Harwich Town railway station
Harwich Town  |
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|---|---|
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| Location | |
| Place | Harwich |
| Local authority | Tendring |
| Grid reference | TM259324 |
| Operations | |
| Station code | HWC |
| Managed by | Greater Anglia |
| Number of platforms | 1 |
| Live arrivals/departures and station information from National Rail Enquiries |
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| Annual rail passenger usage* | |
| 2004/05 | 94,418 |
| 2005/06 |  91,344 |
| 2006/07 |  112,162 |
| 2007/08 | 145,527 |
| 2008/09 | 147,764 |
| 2009/10 | 151,438 |
| 2010/11 | 175,078 |
| History | |
| 1854 1865-6 |
First opened Rebuilt |
| National Rail – UK railway stations | |
| A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | |
| * Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Harwich Town from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. Methodology may vary year on year. | |
 UK Railways portal |
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Harwich Town is a railway station which serves the town of Harwich, in Essex, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Greater Anglia. It is the eastern terminus of the electrified Mayflower Line from Manningtree.
History
The line to Harwich was originally opened in 1854 but the present station was built on a revised alignment by the Great Eastern Railway in 1865–66. The original station in George Street, just a short distance to the North, having burned down.[1] The word 'Town' was added to the station name in 1883.[2]
The original station and terminus had three platforms and included lines which ran directly onto the two piers from which the GER ferry services operated. There was also a GER owned hotel 'The Great Eastern' on the quay between the two piers.[2] These piers became redundant when the GER opened Parkeston Quay up-river from Harwich and in 1923 the LNER closed the hotel.[3]
There were also sidings and a 42 ft (12.8 m) turntable to the south east of the rebuilt station.[2]
The arrival/sailing of a train ferry every six hours (day and night) with each vessel bringing and sailing with 36 continental wagons which were handled over sidings on the North-West side of the station created a high level of activity, and in later years car trains were regular users of the outer platforms delivering/collecting cars for MAT Transport and delivering cars,mainly for BMC, for eventual shipment from Navyard Wharf.[citation needed]
The station, goods yard, and movements to and from the train ferry terminal were controlled from a signal box positioned at the southern end of the station which was in use from 1882 until December 1985 and had 50 levers.[4]
Train services
In 2013 the service on the 'Mayflower Line' sees an hourly train for most of the week, although a few extra services run during the morning and evening peak Monday to Friday. They operate between Manningtree and Harwich Town calling at all stations, although a few trains are extended to or from London Liverpool Street.[5]
| Preceding station |  National Rail |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Anglia | Terminus | |||
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Harwich Town railway station |
- ^ Body, Geoffrey (1986). PSL Field Guide - Railways of the Eastern Region - vol. 1. Wellingborough: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 81. ISBN 0-85059-712-9.
- ^ a b c Mitchell, Vic (June 2011). Branch Lines to Harwich and Hadleigh. Midhurst: Middleton Press. plan IX. ISBN 978-1-908174-02-4.
- ^ Hughes, Geoffrey (1986). LNER. Shepperton: Ian Allan Ltd. p. 157. ISBN 0-7110-1428-0.
- ^ Mitchell 2011, plate 90
- ^ "London - Chelmsford, Colchester, Walton-on-Naze, Clacton, Harwich, Ipswich and Norwich" (PDF). Electronic National Rail Timetable. National Rail. 2012-12-09. Retrieved 2013-02-15.
