Place Burnt Fen Station code SPP DfT category F2 Number of platforms 2 | Grid reference TL641841 Managed by Abellio Greater Anglia 2011/12 378 | |
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Address Ely CB7 4SP, United Kingdom Similar Littleport railway station, Harling Road railway st, Eccles Road railway st, Attleborough railway station, Thetford railway station | ||
Shippea Hill railway station is on the Breckland Line in the east of England, serving the Burnt Fen area of Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. The line runs between Cambridge in the west and Norwich in the east.
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Shippea Hill is a request stop situated between Ely and Lakenheath stations, 77 miles 17 chains (124.3 km) down-line from London Liverpool Street via Ely, in one of the few areas within Burnt Fen which rises just above sea level. The station is on the A1101 road between Littleport and Mildenhall, and is about 1.3 km from the tripoint of the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.
It is one of the least-used railway stations in Britain, with just 12 passenger entries/exits in 2015/16 according to Office of Rail and Road estimates, which made it the second least-used station in the country behind Teesside Airport (eight). In 2014/15, patronage was 22, but despite this increase from 12 in 2013/14, it became the least-used station in Britain, as the number at Teesside Airport increased to 32.
It’s hard to imagine a more desolate place to get off a train. Shipping containers for sale stand in a muddy yard behind the far platform, opposite the pitched-roof signal box, now shuttered. Otherwise the view is of field after field, some showing maize stumps, others now peat-black and ploughed.
History
The station was opened in 1845 as Mildenhall Road. In 1885 its name was changed to Burnt Fen, and in about 1904 it adopted its current name, Shippea Hill.
On 7 April 1906, a passenger train was derailed due to excessive speed. Eight passengers were injured, two seriously.
On 3 December 1976, at about 4 pm, a passenger train collided with a lorry on an unmanned level crossing at Shippea Hill. The train driver, Robert (Bob) Hitcham, was killed and eight of his passengers were injured.
The wooden level crossing gates at Shippea Hill used to be operated manually by the signalman in the local signal box. In 2012, the signal box was closed and the crossing was renewed with automatic barriers and warning lights.
Services
Shippea Hill is a request stop, so passengers must signal to the conductor or driver if they wish to alight or board.
As of December 2015 the station is served by one train per day from Ely at 07:16 to Norwich at 07:25, also calling at all intermediate stations except Lakenheath.
There is one train each Saturday at 19:27 to Cambridge, also calling at Ely from Norwich at 18:38.
There is no Sunday service.