Downham Market railway station (formerly Downham) is on the Fen line in the east of England, serving the town of Downham Market, Norfolk. It is 86 miles 8 chains (138.6 km) measured from London Liverpool Street and is situated between Littleport and Watlington stations. Its three-letter station code is DOW.

The station and all trains calling are operated by Great Northern (with service to and from London King's Cross.)

The station building of 1846, built of carrstone with pale brick dressings, is a Grade II listed building.[1]

History

Signal box at Downham Market in July 2009

The Lynn & Ely Railway Act received the Royal Assent on 30 June 1845. Work started on the line in 1846 and the line and its stations were opened on 27 October 1846. Downham station was situated south of Stow Bardolph and was the temporary terminus of the line. The line to Ely was completed and opened on New Year's Day 1847. Downham station ceased to be a temporary terminus when the line was opened through to Denver Road Gate.[2]

The new line connected King's Lynn and its harbour with Ely and trains to London.

The wooden signal box, built for the Great Eastern Railway in 1881, was listed Grade II in 2013.[3]

In early 2017, the station was redecorated to commemorate Network SouthEast, the British Rail division that operated services across England's south east 30 years previously. With assistance from the Railway Heritage Trust, paintwork and signage has been returned to a style that mimics that of the late 1980s.[4]

Services

All services at Downham Market are operated by Great Northern using Class 387 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[5]

Additional services call at the station during the peak hours.

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Great Northern
Historical railways
Denver
Line open, station closed
   Great Eastern Railway
  Stow Bardolph
Line open, station closed

Footbridge

On 10 August 2009 Network Rail submitted a planning application for a new £1.5 million footbridge, describing the current foot crossing as "one of the most dangerous in the country". The plan was supported by then station operator First Capital Connect, with an intended completion date of summer 2011.[6][7] The initial application was withdrawn following consultation with local councils, English Heritage and the Railway Heritage Trust and a revised plan submitted in December 2009 following changes to improve the appearance of the bridge.[8] However, this proposal was rejected by King's Lynn and West Norfolk Council in April 2010, citing the lack of accessibility for disabled passengers and the effect of the bridge on the Grade II listed station building.[9]

The foot crossing has since been closed and passengers must now use the nearby road level crossing to switch between platforms.[10]

References

  1. ^ Historic England. "Railway Station (1171244)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  2. ^ CJ Allen and RVJ Butt
  3. ^ Historic England. "Downham Market Signal Box (1414022)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  4. ^ "Makeover for Downham Market station". 28 April 2017.
  5. ^ Table 25 National Rail timetable, December 2023
  6. ^ Bridge for 'one of UK's most dangerous rail crossings' - Norfolk News - EDP24 [dead link]
  7. ^ First Capital Connect - Planning application submitted for new footbridge at Downham Market [dead link]
  8. ^ Network Rail - Press Releases - Downham station footbridge: improved application submitted Archived 29 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Borough of Kings Lynn and West Norfolk Development Control Board - April 2010 Archived 3 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "Crossing at Downham Market train station closed after safety concerns". Eastern Daily Press. 9 May 2011. Retrieved 6 September 2011.

External links

Media related to Downham Market railway station at Wikimedia Commons

52°36′20″N 0°22′02″E / 52.60560°N 0.36724°E / 52.60560; 0.36724