The Waveney Valley line was a branch line running from Tivetshall in Norfolk to Beccles in Suffolk connecting the Great Eastern Main Line at Tivetshall with the East Suffolk line at Beccles. It provided services to Norwich, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Ipswich and many other towns in Suffolk with additional services to London. It was named after the River Waveney which follows a similar route.
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| Waveney Valley Railway Act 1851 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Citation | 14 & 15 Vict. c. lxvi |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 3 July 1851 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
The line was authorised by the Waveney Valley Railway Act 1851 on 3 July 1851. [1] The line opened in stages, firstly from Tivetshall to Harleston on 1 December 1855, then to Bungay on 2 November 1860, and finally to Beccles. When the line was completed it was incorporated into the Great Eastern Railway. The line then became part of the LNER on 1 January 1923.
Starston and Redenhall stations were closed in 1866, only 11 years after the line opened.
Early services on the line were worked by the company's only locomotive named Perseverance. This was a 2-2-2T locomotive built by Sharp Stewart and Co (Manchester). It did not perform particularly well and was rebuilt by the GER in 1864 as a 2-4-0T. Withdrawal was in 1880/1 and the locomotive was broken up in November 1881.
Some old pictures show the following classes of engine that worked over the route: [2]
The line was closed to passenger services on 5 January 1953, with the last passenger train running from Tivetshall junction to Beccles, pulled by ex-LNER class F3 No. 67128. [3]
A Light Railway Order was obtained in November 1954, after which there were some special services run by railway enthusiasts.
From 1960 the line was split into sections – Tivetshall to Harleston and Beccles to Bungay.
The lines were finally closed from 19 April 1966 during the Beeching Axe and the track eventually removed. Some of the last wagon loads to leave Ditchingham were sand and gravel from Broome Heath, used in the construction of Hammersmith fly-over in west London.
In the early 1980s, many of the remaining old buildings, including stations and goods yards, were demolished to make way for a new road (the A143).
The line ran regular passenger and freight services daily, except for Sundays. This was a condition placed on the railway by landowners in the Starston area of Norfolk who had to give their consent before the line could be built.
Departing from Beccles there were stations at Geldeston, Ellingham, Ditchingham, Bungay, Earsham, Homersfield, Harleston, Pulham St. Mary, and Pulham Market before the line terminated at Tivetshall.
During World War I, however, troop trains were known to operate each day. By October 1915, trains had reached their peak of 8 trains per day, but the demands of the war reduced this to 6 trains per day in 1917.
During World War II, there was a large increase in traffic. This was due to the airfields and military establishments being built along the line. Bombs were stored on a bomb dump near Earsham Hall until, after the war, the unused bombs were taken away and disposed of; this continued until 1954.
By 1953, when passenger services ceased, services had remained unchanged for 36 years.
The following are rarely documented accidents that occurred on the Waveney Valley railway:
Beccles and Bungay Weekly News 9 March 1863 [4]
Reports of what was probably the first accident on the Bungay/Beccles section happened on the 4:50 pm Bungay–Beccles train.
"When going over the bridge on the Bungay side of the factory, the engine lost the metals, dragging with it eleven tracks and two Passenger Cars for about seventy yards, when it ran off the embankment with some of the coaches."
"Bungay Station: Killed on the Railway" – (Unknown Date)
"On Thursday an inquest was held at the Kings Head Hotel by H.E Garrod, Esq. , Diss, coroner for the liberty of the Duke of Norfolk, on the Body of Frederick William Skipper, aged 23 Years, porter of the railway station, who was killed the same morning. Mr. John Haythorpe, station master, deposed that at twenty minutes to eleven he was on the platform, and saw an engine taking some goods trucks on to the siding. The deceased duty was to assist in the operation. He could not see him from where he (Witness) Stood as the trucks took a curve. The duty of a porter was to keep outside the trucks when being shunted. There was an eye on the side of the truck to which the rope should be hooked. After the engine parted with the trucks, Kerrison, the foreman/porter called to him and Haythorpe went and saw the deceased lying across the rail apparently dead. Skipper was generally described as a "Careful" Man. But the evidence of Kerrison, Foreman/Porter, went to show that the rope was attached to the engine, and the other end to the front of the trucks to the couplings between the buffers. Skipper put it there instead of on the side where there was an eye on purpose for it. When the engine got forward of the trucks the rope became tight. Skipper was between the truck and the rope. The rope broke and Skipper was seen to fall across the metals, and five trucks passed over his body. No-one was to blame except the deceased, who should have put the hook on the eye of the truck. Other evidence being given, the jury returned the verdict of "Accidental Death."
"Shocking Death at The Railway Station" – (Unknown Date)
"A shocking affair occurred at the Harleston Railway Station on Monday Morning. An elderly man named Henry Baxter, living at Harleston, was trespassing in the station yard, and while leaning against the new cattle pen walls, next to the metals, was accidentally killed, being crushed against the wall by a Ballast Train, which was shunting. An inquest was held at the Railway Tavern on Monday Afternoon, before H.E Garrod, Esq., of Diss, coroner, and a verdict of "Accidental Death" Returned."
The Bungay to Harleston section of the route now forms part of the main A143 road and was opened on 9 November 1983. Other sections of the route are now tracks and footpaths.
The line from Beccles station was partly converted to an industrial estate, reaching the river next to the aptly named Railway Score. The remains of the bridge over the River Waveney on the Norfolk side of the river are still visible. From the bridge, the trackbed is in overgrown condition and the ballast is still present in places. At Ditchingham, the former Silk Mill, later The Maltings served by the railway still survives following redevelopment in 2015 as the Waterside housing development.
Several stations do survive including:
The water tower from Bungay was saved and taken to the North Norfolk Railway and placed at Weybourne where it is the largest object from the line still in railway use.
The River Waveney is a river which forms the boundary between Suffolk and Norfolk, England, for much of its length within The Broads. The "ey" part of the name means "river" thus the name is tautological.
South Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. The largest town is Wymondham, and the district also includes the towns of Costessey, Diss, Harleston, Hingham, Loddon and Long Stratton. The council was based in Long Stratton until 2023 when it moved to the Broadland Business Park near Norwich, in the neighbouring Broadland district, as part of a shared facility with Broadland District Council. Some of the district's urban areas form part of the Norwich built-up area. The district also includes numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Some eastern parts of the district lie within The Broads.
Lowestoft railway station serves the town of Lowestoft, Suffolk. It is the eastern terminus of the East Suffolk Line from Ipswich and is one of two eastern termini of the Wherry Lines from Norwich. Lowestoft is 23 miles 41 chains (37.8 km) down the line from Norwich and 48 miles 75 chains (78.8 km) measured from Ipswich; it is the easternmost station on the National Rail network in the United Kingdom.
Alburgh is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It lies about four miles (6 km) north-east of Harleston and 16 miles (26 km) south of Norwich.
The A143 is a road that runs from the Gorleston-on-Sea area of Great Yarmouth, in Norfolk to Haverhill in Suffolk.
Bungay railway station was located on the now disused Waveney Valley Line which ran between Tivetshall and Beccles. The station was closed in 1953 and the buildings eventually demolished to make way for the A143 road. It was one of two stations in Suffolk on the line, which curved across the county boundary then back into Norfolk.
Earsham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. Earsham is located 1.7 kilometres (1.1 mi) west of its postal town of Bungay and 21 kilometres (13 mi) south-east of Norwich. The village is located close to the border between Norfolk and Suffolk, and the River Waveney.
Tivetshall was a railway station on the Great Eastern Main Line located in Tivetshall, Norfolk. It was also the western terminus of the Waveney Valley Line from Beccles. It served six small parishes in an agricultural area.
Pulham Market was a railway station on the Waveney Valley Line in Norfolk, England. It was closed for passengers in 1953.
Pulham St Mary was a station in Pulham St Mary, Norfolk on the Waveney Valley Line which is now closed. The station has been demolished.
Harleston was a railway station in Harleston, Norfolk, on the Waveney Valley Line. It was an early post-war closure; passenger services on this line were withdrawn in 1953 with goods trains lasting until the complete closure of the line in 1966.
Homersfield was a railway station which served the village of Homersfield in Suffolk, England, although the station was located in Alburgh, across the county boundary in Norfolk. The station was part of the Waveney Valley Line.
Earsham was a railway station in Earsham, Norfolk, England. It was located on the Waveney Valley Line which connected Beccles with the Great Eastern Main Line. It opened in 1860 and closed to passengers in 1953, and to goods services in 1960. The station building was not demolished, but lay derelict for many years before being converted into a house. The platform also remains.
Ellingham is a former railway station in Ellingham, Norfolk. It was opened in 1863 as part of the Waveney Valley Line between Tivetshall and Beccles, Suffolk. It was closed to passengers in 1953 and closed fully on 19 April 1965, when the last goods train called there. The station still stands much altered
Redenhall was a station in the small hamlet of Redenhall, Norfolk. It was opened in 1861 as part of the Waveney Valley Line between Tivetshall and Beccles and closed in 1866. It was close to the settlement of Harleston.
Ditchingham was a railway station in Ditchingham, Norfolk on the Waveney Valley Line. Opened on 2 March 1863, it closed to passengers along with the rest of the line in 1953.
Starston is a small village and civil parish in Norfolk. It covers an area of 9.02 km2 (3.48 sq mi) and had a population of 321 in 123 households at the 2001 census, the population increasing to 331 at the 2011 Census.
Redenhall with Harleston is a civil parish in the South Norfolk district of the English county of Norfolk, comprising the town of Harleston and the neighbouring village of Redenhall. It covers an area of 13.73 km2 (5.30 sq mi), and had a population of 4,058 in 1,841 households at the 2001 census, the population increasing to 4,640 at the 2011 census.
The East Suffolk line is a railway in East Anglia with a long history.
Waveney Valley is a proposed constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, it will first be contested at the next general election.
