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Bittern Line | |||
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Overview | |||
Status | Operational | ||
Owner | Network Rail | ||
Locale | Norfolk, England | ||
Termini | |||
Stations | 10 | ||
Service | |||
Type | Heavy rail | ||
System | National Rail | ||
Operator(s) | Greater Anglia | ||
Rolling stock | Class 755 | ||
History | |||
Opened | 1874–77 | ||
Technical | |||
Line length | 30 miles 22 chains (48.7 km) | ||
Number of tracks | 1–2 | ||
Character | Rural line | ||
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge | ||
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The Bittern Line is a railway branch line in Norfolk, England, that links Norwich to Sheringham. [1] It passes through the Broads on its route to an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the north Norfolk coast. [2] It is named after the bittern, a rare bird found in the reedy wetlands of Norfolk.
The line is 30 miles 22 chains (48.7 km) in length and there are 10 stations. It is part of Network Rail Strategic Route 7, SRS 07.11, and is classified as a rural line. [3]
Passenger services are operated by Greater Anglia, which also manages all of the stations.
The line was granted permission in 1864 [4] and the first stretch was opened between Norwich and North Walsham in 1874 by the East Norfolk Railway. It was extended to Cromer by 1877 before being extended to Sheringham in 1877, using a section of the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway line. From the early twentieth century until the end of steam services, in 1962, the Great Eastern Railway operated coastal holiday services from London Liverpool Street under names such as the Norfolk Coast Express and The Broadsman . [4]
Following the closure of the majority of the Midland and Great Northern network, the line operated as a single branch between Norwich and Melton Constable before the section between Sheringham and Melton Constable was closed in 1964. [5] The remainder of the line was listed for closure in 1967 [6] but survived the proposal after being declined by the Secretary of State for Transport. [7]
The Bittern Line Partnership was set up by Norfolk County Council in 1997. and was designated a community rail line by the Department for Transport in September 2007.
The section of the line between Sheringham and Holt which was closed in the 1960s remains in use as a heritage railway line operated as the North Norfolk Railway (NNR - also known as the Poppy Line). After a period of 36 years, the link between the Bittern line and the North Norfolk Railway was reinstated in 2010 with the opening of a new level crossing at Sheringham.
Sheringham railway station was upgraded in 2019 to accommodate the new Class 755s [8]
The following table summarises the line's 10 stations, their distance measured from Norwich, and their estimated number of passenger entries/exits in 2018/19 and 2022/23: [9]
Station | Location | Local authority | Mileage | Patronage 2018/19 | Patronage 2022/23 [9] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Norwich | Norwich | City of Norwich | 0 | 4,250,834 | 3,964,948 million |
Salhouse | Salhouse | Broadland | 6 | 11,778 | 14,006 |
Hoveton & Wroxham | Hoveton/Wroxham | North Norfolk | 8+3⁄4 | 136,414 | 124,804 |
Worstead | Worstead | North Norfolk | 13+1⁄4 | 25,650 | 26,816 |
North Walsham | North Walsham | North Norfolk | 16 | 265,400 | 243,208 |
Gunton | Thorpe Market | North Norfolk | 19+3⁄4 | 19,188 | 28,446 |
Roughton Road | Roughton | North Norfolk | 24 | 21,766 | 24,670 |
Cromer | Cromer | North Norfolk | 26+3⁄4 | 219,244 | 244,294 |
West Runton | West Runton | North Norfolk | 28+3⁄4 | 27,212 | 32,918 |
Sheringham | Sheringham | North Norfolk | 30+1⁄4 | 225,894 | 232,222 |
Passenger services are operated by Greater Anglia. The typical service is one train per hour in each direction between Norwich and Sheringham. Calling patterns are varied, with some trains stopping at all stations while others omit some of the lesser-used stations along the line, such as Salhouse, Gunton and Roughton Road.
In 2019, new Class 755 bi-mode trains began to replace the previous mixture of Class 153, Class 156 and Class 170 diesel multiple units. [10]
The line is also used by freight trains which are operated by GB Railfreight. Some trains carry gas condensate from a terminal at North Walsham to Harwich International Port.
The line is double-track from Norwich to Hoveton & Wroxham, where it becomes single-track with a passing loop at North Walsham, and two platforms at Cromer also allowing passing. The line is not electrified; it has a loading gauge of W8 between Norwich and Roughton Road and W6 from Roughton Road to Sheringham. The maximum speed is 75 miles per hour (121 km/h). [3]
The line was re-signalled in 2000, leading to the closure of a number of mechanical signal boxes and control moving to a panel at the Trowse Swing Bridge control room. This saw the end of one of the few remaining sections of single-track main line controlled by tokens.[ citation needed ] The Cromer signal box has been preserved.
A new station is proposed as part of the Rackheath eco-town. [11] The building of the town may also mean a short freight spur being built to transport fuel to fire an on-site power station. The plans for the settlement received approval from the government in 2009. [12]
The North Norfolk Railway (NNR) – also known as the "Poppy Line" – is a 5+1⁄4-mile (8.4 km) heritage steam railway in Norfolk, England, running between the towns of Sheringham and Holt. The North Norfolk Railway is owned and operated as a public limited company, originally called Central Norfolk Enterprises Limited. The railway is listed as exempt from the UK Railways (Interoperability) Regulations 2000.
The Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway (M&GNJR) was a railway network in England, in the area connecting southern Lincolnshire, the Isle of Ely and north Norfolk. It developed from several local independent concerns and was incorporated in 1893. It was jointly owned by the Midland Railway and the Great Northern Railway, and those companies had long sponsored and operated the predecessor companies.
Norwich railway station is the northern terminus of the Great Eastern Main Line in the East of England, serving the cathedral city of Norwich, Norfolk. It is 114 miles 77 chains (185.0 km) down the main line from London Liverpool Street, the western terminus.
Worstead railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serving the villages of Worstead and Sloley. It is 13 miles 12 chains (21.2 km) down the line from Norwich and is situated between Hoveton & Wroxham to the south and North Walsham to the north. Train services are operated by Greater Anglia.
Hoveton & Wroxham railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serving the village of Hoveton and the adjacent village of Wroxham. It is 8 miles 61 chains (14.1 km) down the line from Norwich and is situated between Salhouse and Worstead.
Salhouse railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serving the village of Salhouse. It is the next station along the line from Norwich, 5 miles 74 chains (9.5 km) from that terminus; the following station is Hoveton & Wroxham. Train services are operated by Greater Anglia.
North Walsham railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serving the town of North Walsham. It is 16 miles (26 km) down the line from Norwich, between Worstead to the south and Gunton to the north. Train services are operated by Greater Anglia.
Gunton railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serves the villages of Lower Street, Thorpe Market and Southrepps. It is 19 miles 63 chains (31.8 km) from Norwich, between North Walsham to the south and Roughton Road to the north. Train services are operated by Greater Anglia.
Roughton Road railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, on the outskirts of the town of Cromer. It takes its name from the street on which it is located, and is several miles north of the village of Roughton. It is 24 miles 1 chain (38.6 km) down the line from Norwich and is situated between Gunton and Cromer stations.
The fishing port and holiday resort of Cromer in the English county of Norfolk has had a rail service since 1877. It was served by three railway stations for many years, and is now served by two. Cromer Beach station, which opened in 1887, was renamed Cromer following the closure of the other early stations.
West Runton railway station is on the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serving the village of West Runton. It is 28 miles 55 chains (46.2 km) down the line from Norwich and is situated between Cromer and Sheringham, the northern terminus. Train services are operated by Greater Anglia.
Sheringham railway station is the northern terminus of the Bittern Line in Norfolk, England, serving the town of Sheringham. It is 30 miles 22 chains down the line from Norwich. Its three-letter station code is SHM.
Roughton is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is 3.7 miles (6.0 km) south of Cromer, 19.6 miles (31.5 km) north of Norwich, and 6.5 miles (10.5 km) north-west of North Walsham. It straddles the A140 between Cromer and Norwich and the B1463.
Cromer is a railway station in the English county of Norfolk. Because the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway (M&GNJR) line approached Cromer from the west, following the coastal clifftops, it avoided the steep escarpment which had prevented the earlier line from Norwich running all the way into the town. Consequently, it became possible to build a far more conveniently located station, near to the town centre and the beach. The station opened as Cromer Beach on 16 June 1887 and was renamed Cromer on 20 October 1969, following the closure of Cromer High station in 1954. It is 26 miles 52 chains (42.9 km) down the line from Norwich. Cromer is one of only two former Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway stations to remain operational on the National Rail network; the other being the neighbouring West Runton. Sheringham and Weybourne are the other two surviving M&GNJR stations; both are still served today on the heritage North Norfolk Railway.
Melton Constable was a railway station on the Midland and Great Northern Railway which served the North Norfolk village of Melton Constable from 1882 to 1964. Notwithstanding its rural location, the station became an important railway centre with lines converging from all directions providing connections to key East Anglian towns such as King's Lynn, Norwich, Cromer, Fakenham, Yarmouth and Lowestoft. Although long since demolished, there is a possibility that the station may yet be resurrected as part of the proposed Norfolk Orbital Railway.
Holt railway station served the town of Holt in Norfolk, England. It was part of the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway network, which spread over much of East Anglia, providing connections to Cromer, Norwich and Yarmouth. The station was closed in 1964 and the site is now occupied by a main road. There are proposals to rebuild the line through the town, as part of an orbital railway scheme, and possibly a new station to serve the town.
Sheringham is the name of a preserved railway station in Sheringham, Norfolk. It was once part of the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway network and closed in 1967 when a new station was opened by British Rail approx. 200m eastwards. Since July 1975 it has served as the eastern terminus of the North Norfolk Railway. In March 2010, the link to Network Rail was reinstated.
Railways have played an important part in the history and development of the English county of Norfolk. It currently has thirty open National Rail stations, though there were once well over a hundred.
The East Norfolk Railway was a pre-grouping railway company operating a standard gauge 25 mile, mostly single track, railway running between Norwich Thorpe railway station and Cromer in the English county of Norfolk. It opened in 1874, reaching Cromer three years later, and remains mostly operational. The company also operated a branch between Wroxham and County School, which closed to passengers in 1952, and had proposed a branch to Blakeney in 1878, which was never constructed.
The British Rail Class 755 FLIRT is a class of bi-mode multiple unit passenger train built by Stadler Rail for Greater Anglia. Part of the FLIRT modular train family, the trains first entered service on 29 July 2019 and are used on regional and local services throughout East Anglia. They may also be used on the Norwich to London intercity services.