the East of England region that encompasses the London, Tilbury and Southend Line and overground commuter lines within London...
. It is classified as a London and South East commuter line. Train services on the line are currently operated by c2cc2c 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...
, a train operating companyThe term train operating company is used in the United Kingdom to describe the various businesses operating passenger trains on the railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand...
that is part of the National Express GroupNational 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...
.
The main route from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness via Basildon is 39.5 miles (63.57 km) and the fastest timetabled journey time from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness is 58 minutes giving an average speed of 40.7 mph, although the route can be done in 47 minutes, giving an average speed of 50 mph.http://www.railperf.org.uk/fast/C2C.pdf A loop lineLoop Line has several meanings.* A less important line which leaves a main line and then rejoins it later, continuing in the same direction. Significantly longer than a Passing loop, its purpose may be purely to provide a bypassing route, or it may provide a goods or passenger service in its own...
serving TilburyTilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
provides an alternative connection from London to Southend; and a branch lineA branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
connecting the two via Chafford HundredChafford Hundred is a recent UK housing brownfield just outside Greater London between Grays and South Ockendon in the Borough of Thurrock. It is immediately adjacent to Lakeside Shopping Centre and West Thurrock...
forms a third route. The line currently has a maximum speed limit of 75 mph (120.7 km/h), although the Class 357 ElectrostarThe British Rail Class 357 "Electrostar" alternating current electric multiple units were built by ADtranz at their Litchurch Lane Works in Derby, England, in two batches from 1999 to 2002 at a cost of approximately £292 million...
trains which run on it are capable of a maximum speed of 100 mph (160.9 km/h).
The line was authorised in 1852 and the first section was opened in 1854 by the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway Company, which was a joint venture between the London and Blackwall RailwayOriginally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway was a railway line in east London, England. It ran from the Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, thus connecting central London to many of London's docks in the 19th and 20th centuries...
and the Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
. The line was extended in phases and partnerships were formed with the Midland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and Metropolitan District RailwayThe Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
to provide through services. The line was purchased by the Midland Railway in 1912 and became part of the London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
in 1923.
Initial construction
Construction of the line was authorised by Parliament on 17 June 1852. The first section, constructed by Peto and Grissell, was opened between Forest GateForest 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...
junction on the Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
and TilburyTilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
, via BarkingBarking 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...
and GraysGrays is the largest town in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex and one of the Thurrock's traditional parishes...
on 13 April 1854. Services initially ran from Fenchurch Street and BishopsgateBishopsgate 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...
stations over existing lines to StratfordStratford 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...
and Forest Gate junction. The line was extended from Tilbury to SouthendSouthend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
in 1856. In 1858 a more direct route to Fenchurch Street was constructed through Bromley, PlaistowPlaistow is a place in the London Borough of Newham in east London. It formed part of the County Borough of West Ham in Essex until 1965.Plaistow is a mainly residential area, including several council estates; the main road is the A112 - Plaistow Road, High Street, Broadway, Greengate Street and...
and East HamEast Ham is a suburban district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Newham. It is a built-up district located 8 miles east-northeast of Charing Cross...
, connecting with the London and Blackwall Extension Railway at Bow; and the service from Bishopsgate was withdrawn. Under the management of civil engineer Arthur Lewis Stride the line was extended from Southend to ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a town in southeast Essex, England, situated at the mouth of the river Thames Estuary. It is within the borough of Southend-on-Sea, and is situated at the far east of the borough, around east of Southend town centre...
in 1884. A more direct route from Barking to PitseaPitsea is a small town in the east of the Basildon district of south Essex, England. It comprises five sub-districts: Eversley, Northlands Park Neighbourhood , Chalvedon, Pitsea Mount and Burnt Mills. Vange is located to the west of Pitsea, Bowers Gifford and North Benfleet to the east and Nevendon...
via UpminsterUpminster is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan, and comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential...
was constructed between 1885 and 1888, completing the current main route. A single line branch was constructed between RomfordRomford 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...
and Grays via Upminster during 1892 and 1893.
Route development
In 1902 the Whitechapel and Bow Railway was constructed as a joint venture with the Metropolitan District RailwayThe Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
, connecting the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway at Bow with the Metropolitan District at Whitechapel. The connection allowed through running of Metropolitan District trains from the tunnels under central London to provide local services to Upminster from 2 June 1902. When the Metropolitan District and Whitechapel and Bow Railway lines were electrified, an additional pair of tracks were constructed between Bow and East Ham and the service was cut back to there on 30 September 1905. The electrified tracks were extended to Barking and opened on 1 April 1908. Delayed by World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the electric tracks were extended to Upminster and District lineThe District line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. It is a "sub-surface" line, running through the central area in shallow cut-and-cover tunnels. It is the busiest of the sub-surface lines. Out of the 60 stations served, 25 are underground...
services started on 12 September 1932. The London Plan Working Party Report of 1949 envisaged as its Route G the LTSR electrified and diverted away from Fenchurch Street to the Bank and on through the Waterloo & City LineThe Waterloo & City line is a short underground railway line in London, which was formally opened on 11 July 1898. It has only two stations, Waterloo and Bank...
tunnels to Waterloo and its suburban lines. Of course, the Waterloo & City tunnels would have had to be bored out to main line size for this "Crossrail" to happen. However, electrification went ahead from 1961 to 1962 and direct passenger services from Bromley, Plaistow, Upton Park, East Ham, Becontree, Dagenham and Hornchurch to Fenchurch Street were withdrawn. In 1974 a station opened to serve the new town of BasildonBasildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
and in 1995 a station was built at Chafford HundredChafford Hundred is a recent UK housing brownfield just outside Greater London between Grays and South Ockendon in the Borough of Thurrock. It is immediately adjacent to Lakeside Shopping Centre and West Thurrock...
to serve the new community there and Lakeside Shopping CentreThe Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London...
. Platforms were reestablished and opened at West Ham stationWest Ham station is an interchange station located on the corner of Manor Road and Memorial Avenue in the West Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. The station is served by London Underground, National Rail and Docklands Light Railway services...
in 1999 to provide interchange with the extended Jubilee lineThe 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...
.
Ownership and management
The railway was initially jointly promoted by the Eastern Counties RailwayThe 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...
and London and Blackwall RailwayOriginally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway was a railway line in east London, England. It ran from the Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, thus connecting central London to many of London's docks in the 19th and 20th centuries...
and was leased for 21 years to Peto, Brassey and BettsPeto, Brassey and Betts was a civil engineering partnership between Samuel Morton Peto, Thomas Brassey and Edward Betts. They built a supply and casualty transport railway from Balaclava port to the siege lines south east of Sevastopol in 1855 during the Crimean War. The supply line was...
. The Midland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
and London, Tilbury and Southend Railway jointly constructed the Tottenham and Forest Gate RailwayThe Tottenham & Forest Gate Railway was a railway line in north London, formed by an Act of Parliament of 1890 and built as joint venture between the Midland Railway and the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway...
, which enabled through running of trains between St Pancras railway stationSt Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
and Tilbury Docks. In 1912 the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway was purchased by the Midland Railway. At grouping in 1923, the line became part of the London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway was nationalised into British Railways in 1948 and in 1949 became part of the Eastern RegionThe 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 1986 the route was transferred to the Network SouthEastNetwork 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...
sector of British RailBritish Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
. On privatisation in 1996, ownership passed to RailtrackRailtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from its formation in April 1994 until 2002...
and Prism RailPrism Rail was established in 1995 to acquire passenger rail franchises being made available under the Government's rail privatisation programme. It bid for 17 franchises, was shortlisted for 12 and was ultimately awarded 4, which were LTS Rail, Wales and West, WAGN and Valley Lines Trains.Of the...
took over operations; marketing the route as LTS Rail. Ownership passed to Network RailNetwork 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...
in 2002. Prism Rail were bought out by National Express GroupNational 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...
in 2000 and in 2002 the line was rebranded as c2cc2c 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...
.
Rolling stock
The line was known for its use of 4-4-2 tank engines which were later displaced by 2-6-4Ts after it had been absorbed into the London, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
(LMS) in 1923. In 1958 an accident at Dagenham EastThe Dagenham East rail crash was a railway accident on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line of British Railways which occurred at Dagenham, United Kingdom....
caused the loss of 10 lives.
Modernisation
During the early 1990s proposals were put forward to convert the whole line into a guided busway, however these plans were quickly dismissed when British Rail announced a complete re-signalling of the line. Over the years the LTS had been used in an almost experimental fashion and contained a whole host of different signalling systems (e.g. geographical, WESTPAC and relay interlockingIn railway signalling, an interlocking is an arrangement of signal apparatus that prevents conflicting movements through an arrangement of tracks such as junctions or crossings. The signalling appliances and tracks are sometimes collectively referred to as an interlocking plant...
s). In 1995 work got underway to replace everything from signals and point machineA point machine is a device for operating railway turnouts especially at a distance.-Overview:In the earliest times, railway turnouts were operated manually by simple levers...
s to whole junctions.
The main contractor for the work was GEC Alsthom who provided a Mark 3 Solid State InterlockingSolid State Interlocking is the brand name of the first generation processor-based interlocking developed in the 1980s by British Rail's Research Division, GEC-General Signal and Westinghouse Signals Ltd in the UK.- Interlocking hardware :...
(SSI) system with SEMA providing the IECCThe Integrated Electronic Control Centre was developed in the late 1980s by the British Rail Research Division for UK-based railway signalling centres, although variations exist around the world...
element at Upminster that replaced all signal boxes on the whole line. Main line running signals mostly became 4 aspect colour lights (replacing searchlight signals amongst others), all point machines were replaced with HW2000 machines and the whole line had a complete fibre optic network installed. All level crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s were renewed with full barriers to be CCTV controlled by a designated workstation at Upminster.
The main line between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness was also bi-directionally signalled (with 3 aspect signalling) along most parts, with the bi-directional section alternating from one track to the other between certain stations, to provide maximum flexibility for continuing operations should disruption occur.
The line was re-signalled over the Easter weekend 1996 when all the signal boxes from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness (via Basildon)were switched out and control was transferred to Upminster IECC. This was later followed over the 1996 August bank holiday when Upminster took control from the remaining boxes on the Tilbury Loop.
Stations
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| Main route |
|London Fenchurch StreetFenchurch 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...
|
City of LondonThe 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...
|
1 |
15.976 |
1854 |
8 |
Tower Hill tube stationTower Hill is a London Underground station at Tower Hill in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.The station is in Travelcard Zone 1 and near the Tower of London...
and Tower Gateway DLR stationTower Gateway is a Docklands Light Railway station near the Tower of London. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. It adjoins the tracks to Fenchurch Street station and is on the site of the closed Minories railway station....
|
|LimehouseLimehouse station is a railway station located in the Limehouse district of east London. The station is in Travelcard Zone 2 and is served by Docklands Light Railway services and by National Rail services operated by c2c out of Fenchurch Street station...
|
Tower HamletsThe London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks...
|
2 |
2.480 |
1854 |
6 |
DLR |
|West HamWest Ham station is an interchange station located on the corner of Manor Road and Memorial Avenue in the West Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. The station is served by London Underground, National Rail and Docklands Light Railway services...
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NewhamThe 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...
|
3 |
1.176 |
1901{{ref|d|d}} |
8 |
District line, Hammersmith and City line, Jubilee line, DLR |
| |Barking Barking station is a railway station served by National Rail and London Underground services. It is located in Barking in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in east London, England. The station is in Zone 4, has nine platforms, and is managed by c2c. It has been proposed that ownership of...
|
Barking and Dagenham In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough had a total population of 1,937; and the area was characterised by farming, woodland and the fishing fleet at Barking. This last industry employed 1,370 men and boys by 1850, but by the end of the century had ceased to exist; replaced by...
|
4 |
3.559 |
1854 |
8 |
Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop, District line, Hammersmith and City line, Gospel Oak to Barking LineThe Gospel Oak – Barking Line is a railway line in north and east London which connects Gospel Oak in North London and Barking in East London as part of the London Overground network. It is sometimes known as the Goblin , although this is a nickname rather than an official title...
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| |Upminster Upminster station is a London Underground and National Rail station located in Upminster in the London Borough of Havering and in London fare zone 6. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is the easternmost station on the London Underground network and the eastern terminus of the District...
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HaveringThe 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...
|
6 |
2.617 |
1885 |
6 |
Upminster to Grays branch, District 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...
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| |West Horndon West Horndon station is a railway station located in West Horndon on the boundary between the boroughs of Brentwood and Thurrock, with the railway line forming a continuation of the boundary....
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BrentwoodBrentwood 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,...
|
outside zones |
0.349 |
1888 |
2 |
|
|LaindonLaindon is railway station located in Laindon in the Basildon district of Essex, England.The station was opened in 1888 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway as part of a new direct route from Barking to Pitsea, avoiding Tilbury. It is located down the line from Fenchurch Street. The station...
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BasildonBasildon is a local government district in south Essex in the East of England, centred around the town of Basildon. The district was formed under the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974 from the former area of Basildon Urban District and the part of Thurrock Urban District that was within the...
|
outside zones |
1.764 |
1888 |
4 |
|
| |Basildon Basildon is railway station located in Basildon, Essex, England. The station was opened in 1974. The Station is managed by and all train services are operated by c2c...
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Basildon |
outside zones |
2.538 |
1974 |
4 |
|
| |Pitsea Pitsea station is a railway station located in Pitsea in Basildon, Essex, England.The station was opened on 1 July 1855 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway The original station was replaced by another on an adjacent site on 1 June 1888. It is 26 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch...
|
Basildon |
outside zones |
1.046 |
1855 |
4 |
Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop |
| |Benfleet Benfleet railway station, or Benfleet railway station for Canvey Island, serves the towns of South Benfleet and Canvey Island in Essex, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by c2c. The station opened in 1855.- Facilities :...
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Castle Point Castle Point is a local government district and borough in south Essex. The borough comprises the towns of Canvey Island, Hadleigh, South Benfleet, and Thundersley which also provides the site of the council headquarters.-History:...
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outside zones |
2.989 |
1855 |
6 |
|
| |Leigh on Sea |
Southend-on-SeaSouthend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
|
outside zones |
1.791 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Chalkwell Chalkwell railway station serves the suburb of Chalkwell in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The station was opened on 11 September 1933. This station and all trains serving it are run by c2c.The station is next to the beach.- Ticket Office :...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.313 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Westcliff Westcliff railway station is on the main London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line between London Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness railway station. It is located on Station Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, SS0 7SB, and was opened in 1895...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.026 |
1895 |
6 |
|
|Southend CentralSouthend Central is a railway station on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by the National Express Group train operating company c2c...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.904 |
1856 |
6 |
|
| |Southend East |
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
1.459 |
1932 |
4 |
|
|Thorpe BayThorpe Bay is a railway station in Southend-on-Sea, on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by c2c. The station is 37 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch Street.- Layout :...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
0.752 |
1884 |
4 |
|
|ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a railway station located in the small town of Shoeburyness in the borough and unitary district of Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England. The station serves as the eastern terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London,...
|
Southend-on-Sea |
outside zones |
0.599 |
1884 |
4 |
|
| Upminster to Grays branch |
| |Ockendon Ockendon station is a railway station located in South Ockendon in the borough of Thurrock, England. The station is located between Upminster and Chafford Hundred and is down the line from its London terminus at Fenchurch Street. The station is located on a passing loop of a single track branch...
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ThurrockThurrock is a unitary authority with borough status in the English ceremonial county of Essex. It is part of the London commuter belt and an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The local authority is Thurrock Council....
|
G |
0.618 |
1892 |
2 |
|
|Chafford HundredChafford Hundred railway station is a National Rail station located in Chafford Hundred in the borough of Thurrock in Essex, England. The station is owned by Network Rail and is managed by the c2c train operating company...
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Thurrock |
G |
2.066 |
1993 |
2 |
|
| Barking to Pitsea via Rainham loop |
| |Dagenham Dock Dagenham Dock is a railway station located in Dagenham in northeast London, England. The station is managed by c2c and all train services calling at the station are operated by the company. The station is in Zone 5. It is next to the A13 road and the closest station to the local Ford Dagenham plant...
|
Barking and Dagenham |
5 |
0.641 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |Rainham Rainham railway station is located in Rainham, in the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. It is in London fare zone 6 and is managed, and passenger train services are provided, by c2c. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the original route of the London, Tilbury and...
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Havering |
6 |
1.825 |
1854 |
2 |
|
|PurfleetPurfleet is a railway station located in Purfleet, Thurrock, Essex in the East of England. It is situated just north of London Road, and a level crossing is provided for traffic. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway and is located down the line from...
|
Thurrock |
G |
0.433 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |Grays Grays railway station is a railway station located in the town of Grays in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England. Although outside London fare zones 1 to 6, the station became part of the Oyster card pay-as-you-go rail network in January 2010.-History:It was opened in...
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Thurrock |
G |
2.884 |
1854 |
4 |
Upminster to Grays branch |
|Tilbury TownTilbury Town railway station is a railway station located in the town of Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.537 |
1854 |
2 |
|
| |East Tilbury East Tilbury railway station is a railway station located in the village of East Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.337 |
1936 |
2 |
|
|Stanford-le-HopeStanford-le-Hope railway station is a railway station located in the town of Stanford-le-Hope in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
|
Thurrock |
outside zones |
0.939 |
1854 |
2 |
|
Millions of entries and exits during the 2007/08 financial year Year station first served by London, Tilbury and Southend Railway service (could be served earlier by another company) Off-peak Monday-Saturday trains per hour frequency in the December 2009 timetable Service suspended in 1913 and reintroduced in 1999
Diversion to Liverpool Street
When necessary, due to engineering work or other problems, trains can be diverted at Barking over the Gospel Oak to Barking LineThe Gospel Oak – Barking Line is a railway line in north and east London which connects Gospel Oak in North London and Barking in East London as part of the London Overground network. It is sometimes known as the Goblin , although this is a nickname rather than an official title...
and then the Great Eastern Main LineThe 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...
to call at StratfordStratford 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 Liverpool StreetLiverpool 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...
. Trains diverted at Barking, having passed Stratford, can also rejoin the London, Tilbury and Southend line before Limehouse (avoiding West Ham) and continue to Fenchurch Street. This diversionary route is less often used and consists of a short section of single track at Bow. From May 1985 to May 2007, the weekday evening service after 22:30 operated from Liverpool Street. As of May 2010, most through services now start and terminate at Fenchurch Street, with a limited number of early morning and late night services operating to and from Liverpool Street.
Line guide
{{BS-header|London, Tilbury & Southend Line}}
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| |ShoeburynessShoeburyness is a railway station located in the small town of Shoeburyness in the borough and unitary district of Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England. The station serves as the eastern terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London,...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Thorpe BayThorpe Bay is a railway station in Southend-on-Sea, on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by c2c. The station is 37 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch Street.- Layout :...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Southend East}}
{{BS2|BHF |
|Southend CentralSouthend Central is a railway station on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway. Train services are provided by the National Express Group train operating company c2c...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Westcliff Westcliff railway station is on the main London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line between London Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness railway station. It is located on Station Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, SS0 7SB, and was opened in 1895...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Chalkwell Chalkwell railway station serves the suburb of Chalkwell in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The station was opened on 11 September 1933. This station and all trains serving it are run by c2c.The station is next to the beach.- Ticket Office :...
}}
{{BS2|BHF |
|Leigh-on-Sea Leigh-on-Sea railway station serves the town of Leigh-on-Sea near Southend. This station serves as a park and ride facility. The station is run and served solely by c2c.- History :...
}}
{{BS2|HST |
|Benfleet Benfleet railway station, or Benfleet railway station for Canvey Island, serves the towns of South Benfleet and Canvey Island in Essex, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by c2c. The station opened in 1855.- Facilities :...
}}
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PitseaPitsea station is a railway station located in Pitsea in Basildon, Essex, England.The station was opened on 1 July 1855 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway The original station was replaced by another on an adjacent site on 1 June 1888. It is 26 miles distant on the main line from Fenchurch...
}}
{{BS2|BHF|STR||
BasildonBasildon is railway station located in Basildon, Essex, England. The station was opened in 1974. The Station is managed by and all train services are operated by c2c...
}}
{{BS2|BHF|STR||
LaindonLaindon is railway station located in Laindon in the Basildon district of Essex, England.The station was opened in 1888 by the London Tilbury and Southend Railway as part of a new direct route from Barking to Pitsea, avoiding Tilbury. It is located down the line from Fenchurch Street. The station...
}}
{{BS2|STR|HST||
Stanford-le-HopeStanford-le-Hope railway station is a railway station located in the town of Stanford-le-Hope in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
}}
{{BS2|STR|HST||
East TilburyEast Tilbury railway station is a railway station located in the village of East Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
}}
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Tilbury RiversideTilbury Riverside railway station is a closed railway station which used to be located in the town of Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex, south of a triangular junction on the railway between Tilbury Town and East Tilbury....
}}
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Tilbury TownTilbury Town railway station is a railway station located in the town of Tilbury in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England....
}}
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West HorndonWest Horndon station is a railway station located in West Horndon on the boundary between the boroughs of Brentwood and Thurrock, with the railway line forming a continuation of the boundary....
}}
{{BS4||STR||BHF||
GraysGrays railway station is a railway station located in the town of Grays in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in the East of England. Although outside London fare zones 1 to 6, the station became part of the Oyster card pay-as-you-go rail network in January 2010.-History:It was opened in...
}}
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{{BS4||STR|BHF|STR||
Chafford HundredChafford Hundred railway station is a National Rail station located in Chafford Hundred in the borough of Thurrock in Essex, England. The station is owned by Network Rail and is managed by the c2c train operating company...
}}
{{BS4||STR|HST|STR||
OckendonOckendon station is a railway station located in South Ockendon in the borough of Thurrock, England. The station is located between Upminster and Chafford Hundred and is down the line from its London terminus at Fenchurch Street. The station is located on a passing loop of a single track branch...
}}
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{{BS4||INT||STR||Upminster
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PurfleetPurfleet is a railway station located in Purfleet, Thurrock, Essex in the East of England. It is situated just north of London Road, and a level crossing is provided for traffic. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway and is located down the line from...
}}
{{BS4||STR||HST||
RainhamRainham railway station is located in Rainham, in the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. It is in London fare zone 6 and is managed, and passenger train services are provided, by c2c. The station was opened in 1854 as part of the original route of the London, Tilbury and...
}}
{{BS4||STR||HST||
Dagenham DockDagenham Dock is a railway station located in Dagenham in northeast London, England. The station is managed by c2c and all train services calling at the station are operated by the company. The station is in Zone 5. It is next to the A13 road and the closest station to the local Ford Dagenham plant...
}}
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{{BS2|INT|||Barking
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{{BS2|INT|||West Ham
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{{BS2|INT|||Limehouse
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London Fenchurch StreetFenchurch 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...
}}
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2007 proposals
The
Greater Anglia RUSThe 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, outlined a number of developments intended for the Thameside Route. In the medium term, 2009–14, this includes minor infrastructure works and additional rolling stock to allow all main line peak-service trains to be extended to 12-car formation. Also included is the proposal for the extension of platforms on the Tilbury loop and Ockendon branch to handle 12 cars, to allow all main line peak-service trains to be extended to 8 or 12-car formation. In the longer term intentions are to continue the lengthening of peak trains to 12-car formation. A new railway station is proposed at
Beam ReachBeam Reach is a redevelopment area in London, England and part of the London Riverside section of the Thames Gateway. It is located in the southern part of the London Borough of Havering, next to the River Thames and the River Beam...
, between Rainham and Purfleet.
London Gateway (port) link
A link to the
London GatewayLondon Gateway is a major new development under construction on the north bank of the River Thames in Thurrock, Essex. It comprises a large new deep-water port, which will be able to handle the biggest container ships in the world, as well as one of Europe’s largest logistics parks, providing...
deep water port under construction present will be linked to the line. Work of the port started in February 2010 and it is expected to handle 3.5 million
TEUThe twenty-foot equivalent unit is an inexact unit of cargo capacity often used to describe the capacity of container ships and container terminals...
and be completed over the next ten to 15 years.
Preservation
Of the original LTS, 4-4-2T number 80 survives as a stationary exhibit at Bressingham Steam Museum in
NorfolkNorfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
. An ex-LT&S BR Std (80079) is preserved, currently as a stationary exhibit, on the
Severn Valley RailwayThe Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route...
in Shropshire. Another ex LTS locomotive BR 42500 is the sole remaining member of the 36 3 cylinder 2-6-4 tank engines built by the LMS in the 1930s for the London Tilbury and Southend line. It is preserved in LMS livery at the National Railway Museum in York.
External links
{{Railway lines in London}}
{{Railway lines in the East of England}}
{{ London, Tilbury and Southend Railway nav box }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:London, Tilbury And Southend Railway}}