Hythe railway station (Essex)

Hythe railway station in Essex is on the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line in the East of England, serving Hythe and other eastern areas of Colchester. It is 53 miles 49 chains (86.3 km) down the line from London Liverpool Street.[1] Its three-letter station code is HYH.

This article is about Hythe railway station in Essex. For other stations with this name, see Hythe railway station (disambiguation).

Hythe
Hythe station in 2017
LocationHythe, Colchester
England
Coordinates51.886°N 0.927°E / 51.886; 0.927
Grid referenceTM015248
Managed byAbellio Greater Anglia
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeHYH
ClassificationDfT category F2
Key dates
1847 (1847)Opened for freight
1863opened for passengers
Passengers
2015/16 0.159 million
2016/17 0.205 million
2017/18 0.235 million
2018/19 0.266 million
2019/20 0.279 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

The station was opened in 1847 by the Colchester, Stour Valley, Sudbury & Halstead Railway, then part of the Eastern Union Railway, initially for goods only and then in 1863 for passenger services. It is currently managed by Abellio Greater Anglia, which also operates all trains serving the station.

To the west of the station is a triangle of lines, with three junctions. The lines lead to either Colchester Town or Colchester stations; the junctions are known as Hythe Junction, East Gates Junction (at the northern extremity of the triangle) and Colne Junction (at the western extremity). To the east the next station along the line is Wivenhoe.

History

A line to Hythe Quay was opened on 1 April 1847 by the Colchester, Stour Valley, Sudbury & Halstead Railway, which was worked by the Eastern Union Railway (EUR) and was a freight-only line. Hythe station was opened to passenger services on 8 May 1863 by the Tendring Hundred Railway, which opened to Wivenhoe and was operated by the Great Eastern Railway from the outset.[2][3]

There are still sidings present at Hythe but they are no longer in use, and there was once a short branch to Hythe quay which crossed the River Colne adjacent to the station by a small iron bridge. There is no evidence today of the former quayside tracks, but aerial photograph sites clearly show the exact alignments.[4]

There was also a spur from the station to Colchester Gas Works, which ran along the street to Hythe quay. This became redundant in 1973 when the United Kingdom switched from town gas to natural gas. Little trace now remains of this, except a small section of trackbed at Hythe, and the piers of the bridge (removed around 2007) over the River Colne.

Hythe station underwent major renovation in 2008 and 2009, including the extension of the platforms to accommodate 12-coach train sets, the demolition of the original station building, and the dismantling of the disused coal depot. The north siding was also removed, as was the pointwork and a short section of track leading to the south sidings. The station building remained until its demolition in June 2009 but had not been used for many years. Consequently, it had been subjected to vandalism.

The rebuilt station has a bright image and modern facilities incorporating a ticket-machine on the northbound platform 1. It also now accommodates longer trains to and from London Liverpool Street during peak times with no need to change at Colchester.

The station also has car-parking facilities providing short- and long-term parking for commuters and the wider public; these are adjacent to the London-bound platform with easy access to the station. Other facilities include a café and car-wash.

Services

The following services typically call at Hythe:

Operator Route Rolling stock Frequency Notes
Abellio Greater Anglia Colchester - Colchester Town - Hythe - Wivenhoe - Alresford - Great Bentley - Weeley - Thorpe-le-Soken - Kirby Cross - Frinton-on-Sea - Walton-on-the-Naze Class 321 1x per hour Not Sundays
Abellio Greater Anglia London Liverpool Street - Stratford - Shenfield - Chelmsford - Witham - Marks Tey - Colchester - Hythe - Wivenhoe - Alresford - Great Bentley - Thorpe-le-Soken - Clacton-on-Sea Class 321 1x per hour Sundays only

Additional services between London Liverpool Street and Clacton-on-Sea call during peak hours. These services also call at the station on Sundays. They are typically formed of Class 360 or Class 321 trains.

References
  1. http://www.s-r-s.org.uk/railref/ref-ge.html
  2. Watling, John (October 2002). "Hythe station". Great Eastern Journal. 112: 32–39, 59.
  3. Moffat, Hugh (1987). East Anglia's first railways. Lavenham: Terence Dalton Limited. p. 183. ISBN 0 86138 038 X.
  4. Watling, John (January 2006). "Hythe Fork and Tramway Part 2". Great Eastern Railway Society Journal (125): 125.38–125.47.
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Greater Anglia
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