Forest Gate railway station

Forest Gate
Forest Gate railway station in 2007
Forest Gate Location of Forest Gate in Greater London
Location	Forest Gate
Local authority	London Borough of Newham
Managed by	TfL Rail
Station code	FOG
DfT category	C2
Number of platforms	4
Fare zone	3
OSI	Wanstead Park [1]
National Rail annual entry and exit
2008–09	1.706 million[2]
2009–10	1.599 million[2]
2010–11	1.914 million[2]
2011–12	2.205 million[2]
2012–13	2.403 million[2]
2013–14	2.647 million[2]
2014–15	2.786 million[2]
Key dates
1840	Opened
1843	Closed
1846	Re-opened
Other information
Lists of stations	DLR Underground National Rail Tramlink
External links	Departures Layout Facilities Buses
WGS84	51°32′58″N 0°01′27″E / 51.5494°N 0.0242°ECoordinates: 51°32′58″N 0°01′27″E / 51.5494°N 0.0242°E
London Transport portal UK Railways portal

Forest Gate railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line serving the residential district of Forest Gate in the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is 5 miles 21 chains (8.5 km) down-line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between Maryland and Manor Park. Its three-letter station code is FOG and it is in Travelcard Zone 3.

The station was opened in 1840 by the Eastern Counties Railway. It is currently managed by TfL Rail. Train services call at Forest Gate as part of the Shenfield-Liverpool Street stopping "metro" service. From 2019, the station will be fully served by Crossrail, linking Forest Gate to additional stations in central London as well as Reading and London Heathrow Airport.^[3] TfL Rail, the precursor of Crossrail, took over the running of the Shenfield "metro" in May 2015.

History

View of the station platforms in 1991

Forest Gate station first opened in 1840, a year after the line was built, but was closed in 1843, before re-opening on 31 May 1846 following pressure from local residents.

On 24 May 1953 three members of train crew were injured in a collision between a freight train and a passenger train that occurred between Forest Gate and Manor Park. A London-bound freight train was crossing over lines when an electric passenger service from Gidea Park ran a red signal and collided with the goods train at a speed of about 35 mph. A Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation report blamed the driver of the Gidea Park train for his failure to "pay attention to signals".^[4]

Services

The typical Monday-Saturday off-peak service at Forest Gate is as follows:

Operator	Route	Rolling stock	Frequency
TfL Rail	London Liverpool Street - Stratford - Maryland - Forest Gate - Manor Park - Ilford - Seven Kings - Goodmayes - Chadwell Heath - Romford - Gidea Park - Harold Wood - Brentwood - Shenfield	Class 315	6x per hour

Future development

During 2017 the new Crossrail route will partially open and take over from the current TfL Rail "metro" service. New Class 345 trains will be introduced; these will be over 200 metres (220 yd) in length, necessitating the extension of Forest Gate's platforms, which are currently between 173 metres (189 yd) and 178 metres (195 yd) long.

Other enhancements will include three new lifts providing access to all platforms, improved lighting and signage, help points, and new ticket machines and gates within a refurbished ticket hall. The full Crossrail route through to Reading and Heathrow Airport will begin in 2019.

Connections

London Buses routes 58, 308, and 330 serve the station.

References

1. "Out-of-Station Interchanges" (Microsoft Excel). Transport for London. 2 January 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2016.
2. "Station usage estimates". Rail statistics. Office of Rail Regulation. Please note: Some methodology may vary year on year.
3. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/media/newscentre/archive/27439.aspx
4. http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/documents/MoT_ForestGate1953.pdf

External links

• Media related to Forest Gate railway station at Wikimedia Commons
• Train times and station information for Forest Gate railway station from National Rail
• Excel file displaying National Rail station usage information for 2005/06