Cambridge Heath

Story

Cambridge Heath is a London Overground station in the neighbourhood of Cambridge Heath, east London. It is 1mi down-line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between and on the Lea Valley Lines to and. Its three-letter station code is CBH and it is in Travelcard zone 2.HistoryGreat Eastern Railway 1872-1922The station was opened on 27 May 1872 by the Great Eastern Railway (GER) as part of a more direct route to Enfield Town which before opening was accessed via Angel Road station. When built the station, which is built on a viaduct, had two platforms and a station building on the east side. in 1894 with increasing traffic, the GER opened two additional tracks on the eastern side of the station which are known as the Fast Lines today and allow longer distance trains to pass trains that stop at Cambridge Heath.No platforms were ever built on these new lines. The 1872 station building was demolished and a new building to the east of the new tracks was built with the platforms accessed through a foot tunnel.During World War One the station was closed as a wartime economy measure from 22 May 1916 reopening on 5 May 1919.London & North Eastern Railway (1923-1947)After the Railways Act 1921 the country's railways were grouped into four companies, with effect from 1 January 1923. At Hackney Downs the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER) took over operations of the GER services. The semaphore signalling was replaced by single searchlight signals which were able to display three-aspects (Green, Yellow or Red) through different a changeable lens arrangement, in 1935. It was also in 1935 that electrification of the lines through Cambridge Heath was suggested, although many years were to pass before these plans came to fruition.