Beccles railway station

Beccles railway station is on the East Suffolk Line in the east of England, serving the town of Beccles, Suffolk. It is 40 miles 34 chains (65.1 km) down the line from Ipswich and 109 miles 11 chains (175.6 km) measured from London Liverpool Street; it is situated between Brampton and Oulton Broad South stations. Its three-letter station code is BCC.

Beccles
Location
Place	Beccles
Local authority	East Suffolk
Coordinates	52.4586°N 1.5697°E / 52.4586; 1.5697
Grid reference	TM426904
Operations
Station code	BCC
Managed by	Abellio Greater Anglia
Owned by	Network Rail
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	F1
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15	0.105 million
2015/16	0.109 million
2016/17	0.110 million
2017/18	0.111 million
2018/19	0.114 million
History
Original company	East Suffolk Railway[1]
Pre-grouping	Great Eastern Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway
4 December 1854	Opened[1]
31 January 1968	Closed to freight
10 December 2012	Passing loop opened[2]
National Rail – UK railway stations
Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Beccles from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

Beccles railway station in 1963

View southward, towards Ipswich

It is managed by Abellio Greater Anglia, which also operates all trains that call.

History

The East Suffolk Railway opened in 1854 operating as far as Halesworth, and the line was then extended to Ipswich and Yarmouth South Town in 1859. The Beccles to Lowestoft line opened in the same year. The Waveney Valley Line from Tivetshall on the Great Eastern Main Line reached Beccles in 1863, making the town an important junction on the expanding Great Eastern Railway network.

The Waveney Valley Line closed to passengers in 1954 and the Yarmouth-Beccles Line closed to passengers in 1959. The Waveney Valley Line was then closed to freight traffic in 1963. The engine shed was demolished in 2006.

Passing loop development

Work began in early 2010 to develop a passing loop at Beccles to allow services to operate hourly on the single-track line. The lack of a double-track to allow trains to pass north of Saxmundham had previously made this frequency of service impossible.

By March 2010 the single track at Beccles was renewed with continuously welded rail and concrete sleepers. The track was also realigned from the southern approach to the station to allow room for the loop. The old track was lifted and placed alongside the disused platform and disposed of in late 2010. By March 2012 work had started to build the passing loop and by May of that year new turnout points were in place and work had begun on redeveloping the disused island platform. The old trackbed had also been removed.

Work was completed by December 2012 and enhanced services began on 10 December 2012.[3] The £4m scheme was jointly funded by Network Rail and Suffolk County Council.

Services

As of December 2016 the typical Monday-Saturday off-peak service at Beccles is as follows:

Operator	Route	Rolling stock	Typical frequency
Abellio Greater Anglia	Lowestoft - Oulton Broad South - Beccles - Brampton (on request) - Halesworth - Darsham - Saxmundham - Wickham Market - Melton - Woodbridge - Ipswich	Class 755	1x per hour in each direction

On Sundays frequency reduces to one train every two hours in each direction. Trains direct to and from London Liverpool Street were withdrawn in 2010.

One weekday early-morning train is extended through to Harwich International and there is a return from there in the evening.[4]

References

1. Butt, R. V. J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199.
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 April 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
3. Suffolk: Problems remain as Beccles rail loop opens on East Suffolk line, East Anglian Daily Times, 2012-12-10. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
4. Table 13 National Rail timetable, May 2016

External links

• Train times and station information for Beccles railway station from National Rail

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Brampton		Abellio Greater Anglia East Suffolk Line		Oulton Broad South
Disused railways
Geldeston Line and station closed		Great Eastern Railway Waveney Valley Line		Terminus
Aldeby Line and station closed		Great Eastern Railway Yarmouth to Beccles Line		Terminus