Strategic Route 5 - West Anglia is the designation given by Network Rail

Network Rail

Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...

 to a grouping of railway lines in the East of England

East of England

The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its...

 that encompasses the West Anglia Main Line

West Anglia Main Line

The West Anglia Main Line is one of the two main lines which run from London Liverpool Street, the other being the Great Eastern Main Line. It runs generally north from London, through the towns of Cheshunt, Broxbourne, Harlow, Bishop's Stortford and Audley End station before reaching Cambridge,...

 and its various branch lines. The route provides key services to Cambridge

Cambridge

The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...

 and Stansted Airport

London Stansted Airport

-Cargo:-Statistics:-Infrastructure:-Terminal and satellite buildings:Stansted is the newest passenger airport of all the main London airports. The terminal is an oblong glass building, and is separated in to three areas: Check-in concourse, arrivals and departures...

 as well as supporting suburban services in North London and rural services in Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...

, Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

 and Suffolk

Suffolk

Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...

.

Strategic route sections

The Route is divided into a number of separate Strategic Route Sections (SRS's) that are defined based on route use, infrastructure and historical lines.

Route	Strategic Route Sections (SRS)	Corresponding historical lines (whole & partial)
Route 5 - West Anglia	05.01 - Bethnal Green – Stansted Airport	Lea Valley Lines Lea Valley Lines The Lea Valley Lines are three commuter lines and two branches in North East London, so named because they run along the valley of the River Lea... , West Anglia Main Line West Anglia Main Line The West Anglia Main Line is one of the two main lines which run from London Liverpool Street, the other being the Great Eastern Main Line. It runs generally north from London, through the towns of Cheshunt, Broxbourne, Harlow, Bishop's Stortford and Audley End station before reaching Cambridge,...
	05.02 - Hackney Downs – Cheshunt	Lea Valley Lines
	05.03 - Hertford East Branch	Hertford East Branch Line Hertford East Branch Line The Hertford East Branch Line is a railway line in Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom. It runs between and . The line follows the route of the Lea Valley; serving many towns and villages along the way...
	05.04 - Chingford Branch	Lea Valley Lines
	05.05 - Cambridge Lines	Hitchin-Cambridge Line, West Anglia Main Line
	05.06 - Ely – Kings Lynn	Fen Line Fen Line The Fen Line is a railway in the United Kingdom that runs between the cities of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire and King's Lynn, Norfolk; the line is so called because it runs through The Fens. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 5 and comprises SRS 05.06 and part of 05.05...
	05.07 - Peterborough – Ely – Haughley Jn	Ely to Peterborough Line Ely to Peterborough Line The Ely to Peterborough Line is a railway line in England, linking East Anglia to the Midlands. It is a part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 5, SRS 05.07 and is classified as a secondary line.-Service:... , Ipswich to Ely Line Ipswich to Ely Line The Ipswich to Ely Line is a railway line linking East Anglia to the English Midlands via Ely. There is also a branch line to . Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia...
	05.08 - Coldham Lane Jn – Chippenham Jn	Ipswich to Ely Line
	05.09 - Ely – Norwich	Breckland Line Breckland Line The Breckland Line runs from Cambridge in Cambridgeshire to Norwich in Norfolk, in East Anglia, England. It is so called because it runs through the Breckland region of Norfolk. The line also passes through Thetford Forest. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 5, SRS 05.09 and part...
	05.10 - Freight Lines	freight only lines within area covered

Railway planning

As part of Network Rail's Strategic Business Plan a Route Plan for each route, including Route 5, is published annually. The Route 5 plans for 2008 and 2009 are made available online.

Together with Route 7

Network Rail Route 7 (Great Eastern)

Strategic Route 7 - Great Eastern is the designation given by Network Rail to a grouping of railway lines in the East of England that encompasses the Great Eastern Main Line and its various branch lines...

 - Great Eastern and Route 6

Network Rail Route 6 (North London Line and Thameside)

Strategic Route 6 - North London Line and Thameside is the designation given by Network Rail to a grouping of railway lines in Greater London and the East of England region that encompasses the London, Tilbury and Southend Line and overground commuter lines within London...

 - North London Line and Thameside, the route is included in the Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy

Network Rail Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy

The Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy is a Route Utilisation Strategy published by Network Rail in December 2007. It was the sixth RUS to be produced. The area covered includes the whole of Route 5 West Anglia and Route 7 Great Eastern , which both focus for passenger purposes on London...

.

Proposed developments

The Greater Anglia RUS

Network Rail Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy

The Greater Anglia Route Utilisation Strategy is a Route Utilisation Strategy published by Network Rail in December 2007. It was the sixth RUS to be produced. The area covered includes the whole of Route 5 West Anglia and Route 7 Great Eastern , which both focus for passenger purposes on London...

 includes a number of proposals for the future development of the route.
In the medium term, 2009-14, this includes minor infrastructure works and additional rolling stock to allow main line peak-service trains to be extended to 12-car formation. A number of developments are also intended for the West Coast Main Line depending on the status of future development at Stansted Airport. Enhancements to the power supply of the route are intended for completion by 2012 to interface with those carried out on Route 6 and Route 7.