Cambridge Heath Station
Address: Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green, London E2 9EG
Opened: 27 May 1872
Station Code: CBH
Fare Zone: 2
London Overground Line(s) Served:
Lea Valley Lines (Cheshunt & Enfield Town Branches)
Service Pattern(s):
Four trains per hour to London Liverpool Street
Two trains per hour to Cheshunt
Two trains per hour to Enfield Town
Station History
Cambridge Heath station opened along with three others (Bethnal Green, London Fields & Hackney Downs) as part of the Great Eastern Railway‘s new, more direct line to Enfield Town on 27 May 1872.
On opening, the station consisted of two platforms with a station building on the eastern side of the viaduct.
Following a marked increase in passenger traffic, in 1984 the GER constructed two further lines on the viaduct and, although they passed through the station, no further platforms were added. To make way for the new lines, the existing station building was demolished and replaced with a new structure, again in the Eastern side, connected to the platforms utilizing a pedestrian tunnel.
As a wartime economy measure, Cambridge Heath (along with London Fields) was closed on 22 May 1916 and was not reopened until 5 May 1918.
Following the institution of The Railways Act in 1921, the railways were grouped into four companies, with the station and its line being placed under the ownership of the London & North Eastern Railway. This was followed on Nationalisation in 1948 by a move of ownership to British Railways Eastern Region.
Under British Railways ownership, preparation works to electrify the line began in 1958, with the station platforms being lengthened to accommodate nine carriage trains. Electrification works were completed and the new services commenced on 14 November 1960.
1980 saw a marked decline in passenger usage of the station and services were reduced to weekday peak operation only, with this lasting through the Network Southeast era (1986 – 1998) when, following privatisation, West Anglia Great Northern instituted a full weekday daytime timetable, followed by evening and Saturday services in 2001.
The current level of service through the station, including the reintroduction of Sunday services came about in 2005 after the franchise for the line had been passed from WAGN to National Express earlier the previous year.
The final changes of management regarding the station happened in October 2012 and May 2015 with Abellio Greater Anglia taking the reins before Arriva Rail London assumed operations under the London Overground banner.
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