Epping | |
|---|---|
 Station entrance | |
  Epping Location of Epping in Essex | |
| Location | Epping |
| Local authority | District of Epping Forest |
| Grid reference | TL462015 |
| Managed by | London Underground |
| Number of platforms | 2 |
| Accessible | Yes (Platform 1 is step free exit only but Platform 2 is fully accessible.)[1] |
| Fare zone | 6 |
| London Underground annual entry and exit | |
| 2020 |  1.91 million[2] |
| 2021 | 1.89 million[3] |
| 2022 |  3.02 million[4] |
| 2023 | 3.28 million[5] |
| 2024 | 3.40 million[6] |
| Key dates | |
| 1865 (1865) | Opened |
| 1949 | London Underground services start |
| 18 April 1966 | Goods yard closed[7] |
| 1994 | Ongar services end |
| Other information | |
| External links | |
| Coordinates | 51°41′38″N0°06′49″E / 51.6938°N 0.1137°E /51.6938; 0.1137 |
 London transport portal | |
Epping is aLondon Underground station in the suburban town ofEpping inEssex,England. It is the north-eastern terminus of theCentral line and the next station towardsLondon isTheydon Bois. Situated inLondon fare zone 6, it is one of eight London Underground stations in theEpping Forest District.[8]
In 1856, theEastern Counties Railway opened a double-track railway betweenStratford andLoughton. In 1865, its successor, theGreat Eastern Railway, added a single-track extension from Loughton to Ongar. The popularity of the line led to the doubling of the track between Loughton and Epping in 1892.[9] The line was well served, with 50 trains operating between Liverpool Street and Loughton each day, a further 22 continuing to Epping and 14 more to Ongar.
Loughton to Epping became part of theLondon UndergroundCentral line on 25 September 1949, leaving the single track line fromEpping to Ongar as the last steam-worked section.British Railways continued running Ongar services until 1957 when the line was electrified and became part of the Central line.[10] However, services did not run through to the rest of the Central line except for occasional depot workings, so passengers to/from stations beyond Epping normally had to change platforms for the single-track line toOngar,North Weald orBlake Hall stations.[11] On 2 November 1981, Blake Hall closed and trains passed through the station. On 30 September 1994 London Underground withdrew the service between Epping and Ongar and subsequently sold off that section of the Central line.
On 11 May 2008 an e-petition calling for the reopening of North Weald and Ongar stations was created on the Downing Street website.[12][13] It closed on 11 December 2008 with 1012 signatures. Part of the Epping-Ongar line is now aheritage railway, theEpping Ongar Railway. Subject to finance and planning, the heritage railway propose to build a new station close to the tube station called Epping Forest as the heritage line cannot run in to the original station.
Epping Station was to be the terminus of the proposed London UndergroundChelsea-Hackney line (Crossrail 2).[14] However, since 2013, the route options for this proposed line have been amended to terminate at New Southgate instead and no longer include the Epping branch.[15]
Epping station saw a growth in passenger numbers in the mid 1990s due to the closures of nearby North Weald, Blake Hall and Ongar stations. This growth has continued due to significant development inEpping itself and surrounding villages. Another major contributing factor is that many people living in not too distant towns such asHarlow,Bishop's Stortford, andChelmsford use the station instead of their ownNational Rail stations, because it is considerably cheaper to travel to London by London Underground than it is to use National Rail services. Growth is now at such a point where the station's car park is full by 6:30 am on weekdays, and parking around the station (as with other stations on this part of the line, e.g.Theydon Bois andDebden) has become a serious problem for local residents, which in turn has caused many residents and local groups to call for the reopening of North Weald and Ongar stations to help ease demand on Epping station.[16][17]
| Preceding station | London Underground | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Theydon Bois towardsEaling Broadway orWest Ruislip | Central line | Terminus | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Theydon Bois Line and station open | Great Eastern Railway Loughton-Ongar | North Weald Line closed, station open | ||
| Preceding station | London Underground | Following station | ||
| Terminus | Central line Epping-Ongar branch | North Weald towardsOngar | ||
 Heritage railways | ||||
| Epping Ongar Railway stops atEpping Forest (about 100 metres from the station), but passengers cannot alight.[1] | ||||
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