Clacton-on-Sea railway station
Clacton-on-Sea | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Location | Tendring |
| Managed by | Greater Anglia |
| Platforms | 4 |
| Other information | |
| Station code | CLT |
Clacton-on-Sea railway station serves the town of Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, England. It is located to the north of Clacton town centre, within walking distance of the sea and pier.
The station is one of the termini of the branch line to Colchester Town, Clacton-on-Sea and Walton-on-the-Naze which diverges from the Great Eastern Main Line at Colchester. The branch is promoted as the Sunshine Coast Line. There is frequent services between Clacton and London Liverpool Street.
The spur from Thorpe-le-Soken was built by the Clacton-on-Sea Railway and operated by the Great Eastern Railway. It opened in July 1882 some 15 years after the line to Walton-on-the-Naze was opened.[1]
Services were steam operated until electrification of the line took place, Clacton being first served by electric trains on 16 March 1959. Initially the line was only electrified as far as Colchester, as part of British Railways experiments with 25kv AC electrification rather than the previously preferred 1500v DC system. Through electrified services to London were introduced on 7 January 1963.[2]
The station itself has a sizeable concourse sheltered by a glazed roof. There is a traction depot just outside the station, with some stabling sidings alongside the station itself.
Its name was changed from Clacton to Clacton-on-Sea railway station in May 2007.[3]
Although services are operated by Greater Anglia, the sign on top of the ticket office and main entrance still reads First Great Eastern; a reminder of the franchise holder prior to 2004.
Services
 |
The typical service is one train per hour London Liverpool Street which calls at Thorpe-le-Soken, Wivenhoe, Colchester, Witham, Chelmsford, Ingatestone, Shenfield and Stratford.
During the Monday-Friday peak services are increased with four trains per hour. The last train Monday to Friday terminates at Colchester.
Trains are usually formed of Class 321 or Class 360 electric units.
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Anglia | Terminus | |||
References
- ^ Body, Geoffrey (1986). PSL Field Guide, Railways of the Eastern Region; Vol 1: Southern Operating Area. Wellingborough: Patrick Stevens Ltd. p. 45. ISBN 0-85059-712-9.
- ^ A Regional History of the railways of Great Britain; Vol 5; Eastern Counties; D I Gordon; Newton Abbot; 1968 p66
- ^ "Changes to National Rail timetable from Sunday 20th May 2007". National Rail. Archived from the original on 16 May 2007. Retrieved 30 January 2014.