Romford to Upminster Line
Encyclopedia
The Romford to Upminster Line or Upminster Branch Line is a 3.4 mi (5.47 km) branch line
between Romford
and Upminster
in the London Borough of Havering
. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 7
, SRS 07.09, and is classified as a rural line. The line is single track throughout, electrified
at 25 kV AC
, has a loading gauge of W6, and a line speed of 30 mph.
(LT&SR) and opened on 7 June 1893 providing the LT&SR with an inroad into Great Eastern Railway
territory at Romford
and a small goods yard where the branch joins the Great Eastern Main Line
. At Romford the branch had a separate station entrance in a three storey building opposite the Great Eastern station entrance and a cast iron footbridge was also constructed over South Street opened when a LT&SR train was due. When in April 1934 the LT&SR building ceased use as a station and the ground floor rented as a shop the then LNER took control of the whole station.
Emerson Park Halt
opened 1 October 1909. A run round loop was constructed 500 yards to the west to enable extra trains to run between Emerson Park and Upminster. When push-pull working began in 1934 the loop was not needed and taken out c1936.
From 17 September 1956 DMU's
from Stratford replaced the steam service and from 20 April 1957 a new bay (dead end) platform six opened at Upminster effectively making it part of the Great Eastern Railway
.
After attempts to close the line in the 1960s failed the line continued until it became the last DMU operated service of the Great Eastern and the line was electrified and EMU
services began on the 17 April 1986.
at 25 kV AC
. Electrification of the line saw an end to years of speculation about its future. There is only one intermediate station, at Emerson Park
. At Upminster the connection west of the station to the LT&S line was severed in 1968.
The branch is not signalled. There were plans to link the line from platform six at Upminster
to the reception tracks of the underground depot. This would have allowed the transfer of London Underground D78 Stock
units onto the main line to be hauled away by diesel locomotive for refurbishment by Bombardier at Ilford Depot. These plans were scrapped when the refurbishment work was transferred to Wakefield in Yorkshire and the transfer was done by road. The point-work which was half installed is still visible from the eastern end of platform 5 of Upminster.
. Passenger services are currently operated by National Express East Anglia, who replaced the previous operator, First Great Eastern
, on 1 April 2004. Trains are normally formed by a Class 317
.
The current service pattern on the route (as of 2006) is one train every 30 minutes on Mondays to Saturdays between approximately 06:00 and 20:00 with no service on Sundays. There is a slightly increased service during peak hours where the line runs at full capacity. The journey time from one end of the line to the other is eight minutes.
Branch line
A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
between Romford
Romford
Romford is a large suburban town in north east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan...
and Upminster
Upminster
Upminster is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan, and comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential...
in the London Borough of Havering
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...
. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic 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...
, SRS 07.09, and is classified as a rural line. The line is single track throughout, 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
25 kV AC
The 25 kV Alternating current railway electrification system is commonly used in railways worldwide, especially for high-speed rail.-Overview:This electrification system is ideal for railways that cover long distances and/or carry heavy traffic...
, has a loading gauge of W6, and a line speed of 30 mph.
History
The line was originally built as a branch of the London, Tilbury and Southend RailwayLondon, Tilbury and Southend Railway
The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway is an English railway line linking Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London with northeast London and the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway area of southern Essex. It is currently known as the Essex Thameside Route by Network Rail...
(LT&SR) and opened on 7 June 1893 providing the LT&SR with an inroad into Great Eastern Railway
Great Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia...
territory at Romford
Romford railway station
Romford station is located in Romford, London Borough of Havering. It is situated between Chadwell Heath and Gidea Park. It is the western terminus of the Upminster branch line from Upminster....
and a small goods yard where the branch joins 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...
. At Romford the branch had a separate station entrance in a three storey building opposite the Great Eastern station entrance and a cast iron footbridge was also constructed over South Street opened when a LT&SR train was due. When in April 1934 the LT&SR building ceased use as a station and the ground floor rented as a shop the then LNER took control of the whole station.
Emerson Park Halt
Emerson Park railway station
Emerson Park railway station is a National Rail station on Butts Green Road in the Emerson Park neighbourhood of the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. The station is on the Romford to Upminster Line and is the only intermediate station of that line...
opened 1 October 1909. A run round loop was constructed 500 yards to the west to enable extra trains to run between Emerson Park and Upminster. When push-pull working began in 1934 the loop was not needed and taken out c1936.
From 17 September 1956 DMU's
Diesel multiple unit
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple unit train consisting of multiple carriages powered by one or more on-board diesel engines. They may also be referred to as a railcar or railmotor, depending on country.-Design:...
from Stratford replaced the steam service and from 20 April 1957 a new bay (dead end) platform six opened at Upminster effectively making it part of the Great Eastern Railway
Great Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia...
.
After attempts to close the line in the 1960s failed the line continued until it became the last DMU operated service of the Great Eastern and the line was electrified and EMU
Electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
services began on the 17 April 1986.
Infrastructure
The branch is known colloquially as the Romford Push and Pull as it is single-track throughout. It is electrifiedRailway 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
25 kV AC
The 25 kV Alternating current railway electrification system is commonly used in railways worldwide, especially for high-speed rail.-Overview:This electrification system is ideal for railways that cover long distances and/or carry heavy traffic...
. Electrification of the line saw an end to years of speculation about its future. There is only one intermediate station, at Emerson Park
Emerson Park railway station
Emerson Park railway station is a National Rail station on Butts Green Road in the Emerson Park neighbourhood of the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. The station is on the Romford to Upminster Line and is the only intermediate station of that line...
. At Upminster the connection west of the station to the LT&S line was severed in 1968.
The branch is not signalled. There were plans to link the line from platform six at Upminster
Upminster station
Upminster station is a London Underground and National Rail station located in Upminster in the London Borough of Havering and in London fare zone 6. Located east-northeast of Charing Cross, it is the easternmost station on the London Underground network and the eastern terminus of the District...
to the reception tracks of the underground depot. This would have allowed the transfer of London Underground D78 Stock
London Underground D78 Stock
The London Underground D Stock is a type of electric multiple unit used on the London Underground District Line . The entire fleet is due to be replaced with S Stock trains in 2015.- History :...
units onto the main line to be hauled away by diesel locomotive for refurbishment by Bombardier at Ilford Depot. These plans were scrapped when the refurbishment work was transferred to Wakefield in Yorkshire and the transfer was done by road. The point-work which was half installed is still visible from the eastern end of platform 5 of Upminster.
Services
The line is entirely within Travelcard Zone 6Travelcard Zone 6
Fare zone 6 is an outer zone of Transport for London's zonal fare system used for calculating the price of tickets for travel on the London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway and, since 2007, on National Rail services. The zone was created in January 1991; from May 1983 it had...
. Passenger services are currently operated by National Express East Anglia, who replaced the previous operator, First Great Eastern
First Great Eastern
First Great Eastern was an award-winning train operating company that operated suburban, local and medium distance train services from London Liverpool Street via Romford to Essex and Ipswich in the United Kingdom on the Great Eastern Main Line railway.First Group gained the Great Eastern...
, on 1 April 2004. Trains are normally formed by a 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...
.
The current service pattern on the route (as of 2006) is one train every 30 minutes on Mondays to Saturdays between approximately 06:00 and 20:00 with no service on Sundays. There is a slightly increased service during peak hours where the line runs at full capacity. The journey time from one end of the line to the other is eight minutes.