Witham railway station

Witham railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line (GEML) in the East of England, serving the town of Witham, Essex. It is approximately half a mile to the north of the town centre, and 38mi down-line from London Liverpool Street. Witham is situated between to the west and and to the east. It is also the southern terminus of the Braintree Branch Line, where the branch joins the GEML. Its three-letter station code is WTM.The station was opened in 1843 by the Eastern Counties Railway. It is currently operated by Abellio Greater Anglia, which also runs all trains serving the station.HistoryThe section of the Eastern Counties Railway (ECR) between and entered operation on 29 March 1843, and Witham station opened on the same day. The station became a junction five years later with the opening of the Maldon, Witham & Braintree Railway (MW&B) for goods trains on 15 August 1848; passenger services on the line began on 2 October 1848. The MW&B was later absorbed by the ECR, which itself amalgamated with other companies in 1862 to form the Great Eastern Railway.AccidentsOn 1 January 1899 eight people were injured in a collision at Witham. At around 7:30 pm the 7:15 pm service from Maldon East collided side-long with a cattle train that was being shunted into a siding. Some of the cattle wagons were derailed, and some of the sheep aboard were killed. The incident was blamed on signalman error. On 1 September 1905 the 09:27 London Liverpool Street to Cromer 14-coach express derailed whilst travelling at speed through the station. Ten passengers and a luggage porter were killed when several of the carriages somersaulted on to the platforms causing considerable damage to the rolling stock and the station. Seventy-one passengers were seriously injured. It remains to this day the worst single loss of life in a railway accident in Essex. In 2005, an opportunity to commemorate the centenary was missed and the incident is now largely forgotten. Ben Sainty, a signalman, whose quick action averted the next train hitting the wreckage has a road named after him in the town, Ben Sainty Court.