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Chesterton | |
---|---|
General information | |
Location | Chesterton, Cambridge England |
Coordinates | 52°13′19″N 0°09′26″E / 52.222°N 0.1573°E |
Other information | |
Status | Disused |
History | |
Original company | Eastern Counties Railway |
Key dates | |
19 January 1850 | Opened |
October 1850 | Closed |
Chesterton railway station was located on the line between Cambridge and Histon.[1] It opened in 1850 and closed the same year.
In 1846, the Eastern Counties Railway (ECR) obtained authorisation in the Wisbech, St. Ives and Cambridge Junction Railway Act 1846 (9 & 10 Vict. c. ccclvi) to construct the Wisbech, St Ives and Cambridge Junction Railway.[2] The section from St Ives to Chesterton Junction on the King's Lynn to Cambridge line opened on 17 August 1847.[3] The line was originally double-track but was singled by 1854 before being redoubled in the 1870s.[4]
The ECR opened a "flag station" at Chesterton Junction on 19 January 1850.[5] It remained open until October 1850.[6][5][7][8] It was situated on the north side of Fen Road just before the main line crossed the River Cam.[9] A signal box controlling the junction and level crossing over Fen Road stood at the northern end of the bridge until November 1984.[10]
A triangle of land between the St Ives branch and the main line was used at least from 1911 by the permanent way department to store materials and comprised a number of sidings.[11] A modern permanent way depot was built on the site after the Second World War which incorporated a long-welded rails plant and a 2 ft (610 mm) gauge system operated by Ruston and Hornsby diesel mechanical locomotives.[12] By 2005, the depot had been abandoned and the site was heavily overgrown.[13]
Preceding station | Historical railways | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Histon Line and station closed |
Eastern Counties Railway Wisbech, St Ives and Cambridge Jcn Rly |
Cambridge Line and station open | ||
Waterbeach Line and station open |
Eastern Counties Railway King's Lynn to Cambridge |
By 2008, the sidings at Chesterton Junction were in use by Lafarge which operated an aggregates storage facility, a concrete batching and coated roadstone plants.[14] In 2015, planning permission was granted for the redevelopment of part of Chesterton Sidings for the construction of Cambridge North railway station, which opened on 21 May 2017.[15] The remainder of the 18-hectare (44-acre) site will become part of a mixed-use development with office, residential and retail space, and involving the relocation of the existing freight facility.[16]