Walton-on-the-Naze railway station
{{Short description|Railway station in Essex, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2015}}
{{Infobox station
| name = Walton-on-the-Naze
| symbol_location = gb
| symbol = rail
| image = Walton-on-the-Naze Station.jpg
| borough = Walton-on-the-Naze, Tendring
| country = England
| coordinates = {{coord|51.846|1.268|type:railwaystation_region:GB_scale:10000|display=inline,title}}
| grid_name = Grid reference
| grid_position = {{gbmapscaled|TM251214|25|TM251214}}
| manager = Greater Anglia
| platforms = 1
| code = WON
| classification = DfT category E
| original = Tendring Hundred Railway
| pregroup = Great Eastern Railway
| postgroup = London and North Eastern Railway
| opened = 17 May 1867
| mpassengers =
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2019/20 |passengers={{decrease}} 0.130 million}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2020/21 |passengers={{decrease}} 40,024}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2021/22 |passengers={{increase}} 97,784}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2022/23 |passengers={{increase}} 0.111 million}}
{{Rail pass box |pass_year=2023/24 |passengers={{increase}} 0.126 million}}
| footnotes = Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road
}}
File:Walton-on-the-Naze, The former railway station building - geograph.org.uk - 1475420.jpg
Walton-on-the-Naze railway station is one of the two eastern termini of the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line, in the East of England. It serves the seaside town of Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex. It is {{convert|70|mi|15|chain|km}} down the line from London Liverpool Street.{{cite web |url=http://www.s-r-s.org.uk/railref/ref-ge.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130106083635/http://www.s-r-s.org.uk/railref/ref-ge.html |archive-date=6 January 2013 |title=RailRef GE Great Eastern}} Its three-letter station code is WON. The preceding station on the line is {{rws|Frinton-on-Sea}}.
The station was opened by the Tendring Hundred Railway, a subsidiary of the Great Eastern Railway, in 1867.{{cite book|last1=Allen|first1=Cecil J|title=The Great Eastern Railway|date=1975|publisher=Ian Allan |location=Shepperton|isbn=07110-0659-8|page=237|edition=Third}} It is currently managed by Greater Anglia, which also operates all trains serving the station.
History
The station was opened as Walton-on-Naze on 17 May 1867 by the Tendring Hundred Railway, then worked by the Great Eastern Railway (GER).{{cite book|last1=Allen|first1=Cecil J|title=The Great Eastern Railway|date=1975|publisher=Ian Allerton|location=Shepperton|isbn=07110-0659-8|page=237|edition=Third}} The GER acquired the Tendring Hundred Railway and the adjacent Clacton-on-Sea Railway on 1 July 1883. The Wivenhoe & Brightlingsea line was also absorbed by the GER on 9 June 1893.{{cite journal |journal=The Railway Magazine |date=September 1959 |editor-first=B.W.C. |editor-last=Cooke |publisher=Tothill Press Ltd |location=Westminster |issue=701 |volume=105 |title=The Great Eastern Line in the Tendring Hundred |first=B.D.J. |last=Walsh |page=641 }} The line later became part of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) in 1923 and then part of the Eastern Region of British Railways, following nationalisation in 1948.
The station is the terminus of the short single-track branch off the Sunshine Coast Line at {{stnlnk|Thorpe-le-Soken}}; only what was the "down" (coast-bound) platform remains in use, following the electrification of the line.{{cite book |last=Body |first=Geoffrey |year=1986 |title=PSL Field Guide - Railways of the Eastern Region - Vol 1 : Southern Operating Area |location=Wellingborough |publisher=Patrick Stephens Limited |page=175 |isbn=0-85059-712-9 }} There was a small locomotive shed at the station and, on 1 January 1922, this had an allocation of two GER Class Y65 2-4-2T engines.{{cite book|last1=Hawkins|first1=Chris|last2=Reeves|first2=George|title=Great Eastern Railway Engine Shed Part 2|date=1987|publisher=Wild Swan|location=Didcot UK|isbn=0-906867-48-7|page=379}} The shed was later converted into a coach-park.{{harvnb|Body|1986|p=176}}
In 1929, the LNER introduced luxurious Pullman day excursion trips from Liverpool Street to various seaside resorts. The service, known as the Eastern Belle, served {{rws|Felixstowe}} on Mondays, Frinton and Walton on Tuesdays, Clacton on Wednesdays, and {{rws|Thorpeness}} and {{rws|Aldeburgh}} on Thursdays and Fridays.{{cite journal|last1=Watling|first1=John|title=Pullman cars and the Great Eastern part 5|journal=Great Eastern Journal|date=January 1992|issue=69|page=6}} The service ended in September 1939, due to the outbreak of World War II.
In 1982, the practice of splitting Liverpool Street - Clacton trains at Thorpe le Soken was ended.
The station was renamed Walton-on-the-Naze on 20 May 2007 to reflect properly the name of the town that it serves.
Accidents and incidents
On 12 August 1987 a passenger train over-ran the buffer stops at Walton-on-the-Naze and became embedded in the station building. Six people and the train's driver were injured in the incident. The 1:05 pm service from {{rws|Thorpe-le-Soken}}, formed of a single {{Brc|313}} unit, was severely damaged and an investigation blamed failure of its brakes as the primary cause of the accident. The driver was also deemed to have been at fault for not applying the emergency brake in addition to the normal brakes.{{Cite web |title=HSE Walton On The Naze 1987 |url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/documents/HSE_WaltonOnTheNaze1987.pdf |website=www.railwaysarchive.co.uk}}
On 26 August 2002 a railtour charter train, hauled by a pair of Class 58 diesel locomotives, collided with the buffers at low speed at Walton-on-the-Naze. As passengers were standing ready to leave the train, 29 passengers suffered minor injures, alongside a further two sustaining broken bones. The railtour's name, The Bone Breaker;{{Cite web |url=http://www.sixbellsjunction.co.uk/00s/020826pt.htm |title=The Bone Breaker |website=Six Bells Junction |access-date=2023-09-22}} a wordplay for the Class 58s being nicknamed "Bones" and their intended fate of going to the "Breaker"; became unintentionally synonymous with the collision.{{Cite web |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/%60Bone+breaker%27+train+in+crash.-a090787436 |access-date=2023-09-22 |title='Bone breaker' train in crash |last=Hazlewood |first=Phil |date=27 August 2002}}{{Cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2217509.stm |title=Inquiry after train hits buffers |date=2002-08-26 |access-date=2023-09-22 |website=BBC}}
Services
File:Walton-on-the-Naze - Greater Anglia 720581 Colchester service.JPG
The typical current service pattern is:
| class="wikitable vatop"
! Operator ! Route ! Rolling stock ! Frequency ! Notes |
| Greater Anglia
| Colchester - Colchester Town - Hythe - Wivenhoe - Alresford - Great Bentley - Weeley - Thorpe-le-Soken - Kirby Cross - Frinton-on-Sea - Walton-on-the-Naze | 1x per hour |Monday-Saturday |
| Greater Anglia
|Thorpe-le-Soken - Kirby Cross - Frinton-on-Sea - Walton-on-the-Naze |1x per hour |Sunday |
Passengers for {{rws|Clacton-on-Sea}} must change at Thorpe-le-Soken for a connecting service, except for the first train coming from Clacton-on-Sea or the last train back on Monday to Saturday.National Rail timetable, May 2023
References
External links
{{Commons category}}
{{stn art lrnk|WON|CO148DH}}
- [https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2374330 Walton-on-the-Naze station in 1960]
{{rail start}}
{{s-rail-national |toc=Greater Anglia |route=Sunshine Coast Line
Walton branch|next=|previous=Frinton-on-Sea}}
{{s-end}}
{{Railway stations served by Abellio Greater Anglia}}
Category:Railway stations in Essex
Category:DfT Category E stations
Category:Former Great Eastern Railway stations
Category:Railway stations served by Greater Anglia