Crewe

Crewe () is a railway town and civil parish within the borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The Crewe built-up area had a total population of 71,722 in 2011, which also covers parts of the adjacent civil parishes of Willaston and Wistaston.
Crewe is perhaps best known as a large railway junction and home to Crewe Works; for many years, it was a major railway engineering facility for manufacturing and overhauling locomotives, but now much reduced in size. From 1946 until 2002, it was also the home of Rolls-Royce motor car production. The Pyms Lane factory on the west of the town now exclusively produces Bentley motor cars. Crewe is north of London and south of Manchester city centre.
History.
Medieval.
The name derives from an Old Welsh word "criu", meaning 'weir' or 'crossing'. The earliest record is in the Domesday Book, where it is written as "Creu".
Modern.
Until the Grand Junction Railway (GJR) company chose Crewe as the site for its locomotive works and railway station in the late 1830s, Crewe was a village with a population (c. 1831) of just 70 residents. Winsford, 7 miles (11 km) to the north, had rejected an earlier proposal, as had local landowners in neighbouring Nantwich, 4 miles (6 km) away. Crewe railway station was built in fields near to Crewe Hall and was completed in 1837.
The modern urban settlement of Crewe was not formally planned out until 1843 by Joseph Locke to consolidate the "railway colony" that had grown up since around 1840–41 in the area near to the railway junction station opened in 1837, even though it was called Crewe by many, from the start. Crewe was thus named after the railway station, rather than the other way round.
The new town of Crewe was founded next to the railway station in the township of Monks Coppenhall which, with the township of Church Coppenhall, formed the ancient parish of Coppenhall. The railway station was named after the "township of Crewe" (then, part of the ancient parish of Barthomley) in which it was located. Eventually, the "township of Crewe" became a civil parish in its own right also named, rather confusingly, Crewe. This civil parish changed its name to Crewe Green in 1974 to avoid confusion with the adjacent town, which had been made a municipal borough in 1877.
The railway station remained part of the civil parish of Crewe, outside the boundary of the municipal borough until 1936. So, throughout its history, the town of Crewe has neither been part of, nor has it encompassed first the "township of Crewe", later the "civil parish of Crewe", and later still the "civil parish of Crewe Green" adjacent to it, even though these places were the direct origin of the name of the town via the railway station which was also not part of the town before 1936. An old, local riddle describes the somewhat unusual states of affairs: "The place which is Crewe is not Crewe, and the place which is not Crewe is Crewe."
A new town grew up, in the parishes of Monks Coppenhall and Church Coppenhall, alongside the increasingly busy station, with the population expanding to reach 40,000 by 1871. GJR chief engineer Joseph Locke helped lay out the town.
The town has a large park, Queen's Park (laid out by engineer Francis Webb), the land for which was donated by the London and North Western Railway, the successor to the GJR. It has been suggested that their motivation was to prevent the rival Great Western Railway building a station on the site, but the available evidence indicates otherwise.
The railway provided an endowment towards the building and upkeep of Christ Church. Until 1897 its vicar, non-conformist ministers and schoolteachers received concessionary passes, the school having been established in 1842. The company provided a doctor's surgery with a scheme of health insurance. A gasworks was built and the works water supply was adapted to provide drinking water and a public baths. The railway also opened a cheese market in 1854 and a clothing factory for John Compton who provided the company uniforms, while McCorquodale of Liverpool set up a printing works.
During World War II the strategic presence of the railways and Rolls-Royce engineering works (turned over to producing aircraft engines) made Crewe a target for enemy air raids, and it was in the flight path to Liverpool. The borough lost 35 civilians to these, the worst raid was on 29 August 1940 when some 50 houses were destroyed, close to the station.
Crewe crater on Mars is named after the town of Crewe. Crewe was described by author Alan Garner in his novel "Red Shift" as "the ultimate reality".
Governance.
Crewe is within the United Kingdom Parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich. Crewe is within the ceremonial county of Cheshire.
Since April 2009 Crewe has been administered by the unitary authority, Cheshire East Council; at parish level, since 4 April 2013, local matters have been dealt with by Crewe Town Council, which is based at Crewe Municipal Buildings.
Climate.
Like most of the United Kingdom, Crewe has an oceanic climate, with warm summers and cool winters and relatively little temperature change throughout the year.
Economy.
The railways still play a part in local industry at Crewe Works, which carries out train maintenance and inspection. It has been owned by Bombardier Transportation since 2001. At its height, the site employed over 20,000 people, but by 2005 fewer than 1,000 remained, with a further 270 redundancies announced in November of that year. Much of the site once occupied by the works has been sold and is now occupied by a supermarket, leisure park, and a large new health centre.
There is still an electric locomotive maintenance depot to the north of the railway station, operated by DB Cargo UK. The diesel locomotive maintenance depot, having closed in 2003, reopened in 2015 as a maintenance facility for Locomotive Services Limited, having undergone major structural repairs.
The Bentley car factory is on Pyms Lane to the west of town. As of early 2010, there are about 3,500 working at the site. The factory used to produce Rolls-Royce cars, until the licence for the brand transferred from Bentley's owners Volkswagen to rival BMW in 2003.
There is a BAE Systems Land & Armaments factory in the village of Radway Green near Alsager, producing small arms ammunition for the British armed forces.
The headquarters of Focus DIY, which went into administration in 2011, was in the town. Off-licence chain Bargain Booze is also Crewe-based. It was bought-out in 2018 by Sir Anwar Pervez' conglomerate Bestway for £7m, putting drinks retailing alongside its Manchester-based Well Pharmacy.
Several business parks around the town host light industry and offices. Crewe Business Park is a 67-acre site with offices, research and IT manufacturing. Major presences on the site include Air Products, Barclay's and Fujitsu. The 12 acre Crewe Gates Industrial Estate is adjacent to Crewe Business Park, with smaller industry including the ice cream van manufacturer Whitby Morrison. The Weston Gate area has light industry and distribution. Marshfield Bank Employment Park is to the west of the town, and includes offices, manufacturing and distribution. There are industrial and light industrial units at Radway Green.
The town has two small shopping centres: the Victoria Centre and the Market Centre. There are indoor and outdoor markets throughout the week. Grand Junction Retail Park is just outside the centre of town. Nantwich Road provides a wide range of secondary local shops, with a variety of small retailers and estate agents.
The Market Centre is the largest shopping centre in Crewe. It is situated in the heart of the town centre with 22 national retailers, including River Island, Wilkinsons, Argos, Iceland and Dorothy Perkins. There are three large car parks nearby and Crewe Bus Station is a five-minute walk from the shopping centre. It has a weekly footfall of approximately 100,000 visitors.
Developments.
A planned redevelopment of Crewe's town centre, including the current bus station and main shopping area, was abandoned because of "difficult economic conditions" during 2008.
There were also plans to revamp the railway station which involved moving it to Basford. This was pending a public consultation by Network Rail scheduled for autumn 2008, but no such public consultation was done. The plan was abandoned and maintenance work was carried out on the current station instead.
Cheshire East Council developed a new regeneration master plan for Crewe, which included the opening of a new Lifestyle Centre, with a new swimming pool, gym and library.
Crewe has been proposed as the site of a transport hub for the new HS2 line, with development planned for completion in 2027.
Transport.
Crewe railway station is less than a mile from Crewe town centre, although it was not incorporated into the then Borough of Crewe until 1937. It is one of the largest stations in the North West and a major interchange station on the West Coast Main Line. It has 12 platforms in use and has a direct service to London Euston (average journey time of around 1 hour 35 minutes), Edinburgh, Cardiff, Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow, Derby, Stoke-on-Trent, Chester, Wrexham and Holyhead for the ferry connections to Dublin Port. Many other towns and cities also have railway connections to Crewe.
Crewe is on the A500, A530 and A534 roads, and is less than from the M6 motorway.
The main bus company in Crewe is D&G Bus following the reduction of funding given to Arriva North West, who still run longer distance services to Chester, Northwich, Macclesfield and Winsford. BakerBus formerly ran buses in Crewe, but their operations were sold to D&G in December 2014. First Potteries operate a single service (route 3) running to Stoke-on-Trent via Kidsgrove.
The closest airport to Crewe is Manchester Airport, which is away. Next closest is Liverpool John Lennon Airport, away.
Culture.
Crewe Heritage Centre is located in the old LMS railway yard for Crewe railway station. The museum has three signal boxes and an extensive miniature railway with steam, diesel and electric traction. The most prominent exhibit of the museum is the British Rail Class 370 Advanced Passenger Train.
The Grade II-listed Edwardian Lyceum Theatre is in the centre of Crewe. It was built in 1911 and shows drama, ballet, opera, music, comedy and pantomime. The theatre was originally located on Heath Street from 1882. The Axis Arts Centre is on the Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) campus in Crewe. It relocated from the university's Alsager Campus when it closed. The centre has a programme of touring new performance and visual art work. The Axis centre closed at the end of the spring 2019 season with the withdrawal of MMU from the Crewe campus. The Box on Pedley Street is the town's main local music venue.
Both the Lyceum Theatre and the Axis Arts Centre feature galleries. The private Livingroom art gallery is on Prince Albert Street. The town's main library is on Prince Albert Square, opposite the Municipal Buildings.
Crewe has six Anglican churches, three Methodist, one Roman Catholic (which has a weekly Mass in Polish) and two Baptist.
There is a museum dedicated to Primitive Methodism in the nearby village of Englesea-Brook.
The Jacobean mansion Crewe Hall is located to the east of the town near Crewe Green. It is a grade I listed building, built in 1615–36 for Sir Randolph Crewe. Today, it is used as a hotel, restaurant and health club.
There is a multiplex ODEON cinema on Phoenix Leisure Park on the edge of the town centre, as well as a bowling alley and Mecca bingo hall.
Queens Park is the town's main park; £6.5 million was spent on its restoration in 2010. It features walkways, a children's play area, crown green bowling, putting, a boating lake, grassed areas, memorials and a café. Jubilee Gardens are in Hightown and there is also a park on Westminster Street.
In 2019, Crewe hosted Pride in the Park (previously held at Tatton Park in 2018) in Queens Park. The 2020 event, which had been due to take place on 12 September, was canceled on 20 May, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Media.
The weekly "Crewe Chronicle", the "Crewe and Nantwich Guardian" and the daily "Sentinel" newspapers all cover the town. The local radio station is The Cat broadcasting on 107.9FM from the Cheshire College South and West building covering the town along with Nantwich and other local settlements. Other radio stations that cover the area include Silk 106.9 from Macclesfield, Signal 1 and Greatest Hits Radio Staffordshire & Cheshire from Stoke-on-Trent and BBC Radio Stoke. Nantwich-based online-only station RedShift Radio also cover the area.
The Crewe News is a hyperlocal blog publishing local news, business, events and sports news.
Education.
Cheshire has adopted the comprehensive school model of secondary education, so all of the schools under its control cater for pupils of all levels of ability. Until the late 1970s Crewe had two grammar schools, Crewe Grammar School for Boys, now Ruskin High School and Crewe Grammar School for Girls, now the Oaks Academy (formerly Kings Grove School). The town's two other secondary schools are Sir William Stanier School, a specialist technology and arts academy, and St. Thomas More Catholic High School, specialising in mathematics and computing and modern foreign languages.
Although there are eight schools for those aged 11–16 in Crewe and its surrounding area, South Cheshire College is one of only two local providers of education for pupils aged 16 and over, and the only one in Crewe. The college also provides educational programmes for adults, leading to qualifications such as Higher National Diplomas (HNDs) or foundation degrees. In the 2006–07 academic year 2,532 students aged 16–18 were enrolled, along with 3,721 adults.
Manchester Metropolitan University's (MMU) Cheshire Faculty is based in Crewe, in a part of town which has been rebranded as the "University Quadrant". The campus offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in five areas: business and management, contemporary arts, exercise and sport science, interdisciplinary studies, education and teacher training. The campus underwent a £70 million investment in its facilities and buildings in 2015. The campus was used as a pre-games training camp for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Since 2016, there has been a University Technical College for 14-19 year olds interested in automotive or railway engineering. Though rated Good by Ofsted, the Crewe Engineering and Design UTC fails to attract students.
Sport.
Crewe's local football club is Crewe Alexandra. During the late 20th century the club enjoyed something of a renaissance under the management of Dario Gradi, playing in the First Division – the second tier of the professional pyramid – for five seasons from 1997 to 2002. Crewe Alexandra play in League One (the third tier), having been promoted from League Two Two in June 2020. In 2013 the club won its first major silverware after beating Southend United 2–0 in the EFL Trophy final at Wembley.
From the early 1980s, Crewe Alexandra built a reputation for developing young players through its youth ranks: England internationals Geoff Thomas, Danny Murphy, David Platt, Rob Jones and Dean Ashton, plus Northern Ireland's Neil Lennon and Steve Jones, and Wales's Robbie Savage and David Vaughan all passed through the club. Among their earlier most notable home-grown players was Frank Blunstone, born in the town in 1934, who was transferred from "The Alex" to Chelsea in 1953, and went on to win five England caps. Internationals Bruce Grobbelaar and Stan Bowles were also on the books at one time in their careers.
Crewe's local rugby clubs are both based in or near Nantwich. The Crewe & Nantwich Steamers (formerly Crewe Wolves), who play in the Rugby League Conference, are based at Barony Park, Nantwich, while Crewe and Nantwich RUFC play their home games at the Vagrants Sports Ground in Willaston.
Speedway racing was staged in Crewe in the pioneer days of the late 1920s to early 1930s; the stadium in Earle Street also operated from 1969 until 1975 when the Crewe Kings raced in British League Division Two, then the National League. At the time the track was the longest and fastest in the UK. Crewe Kings riders included Phil Crump (father of Jason Crump), Les Collins (brother of Peter Collins), Dave Morton (brother of Chris Morton), Geoff Curtis, John Jackson, Jack Millen and Dave Parry. Grand Junction Retail Park occupies the site of the now demolished stadium.
The Crewe Railroaders are the town's American football team, currently competing in the BAFA Central League Division 2 and the subject of the film "Gridiron UK", which premiered at the Lyceum Theatre on 29 September 2016.
Crewe also has its own roller derby team, Railtown Loco Rollers, founded in September 2013. They skate at Sir William Stanier Leisure Centre and compete with skaters and teams from all over the North West.
Crewe's main leisure facility is the Crewe Lifestyle Centre, which now houses Crewe's main public swimming pool after the Flag Lane premises closed in 2016.
Other notable leisure facilities include Sir William Stanier Leisure Centre and Victoria Community Centre.
References.
Notes
Bibliography


London, Tilbury and Southend line

The London, Tilbury and Southend line, also known as Essex Thameside, is a commuter railway line on the British railway system. It connects Fenchurch Street station, in central London, with destinations in east London and Essex, including , , , , Tilbury, Southend and .
Its main users are commuters travelling to and from London, particularly the City of London which is served by Fenchurch Street, and areas in east London including the Docklands financial district via London Underground and Docklands Light Railway connections at and . The line is also heavily used by leisure travellers, as it and its branches serve a number of seaside resorts, shopping areas and countryside destinations. Additionally, the Tilbury Loop portion of the route provides an artery for freight traffic to and from Dagenham Dock and the Tilbury and London Gateway ports. Freight traffic can also travel further using the connection to the Gospel Oak to Barking line and the Great Eastern Main Line at Forest Gate Junction, allowing access to other main routes.
Built by the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway Company - a joint venture between the London and Blackwall Railway and the Eastern Counties Railway companies - the railway was authorised in 1852, with the first section opening in 1854. The route was extended in phases and partnerships were formed with the Midland Railway and District Railway to provide through-services.
The railway serves three main routes. The main line runs from Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness via Basildon over a distance of . A loop line between Barking and provides an alternative route via Rainham (Essex), Grays and Tilbury. Finally, there is a short branch line connecting the main line at Upminster with the loop line at Grays via . The line has a maximum speed limit of , although the and electric trains which run on it are capable of speeds of and respectively.
The line forms part of Network Rail's strategic route 6. It is classified as a London and South East commuter line. Passenger services form the Essex Thameside franchise that is currently operated by train operating company c2c.
Initial construction (1840-1858).
The first part of the line was built by the London and Blackwall Railway whose line from Blackwall opened in 1840 with a terminus at Minories and intermediate stations on the route at Shadwell and Stepney. The line had two independent tracks which were initially worked by cable haulage and it was not until 1848 that steam locomotives were deployed. The line was extended to the current London terminus at Fenchurch Street and operations commenced on 20 July 1841. A short-lived station opened on the route at Cannon Street Road in 1842 but this closed by 1848.
The L&BR built an extension, known as the London and Blackwall Extension Railway, from Stepney station to a junction with the Eastern Counties Railway at Bow but there was a dispute and the junction was never completed. A short lived interchange station at Victoria Park & Bow was built at the junction but saw little traffic which led to a temporary closure of the line in September 1850. In January 1853 a new junction was built at Gas Factory Junction enabling the North London Railway to operate a new service into Fenchurch Street.
The construction of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway was a joint enterprise between the LBR and ECR and was authorised by Parliament on 17 June 1852. The first section, built by Peto and Grissell, was opened between Junction on the Eastern Counties Railway main line and Tilbury, via and on 13 April 1854. The junction at Bow was finally completed and as part of the deal and this enabled the Eastern Counties Railway to also start operating into Fenchurch Street. At the same time a third track was opened on the Fenchurch Street approaches and the station expanded to four platforms.CHECK
LT&SR Services initially ran from Fenchurch Street and Bishopsgate stations over existing lines to where they were coupled together and then via Forest Gate Junction to Tilbury for ferry connections to Gravesend.
Further extensions opened in late 1854 to Horndon, to Leigh-on-Sea on 1 July 1855 and finally to Southend on 1 March 1856.
In 1858 a more direct route from London to Barking was constructed through Bromley, and , connecting with the London and Blackwall Extension Railway a very short distance north east of Gas Factory Junction, and the service from Bishopsgate was withdrawn.
Route development (1875-1912).
Under the management of the LT&SR lessees from 1856 to 1875 little additional work was done to the LT&S lines. After some degree of independence was achieved in 1875 the LT&SR started to take steps to becoming an organisation that could stand on its own two feet. One of the first steps was building its own works/engine shed facility at Plaistow followed by ordering its first locomotives. A station at Upton Park was opened in 1877 largely funded by a developer.
By the 1860s the railways in East Anglia were in financial trouble, and most were leased to the ECR; they wished to amalgamate formally, but could not obtain government agreement for this until 1862, when the Great Eastern Railway (GER) was formed by amalgamation.
In 1866 the LBR was taken over by the GER and all the stations between Fenchurch Street and Stepney became GER stations.
On 5 April 1880 the Limehouse Curve opened with a new junction called Salmon Lane Junction, located between Gas Factory Junction and Stepney it provided a link on to the London and Blackwall line, heading towards Blackwall. The GER ran a short-lived Palace Gates to Blackwall service via Stratford but this only lasted a year and there were some Backwall - Southend excursion trains run in 1890. Primary use of the line was to offer another goods route into the docks.
Under the management of civil engineer Arthur Lewis Stride, the line was extended from Southend to . There was also a direct line built between Barking and Pitsea, with new stations at Hornchurch and Upminster opening in 1884, An intermediate station at Dagenham opened in 1885 and the line extended east to East Horndon and later the same year to a re-sited Pitsea in 1886. Two years later a new station between East Horndon and Pitsea was opened at .
A new station was opened in 1886 at Tilbury Town railway station which was built in conjunction with the building of the rail connected docks next door.
A single-track branch was constructed between and and opened on 1 July 1892 with an intermediate station at Ockenden, The Upminster to section was opened the following year.
The Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway was a joint venture between the Midland Railway and LT&SR and opened on 9 July 1894. This opened the way for through passenger trains from St Pancras to Southend although most trains terminated at Barking.
The approaches to Fenchurch Street were further improved in 1895 with the addition of a fourth track from Stepney to Fenchurch Street.
In 1902, the Whitechapel and Bow Railway was constructed as a joint venture with the District Railway, connecting the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway at Bromley with the District Railway at . The connection allowed through-running of District Railway trains from Central London to provide local services to Upminster from 2 June 1902.
A new station was provided at West Ham in 1901 which was built with four platforms in anticipation of quadrupling to East Ham. The track quadrupling progressed in stages between 1902 and 1905 on the south side of the existing lines which became the Local Lines whilst the newly laid southern lines (known as the Through Lines) were for longer distance services. The Local Lines were electrified allowing District line services to be extended to East Ham.
West of Barking, additional tracks and sidings were provided and the electrified tracks were extended to Barking and that section opened on 1 April 1908.
There were three new stations opened in the years before sale to the Midland Railway which were Dagenham Dock (1908) Thorpe Bay (1910) and for military use only in 1911.
Great Eastern Railway/Midland Railway (1912-1923).
One of, if not the biggest problem, the Midland Railway (MR) faced when it bought the LT&SR was the rising Southend traffic. Additionally traffic was rising on stations between Plaistow and Barking and there were plans to extend more trains out to Upminster. The Midland Railway saw extension of electrification as part of the answer and in 1913 a report by Merz & Mclellan suggested electrification and four tracking between Campbell Road Junction (west of Bromley station) and Stepney station. West of Stepney a new junction at Ratcliff Square would see six lines as far as Cannon Street Road where the line would then drop underground and either run to Aldgate or via two subterranean additional platforms at Fenchurch Street and onto Bank. The lines would have been electrified and east of Bromley the Through Lines would also have been electrified (the Local Lines being electrified in 1905) and electric trains to Southend were envisaged.
In parallel with this the GER was proposing improvements to Fenchurch Street and a plan was agreed that saw:
This agreement was the end of the Merz & Mclellan scheme, although the Midland Railway still wanted to quadruple Bromley to Stepney and this was presented in a parliamentary bill passed on 7 August 1914. The bill also covered the quadrupling of Barking to Upminster and a curve at Horndon that would have seen a direct link from Barking to Romford built. Although land between Barking and Upminster was purchased the ongoing strain of World War I saw the collapse of all three schemes.
During the war additional day tripper trains to Southend declined (but did not totally disappear). Military supplies ran to Shoeburyness and Dagenham Dock and Tilbury was the arrival point for many American servicemen between 1917 and 1918. They were moved to camps all over the country by rail. After the end of the war Purfleet was a major demobilisation centre and rail was again used to disperse the former troops throughout the country. Records show that LT&SR locomotives worked as far as Wood Green (Alexandra Palace) on the Great Northern line from London Kings Cross.
The war slowed down the rise in traffic and house building at Southend was paused until the 1920s. The nature of traffic at Fenchurch Street was changing as passenger numbers fell on the GER Blackwall and North Woolwich services. As these services declined and were withdrawn, the LT&SR was allowed to run additional trains in their stead.
The 1921 Railways Act saw the Midland Railway become part of the London Midland & Scottish Railway whilst the GER became part of the London & North Eastern Railway.
London & North Eastern Railway and London Midland & Scottish Railway (1923-1947).
A new service for workers from Tilbury and East Tilbury to Thames Haven began on 1 January 1923 - the last service had run in 1909. There were four intermediate halts at Mayes Crossing, Curry Marsh, London & Thames Haven Oil Wharves and Thames Haven.
A new halt called Gale Street Halt was opened between Barking and Dagenham station on28 June 1926 to serve the nearby Beacontree Estate although initially the station was not connected by road.
The 1929 LMS plan.
This plan was to see comprehensive investment in new facilities to improve operations as well as additional stations on the LTS Line. Fenchurch Street was not part of the scheme (even though proposals had been made in 1914 and 1924) but a scheme was adopted and agreed with the LNER in 1931/32 as part of the works which would see a total of 19 LMS trains per hour during the peak.
The Fenchurch Street plan saw a comprehensive rebuild and lengthening of the platforms as well as additional approach tracks (which used part of one of the goods depots) as well as the provision of a new signal box and signalling. The platform rebuild and associated infrastructure was completed by the summer of 1935. The new signalling which gave 90 second headways from Stepney to Gasworks Junction was commissioned by April 1935 and consisted of three and four aspect colour light signalling.
This part of the work was carried out by the LNER who were responsible for the line with the LMS paying 2/3 of the cost.
Other works along with the electrification described below, included:
To support this improvement the LMS built 37 new 3-Cylindered Stanier 2-6-4Ts for the line in 1934 and these were working the line in 1935.
Electrification to Upminster.
Quadrupling and Electrifying the line was first considered in the Midland Railway Act of 1914 and the LMS presented plans in 1928/1929 to extend the four track section to Upminster. There was no mention of the curve to the Romford line. Upminster station had to be completely rebuilt as a result and additional platforms were added for terminating District Line services. The engine shed at Upminster was demolished and rebuilt at this time.
New stations were opened and existing stations had additional platforms added. The stations were staffed by the LMS and from west to east were:-
The Metropolitan Line extends east.
The London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) was founded in 1932 and bought the management of the different underground lines under one roof. Discussions between the LMS and LPTB resulted in a decision to route Metropolitan Hammersmith & City trains away from the East London Line and to terminate at Barking instead. The provision of a flyover to remove goods trains from crossing the layout was not proceeded with but other changes to improve the flexibility at Barking were made. In addition a bay platform and stabling siding were put in at Dagenham and stabling increased at Upminster. The new Metropolitan line service began on 4 May 1936 and an additional eight hourly services worked in with 27 District Line services.
World War II.
The impact of World War II on the LTS line was far greater than the first world war as a result of the London Blitz of 1940/1941 and the later deployment of the V1 and V2 flying bombs. The first big event was the evacuation of children from the area and a number of trains were run in late 1939 although many children returned when the extensive aerial bombardment did not materialise. During 1940 a lot of people moved out of towns such as Southend as it was one of the areas expected, by the population at least, to be under threat of invasion. The LMS had to deal with a mass evacuation of children and on 2 June 1940 with 12 trains running to destinations in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
The timetable was reduced with through District services being cut and other services being cut back but these were minor compared to other areas in the UK. The service was slowed down as the Stanier 3-cylinder 2-6-4Ts were transferred away, and haulage was put back in the hands of the LT&SR and LMS 4-4-2Ts.
The first serious incident was recorded on 18 August 1940 when Shoeburyness station and signal box were bombed and a signalman, James Carr, was killed on 18 August 1940. The London Blitz lasted until Saturday 10 May/Sunday 11 May 1941 and Kay records 26 serious incidents between those two dates. There were a few minor raids between 1942 and early 1944. Incidents elsewhere in London also affected the LTS Line, For example the Metropolitan line services were suspended 9 December 1940 - March 1941 due to air raid damage at Kings Cross.
Some service cuts were made during the blitz including the end of the LNER Fenchurch Street to North Woolwich services (via Bromley and Abbey Mills Junction). 1941 saw the closure of Burdett Road (bomb damage), Shadwell and Leman Street. The latter briefly acted as the London terminal of the line when Fenchurch Street had been put out of service due to bomb damage in September 1940.
The V weapons bombardment first affected the LTS line on 30 June 1944 when a V1 hit the LMS single line at Romford station. A further ten incidents followed with the last on 17 March 1945 when a V2 exploded at Ripple Lane.
British Railways (1948-1994).
Following nationalisation on 1st January 1948 the LTS line was split so that Fenchurch Street to Gas Factory Junction became part of the Eastern Region whilst the rest of the LTS Line became part of the London Midland Region. This arrangement did not last long and on 20 February 1949 the whole of the LTS line was bought under Eastern Region control. November 1949 saw platforms 1 and 2 at Fenchurch Street electrified through to Bow Junction on the Great Eastern Main Line on the 1500v DC system. No regular electric services worked this line and it was primarily for diversion and emergency usage although regular empty trains ran to ensure the system worked. These were formed of AM6 electric multiple units.
During the brief period of London Midland Region control the little used Purfleet Rifle Range Halt was closed on 31 May 1948. During 1949 East Horndon was renamed West Horndon (where it actually was), Heathway was renamed Dagenham Heathway and Dagenham renamed Dagenham East.
The 1953 floods.
The catastrophic North Sea flood of 1953 flooded parts of the LTS line on 1 February 1953. The affected areas on the LTS line were:
The last section cut the Southend end of the line off from the London end and a significant amount of locomotives and carriages were effectively marooned. Additional services were put in from Southend Victoria to Shenfield where passengers could then change to additional express EMU worked services to Fenchurch Street. This later changed to direct services which saw former GE and LNE tender engines visit Fenchurch Street, normally the home of tank engines.
The damage was severe and it was not until 19 February that normal Southend services resumed.
The flooding around Purfleet saw Tilbury traffic diverted via Ockenden with normal services being restored on the same date.
The line was further flooded in 1958 but not to the extent of 1953.
Coronation and Southend centenary celebrations.
The 1953 Coronation of Elizabeth II was a major event that took place on 2 June 1953. The stations at Fenchurch Street and Tilbury Riverside were both decorated to celebrate the event.
To celebrate 100 years of the arrival of the railway at Southend, 79 Class 4-4-2T Thundersley which had been restored to LT&SR grey livery, worked two special trains and an exhibition of locomotives was held at Southend station between 1 March and 3 March 1956. The locomotives included LNER Class A4 4468 Mallard, British Railways class EM2 no 27002, and new diesel multiple unit and electric multiple units that were entering service on the LTS line.
Separation of the District line.
The need for more District Line services led to discussions with the London Transport Executive(LTE), which had replaced the LPTB in the early 1950s. The main problems were goods train crossing moves at Bromley, Little Ilford and Barking East prevented more trains operating on the District Line. To ensure total separation the Grays to Romford service would need to be split into distinct halves at Upminster, although a flyover was briefly considered. This meant the Romford line disconnected from the rest of the LTS line. The railway executive division of the British Transport Commission were initially opposed to the idea but on 17 July 1952 the Eastern Region was instructed to engage with the LTE on this issue.
The LTE took over the electric supply of the Local Lines whilst main line electrification which would have a different supply was being progressed. The electrification plan had already predicted the end of the former goods exchange sidings at Plaistow and West Ham (which would move to the new Ripple Lane marshalling yard) and the closure of Plaistow Engine Shed (on the northern side of the Local Lines). This meant the closure of the Bow to Bromley curve was feasible with traffic being routed via Forest Gate Junction of the T&FG line and this happened on 11 September 1959.
Various crossovers between the two sets of lines and sidings were removed during this project and the canopies were removed from the main line platforms. A summary of the changes is shown below but does not include other changes such as goods yard closures which happened in the 1960s. Also during this time London Transport (LT) re-signalled the Local Lines between 1958 and 1960 with a new LT signal box at Upminster and a facility shared with BR at Barking. BR re-signalled the main lines in 1960 to 1961 which saw the abolition of many of the old signal boxes. It was shortly after this period that the Limehouse Curve was closed on 5 November 1962.
The rebuild at Barking was significant. In addition to re-signalling and electrification changes and the desire to separate the District Line services from British Railways the decision was made to provide a flyover that meant freight trains no longer had to cross the layout. In order to improve the passenger interchange between District Line and British rail (and vice versa) dive-under lines were provided at the west end of Barking and a flyover at the east end.
After the work was completed, the platforms at Barking were:
East Ham depot was also being built on the site of Little Ilford sidings so this meant the closure of Barking goods yard, Little Ilford Sidings and the displacement of District Line stabling to the new depot at Upminster. Some LT stabling sidings were also provided at the west end of Barking.
The line that linked East Ham to Woodgrange Park was also closed as part of this work on 30 November 1958 although in truth it saw little use in its final years.
Electrification.
The London Plan Working Party Report of 1949, envisaged as its Route G the LTSR electrified and diverted away from Fenchurch Street to and onward through the Waterloo & City line 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 proposal to succeed.
However, electrification went ahead from 1961 to 1962 under British Railways, but to Fenchurch Street, not to Bank and Waterloo. The direct passenger services from Bromley, Plaistow, , East Ham, , and to Fenchurch Street were withdrawn although the stations retained District Line platforms. With the completion of electrification the remaining through steam services from St Pancras to LTS line destinations were removed.
The line was also re-signalled between 1958 and 1961, starting in the Barking area in April 1958 and completed in August 1961 with the section between Purfleet and West Thurrock Junction. Semaphore signals were replaced with 3- and 4-aspect searchlight signals.
The following stations were altered (in addition to the changes described in the section above):
The first electric train formed of AM2 electric multiple unit stock on the line entered service on 6 November 1961.
The last steam train operated out of Fenchurch Street was the 6:10pm to Thorpe Bay on 15 June 1962 which was worked by LMS 3-Cylindered Stanier 2-6-4T number 42501. Steam hauled boat trains and freight trains continued throughout 1962 and 1963 with what is thought to be a final working seen in 1964 when a BR Class 5 4-6-0 led three other locomotives to a scrapyard at Grays. June 1962 also saw the introduction of an accelerated all electric timetable with Southend being reached in 48 minutes during the evening peak.
A full set of electrification dates can be found below.
The 1950/60s miscellanea.
The Thames Haven branch closed to passengers on 9 June 1958.
During the 1960s many of the local goods yards closed but only one station - , which closed on 5 May 1967.
Westcliff-on-Sea station was renamed Westcliff on 20 February 1969.
The 1970s.
In 1972, the British Railways Board (BRB) proposed to construct a one-mile freight-only spur line from the railway at Bowers Gifford between Pitsea and Benfleet to East Haven creek and thence to the proposed oil refineries on Canvey Island, to allow petroleum products to be exported from the refineries. Once the layout of the proposed refineries had been established, in early 1974 the BRB sought powers to extend the spur line a further mile from the creek to the site of the refineries through the British Railways Bill 1974. The Bill was subject to considerable opposition in parliament, furthermore a public inquiry proposed to revoke planning permission for one of the refineries. The proposal was abandoned and the BRB removed the spur line proposal from the 1974 Bill.
On 25 November 1974 a station was opened to serve the new town of .
The 1980s.
Upon sectorisation in 1982, the London & South Eastern sector took over responsibility for passenger services in the south-east of England, working with the existing BR business units of Regions and Functions to deliver the overall service. Day-to-day operation, staffing and timetabling continued to be delivered by the Regions – and the sector came into existence with barely thirty staff based at Waterloo.
On 10 June 1986, L&SE was relaunched as Network SouthEast, along with a new red, white and blue livery. The relaunch was intended to be more than a superficial rebranding and was underpinned by considerable investment in the presentation of stations and trains, as well as efforts to improve service standards.
Despite the efforts of NSE the performance of and environment on the line became very poor in the 1990s and it was known as the Misery Line.
In 1991 the Docklands Light Railway opened from a new station at Tower Gateway (located on the former Minories station site) to Canary Wharf and Island Gardens. The line was built on a new viaduct adjacent to the LTS line and an interchange was available with LTS services at Limehouse station after which it used the old London & Blackwall Railway route (closed to passengers in 1926).
The privatisation era (1994-current day).
During the early 1990s proposals were put forward to convert the whole route into a guided busway, however these plans were quickly dismissed when British Rail announced a complete re-signalling of the line.
On 30 November 1992, station was closed. For many years prior to closure, the station was served only by certain trains on the local service from Upminster via Grays, because the nearby Dartford Crossing and increased car ownership had caused a decline in its importance as a passenger ferry terminal. There was some opposition to closure, but British Rail cited financial reasons for the closure with the annual cost of running the service at £180,000 against income of £11,000.
In 1995 a station was built at to serve the new community there as well as Lakeside Shopping Centre. Main line platforms were re-established and opened at in 1999, to provide interchange with the extended Jubilee line and North London Line.
Operations.
Timetables.
Commentary on LT&SR timetables prior to 1912 can be found in the London Tilbury and Southend Railway entry.
Early years.
On the London and Blackwall cable railway the trains worked every 15 minutes and the journey time was 13 minutes. The service was operated between 08:45 and 09:45pm. There were regular connecting ferries to Gravesend and Woolwich and it was possible to book through tickets. This pattern was still in place in 1850 (by now the L&BR was a more conventional railway) and there was a through service to Bow on the new extension railway every half hour.
At Fenchurch Street in 1854 there were now four companies operating trains - the LT&SR, The North London Railway (NLR). The Eastern Counties Railway (ECR) and the L&BR. The LT&SR services were at this time routed via Stratford and Forest Gate Junction thence Barking and onto Tilbury. ECR services were routed to Loughton and NLR services to Chalk Farm.
Services to and from Stratford and North Woolwich.
The first Eastern Counties Railway services started operating in 1854 when the main Bishopsgate - Norwich line was connected to the London & Blackwall Extension Railway at Bow Junction. This also enabled LTSR services to access Fenchurch Street which they continued to do until their direct route from Barking to Gas Factory Junction to Barking was opened in 1858.
After that the Bow Junction to Gas Factory Junction line was operated by the ECR and from 1862 the GER. There was one intermediate station at Bow Road which opened in 1876 and was re-sited to provide an interchange with the adjacent NLR station in 1892.
Services varied over the years and included:
Regular services from Fenchurch Street to Stratford were withdrawn on 7 November 1949 as a result of the Central Line service commencing operation to Stratford in 1946 and in various stages out to Loughton in 1949. This left the former LTS main line services as the only trains running into Fenchurch Street.
Midland Railway.
The Midland Railway (MR) bought the LT&SR in 1912 and operated their services until 1923. On takeover the daily number of passengers carried by the MR doubled although the effect on revenue because of the shorter distances was less. MR services survived the war relatively unscathed although there was a deceleration in services that was not properly reversed until 1935. A summary of the regular main line services over the line in January 1918 saw:
There was portion working for two services but these disappeared two years later.
July 1922 peak summary.
In July 1922 Fenchurch Street was served by trains operated by the Great Eastern Railway (GER) and the Midland Railway (MR). Between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. there were 16 departures as follows:

Direct trains to Gallions usually routed via Bromley operated in other hours outside the peak. During the peak hours passengers for Gallions changed at Custom House for a shuttle service.
North London Railway.
In 1852 Gas Factory Junction was originally opened to provide a link from the North London Railway into Fenchurch Street which acted as their city terminus until was opened in 1866. The GER took over operation of the NLR shuttle between Fenchurch Street and Bow (NLR) in 1869, which it operated until April 1892 when the second Bow Road railway station opened along with a passenger foot connection to the NLR station.
In addition to this the NLR ran a service to Plaistow via the curve linking Bow to Bromley which linked into the LTSR at the west end of Bromley station. This was initially a through train but later became a shuttle from their station at Bow. The service was withdrawn as a wartime economy measure in 1916.
London Midland and Scottish Railway LTS line services.
The LMS operated services between 1923 and 1947.
By 1924 there was no capacity to add any further services and bar minor changes the timetables remained more or less unchanged until the 1934/5 changes at Fenchurch Street (see above) resulted in capacity for more services.
However in 1926 the London and Blackwall line from Stepney towards Blackwall closed.
The new timetable started in April 1935 with many improvements to peak hour services but little change to the off peak.
In the morning peak there were now six additional up services from Southend/Shoeburyness and three additional services from the Tilbury Line with a total of 28 trains. In the evening peak the same number of additional services and 22 services. There were an additional seven LNER services per hour.
Broad Street services.
Up morning and down evening peak hour services operated from 1 January 1923. This service was planned by the MR and London North Western Railway in late 1922 but it was operated by the LMS into which those two companies were merged as part of the 1921 Railways Act. The service consisted of an up morning and down evening peak with the carriages being stabled at Devons Road. The locomotive probably returned to Plaistow engine shed.
By 1927 there were three trains per day from the LTS line to Broad Street with one starting at Thorpe Bay, one at Southend and one at Tilbury.
Initially non stop, stops were added to all services at Dalston Junction and the Thorpe Bay service also had Bow and Hackney stops.
Significant improvements to the peak hour LTS line timetable in February 1935 saw the service discontinued from April 1935.
District Line services.
District Line services starting operating over LTS lines when the Whitechapel and Bow Railway connected to the LTS line at Campbell Road Junction west of Bow. Most services terminated at East Ham but a number of peak services continued to/started from Upminster. These additional services put strain on the two track section to Barking and work started soon after on the quadrupling out to East Ham which opened in 1905 and Barking after substantial remodelling in 1908. As well as quadrupling the lines were electrified out to Barking. With the District Line services stopping at the minor stations the LT&SR removed stops between Barking and Bromley to speed up longer distance trains.
The 1908 District timetable had 163 District Line trains working to East Ham (50) and Barking (112).From 1912 the down side bay at Plaistow was lengthened and electrified allowing District Line trains to terminate there.
From 1910 longer distance services operated from Ealing Broadway via Victoria, Charing Cross and Whitechapel to Southend with some going through to Shoeburyness. The service had limited stops on the District Line and in the July 1912 the 08:00 departure from Ealing Broadway took two hours to reach Shoeburyness. Up to 1911 District Line electric locomotives worked as far as Little Ilford sidings (between East Ham and Barking) where an LT&SR steam locomotive took over. Once Barking platforms 2 and 3 were electrified in 1911 the change took place there. In the up direction the 05:05 and 07:27 departures from Southend allowed for an arrival in Central London before 09:00.
The June 1912 timetable had four weekday (and Saturday) return trips each way and six on Sundays. World War 1 saw the service reduced to two per day and by 1921 this was reduced to one. However the service built up and by 1927 there were six trains per day - three in the morning starting at Upminster and Thorpe Bay and three in the evening, two from Southend and one from Thorpe Bay ( the stock came from Shoeburyness but did not serve the station there). The first eastbound train from Ealing did not depart until 09:35 and was formed from the stock of the early morning 07:02 a.m. departure from Thorpe Bay. Of note were two late evening Ealing Broadway to Southend departures that acted as theatre trains for London West End traffic.
In June 1925 the LMS started re-signalling the local lines between Bromley and Barking to enable more District Line services to run. LMS trains did use the Local Lines but only late at night. The re-signalling was completed by June 1929. The number of District Line trains now operating onto the LTS line was 243 per day.
By 1935 the service had been reduced to four per day and in the May 1939 timetable there was a single service each way. The start of World War 2 saw the introduction of an emergency timetable on the line and the end of through District Line services on 11 September 1939.
St Pancras services.
In connection with the opening of the Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway a daily service started operating between Southend and St Pancras.
This increased in later years and in the August 1913 timetable there were four through trains from St Pancras to Southend as well as a number of summer specials emanating at intermediate stations along the route. However the route was not particularly popular with passengers on the LTS line because most of the trains called at all stations.
Originally operated by the Midland Railway, the LTSR took over and it then returned to Midland operation in 1912. In July 1914 a through coach to Derby was part of the 10:45 a.m. Southend to St Pancras service where it was attached to the 12:15 Liverpool service. Due to the First World War the service was discontinued.
The core service of four trains per day continued until 1939 when the second world war saw the service reduced to two services per day. Four trains were restored post war but the fifties saw further reductions in the service with some services terminating at . By 1958 the service was reduced to one regular weekday and three Saturday services and the following year it was reduced to one Saturday service. The last year a regular booked service ran was June 1962 which ran to/from Kentish Town. After that T&FG passengers had to change at Barking, although a booked through Sunday service ran from Luton non stop via the T&FG through to Southend in 1963.
1962 all electric timetable.
Following re-signalling, the separation of the District Line and electrification the first electric timetable commenced operation in June 1962.
The off-peak timetable consisted of six trains per hour on a repeating pattern timetable. The departures were:
The morning peak saw 24 arrivals between 07:45 a.m. and 09:15 a.m. with a fast journey time from Southend of 48 minutes. Of note were two trains using the Tilbury avoiding line and offering Stanford-le-hope passengers radically improved journey times.
In the evening peak between 04:30 pm and 6:30 pm in the evening there were 29 departures, with the fastest journey time to Southend being the 6:00 pm, marketed as "the Spiv" taking 44 minutes with stops at Leigh-on-Sea, Benfleet and Westcliff.
May 2020.
This section has been sourced from the online working timetable on the Network Rail site. It is likely that after a period it will be deleted from the site as it becomes out of date.
The published May 2020 working timetable had nine services in the off peak hour from Fenchurch Street and all trains called at Limehouse (formerly Stepney) and West Ham. Developments of the London Docklands into a major commercial centre and connections to the Dockland Light Railway and Jubilee Line sees significant interchange traffic both peak and off-peak. Ockenden and the new station at also enjoyed direct services with a through train that was routed through to Southend.
The morning peak has since seen an increase in services primarily due to the increase in traffic to the City of London and revitalised London Docklands area. Between 07:45 and 09:15 30 services arrived into Fenchurch Street - a further six from 1962. The fastest up service from Southend was the 07:11 departure arriving into Fenchurch Street at 08:00 (49 minutes) with stops at Westcliff and Chalkwell, then fast to West Ham, Limehouse and Fenchurch Street.
In the evening peak there are 37 departures from Fenchurch Street station but times to Southend have slipped with the fastest being around the 52 minute mark. This is due to the operator needing to call at Limehouse and West Ham and more often at intermediate locations that have seen population growth since 1962. During the period of this and the December 2020 timetables some trains would not have run due to the Covid 19 pandemic.
Holiday and special traffic.
Southend holiday traffic had existed before the arrival of the railway in 1856 with steamers calling at the pier. The LT&SR captured some of this traffic and increased the numbers visiting Southend and that traffic was continued after 1912 by the Midland Railway. World War 1 saw the traffic fall off but not disappear and, after the war holiday traffic returned.
Similarly World War 2 saw holiday traffic drop off during hostilities and then return after hostilities ceased. Changing attitudes to holidays and widespread car ownership in the 1960s saw numbers start to decline.
Boat trains served Tilbury right up until the 1960s and ran from St Pancras, Liverpool Street and Fenchurch Street.
Goods services.
Goods Traffic 1912.
Prior to 1923 goods traffic would be moved from one railway to an exchange yard or sidings on its border where the locomotive would be detached and replaced by a locomotive of another company to take the train forward.
Before 1912 this activity happened at:
It was not unknown for "foreign" locomotives to work through to destination but this was the exception rather than the rule.
Goods traffic continued to the multitude of goods depots on the approach to Fenchurch Street (see below), with the Midland now operating the fast goods trains between Commercial Road and Tilbury Docks. Internal LTS line goods trains were worked from Plaistow and Little Ilford.
Following the industrialisation of Thames-side goods traffic increased and Dagenham Dock became a railhead for Fords and Samuel Williams traffic. Other industries around Grays and Purfleet were also generating goods traffic.
The approaches to Fenchurch Street.
A number of goods depots were established near Fenchurch Street owing to the station's proximity to the City of London. This table lists the depots connected to the line between the station and Christian Street Junction just east of :<
Thameside rail served industries.
The LTS Line between Ripple Lane and Tilbury had numerous sidings serving various industries some of which had their own internal railways or shunting locomotives. The table below shows a selection of these:
Freight Changes.
Up until the 1940s goods trains on the LTS lines were mostly mixed trains consisting of various wagon types carrying different commodities. During the Second World War, as a result of the risk to coastal shipping from German naval action, block coal trains started running to the LTS line to feed the industrial centres there. Some of this traffic continued after the war but the plans for electrification and separation of the District Line were all going to see the removal of some facilities. There was enough goods still being carried on the railways for a new approach.
In the 1949/1950 a plan was drawn up to develop a marshalling yard at Ripple Lane between Barking and Dagenham Dock, itself a significant railhead for Fords car factory. The LMS already had built a yard on this site in 1937 because Plaistow was at capacity and to serve some local industries. The down side had eight sidings and a run round loop whilst the up sidings had seven sidings and a run round loop. The main line at this stage ran through the site. The new marshalling yard was approved by the British Transport Commission act of 1951. The first signs of the new yard were a facility called the Railhead Depot which was opened in 1957. This allowed Barking goods yard to be closed prior to the extensive re-modelling taking pace at that location.
Around the same time the main lines were diverted around the edge of the new site and by 30 May 1958 the yard was ready for business. A depot for electric locomotives was built and there were also separate facilities for steam locomotives (and a turntable) on the site. In the event the new depot initially saw diesel locomotives. The yard offices were located here and 300 staff were employed on the site at opening. A hump was provided and there were eight fans of six sidings (named A-H) as well as eight reception sidings at the east end and six departure sidings at the west end.
The rail freight market was changing however and block or company trains were becoming more common. These trains were made up of a single wagon type often carrying the produce of a single company. As a result of this and many of the station goods yards being closed the yard contracted and by 1968 the hump and many of the sidings had become disused. Two other significant changes contributed to traffic patterns changing. Firstly the increase in car ownership led to an oil boom and the Thames Haven branch and West Thurrock areas both had refineries for this traffic. Secondly the Port of Tilbury decided on the containerisation model but because the Port of London failed to do so saw an increase in traffic as well.
The table below gives a summary of the block trains working on the LTS line in the May 1969 timetable. The number format is the number of weekday services followed in parenthesis by the number of services that run on selected days during the week.
By 1971 Ripple Lane was redeveloped further with a new freightliner (container) terminal being built and opened on 24 October 1971. Many sidings in the yard were lifted and given over to container stacking but new sidings were provided for other traffic.
Freight in the 1980s to the current day.
Hornchurch and Upton Park goods yards finally closed in 1982 and 1984; coal for domestic use had been the last traffic handled at these locations. The Ripple Lane Railhead depot closed in 1984 (it was a coal depot at this stage). Steel traffic and later newspaper print were handled in the area.
British Rail's mixed wagon load network Speedlink which had been formed in 1977 in an attempt to revitalise wagon load freight had been declining during the 1980s and succumbed in 1992.
The 1990s saw a decline in the Thames Haven oil traffic as a result of pipelines and improvements to the motorway network. This had by 1993 been drastically cut by the fact that Shell pulled out of rail traffic. These two events saw the closure of Ripple Lane TMD in early 1994.
In 2004 and 2005 construction sidings were built and used in the Ripple Lane area in connection with the construction of High Speed 1.
Intermodal (container) traffic continued to be handled at Barking and Tilbury Freightliner Terminals (FLT).
The military siding at Pigs Bay closed to traffic in the early 2000s. This site was used to store withdrawn rolling stock during this period.
Work on the London Gateway deep water port started in February 2010 and involved the re-alignment of the Thames Haven line. The first stage of the dock opened in 2013 and there were 9 Intermodal services operating by 2017.
2015 saw a new rail hub opened at Ripple Lane which had a direct connection onto High Speed 1 and in 2017 a through train from China arrived at this terminal.
Forth Ports opened a new intermodal terminal on the old site of the former Tilbury A and B Power station known as the Tilbury 2. The first train serving the terminal ran on 28 November 2020. Forth Ports also operate the other intermodal terminal in the Tilbury area which is known as the London Container Terminal.
Parcels traffic.
Parcels trains ran from Fenchurch Street to Southend Central with a stop at Dagenham East in 1965. Parcels traffic ceased at Dagenham East c1969 and was also transferred from Southend Central to Southend East that year. Parcels traffic ceased in 1981.
Main Line Electrification.
Electrification of the line and the connecting branches, under various system of traction current, took place in stages as follows:
November 1949
November 1960
November 1961
1984
2017
Locomotives and Rolling Stock.
Passenger.
The line was known for its use of 4-4-2 tank engines such as the LT&SR 37 Class and LT&SR 79 Class. The LTS line was run by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway after 1923 and they provided a further 35 locomotives of the 79 Class between 1923 and 1930, before introducing the 3-Cylindered 2-6-4Ts designed by William Stanier in 1934.
During World War II many of the 3-cylindered 2-6-4Ts were transferred away from the area and haulage reverted to older LT&SR locomotives, but the 3-cylindered tanks were back before the end of 1945. After the war ended, and shortly before nationalisation, 20 new LMS Fairburn Class 4 2-6-4Ts were allocated to the line which led to the withdrawal of some of the older LT&SR locomotives.
From 12 November 1953 20 BR Standard Class 4 2-6-4Ts started working on the section and former LT&SR locomotives were reduced to working the Upminster to Grays service. By 1958 these were withdrawn and the last LT&SR passenger locomotive was transferred away to Peterborough in March 1958.
Holiday traffic from the 1920s was worked almost exclusively by LMS type locomotives with LMS Hughes Crab, LMS Stanier Class 5 4-6-0 and 4F 0-6-0.
On the 23 January 1957 the Romford - Tilbury service went over to Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) working and these trains also worked the Tilbury to Pitsea Shuttle services. Diesel working of early morning trains was common to allow work on the overhead electric line equipment and this practice continued until 1969. After that date, other than the Romford service the only appearance of DMUs was in connection with engineering works and special trains. The DMUs were allocated to Stratford engine shed and consisted of some of the early DMU class such as Class 109 Wickhams Units and Derby Lightweight units. DMUs were generally stabled at Tilbury overnight.
After electrification in 1962 most services were operated by British Railways Class 302 electric multiple units (EMUs), which were withdrawn in 1998, leaving s, s and some loaned s in service until they were replaced by Class 357 EMUs. These are stabled at Shoeburyness and East Ham depots, where they are also maintained. There are now six Class 387 that are used at peak times to increase capacity.
Goods.
Up until 1899 LT&SR trains were effectively mixed traffic working but that changed when two locomotives of the 0-6-0 49 class were introduced. In 1903 the first of 10 69 class 0-6-2Ts were ordered for freight traffic and this order was supplemented by a further four locomotives in 1912 ordered by the LT&SR but delivered to the Midland. These locomotives provided the internal LTS workings right up until 1962.
Other steam freight locomotives allocated to the LTS line included:
The 4-4-2T and 2-6-4T types both worked freight trains throughout their time on the LTS line.
The first main line diesel to operate over the LTS line was the unique British Rail 10800 which was allocated to Plaistow engine shed and was deployed on freight trains. Devons Road (Bow) engine shed based Class 20 locomotives were seen on freights from 1957 and later in the year LTS drivers were being trained on Class 30 locomotives and a little later the failure prone Class 21. These locomotives worked freight and passenger services.
Class 04 diesel shunters were regularly allocated to Plaistow from 1957.These displaced the LMS built "Jinty" LMS Fowler Class 3F shunting and short distance goods services. When Ripple Lane Marshalling Yard opened Class 11 shunters were employed on shunting duties.
By the 1970s most goods trains were generally in the hands of Class 31, Class 37 and Class 47 locomotives whilst shunting was carried out by Class 08 shunters.
By the 1980s Class 56 and Class 59 could be seen on aggregates trains from the Western Region. Electrification of part of the Ripple Lane complex and Tilbury FLT in 1988 saw electric locomotives such as Class 90 employed on container trains.
In 2021 diesel worked freight services are in the hands of Class 66 and Class 70 locomotives.
Preservation.
Of the original LTSR locomotive fleet, only 79 class 4-4-2T number 80 named "Thundersley" survives as a stationary exhibit at Bressingham Steam Museum in Norfolk.
Two locomotives that worked later steam services in the area are preserved - 2500 is the sole remaining member of the 37 3 cylinder 2-6-4 tank engines built by the LMS in the 1930s for the LTS line. It is preserved in LMS livery at the National Railway Museum in York.
BR Standard Class 4 80079, which was involved in the 1958 Dagenham East rail crash, is preserved on the Severn Valley Railway in Shropshire. Both 42500 (as it was then numbered) and 80079 worked last day steam services out of Fenchurch Street.
Two Class 302 driving trailers are preserved at Mangapps Farm Railway Museum near Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex.
Stations (2021).
Route via Stratford and Liverpool Street.
When necessary, due to engineering work or service disruption, trains can be diverted at Barking over the Gospel Oak to Barking Line and then the Great Eastern Main Line to call at Stratford and Liverpool Street instead of the usual LTSR route via . Trains diverted at Barking, having passed Stratford, can also rejoin the LTSR before and then continue to . This latter route is not currently used in the standard timetable, however at weekends there are two trains per hour to and from that call at Stratford and Liverpool Street.
From May 1985 to May 2007, the standard weekday service after 22:30 operated out of Liverpool Street rather than Fenchurch Street. Currently, this is only used during weekends, when some Basildon services are diverted into Liverpool Street, as well as during engineering works that prohibit access to Fenchurch Street.
Signalling schemes.
This section summarises the major re-signalling schemes on the LTS line from 1912.
1935.
The LNER re-organised the approaches to Fenchurch Street and new signalling was introduced.
1958.
In connection with electrification and the separation of the District line the following changes were made:
Crossovers between the Local and Through lines removed
Signalling on the Local Lines taken over by LT
Semaphore signalling replaced by colour light signalling
1996.
Over the years the line had been used in an almost experimental fashion and contained a host of different signalling systems, such as geographical, WESTPAC and relay interlockings. In 1995 work began to replace everything from signals and point machines to whole junctions.The main contractor for the work was GEC Alsthom which provided a Mark 3 Solid State Interlocking (SSI) system, with SEMA providing the IECC element at Upminster that replaced all signal boxes on the whole line. Main line running signals mostly became four-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 crossings were renewed with automatic barriers to be CCTV-controlled by a designated workstation at Upminster.
The main line between East Ham and Shoeburyness was also bi-directionally signalled (with three-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 of 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.
Proposed developments.
Beam Park station.
A new railway station, Beam Park railway station, is proposed at Beam Reach, between Dagenham Dock and Rainham, near Marsh Way road and CEME Innovation Centre (between A13 and A1306).
Barking Reach.
A new 4.5km double tracked branch line will serve the emerging development area at Barking Riverside and is expected to open in May 2022.
The Barking Riverside extension will be capable of operating four trains per hour from Barking station and these will be an extension of the Gospel Oak to Barking service and parallels the existing Tilbury line then ,after passing under the Renwick Road bridge, the branch will diverge south to a new station in the heart of the Barking Riverside development.
Tilbury Docks.
A company called Walsh are planning to build two new freight hubs at the port – a logistics terminal with aggregates processing plant and a rail-linked freight facility.
Ownership and management summary.
The railway was initially jointly promoted by the Eastern Counties Railway and London and Blackwall Railway and was leased for 21 years to Peto, Brassey and Betts. The lease expired in 1875, leaving the LTSR to take over operation itself. The Midland Railway and LTSR jointly constructed the Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway, which enabled through-running of trains between and the Tilbury docks from 1894 and Southend from 1895.
In 1912 the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway was vested in the Midland Railway following an Act of 7 August 1912, though Midland did not assume full control until 1 October 1920. Upon company grouping in 1923, the line became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway. That organisation was nationalised into British Railways in 1948, the line becoming part of the London Midland Region, however, in 1949 the LTS line became part of the Eastern Region of British Railways.
In 1986 the route was transferred to the Network SouthEast sector of British Rail. During this period, it was known as Network SouthEast's "misery line".
On privatisation in 1996, ownership of the infrastructure passed to Railtrack and Prism Rail took over operations of the franchise, marketing the route as LTS Rail. LTS Rail rebranded as c2c in May 2000 and Prism Rail was bought by National Express in July that year. National Express sold c2c to the Italian operator Trenitalia in February 2017.
Infrastructure management passed from Railtrack to Network Rail in 1992.
Shipping activity.
Until 1855, the ferry crossing between Tilbury and Gravesend in Kent was operated by sailing and rowing boats; however, in that year, steam driven vessels were introduced on the River Thames crossing. On formation of the LTSR, that operation became part of its activities.
Responsibility for the ferry operation was transferred to the Midland Railway Company and the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1912 and 1923 respectively.
Particulars of the ferry service and the vessels employed are listed at Gravesend-Tilbury Ferry.


Tattenham Corner line

The Tattenham Corner line is a branch line in Southern England that runs between Purley in South London and Tattenham Corner in Surrey.
History.
The line was opened in two parts. The first stage was built from Purley as far as Kingswood as the Chipstead Valley Railway. Local MP and Chairman of the South Eastern Railway at the time, Sir Cosmo Bonsor proposed the line in 1893. However, given the difficult terrain of the route which would have involved deep cuttings and tight bends, the idea was met by some opposition from his fellow directors. Despite this, construction eventually began in 1896 and on 2 November 1897 a single-track line to Kingswood (originally "Kingswood and Burgh Heath") was complete.
In 1899 Sir Cosmo Bonsor formed a private syndicate to have the line extended from Kingswood to its current terminus at Tattenham Corner in order to catch the racegoing traffic. By Derby Day on 4 June 1901, the extension to Tattenham Corner was opened, during which time the line was also upgraded from single to double track.
The Chief Engineer to the Chipstead Valley Railway was Lt Col Arthur John Barry.
The line was third rail electrified by Southern Railway at 660 V DC in March 1928, and later upgraded to 750 V DC by British Rail post-war. The line is now part of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise.
In May 2011 Smitham station was officially renamed , following a public vote on a new name for the station.
Route.
The line diverges eastwards from the Brighton Main Line at Purley. It immediately splits from the Caterham Line and passes below the Brighton line. It then runs close to the Brighton line as far as Coulsdon Town, after which it turns westwards and follows the Chipstead Valley, eventually climbing to the high ground at Tattenham Corner.
The line is primarily a commuter route, but the station at Tattenham Corner was built to serve the Epsom Downs Racecourse, with large numbers of extra trains for The Derby on Derby day. There is also a railway terminus at Epsom Downs, about 2 km north of the racecourse, which was built by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway and opened on 22 May 1865.
Oyster and contactless payment cards are valid for travel on the entire length of the route. The line from Purley to Tattenham Corner is located entirely within Travelcard Zone 6.
Services.
Passenger services on the line are operated by Southern.
There is an all day Monday-Saturday service to London Bridge, calling at all stations to East Croydon, then fast to London Bridge. These trains combine/divide at Purley, the other section being for the Caterham Line. At peak times, there are additional services to Victoria. On Sundays, these trains additionally call at all stations via Sydenham.
In off peak times Monday-Saturday, since May 2018, a service runs from Coulsdon Town to London Bridge calling at all stations via Sydenham
Almost all services from Tattenham Corner are provided by 5-car Class 377 EMUs. The services on the Coulsdon Town to London Bridge via Sydenham route are run by 8-car Class 455 trains on weekdays.
The London and South East Route Utilisation Strategy released in July 2011 laid out a provisional timetable for the Thameslink Programme. Services 'assumed to operate through the Thameslink core in 2018' featured an eight-car Tattenham Corner to Welwyn Garden City service. This did not materialise.
In December 2013 the old sidings at Tattenham Corner were reinstated to support overnight storage of some of the new trains ordered since 2011, as part of the train-lengthening process.


Rail services in the West of England

Rail services in the West of England refer to passenger rail journeys made in the Bristol commuter area. 26 million passenger rail journeys were made in 2018-19 within the Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bristol/Bath region.
Main destinations.
There is usually a direct weekday service from Bristol Parkway & Bristol Temple Meads to these destinations:
Stations.
Heritage stations.
This is a list of stations currently open on heritages line.
Proposed stations.
This is a list of proposed railway stations in the West of England. (This list includes some former stations)
Former stations.
This is a list of former stations in the West of England area.
Railway lines.
There are six railway lines running through Bristol.
Bristol to Exeter line.
The Bristol to Exeter line runs between Bristol and Exeter via the Nailsea, Weston-super-Mare, Bridgwater and Taunton. It is served by local First Great Western services, and used by Cross-Country and Intercity trains headed towards Plymouth.
Cross-Country Route.
The North-East/South-West route (sometimes simply The Cross-Country Route) is the major British rail route running from South West England or Cardiff via Bristol, Birmingham, Derby and Sheffield to North-East England and Scotland. It includes some of the longest inter-city rail journeys in the UK, e.g. Penzance to Aberdeen) It remains a major freight route, although now largely usurped by the M5, M6 and M1 motorways.
The route shares parts of the Great Western Main Line, Midland Main Line, Sheffield to Hull Line, the East Coast Main Line and the core Cardiff-Bristol-Birmingham-Derby route.
In November 2018 tracks were doubled from Bristol Temple Meads through Lawrence Hill to Filton Abbey Wood stations to increase capacity, back to the original four tracks.
Great Western Main Line.
The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington station to Temple Meads station in Bristol.
Severn Beach Line.
The route runs from Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach via Lawrence Hill, Stapleton Road, Montpelier, Redland, Clifton Down, Sea Mills, Shirehampton, Avonmouth, St Andrews Road before reaching terminus at Severn Beach. The journey takes approximately 45 minutes.
Following a successful campaign by FOSBR (Friends of Suburban Bristol Railway), the Severn Beach Line is going to have an increased frequency from December 2007 to March 2010. It is hoped this will pave the way for better services across the conurbation. An additional train will operate on the line meaning services should be at the least every 40 mins.
South Wales Main Line.
The South Wales Main Line is a branch of the Great Western Main Line. It diverges from the main line at Wootton Bassett near Swindon, first calling at Bristol Parkway, after which the line continues through the Severn Tunnel into South Wales.
Wessex Main Line.
The Wessex Main Line is the railway line from Bristol Temple Meads to Southampton. Diverging from this route is the Heart of Wessex Line from Westbury to Weymouth.
Proposed light rail or rapid transit.
In November 2016, the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership began a consultation process on their Transport Vision Summary Document, outlining potential light rail/tram routes from the city centre to Bristol Airport, the eastern and north west fringes of the city, and a route along the A4 road to Bath. By 2017, this proposal had changed to a mass transit network with potential for underground sections, linking the city centre with the northern and eastern fringes of the city and the airport.
Train operators.
Former train operators.
There have also been a number of other companies pre-nationalisation, including:
MetroWest.
MetroWest is a current initiative in the West of England area to improve local rail services by reopening disused rail lines and stations and improving existing services. Phase One includes reopening the Portishead railway line to passenger traffic and improving services to the Severn Beach Line and Bath Spa. Phase Two will see the Henbury railway line reopen, along with half-hourly services between Weston-super-Mare and Yate. The phases are due to open in 2019 and 2021 respectively.
The West of England Local Enterprise Partnership also produced a Key Principles Report in November 2015 discussing future potential transport projects for the West of England region, including new rail transit based options referred to as "MetroWest++". The options outlined include reopening the Thornbury Branch Line, a Yate to Bath route, the use of tram train technology, a link to the city centre and a connection to Bristol Airport.


Worcester Electric Traction Company

The Worcester Electric Traction Company operated a tramway service in Worcester between 1904 and 1928.
History.
The Worcester Electric Traction Company replaced the horse-drawn tram service which had been provided by the Worcester Tramways Company since 1881.
The electric service opened to the public on 4 February 1904, but the construction had not been without its problems, and it was known locally as "The Tramway Siege of Worcester 1903-4".
The replacement service was rebuilt from the 3 ft gauge to 3 ft 6in. There were 15 cars built for the initial services in a livery of holly green and cream. Two further cars were purchased in 1921.
Routes ran to Barbourne, Astwood Cemetery (via Rainbow Hill), Shrub Hill railway station, London Road, Bath Road and St Johns.
Closure.
In 1928 Worcester Corporation purchased the undertaking and the system was closed on 31 May 1928. Services were replaced by omnibuses provided by the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company Limited.


Crewe Carriage Sidings

Crewe Carriage Sidings (alternatively Crewe Carriage Depot, and also as Crewe L&NWR) is a stabling point located in Crewe, Cheshire, England, on the eastern side of the West Coast Main Line, between that line and the line to Alsager, to the south of Crewe station.
History.
The main shed was opened by the London & North Western Railway prior to 1910, as a seven-track through-road shed. By the 1960s, this shed was used by British Rail for stabling multiple units. The three-track bay, closest to the West Coast Main Line, was refurbished after 1996. The second building is a three plus one-track through-road shed, built in 1999.
Present.
It provides stabling for Transport for Wales Class 67 and Mark 3 carriages and Driving Van Trailers, Class 150, and Class 158s, West Midlands Trains Class 350s and Avanti West Coast Class 221s. It is been occupied by Arriva TrainCare and its predecessors, LNWR and Waterman Railways since 1996.


Gravesend West Line

The Gravesend West Line was a short railway line in Kent that branched off the Swanley to Chatham line at Fawkham Junction and continued for a distance of 5 miles (8 km) to Gravesend where the railway company constructed a pier to connect trains with steamers. It was opened in 1886 and closed to passenger services in 1953, remaining open to freight until 1968 before reopening briefly between 1972 and 1976. Part of the railway's former alignment was incorporated into the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.
History.
Authorisation to construct the Gravesend West Line was obtained by the Gravesend Railway Company in the shape of the Gravesend Railway Act 1881 (c.cxliv) which received royal assent on 18 July 1881. The Act envisaged a junction with the Chatham Main Line near the village of Pinden which lies between the larger settlements of Farningham and Fawkham from which a line would run to Gravesend, a town already well-served by the railway. The project was driven by Sir Sydney Hedley Waterlow, Bart., the Liberal Member of Parliament for Gravesend and Deputy Chairman of the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) which had built the Chatham Main Line. The LCDR's great rival, the South Eastern Railway (SER), attempted to block the scheme by seeking parliamentary authorisation for a loop line towards Northfleet and Snodland which would take in land required by the Gravesend Railway. The latter successfully petitioned against the SER's bill and obtained approval for its own scheme.
The 1881 Act sanctioned the construction of a double-track line from the LCDR's Main Line to a terminus which was said to be "Near the Ragged School" at Gravesend and initial plans had it sited in Princes Street. The initial capital of the railway company was £200,000 and it had powers to borrow a further £55,000. The line had to be completed within five years after which it would be worked by the LCDR. The construction works were put out to tender and eventually the offer of £108,000 from a Mr G. Barclay-Price was accepted on 3 August 1881. There was some internal discussion over the eventual siting of the terminus which was changed to Bath Street and then finally to Stuart Road. Around the same time, the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway proposed to link with the Gravesend Line and the SER via a tunnel under the Thames from Tilbury, but this was never realised.
A second Act of Parliament was obtained on 24 July 1882; the Gravesend Railway Act 1882 (c.cliii) authorised construction of a pier on the Thames and the extension of the line to serve it. The railway company's capital was increased by £50,000 and its borrowing rights by £16,600. The contractor, Barclay-Price, submitted a revised tender of £143,000 to complete the line and pier. By 29 June 1883 works were sufficiently advanced for the LCDR to take over formal control of the Gravesend Railway Company, holding a ceremony the following day at Stuart Road where the first sod was formally cut.
The line was officially opened on Saturday 17 April 1886, the date coinciding with the opening of the Tilbury Docks. The first train departed Fawkham Junction with Lady Waterlow being assisted to drive the train to Gravesend where the guests then went on to visit Tilbury Docks. Public services commenced the following Monday. There were stations at Longfield, Southfleet, Rosherville Gardens and Gravesend West Street (later called Gravesend West).
Operations.
Passenger services.
In 1886 the service consisted of 14 trains in each direction on weekdays (a cheap rate was available for four of them) and 8 on Sundays. All services ran through from London, the journey time being around 70 minutes, the same time which the SER took to complete the journey via its North Kent Line. The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway ran a rather shorter service in 52 minutes by using a river crossing. It was from the West Street Pier that the ill-fated sailed on 3 September 1878.
In 1916, at the height of the First World War, the Dutch Batavia Line introduced a steamer service from the West Street Pier to Rotterdam. A "Continental Express" boat train service from Victoria was laid on to connect with the steamers, and signs in Dutch began to appear at some intermediate stations; in Dutch, Gravesend West Street was "Heeren" and Rosherville "Gents". The Prince Consort of Holland was said to have occasionally used the service.
Services on the line were later increased to 10 each way on weekdays, 12 on Saturdays and 6 on Sundays. This went up again following the 1923 grouping which saw the Southern Railway take over the line and laying on 12 services per day on weekdays. Five services ran from Swanley Junction, one from Bickley, one boat train at 17:45 from Victoria (with intermediate stops at Penge East, Beckenham Junction, Shortlands and Bromley South), four from Holborn Viaduct, one ordinary service from Victoria and one from Charing Cross via the Chislehurst loop.
The closure of Rosherville Pleasure Gardens in 1910 meant that there was not enough traffic to sustain Rosherville which closed in 1933. The Batavia Line service ceased in 1939 following the outbreak of the Second World War and when it resumed its services after the war, it transferred its activities to Tilbury where there were better facilities. The wartime service of five trains each way (three in the morning, two in the evening) continued after the war. The Saturday service remained, however, strong at ten services each way, enabling Farningham Road residents subject to petrol rationing to reach Gravesend. During the late 1940s till 1966, General Steam Navigation ran pleasure trips from the West Street Pier, using a pleasure steamer called the "Royal Daffodil". In more recent years, White Horse Ferries operated services from the pier using trimarans.
Passenger services were withdrawn from Monday 3 August 1953, the last train having run the previous Saturday. There were attempts during the 1960s to have services restored, notably by local authorities, but British Rail (BR) rejected these calls on the basis that it would mean electrifying the line and pointing out that it would be a longer and slower service to London than that provided by the North Kent Line. This argument did not take account of the fact that towns such as Bromley, Orpington and even Rochester have one route to Victoria and another to Charing Cross and Cannon Street.
Freight.
Early freight consisted of fruit and other agricultural produce from Southfleet and from Chambers siding between Fawkham Junction and Southfleet. Coal and cement was also carried. A network of sidings developed around Gravesend West Street principally to serve the Red Lion Chalk and Whiting Company, the Imperial Cement Works Ltd, the Crown and London Cement Works and a paper mill. The post-1918 years saw a decline in the freight traffic and the closure of the industrial sidings. The Southern Railway concentrated goods traffic on the West Branch, thereby relieving Gravesend Central and the North Kent Line. The Southern's programme of electrification in the 1930s did not extend to the line, although an electricity cable did have to be laid under the line from the Central Electricity Board at Northfleet to railway substations at Denton and Fawkham. By the 1950s, freight traffic was down to one service a day, no doubt helping the line win a competition in 1950 for the best-maintained section of track.
In 1959, the line was singled and much of its now surplus equipment, including station buildings and signalboxes, were removed. By 1967, BR's plan to withdraw local wagon load freight facilities was well under way, and later that year the line lost its regular freight service. On 24 March 1968 the freight service entirely ceased and the line closed; the last service to run had been that of the Locomotive Club of Great Britain on 3 March as part of their "Invicta" railtour. The north end of the line was physically disconnected from the rest of the branch and by September only remained beyond Southfleet. The extant section of the line briefly reopened between 1972 and 1976 to serve APCM's coal concentration depot at Southfleet.
Attempted preservation.
It was the chance discovery in 1980 that the track remained intact that led to an attempt to reopen the Gravesend West Branch as a heritage railway. Notices were placed in the local press which eventually led to the setting up of the North Downs Steam Railway Society to operate a section from Fawkham Junction to Southfleet as a steam-worked line. The scheme attracted support and membership of the Society grew to over 500. Negotiations were opened with the British Railways Property Board for the grant of a lease and purchase of the track; it was not possible for the Society to purchase the route of the line due to the presence of an electricity supply cable. The former goods yard at Higham was used as a depot from March 1981 where the pride of the Society's collection, a Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns' 0-6-0T No. 7846 of 1955, was stabled. To keep up Chatham traditions, an LCDR 3rd class carriage, 4 wheel coach body, from 1870 was also acquired. A magazine, "The Downs Line", was published regularly and meetings were held at St. Mark's Church Centre in Rosherville.
In November 1982 BR asked for a down payment of £25,000 for the track, with £5,000 to be paid up front as an indication of the Society's intention to lease the land. The Society raised £2,500 from its members and its bank agreed to loan a further £5,000 if certain points in the lease were settled. A cheque for £2,500 was sent to BR who promptly returned it and terminated negotiations. Around the same time, the Society received notice to quit Higham by 31 May 1983. It now sought to relocate to Southfleet.
Unknown to the Society, a third party - Resco (Railways) Ltd - a professional restoration company, had been looking to set up a museum in the Kent area which would feature exhibits of rural transport around 1914. Attracted by the presence of a ready-established preservation society on the Gravesend Branch, Resco began negotiations with BR for the purchase of the track and an option for a lease on the land, subject to them obtaining a Light Railway Order. Resco met with the Society on 9 March 1983 when it invited the Society to run the line on its behalf. The Society, fearing a loss of identity if it proceeded, put the question to an Extraordinary General Meeting held on 15 April at which Resco's Managing Director emphasised that the Society had not been 'gazumped'. In the event, the Society voted 2 to 1 not to join the Resco scheme and relocated its activities to Chatham Dockyard. It later found a permanent home at Tunbridge Wells West where it amalgamated with the Tunbridge Wells and Eridge Preservation Society in 1996 and operates services as the Spa Valley Railway.
Resco now began discussions with Southfleet Parish Council which had reservations about the effects of a heritage railway on the area, particularly concerning the likelihood of increased traffic on the country lanes around Southfleet. The project made no further progress.
The line today.
As part of Section 1 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) the remaining rails on the Gravesend West Branch around Southfleet were lifted during the autumn of 1998 and works began to excavate a new track bed. CTRL services would follow a route running alongside the M2 and A2 as far as Pepper Hill between Gravesend and Southfleet before curving south on a spur just before the B262 Station Road to join the alignment of the Gravesend Line along as far as Fawkham Junction where it joins the Chatham Main Line and proceeds to Waterloo.
The trackbed to the north of the CTRL spur remains traceable as far as Vale Road when it is taken over by the A2260 Thames Way. Gravesend Borough Council has announced in its local plan its attention to seek agreement with BR to convert the remaining section of the line within the town into recreational use.
The station buildings have, in the main part, been swept away in subsequent redevelopments of the area. Only the stationmaster's house at Southfleet and the Gravesend West Pier now remains. The majority of Gravesend West itself was demolished in 1991, with the remaining section of viaduct and bridge over West Street going in September 2006, having previously been reprieved in 2001. The North Downs Railway Society managed, however, to recover the platform canopy from Gravesend West station and this has been installed at Groombridge. In addition, some track materials were recovered from the line in 1988 by the Kent and East Sussex Railway.
Regular passenger services ceased in 2007 over the Channel Tunnel Rail Link between Fawkham Jn and Pepper Hill (occupying the former Gravesend West Line) when phase 2 of the CTRL route to St. Pancras International was opened. The route is still maintained for occasional empty stock trains.


Brighton Corporation Tramways

Brighton Corporation Tramways operated an electric tramway service in Brighton between 1901 and 1939.
History.
Brighton Corporation Tramways operated an extensive network of routes in the first four decades of the 20th century. The first route to operate, from 25 November 1901, ran from the main terminus at the Aquarium (outside Brighton Pier) to Lewes Road, a major route to the north-east; other routes were quickly established, so that by 1904 its full extent had been established. The routes were as follows:
Routes B and D formed a loop that took approximately 30 minutes to navigate. Route B ran clockwise (via Beaconsfield Road first, then returning via Ditchling Road). A depot serving the whole network was established on Lewes Road, a short distance before the terminus; Brighton & Hove now uses the building as its central Brighton depot.
Closure.
Improvements in motor bus and trolleybus technology meant that by the 1930s, the tram system found it difficult to compete, and most of the network was replaced by the Brighton trolleybus system or motor bus routes in 1939. The last tram arrived at Lewes Road depot in the early hours of 1 September 1939 – at about the same time Germany invaded Poland, and ignited the conflict that became World War II.
Distinctive timber shelters were built at many stops in the early years of the network. Some of these are still standing today at Ditchling Road (Florence Place), Queen's Park Road (Pepperpot), and Dyke Road (reservoir). Another found reuse as the Aquarium Station of the Volk's Electric Railway. One is preserved at the Stanmer Rural Museum, and two at the Chalkpits Museum at Amberley.
The depot was in Lewes Road at , and is now used as the Brighton Buses depot. The windows are still etched with 'Brighton Corporation Tramways'.
Preserved tramcar.
Tramcar number 53 survives, and a society has been established for its restoration. The Society is now in possession of Works Car number 1, which will be restored next.