User:Davidvaughanwells/sandbox
History
[edit]Parkeston Quay Station
[edit]Great Eastern Railway (1883-1922)
[edit]
The port and station owe their origins to the Great Eastern Railway (GER) which opened them on a new track alignment built over reclaimed land in 1883 and named them after its chairman, Charles Henry Parkes.
The Harwich branch was opened as a single track line on 15 August 1854 and passed south of the Parkeston Quay site. Whilst Parkeston Quay was being built the branch was doubled and diverted to the north of its original alignment which can still be followed on Ordinance Survey maps of the area.[1]
The original combined station building and hotel is still in existence although the hotel is now converted for office use and is part of the port terminal.[2]
Early boat train operation
When opened the station consisted of two through-platforms serving the then double-track line to Harwich Town. This was supplemented by a bay platform at the eastern end of the main platform (the present-day Platform 1) which handled Harwich to Parkeston local services, which in the days of steam generally consisted of a J15 and later N2 or N7 tank engines and up to four carriages.[3] This service was timed to suit shift times both on the quay and in adjoining offices, the majority of workers being railway employees. The bay also had a loop allowing the running round of the locomotive. The main platform was and still is of sufficient length to accommodate a boat train of 10 or 11 coaches. The "up" (westbound) through-platform was shorter but this did not prevent it being used by the North Country boat train in the morning, which consisted of 11 or 12 carriages and would overhang the end of the platform considerably at the eastern end of the station.
The Manningtree to Harwich local service used the last one-third of the main platform using a third central access line, which joined the platform at that point allowing a ticket barrier to be used for that part of the platform exclusively.[4] This arrangement allowed a five- or six-coach train to sit at the western end of that platform without the need for any shunting, whereas a full boat train would have to shunt temporarily towards the west to allow the local train access.
London & North Eastern Railway (1923-1947)
[edit]World war 2
British Railways (1948 - 1994)
[edit]Electrification Station rebuilt
The privatisation era (1994-present day)
[edit]In 1948 following nationalisation the line became part of British Railways Eastern Region.
End of steam
By the late 1970s the costs of running the dated mechanical signalling systems north of Colchester was recognised and in 1978 a scheme for track rationalisation and re-signalling was duly submitted to the Department of Transport. This was followed by a proposal to electrify the Great Eastern Main Line and branch to Harwich in 1980. Electrification work was undertaken in the early – mid 1980s.[5]
In 1982 British Railways sectorised their operations and the branch fell under the London & South East (later renamed Network SouthEast in 1986).
On 14 April 1985 the first electric train consisting of two Class 308 electric multiple units (EMU) worked the line although the previous year another member of the class had been dragged from Ipswich to Parkeston and used for crew training. The following day a Class 86 locomotive visited the branch to test various sidings and crossings on the line. The full electric service was introduced on 12 May 1985 with InterCity Class 86s working the Liverpool Street boat trains and EMUs working local services.[6]
The line was given the marketing name the "Mayflower line" in September 1997, with a ceremony held at Mistley in the presence of local MP Ivan Henderson.[7]
Parkeston Quay West
[edit]Opened 1932- constructed on wooden pier - space later filled in
During the peak years of foot passenger movements through the quay, before the introduction of the roll-on/roll-off ferries and the rationalisation of the ferry services that followed, another station operated at the western end of Parkeston Quay, known as Parkeston Quay West. It consisted of a single platform[8] and was capable of handling a 10- or 11-coach boat train. It serviced the day service to the Hoek van Holland Haven (Hook of Holland Harbour) and was also used by troop trains during the period when movement of troops was still a major operation through the port. Its position afforded exactly the same close proximity to the ferry as the main station.
Parkeston Quay was the base port for three troop ships serving the British Army of the Rhine operation in Germany via the Hook of Holland. The vessels employed were the Vienna, Empire Parkeston and Empire Wansbeck. Clsoure date 1972 - traffic transferred to PQ,
Parkeston Yard
[edit]The extensive marshalling yard to the west of the main station provided stabling for the carriage sets which were used on the boat trains and local services, the large numbers of lorries used for servicing Parkeston Quay, and the huge throughput of export and import wagons which were shipped va the train ferry service from Harwich Town. Cargoes were assembled at Parkeston and brought to Harwich for a specific sailing, as there was no long-term storage capacity at the ferry terminal. Import wagons were subject to customs clearance at Parkeston and delays could at times be considerable on individual wagons, cargoes having arrived from various European origins.
The type of wagon passing through the marshalling yard changed towards the end of the century as container or freightliner flats and car flats replaced ferry wagons. The boat trains also declined as passenger trends changed and today (2024) there are no dedicated boat trains except for specials servicing cruise vessels.
There is little regular freight at this site in 2024 and passenger stock stables overnight having arrived off Liverpool Street services. These generally from early morning and peak hour services to London Liverpool Street.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
MayHistwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Kay, Peter (2006). Essex Railway Heritage. Wivenhoe: Peter Kay. ISBN 978-1-899890-40-8.
- ^ Mitchell, Vic (June 2011). Branch Lines to Harwich and Hadleigh. Midhurst: Middleton Press. front cover and plate 63. ISBN 978-1-908174-02-4.
- ^ Mitchell 2011, plate 63
- ^ Cowley, Ian (1987). Anglia East. Newton Abbot,UK: David & Charles. p. 14. ISBN 0-7153-8978-5.
- ^ Cowley, Ian (1987). Anglia East. Newton Abbot,UK: David & Charles. pp. 49, 54, 65. ISBN 0-7153-8978-5.
- ^ Abbott, James, ed. (October 1997). "Mayflower launch". Modern Railways. 54 (589): 621.
- ^ Mitchell 2011, plates 50 and 52