Ilford railway station

Ilford railway station is a suburban National Rail station located in Ilford in the London Borough of Redbridge. Passenger services are operated by National Express East Anglia and most trains run between Shenfield and Liverpool Street. The station is located in Travelcard Zone 4.

History

The station was opened on 20 June 1839 by the Eastern Counties Railway, along with the Mile End (temporary terminus) to Romford section of what was to become the Great Eastern Main Line. Between 1903 and 1947, trains also ran through to Woodford via Hainault via the Fairlop Loop, most of which was transferred to London Underground's Central line. The triangular junction (Seven Kings being the third point of the triangle) is now the site of the Ilford Carriage Sheds and also a Maintenance Depot at present operated by Bombardier. Freight trains used the connection from the Fairlop Loop to Seven Kings until 1956.

Layout

The main entrance is in Cranbrook Road, which was heavily rebuilt during the 1980s, with architecture in keeping with other contemporary buildings in Ilford, such as the Central Library. This stretch of Cranbrook Road was originally called "Station Road" but this name was transferred to a short portion of Havelock Street immediately opposite the station. There is also a rear entrance from York Road, open peak hours only, from which the west (London) ends of the Platforms can be reached via a footbridge. This entrance is convenient for access from north and west of the station.

The station has five platforms, two "up" (headed west into Liverpool Street) and two "down" (towards Shenfield). The fifth platform, platform 5, is a bay platform, allowing peak services to start at Ilford – very useful, as many peak trains from Shenfield are already full by the time they reach Ilford in the mornings. Platforms 1 and 2 are rarely used, except during engineering works, as the two adjacent tracks are mainly reserved for fast trains that do not call at suburban stations. Immediately to the west of the station is a flyover that allows the fast tracks to change from being on the south side of the suburban tracks to being on the north. The tracks cross the River Roding at the same point, and pass under the North Circular Road.

The platforms are several metres below street-level, as the road rises up to pass over the railway line. The north side of the station is edged by an embankment lined with housing; the south side is lined with large buildings (mainly the local British Telecom office) and platform level approximates to street level by the far end of the station. Despite the steps to the platforms, wheelchair lifts are available by prior arrangement.

ervices

Ilford is the first of the better served stations east of Stratford, as the intermediary stations are not served by all inner suburban trains. It is proposed that Crossrail trains will call at Ilford. Ilford will be the northern terminus of phase one of the East London Transit. [ [http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/east-london-transit/pdf/elt_adjusted.pdf Transport for London] - East London Transit route map (PDF)]

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Future Development