Published on: Monday, 17 December 2018
Last updated: Monday, 17 December 2018
The number of people travelling on Greater Anglia trains during the second quarter of 2018 increased by 4.2% over the same period last year, according to official figures from the Office of Road and Rail (ORR).
The increase is higher than the national average.
Cambridge is the busiest station in the East of England, with more than 11.5m people entering and exiting the station over the past year, ORR figures show.
Martin Moran, Greater Anglia’s Commercial Director, said: “With the rising costs of travelling by car, and the new London emission zone charge which is due to be introduced next year, more and more people are choosing to travel by train. We have a range of great value fares including Groupsave, kids for £2 and advance fares starting from £5.
“Stansted Airport station has overtaken Chelmsford to become the second busiest station on our network. More than 30% of people who use Stansted Airport travel there by train due to the frequency and convenience, and great value fares which start from just £7.”
Most popular stations on the Greater Anglia network:
| Station | Entries and exits in 2017/18 |
| Cambridge | 11,530,238 |
| Stansted Airport | 8,934,250 |
| Chelmsford | 8,619,956 |
| Tottenham Hale | 8,171,404 |
| Colchester | 4,378,758 |
| Norwich | 4,156,302 |
| Shenfield | 3,872,486 |
| Ipswich | 3,351,902 |
| Bishop's Stortford | 3,179,798 |
| Billericay | 3,030,166 |
Most of the least-busy stations on the network are request stops, meaning trains will only stop if passengers ask them to.
Passengers who prefer to travel on less busy trains can find more information at https://www.greateranglia.co.uk/travel-information/less-busy-trains
Least busy stations:
| Station | Entries and exits in 2017/18 |
| Buckeham | 202 |
| Shippea Hill | 276 |
| Lakenheath | 468 |
| Berney Arms | 966 |
| Spooner Row | 1,628 |
| Eccles Road | 2,700 |
| Harling Road | 3,074 |
| Brampton (Suffolk) | 9,004 |
| Salhouse | 10,448 |
| Westerfield | 11,110 |
Greater Anglia is replacing every train in its fleet with brand new trains. The new trains will all be longer and have more seats, fast free Wi-Fi, USB and plug points and air conditioning. The first new train is currently being tested and is due to be in service from the middle of next year. All trains will be replaced by the end of 2020