Saffron Walden Railway
Encyclopedia
The Saffron Walden Railway was a branch of the Great Eastern Railway
between Audley End
and Bartlow
on the Stour Valley Railway
between Shelford to Haverhill, a distance of 7.25 miles (11.7 km).
The line was opened between Audley End and Saffron Walden on 21 November 1865 and to Bartlow in 1866. The line was the initiative of the local Gibson family whose bank helped to finance the railway. It remained independent until 1 January 1877 when the Great Eastern Railway purchased the line.
At Audley End services served a separate platform, of which the building still remains in the current car park (52.0043°N 0.2077°E).
From July 1958 the line was operated by railbus
es until closure to passengers on 7 September 1964 and freight three months later.
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...
between Audley End
Audley End railway station
Audley End railway station serves the small village of Wendens Ambo and the nearby town of Saffron Walden. The station is named after the manor of Audley End in Essex. There was formerly a platform at the east end of the station for a branch line to Saffron Walden, though this was closed in 1964...
and Bartlow
Bartlow
Bartlow is a small village and civil parish in the South Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about south-east of Cambridge and west of Haverhill in Suffolk. The River Granta runs through the village.-History:...
on the Stour Valley Railway
Stour Valley Railway
The Stour Valley Railway is a partially closed railway line that ran between , near Cambridge and in Essex, England. The line opened in sections between 1849 and 1865...
between Shelford to Haverhill, a distance of 7.25 miles (11.7 km).
The line was opened between Audley End and Saffron Walden on 21 November 1865 and to Bartlow in 1866. The line was the initiative of the local Gibson family whose bank helped to finance the railway. It remained independent until 1 January 1877 when the Great Eastern Railway purchased the line.
At Audley End services served a separate platform, of which the building still remains in the current car park (52.0043°N 0.2077°E).
Services
Initially there were six return trains a day, while between 1877 and 1894 trains operated between Saffron Walden and London. Coaches dating from the 1890s operated on the line until the 1950s.From July 1958 the line was operated by railbus
Railbus
A railbus is a very lightweight type passenger rail vehicle that shares many aspects of their construction with a bus, usually having a bus, or modified bus body, and having four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies...
es until closure to passengers on 7 September 1964 and freight three months later.