Kirby Cross railway station is on the Walton branch of the Sunshine Coast Line in the East of England, serving the village of Kirby Cross, Essex. It is 67 mi down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between Thorpe-le-Soken to the west and Frinton-on-Sea to the east. Its three-letter station code is KBX. It is currently managed by Greater Anglia, which also operates all trains serving the station.

History

The station was opened by the Tendring Hundred Railway, a subsidiary of the Great Eastern Railway, in 1866. The station has two platforms with eastbound and westbound lines, but either side of the station the line is single-track. The original station building has been disused for many years and has not been staffed since the 1990s. In 2016 it was reported that the line franchisee, Abellio Greater Anglia, planned to demolish the station building and provide platform shelters in its place. It also planned to demolish the station buildings at Weeley and Alresford. The buildings were subsequently offered to Tendring Borough Council for £1 each, should the council wish to renovate them.

Accidents and incidents

On 5 April 1981 eight people were injured in a low-speed head-on collision on the single-track line just east of Kirby Cross after an empty stock train passed a signal at 'danger'. The empty train collided with the 6:49 pm service for Thorpe-le-Soken which was carrying 20 passengers, of whom five were hospitalised. An investigation confirmed the empty train's driver erroneously passed the signal at 'danger'.

Services

The typical off-peak service is: Passengers for Clacton-on-Sea must change at Thorpe-le-Soken for a connecting service to London Liverpool Street. On Sundays, passengers for Colchester must change at Thorpe-le-Soken. During peak hours there are some additional services to and from London Liverpool Street.