Waterbeach railway station
Encyclopedia
Waterbeach is a railway station serving the large village of Waterbeach
in Cambridgeshire
, England
. The station lies on Fen Line
from Cambridge
to King's Lynn
, electrified
at 25 kV AC overhead. The station is 61.01 mi (98.2 km) from London Liverpool Street station via the West Anglia Main Line
and 63.29 mi (101.9 km) from London King's Cross station via the East Coast Main Line
.
Waterbeach station is unstaffed, and has only basic waiting shelters on each of the two platforms. All station buildings have been demolished. The platforms are staggered on each side of a half barrier level crossing
. Until electrification and the automation of the crossing, the platforms were located opposite each other.
and National Express East Anglia, and therefore has service to different London terminals.
. Trains on these services are usually composed of Class 365
or, on occasion, Class 317
electric multiple units.
Inbound trains call at Cambridge and then run non-stop to King's Cross. During off-peak hours there is service every hour with supplementary trains every 30 minutes during peak hours, taking 58 minutes to arrive at King's Cross at an average of 65.4 mph (105.3 km/h).
Outbound trains to King's Lynn operate every hour during off-peak times with trains every 30 minutes during peak hours. Trains call at all stations and take 42 minutes to arrive at King's Lynn, operating at an average of 51.3 mph (82.6 km/h).
in London.
Waterbeach
Waterbeach is a large fen-edge village located 6 miles north of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire in England, and belongs to the administrative district of South Cambridgeshire. The parish covers an area of 23.26 km².- Village :...
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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The station lies on 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...
from 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...
to King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
, electrified
Railway electrification in Great Britain
Railway electrification in Great Britain started towards of the 19th century. A great range of voltages have been used in the intervening period using both overhead lines and third rails, however the most common standard for mainline services is now 25 kV AC using overhead lines and the...
at 25 kV AC overhead. The station is 61.01 mi (98.2 km) from London Liverpool Street station via 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 63.29 mi (101.9 km) from London King's Cross station via the East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
.
Waterbeach station is unstaffed, and has only basic waiting shelters on each of the two platforms. All station buildings have been demolished. The platforms are staggered on each side of a half barrier level crossing
Level crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
. Until electrification and the automation of the crossing, the platforms were located opposite each other.
History
Before electrification, British Rail services often did not stop at Waterbeach, or if they did stops would be unofficial. However, since electrification virtually all King's Lynn/Ely - Cambridge/London services have stopped there (the present timetable shows only three Monday - Friday in both directions not stopping there) passenger numbers surged, with people all across the area north of Cambridge in South Cambridgeshire using it as their primary station. As a result, passenger numbers are nearly as high as Downham Market, and the station sees a lot of parking problems.Services
Waterbeach is served by two train operating companies, First Capital ConnectFirst Capital Connect
First Capital Connect is a passenger train operating company in England that began operations on the National Rail network on 1 April 2006...
and National Express East Anglia, and therefore has service to different London terminals.
First Capital Connect
First Capital Connect serves Waterbeach on its Great Northern "Cambridge Cruiser" services inbound to London King's Cross and outbound to King's LynnKing's Lynn railway station
King's Lynn railway station serves the town of King's Lynn in Norfolk. The station is the terminus of the Fen Line from Cambridge, which is electrified at 25 kV AC overhead...
. Trains on these services are usually composed of Class 365
British Rail Class 365
The British Rail Class 365 "Networker Express" are dual-voltage 25 kV AC and 750 V DC) electric multiple units built by ABB at York from 1994 to 1995. These were the last units to be built at the York factory before it closed...
or, on occasion, Class 317
British Rail Class 317
The British Rail Class 317 alternating current electric multiple units were built by BREL York in two batches, from 1981-82 and 1985-87. They were the first of several classes of British Rail EMU to be based on the all-steel Mark 3 bodyshell, departing from the "PEP"-aluminium design which had...
electric multiple units.
Inbound trains call at Cambridge and then run non-stop to King's Cross. During off-peak hours there is service every hour with supplementary trains every 30 minutes during peak hours, taking 58 minutes to arrive at King's Cross at an average of 65.4 mph (105.3 km/h).
Outbound trains to King's Lynn operate every hour during off-peak times with trains every 30 minutes during peak hours. Trains call at all stations and take 42 minutes to arrive at King's Lynn, operating at an average of 51.3 mph (82.6 km/h).
National Express East Anglia
National Express East Anglia also provides a limited service to the station, with trains running to Liverpool Street stationLiverpool Street station
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...
in London.