Stowmarket Station Level Crossing, Suffolk

Date filmed: 13/03/2023
Videos filmed between 14:25 and 15:03

Route: Great Eastern Main Line (GEML)
Stowmarket Station

Crossing type: Manually Controlled Barriers crossing (MCB)

Location: Stowupland Road, Stowmarket
Trains featured:
Lowering 1 (0:00):
Class 745 110 (Greater Anglia) - 1:23
1P43 Norwich ➡ London Liverpool Street
-
Lowering 2 (2:10):
Class 755 327 (Greater Anglia) - 3:13
2W19 Cambridge ➡ Ipswich
-
Lowering 3 (3:36):
Class 745 007 (Greater Anglia) - 4:23
1P32 London Liverpool Street ➡ Norwich
-
Lowering 4 (5:09):
Class 755 001 (Greater Anglia) - 5:53
1P45 Norwich ➡ London Liverpool Street
-
Lowering 5 (6:14):
Class 66 114 (DB Cargo UK) - 7:11
4L45 Wakefield Europort ➡ Felixstowe South DBC

A fairly busy level crossing in Stowmarket found next to the market town's railway station and controlled from the signal box next to it, a box which nowadays solely controls the level crossings and slots on the signals for trains reading over them. This is the busier of the two level crossings in the town and was on one of the busy main roads into the town before 2010 when a road bridge on Navigation Approach was constructed over the Ipswich end of the station to relieve congestion caused by this level crossing on a line that can get really quite busy at times. A lot of the crossing is fairly retro and tired, but working well, and it can be heard that one of the two old-looking audible alarms here has a fast tone. Each entry-side supporting mast for the wigwags / road traffic lights also has bold red signs which say "No stopping on level crossing" as opposed to more standard 'Keep crossing clear' signage. Trackside views are very obscured on one side due to the signal box.

This and Regent Street level crossing are in the same signal section, and if you look down the line during the first lowering, you can see these crossings both being lowered at the same time. This was also the same lowering when some misuse occurred, causing the barriers to need to be stopped briefly. The freight train in the last clip bound for Felixstowe I later saw for a second time on this day at another location...

Train details sourced from:
Real Time Trains: https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/sear...
Open Train Times: https://www.opentraintimes.com/maps
Traksy: https://traksy.uk/live

Thanks for watching!