Mayflower Line

Mayflower Line
The line passes the River Stour near Wrabness
Overview
Type	Heavy rail
Locale	Essex
Stations	6
Operation
Opened	15 August 1854
Owner	Network Rail
Operator(s)	Abellio Greater Anglia
Rolling stock	Class 321, Class 360
Technical
Line length	11.3 mi (18.2 km)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV AC OHLE

Mayflower Line
Legend
Great Eastern Main Line ← to London Liverpool Street • to Norwich →   Manningtree North Junction 59mi 35ch Manningtree Manningtree South Junction Manningtree East Junction   61mi 14ch Mistley Bradfield Priory Halt 65mi   6ch Wrabness Station Road Former alignment via 'The Hangings' 68mi 72ch Harwich International A120 road Alexandra Road 70mi 19ch Dovercourt 70mi 60ch Harwich Town

The Mayflower Line is a railway branch line off the Great Eastern Main Line in the east of England that links Manningtree in the west to Harwich Town in the east. During peak times, many services connect to or from the main line and its London terminus at Liverpool Street. The Mayflower Line has six stations, including the termini, and is situated within the county of Essex.

The route is 11 miles 15 chains (18.0 km) in length from where it branches off the main line west of the town of Manningtree to its eastern terminus in Harwich. It is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 7, SRS 07.07 and is classified as a London and South East commuter line.^[1]

Passenger services on the Mayflower Line are operated by Abellio Greater Anglia, which also manages all of the stations.

History

The Eastern Counties Railway (ECR) had originally proposed plans to extend what is now the Great Eastern Main Line from Colchester to Harwich, although this was a cause for concern to the town of Ipswich, which was a rival port.^[2]

In 1846 a railway line from Manningtree to Harwich proposed by the Eastern Union Railway (EUR) was approved by the Railway Commissioners. In 1853 an agreement was reached between the companies, with the ECR taking over the working of the EUR from 1 January 1854. The single-line branch opened on 15 August 1854.^[2]

In 1862 the ECR and the EUR merged to form the Great Eastern Railway (GER).^[2]

The line was doubled in 1882 by the GER, and the Manningtree North Curve which allows direct running between Ipswich and Harwich was also added at that time.

In addition to the closed station at Bradfield, there was a halt stop called Priory Halt between Wrabness and Bradfield which serviced the adjacent War Department facility; the halt closed in 1965.^[3] There was a relatively extensive system of sidings fed from a spur on the "down" (Harwich-bound) side which was controlled by a signal box which was in use from 1918 until 1966.^[4] Use of the halt was confined to Admiralty employees only during various periods.

The War Department also had a munitions dump in Copperas Woods between Wrabness and Parkeston served by a spur which was situated on the north (river) side of the line just west of the point where the original alignment of the track to Dovercourt and Harwich Town had been changed when Parkeston was built. This spur was controlled by a signal box, appropriately named Primrose Box, reflecting the profusion of primroses which grew lineside in the area.^[3]

Passenger services are currently operated by Abellio Greater Anglia, which replaced the previous operator, National Express East Anglia, in 2012.

Description

A Class 321 train leaving the Mayflower Line at Manningtree South Junction

The line diverges from the Great Eastern Main Line at Manningtree and is double-track for passenger services as far as Harwich International where connecting ferry services are available to Hoek van Holland and Esbjerg. Beyond Harwich International, the original second track remains in place as a through-siding, but only the "up" (Manningtree-bound) line was electrified and that section to Harwich Town is bi-directional.^[3]

East of Manningtree there is a triangular junction that enables trains operating to the port to reach the branch from both the north and south. The line is electrified at 25 kV AC using overhead wires and has a loading gauge of W10 (excluding W9); the maximum line speed is 60 mph.^[1]

The shortest platform is the "down" (Harwich-bound) platform at Wrabness, which is 90 yards (82 m) in length, meaning most services are formed of four carriages.

References

1. "Route 7 - Great Eastern" (PDF). Network Rail. Retrieved 2009-05-22.
2. "The Mayflower Line History".
3. Body, Geoffrey (1986). PSL Field Guide - Railways of the Eastern Region, vol. 1. Wellingborough: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 81. ISBN 0-85059-712-9.
4. Mitchell, Vic (June 2011). Branch Lines to Harwich and Hadleigh. Midhurst: Middleton Press. plan V and plate 32. ISBN 978-1-908174-02-4.