The Waveney Valley line was a branch line running from Tivetshall in Norfolk to Beccles in Suffolk connecting the Great Eastern Main Line at Tivetshall with the East Suffolk line at Beccles. It provided services to Norwich, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Ipswich and many other smaller towns in Suffolk with additional services to London. It was named after the River Waveney which follows a similar route. The line ran regular passenger and freight services daily, except for Sundays. This was a condition placed on the railway by landowners in the Starston area of Norfolk who had to give their consent before the line could be built. Departing from Beccles there were stations at Geldeston, Ellingham, Ditchingham, Bungay, Earsham, Homersfield, Harleston, Pulham St. Mary, Pulham Market before the line terminated at Tivetshall.
During World War I however, troop trains were known to operate each day. By October 1915, trains had reached their peak of 8 trains per day, but the demands of World War I reduced this to 6 trains per day in 1917. During world war two there was a large increase in traffic, this was due to the airfields and military establishments built along the line. Bombs were stored on a bomb dump near Earsham Hall until, after the war, the unused bombs were taken away and disposed of – this continued until 1954. By 1953, when passenger services closed, services had remained unchanged for 36 years.
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