Cambridge line

Cambridge Line
miles-chains West Anglia Main Line Cambridge 55-26 53-03 Milepost change M11 motorway Harston 50-77 Foxton A10 road Barrington cement works 49-67 Shepreth 47-75 Meldreth A505 Royston Bypass 44-72 Royston A505 Royston Bypass 41-00 Ashwell and Morden 36-47 Baldock A1(M) motorway Letchworth sidings 34-50 Letchworth Garden City 31-74 Hitchin East Coast Main Line to King's Cross →

The Cambridge line^[1][2] runs from Cambridge junction^[2] on the East Coast Main Line to Shepreth Branch Junction^[2] on the West Anglia Main Line and forms part of the route between London King's Cross and East Anglia. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 5, SRS 05.05 and is classified as a London and South East Commuter line.^[3]

History

Plans for a line between Hitchin and Royston were placed before Parliament in 1846 by the Royston and Hitchin Railway company.^[4] The line was initially planned to be a single track spur from Hitchin, but during debate in the Lords it was recommended that the line be two track in the view of its possible later use as part of a route from Cambridge to Bedford although this was later superseded by the Varsity line via Sandy. ^[5] The line was opened in 1851 then extended to Cambridge although this was resisted by the company already operating a service from Liverpool Street via the West Anglia Main Line.^[5] The line was then leased by the Great Northern^[6] in 1850 and subsequently purchased in 1898^[7] and through services run from London King's Cross to Cambridge.

As part of the Great Northern Route electrification by British Rail in the mid 1970s, the through service was severed by the need to change from the electrified service at Royston to a diesel train stopping at all stations to Cambridge. The extension of electrification through to Cambridge was completed in 1988^[8] under Network SouthEast and the track improved to increase speed. Occasional services are run by 12 car trains ^[9] allowing them to stop only at Royston & Letchworth Garden City where the platform is long enough to accommodate them. The platform extension at Letchworth Garden City was completed in December 2011. The Down platforms at Shepreth and Foxton are being extended in May 2017 to allow 8 car trains to stop without blocking the level crossings.^[10]

The flat junction at Hitchin has always been an issue with conflicting train movements, but the Hitchin flyover to the north of the existing junction was opened in 2013 to carry north-bound services over the East Coast Main Line.^[11]

Services

Services on the line are run by Great Northern as part of their Great Northern Route.^[9] A mix of Express, Fast and Stopping services are provided on the line as well as services via the Hertford loop to Moorgate which start and terminate from Letchworth Garden City.

An alternative route via the West Anglia Main Line links Liverpool Street to Cambridge now provides mainly stopping services though some peak hour trains stop only at Tottenham Hale and Audley End.

Infrastructure

The line is double track throughout. Traction current is supplied at 25 kV AC using overhead line equipment overseen by York Electrical Control Room,^[2] with Neutral Sections at Cambridge junction,^[2] Litlington^[2] and Shepreth Branch Junction.^[2] It has a loading gauge of W8^[3] and a maximum line speed of 90 mph.^[3]

Route boundary and signalling

Just under a mile to the east of Royston station lies the boundary between the Network Rail London North Eastern Route^[2] and Anglia Route.^[2] All signals between King's Cross and this point are controlled by Kings Cross Power Signal Box,^[2] whilst those from here to Cambridge are controlled by Cambridge Signal Box.^[2] The signalling system for the whole Cambridge line is Track Circuit block,^[2] with all main signals being multiple-aspect colour light signals.

Stations

In order from southwest to north.^[12]

• Letchworth Garden City
• Baldock
• Ashwell and Morden
• Royston
• Meldreth
• Shepreth
• Foxton

Passenger volume

These are the passenger usage statistics on the National Rail network from the year beginning April 2002 to the year beginning April 2010. Comparing both years, Cambridge has increased by nearly 51%, Foxton by 57%, Shepreth by 99%, Meldreth by 41% although it has declined in recent years until this point, Royston increased by 28%, Ashwell and Morden by 30%, Baldock by 50%, Letchworth Garden City by 33% and Hitchin by 44%.^[13]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cambridge line.

Railway lines in the East of England
Primary	North–South East Coast Main Line Hertford North Stevenage Peterborough Midland Main Line Luton Airport Parkway Luton Bedford West Coast Main Line Watford Junction London–Norwich Great Eastern Main Line Shenfield Chelmsford Witham Marks Tey Colchester Manningtree Ipswich Norwich
Secondary	Hertford Loop Line Lea Valley lines London, Tilbury and Southend Line Thameslink Watford DC line West Anglia Main Line Cambridge West London Route
Others	Abbey line Birmingham–Peterborough line Bittern Line Braintree branch line Breckland line Crouch Valley line East Suffolk line Ely–Peterborough line Felixstowe branch line Fen line Gainsborough line Hertford East branch line Hitchin–Cambridge line Ipswich–Ely line Marston Vale line Mayflower line Peterborough–Lincoln line Shenfield–Southend line Sunshine Coast Line Wherry Lines
Heritage	Colne Valley Railway Epping Ongar Railway Lincolnshire Wolds Railway Mid-Norfolk Railway North Norfolk Railway Mangapps Farm Railway Mid-Suffolk Light Railway

Coordinates: 52°03′N 0°02′W / 52.05°N 0.03°W / 52.05; -0.03