Great Bentley railway station
Encyclopedia
Great Bentley railway station (formerly Bentley Green railway station) is a staffed railway station serving Great Bentley
in Essex
, England
. The station is located 96 km (59.7 mi) north east of London Liverpool Street on the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line
. The station is located at street level on Station Road in the centre of the village. The railway station is owned by Network Rail
and managed by National Express East Anglia who operate all services to London Liverpool Street, Clacton-on-Sea
, Colchester
and Walton-on-the-Naze
. The station is also used by commuters from the nearby town of Brightlingsea
as well as Frating
, Thorrington
and St Osyth.
There are two platforms. Platform 1 is for services towards and London Liverpool Street. Platform 2 is for services towards and . The service frequency at Great Bentley varies throughout the day. Hourly local services operate to Colchester
and Walton-on-the-Naze
during the Off-Peak, and frequent express services operate to London Liverpool Street and Clacton-on-Sea
during the Peak hours.
Network Rail
replaced the manually controlled level crossing gates at Great Bentley
with barriers in December 2008 as part of the £104m Colchester to Clacton Resignalling Project.
Both platforms are much lower than is usual for those on the British railway network.
gave its approval to Great Bentley Parish Council
to turn the disused railway siding adjacent to Platform 2 of the railway station into a car park. Once built, it will significantly increase the current parking capacity at the station and will hopefully put an end to the ongoing congestion problems in the village. The car park will also attract commuters to use the station from nearby towns and villages without a rail link, such as Brightlingsea
, Frating
, Thorrington
and St Osyth. A growth in the passenger usage at Great Bentley should result in more express trains stopping here. In April 2010, Network Rail
confirmed they have completed all their checks and procedures regarding the proposed car park and are ready to begin negotiating a lease with the Parish Council.
Great Bentley
Great Bentley is a village and civil parish in the Tendring district of North East Essex, England, located midway between the towns of Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea. It is home to the largest village green in the country, at a size of and has won 'Village of the Year' several times...
in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south 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 is located 96 km (59.7 mi) north east of London Liverpool Street on the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line
Great Eastern Main Line
The Great Eastern Main Line is a 212 Kilometre major railway line of the British railway system, which connects Liverpool Street in the City of London with destinations in east London and the East of England, including Chelmsford, Colchester, Ipswich, Norwich and several coastal resorts such as...
. The station is located at street level on Station Road in the centre of the village. The railway station is owned 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...
and managed by National Express East Anglia who operate all services to London Liverpool Street, Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea is the largest town on the Tendring peninsula, in Essex, England and was founded in 1871. It is a seaside resort that attracted many tourists in the summer months between the 1950s and 1970s, but which like many other British sea-side resorts went into decline as a holiday...
, Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
and Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze is a small town in Essex, England, on the North Sea coast in the Tendring district. It is north of Clacton and south of the port of Harwich. It abuts Frinton-on-Sea to the south, and is part of the parish of Frinton and Walton. It is a resort town, with a permanent population of...
. The station is also used by commuters from the nearby town of Brightlingsea
Brightlingsea
Brightlingsea is a coastal town in the Tendring district of Essex, England, located between Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea, situated at the mouth of the River Colne, on Brightlingsea Creek. It has an estimated population of 8500....
as well as Frating
Frating
Frating is a village and small civil parish of the Tendring district of Essex. It is about east of Colchester and northwest of Clacton-on-Sea. The parish includes the settlements of Frating Green and Hockley....
, Thorrington
Thorrington
Thorrington is a village and civil parish in the Tendring district of Essex, England. It lies 5 km east of Wivenhoe and 3 km north of Brightlingsea. The striking medieval flint church is dedicated to Mary Magdalene, and the patrons of the church are St John's College, Cambridge.On the...
and St Osyth.
There are two platforms. Platform 1 is for services towards and London Liverpool Street. Platform 2 is for services towards and . The service frequency at Great Bentley varies throughout the day. Hourly local services operate to Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
and Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze is a small town in Essex, England, on the North Sea coast in the Tendring district. It is north of Clacton and south of the port of Harwich. It abuts Frinton-on-Sea to the south, and is part of the parish of Frinton and Walton. It is a resort town, with a permanent population of...
during the Off-Peak, and frequent express services operate to London Liverpool Street and Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea is the largest town on the Tendring peninsula, in Essex, England and was founded in 1871. It is a seaside resort that attracted many tourists in the summer months between the 1950s and 1970s, but which like many other British sea-side resorts went into decline as a holiday...
during the Peak hours.
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...
replaced the manually controlled level crossing gates at Great Bentley
Great Bentley
Great Bentley is a village and civil parish in the Tendring district of North East Essex, England, located midway between the towns of Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea. It is home to the largest village green in the country, at a size of and has won 'Village of the Year' several times...
with barriers in December 2008 as part of the £104m Colchester to Clacton Resignalling Project.
Both platforms are much lower than is usual for those on the British railway network.
Train Services
The following services currently call at Great Bentley:| Operator | Route | Material | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NXEA | London Liverpool Street Liverpool 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... - Stratford - Shenfield Shenfield railway station Shenfield is a major station located in Shenfield in the borough of Brentwood in Essex, England. It lies on the Great Eastern Main Line and links Liverpool Street station in the City of London to places in the East of England. It was first opened by the Eastern Counties Railway on 29 March 1843 on... - Chelmsford Chelmsford railway station Chelmsford railway station is a railway station serving the town of Chelmsford in Essex. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line.The station is served by National Express East Anglia... - Witham Witham railway station Witham railway station is a railway station serving the town of Witham in Essex. The station is located on the Great Eastern Main Line and is also the junction of the Witham-Braintree line... - Colchester Colchester railway station Colchester or Colchester North is the main railway station for Colchester in Essex, England. It is on the former Great Eastern Railway main line from London Liverpool Street to Norwich and is a junction for the line to Walton-on-the-Naze and Clacton-on-Sea, which diverges southwards from the main... - Wivenhoe Wivenhoe railway station Wivenhoe railway station is on the Tendring Hundred Railway and serves the small town of Wivenhoe in Essex, England. It is operated by National Express East Anglia. The station has two platforms and a footbridge, and a manned ticket office and waiting room... - Alresford - Great Bentley Great Bentley railway station Great Bentley railway station is a staffed railway station serving Great Bentley in Essex, England. The station is located north east of London Liverpool Street on the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line. The station is located at street level on Station Road in the... - Thorpe-le-Soken Thorpe-le-Soken railway station Thorpe-le-Soken railway station serves the village of Thorpe-le-Soken in Essex, England. The station is 1 mile from the village centre.- History :... - Clacton-on-Sea |
Class 321 British Rail Class 321 The British Rail Class 321 alternating current electric multiple units were built by BREL York in three batches from 1988-91. The design was successful and led to the development of the similar Class 320 and Class 322 units for use by Strathclyde PTE and Stansted Express respectively... , Class 360 British Rail Class 360 The British Rail Class 360 electric multiple units were built by Siemens in two sub-types from 2002-2003 and 2004-2005. These units are part of the Siemens Desiro family.The Siemens "Desiro UK" family also includes units of Classes 185, 350, 380, 444 and 450.... |
1x per hour | Sundays only |
| NXEA | Colchester Colchester railway station Colchester or Colchester North is the main railway station for Colchester in Essex, England. It is on the former Great Eastern Railway main line from London Liverpool Street to Norwich and is a junction for the line to Walton-on-the-Naze and Clacton-on-Sea, which diverges southwards from the main... - Colchester Town Colchester Town railway station Colchester Town railway station serves the town centre of Colchester in Essex, England. It is located on the Colchester to Clacton line and is one of only a small number of drive in/reverse out stations on the British network. It was formerly known as St Botolph's... - Hythe Hythe (Essex) railway station Hythe railway station is on the Sunshine Coast Line and serves the eastern areas of Colchester in Essex, England. To the west of the station there is a triangle of lines with three junctions. The two lines lead to Colchester Town and Colchester... - Wivenhoe Wivenhoe railway station Wivenhoe railway station is on the Tendring Hundred Railway and serves the small town of Wivenhoe in Essex, England. It is operated by National Express East Anglia. The station has two platforms and a footbridge, and a manned ticket office and waiting room... - Alresford - Great Bentley Great Bentley railway station Great Bentley railway station is a staffed railway station serving Great Bentley in Essex, England. The station is located north east of London Liverpool Street on the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line. The station is located at street level on Station Road in the... - Weeley Weeley railway station Weeley railway station serves the village of Weeley in Essex, England. It is located on the Sunshine Coast Line, a railway operated by National Express East Anglia that links Colchester to Clacton-on-Sea.... - Thorpe-le-Soken Thorpe-le-Soken railway station Thorpe-le-Soken railway station serves the village of Thorpe-le-Soken in Essex, England. The station is 1 mile from the village centre.- History :... - Kirby Cross Kirby Cross railway station Kirby Cross railway station serves the village of Kirby Cross in Essex, England.It was opened on 27 July 1866 as part of the Tendring Hundred line which was to link Colchester with Walton-on-the-Naze.... - Frinton-on-Sea - Walton-on-the-Naze |
Class 321 British Rail Class 321 The British Rail Class 321 alternating current electric multiple units were built by BREL York in three batches from 1988-91. The design was successful and led to the development of the similar Class 320 and Class 322 units for use by Strathclyde PTE and Stansted Express respectively... |
1x per hour | Not Sundays |
History
The station opened in 1866 as Bentley Green before changing to its current name of Great Bentley in 1877.Car Park Extension
In December 2009, Network RailNetwork 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...
gave its approval to Great Bentley Parish Council
Great Bentley
Great Bentley is a village and civil parish in the Tendring district of North East Essex, England, located midway between the towns of Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea. It is home to the largest village green in the country, at a size of and has won 'Village of the Year' several times...
to turn the disused railway siding adjacent to Platform 2 of the railway station into a car park. Once built, it will significantly increase the current parking capacity at the station and will hopefully put an end to the ongoing congestion problems in the village. The car park will also attract commuters to use the station from nearby towns and villages without a rail link, such as Brightlingsea
Brightlingsea
Brightlingsea is a coastal town in the Tendring district of Essex, England, located between Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea, situated at the mouth of the River Colne, on Brightlingsea Creek. It has an estimated population of 8500....
, Frating
Frating
Frating is a village and small civil parish of the Tendring district of Essex. It is about east of Colchester and northwest of Clacton-on-Sea. The parish includes the settlements of Frating Green and Hockley....
, Thorrington
Thorrington
Thorrington is a village and civil parish in the Tendring district of Essex, England. It lies 5 km east of Wivenhoe and 3 km north of Brightlingsea. The striking medieval flint church is dedicated to Mary Magdalene, and the patrons of the church are St John's College, Cambridge.On the...
and St Osyth. A growth in the passenger usage at Great Bentley should result in more express trains stopping here. In April 2010, 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...
confirmed they have completed all their checks and procedures regarding the proposed car park and are ready to begin negotiating a lease with the Parish Council.
Facilities
The facilities at Great Bentley include:- Ticket Office (Staffed from 07:00 - 14:00 on weekdays; 06:30 - 13:30 on Saturdays and closed on Sundays)
- Self service ticket machine
- Waiting shelters
- Waiting room
- Stands for bicycles
- Car park (a new larger car park is currently under construction)
- Toilets
- Customer Information Screens
- PA System
Bus services
The railway station is served by the 77 bus service which runs between Aingers Green, Great Bentley and Colchester every hour.External links
- Great Bentley village website with a picture of two steam locomotives at this station
- Great Bentley station interactive plan
- Live departures from Great Bentley