Stowmarket Station – 14th March 2025
tThe one and only time, that I’ve used Stowmarket station, was when I’d taken my Lotus in for a service near Diss and I was getting back to Newmarket, with a change at the station.
So as I was going to Stowmarket station, I felt with the judicious use of a East Anglian Ranger ticket, I could combine the trips to Stowmarket and Saxmundham stations.
I also wanted to look at the progress on the new footbridge that I wrote about in Stowmarket Station To Go Step-Free.
I took these pictures.
Note.
- I arrived on the Norwich-bound platform, crossed the tracks by the level crossing and then left from the Ipswich-bound platform.
- The station has a cafe.
- The footbridge in the pictures is a temporary one to ease construction.
- The station buildings are Grade II Listed.
There doesn’t appear to have been much progress on the new footbridge.
I do have some other thoughts.
Greater Anglia’s Stadler Trains Are Step-Free Between Train And Platform
The first two and last pictures in the gallery show this feature.
I arrived on a Class 745 train and left on a Class 755 and both train classes have gap fillers, that do their job automatically.
We need more of this technology to protect the elderly, those with restricted movement and the just untrained stupid.
Housing By The Station
It appears that two blocks of flats have been built on railway land or the station car park.
The bridge also appears to give the owners and residents access across the railway.
Is this thoughtful holistic design or just a bribe to get planning permission?
Who Will Use The Footbridge?
Two main lines effectively cross at Stowmarket.
- The Great Eastern Main Line between Ipswich and Norwich goes through Needham Market, Stowmarket and Diss.
- The Ipswich and Ely Line between Ipswich and Cambridge goes through Needham Market, Stowmarket, Elmswell, Thurston, Bury St. Edmunds, Kennett, Newmarket and Dullingham.
So, if you need to go between say Newmarket and Diss, you would change trains at Stowmarket. Hopefully, the bridge will encourage train travel.
New Housing In East Anglia
On the main railway lines between Cambridge, Ipswich and Norwich, there used to be a lot more stations.
- There are eight closed stations between Stowmarket and Cambridge.
- There are three closed stations between Stowmarket and Ely .
- There are two closed stations between Stowmarket and Ipswich.
- There are eight closed stations between Stowmarket and Norwich.
Note.
- A new Soham station was built between Stowmarket and Ely. Passenger numbers are rising with each year.
- I have double-counted Higham and Saxham and Risby stations on both the Ely and Cambridge routes.
- But that still leaves nineteen stations, that might be good sites to build new houses.
- The East-West Railway intend to build a new A14 Parkway station to link the A14 road to the Ipswich and Ely Line.
- When housing is taken into account, some stations will give a better return on investment.
Could the new footbridge at Stowmarket be part of a wide ranging plan to build more housing in towns and villages along the railways of East Anglia?
Was The Old Footbridge Too Low?
This picture was taken of the old bridge.
Was the bridge too low for some container trains?
A Pair Of Class 755 Trains At Liverpool Street Station
I traveled back to London Liverpool Street station in an eight-car formation of a pair of four-car Class 755 trains.
Note.
The train had come from Norwich.
Real Time Trains showed, that the train was fairly close to on time.
Was this an experiment or were Greater Anglia just short of trains?
The train certainly felt to be running well.
I’ve always felt that Two Class 755 trains could split and join at Ipswich to combine a Norwich and Lowestoft service. Were Greater Anglia experimenting?
Swiss Federal Railways Targets London As It Seeks More Cross-Border High Speed Trains
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the Railway Gazette.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Swiss Federal Railways is looking at ordering up to 40 high speed trainsets for use on international services to Italy and France, and ’potentially for other destinations such as Barcelona and London’.
There also three paragraphs, which talk about Switzerland and London services.
SBB has also examined the possibility of launching a direct service between Switzerland and London, concluding that this would be technically feasible but challenging.
The need to provide security and border controls at all the stations served has long been a barrier to new services through the Channel Tunnel. However, SBB believes this may be possible at Zürich HB, Basel SBB and Genève Cornavin.
SBB would like to offer such a service and is to further develop its plans, but implementation is not seen as possible until the 2030s at the earliest.
These are my thoughts.
The Channel Tunnel Is Being Opened Up For Other Operators
The Channel Tunnel is at last looking to put on other services.
Switzerland could be easy technically, but there is the security and border controls, as the article points out.
But I see sorting security and border controls as an opportunity, not a problem.
Surely, a workable solution would have export potential all round the world.
London And Geneva Is Only Six Hours On The Train
Six hours in comfort on a train, would not bother me!
Switzerland And London Are Both Suitable Destinations For Year-Round, Short-Break Trips
C and myself were always popping off for short breaks, as it suited our work patterns.
She would sometimes say, that a case had come out and we would nip off somewhere for a couple of days.
I think, that more people will work flexibly and will have more gaps, where two days in Geneva or Zurich would fit. Provided, they could just turn up and go.
I also have done several business and leisure trips to Switzerland.
Fast Direct Trains To Switzerland Would Make Italy More Accessible
I have taken trains to Italy and it is a long way.
But breaking the journey in Switzerland could make the journey easier and you could use one city going South and another going North.
When I stayed in Geneva to go to CERN, I got a free day ticket for the buses and trams thrown in, which was very useful.
Will The Swiss Offer A Rail Pass For All Their High Speed Trains?
I wonder, if the Swiss have this in mind, as they already offer passes that include all Swiss public transport including all the cable cars.
A Swiss High Speed Rail Pass might allow me to go London and Florence, Naples or Rome and return all on one ticket.
Americans wanting to get away from Trump could fly to Switzerland and then explore Europe in Swiss trains, with no worries.
Conclusion
The Swiss should take their fingers out and go for it!
The Anonymous Widower 