Berney Arms

Norwich to Great Yarmouth

The Wherry Line

Berney Arms, located in the Halvergate Marshes of Norfolk, is considered one of the country's most isolated railway stations. It sits along the Norwich-to-Great Yarmouth Wherry line.

Berney Arms is located approximately 15 miles and 71 chains, which is equivalent to 25,6 kilometres, away from Norwich.

The wherry line between Norwich & Great Yarmouth got Royal Assent in 1842, work started in 1843, and on the 1st of May, 1844, Berney Arms opened with the rest of the line.

One of the stipulations set forth by owner Thomas Trench Berney for the sale of the land was the construction of a railway station in the marshes.

After a few years, the railway stopped serving Berney Arms, citing a lack of agreement for trains to call at the station they had agreed to build.

However, after lengthy legal proceedings, it was agreed that the Yarmouth & Norwich Railway would serve this station.

In 1883, the Great Eastern Railway opened the Norwich to Great Yarmouth route via Acle.

At one point, Berney Arms supported a small settlement of 11 domestic dwellings and a chapel.

Berney Arms has one very short platform; there was once a signal box here that's now at the Mangapps Railway Museum in Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex.

Also, there was once a waiting shelter at Berney Arms, but when I visited in February 2023, this had been demolished.

The sign at Berney Arms also once had a ladder and a gas lamp leaning up against the side for staff to light this old lamp at night.

This had also all gone, and in my research, I found that the sign now at Berney Arms station, even though it looks original, is a replacement station sign. The new sign has been lovingly made to the same high standard as the original.

When I visited in 2023, Berney Arms had only one farmhouse, a windmill, and a closed pub.

The pub has been closed for many years and may reopen. However, no one knows, as there is only access to the pub via the railway, boat, or a long walk to the pub.

The windmill at Berney Arms was used to grind cement clinker and was later converted into a drainage mill that closed in 1948

To this day, Berney Arms remains a working railway station with services between Norwich and Great Yarmouth via Brundall junction.

Very few daily services call at Berney Arms and are served by Greater Anglia with newly added Class 755 units.

Berney Arms has two trains daily in both directions and three services on Sundays in winter.

Berney Arms has three services each way, and five on Sundays in the summer months.

Most services running between Norwich and Great Yarmouth run along the Acle route, with hourly services to Great Yarmouth from Norwich

Not via Reedham and Berney Arms.

Also, along this short stretch of line between Brundall junction, there are Buckingham, Cantley and Reedham stations, mainly served by Norwich and Lowestoft services, with Berney Arms services stopping at these stations.

Norwich to Lowestoft services mainly serve Buckingham, Cantley and Reedham stations, with the few daily Berney Arms services also stopping there.

Brundall junction is where the trains go towards Great Yarmouth, and you can go from this junction to Great Yarmouth via either Acle or Reedham.

Berney Arms, when visiting, has a new metal sign installed as well as the old-fashioned Berney Arms sign; there are also handrails leading up to the platform, a station information board with a paper timetable, cycle racks and a help point that will hopefully get you through to a member of Greater Anglia staff.

The last Great Yarmouth service to Norwich does not stop here in the Winter months due to the lack of light.

The Weavers' Way and Wherryman's Way long-distance footpaths pass near the station. This footpath attracts many walkers to the area for birdwatching and long-distance walking.

Least used station.

Berney Arms, in December 2020, was the UK's newest least-used station from the 2019/2020 period.

Berney Arms had only 42 people registered using this station all year.

Thats 0.8 passengers every week

The low numbers were caused by the line between Reedham and Great Yarmouth being closed for significant signalling works during this period and the pub being closed.

The pub being closed also was one of the reasons the station numbers had been falling dramatically since its closure in the 2016/2017 period of passenger figures.

In the year to March 2021, the station was used by 348 passengers that year.

That was 6.69 passengers a week.

The highest yearly rise for any station in the UK.

The second least used station was Elton and Orson railway station in Nottinghamshire on the Nottingham to Skegness line.

There is only one service each way a day, and no Sunday service, and Elton and Orson was a close second place with 68 passenger entries that year averaging 1.3 per week at Elton and Orson.

So due to Berney arms being closed for most of the year, was the least used station Elton and Orson?

The stats said Berney Arms won the title this year even though it was closed due to Signalling work for most of the year.

When I visited in February 2023, I was not the only person to exit the train at Berney Arms but was the only person to get back on later in the day for the return to Norwich.

Also, the train went to Great Yarmouth first, and I caught the return to Norwich; no one got off at Berney Arms on either service.

So why did I visit Berney Arms?

Berney Arms was the first mainline railway trip I took in many years.

Since the Least used station reports, I was strangely fascinated with this remote station in the middle of the Halvergate Marshes with no road access at all and not even really a pathway leading to this station, the only access being by the river and being a bit of a disused explorer and a keen walker and photographer I just had to jump on a train and visit this still in use station that surprised me that it's still open to this day and luckily not closed down during the Beeching cuts.

The line was kept open to link Reedham, Cantley and Buckingham up with Great Yarmouth, even if only with a few daily services.

I caught the second train of the day from Norwich, leaving at 09.36 on Sunday, the 26th of February 2023, and took roughly 27 minutes to arrive at Berney Arms station.

Once at Berney Arms, I was the second passenger off the train. The first passenger was a walker heading to Great Yarmouth, and first, I went for a walk around the river, talking to only one person all day, a keen and friendly birdwatcher who had walked in from Great Yarmouth.

I took a lovely walk along the riverbank, visiting the old windmill and then the pub, which was sadly closed and had been for many years before my visit.

After visiting the pub, I decided to walk around the Marshes and the small station, where you could look around in a few minutes. Still, this place in the middle of nowhere fascinated me, with no road access and one house, a closed pub and a closed windmill, and it still had its own railway station.

I fell in love with Berney Arms as a Norfolk boy growing up on the Norfolk coast. The hustle and bustle of a city station never interested me. The quietness of Berney Arms was more me.

Leaving the station once again, I walked around. I photographed the Halvergate Marshes whilst waiting for my return train to arrive and head first off towards Great Yarmouth, which came at 12.03. After photographing this service leaving, I awaited the return service from Great Yarmouth to Norwich at 12.17. Finally, I boarded and headed back to Norwich station.

Should I revisit Berney Arms??

I may revisit this remote Norfolk station, thanks to the Greater Anglia conductor on board who recommends walking the 4-odd miles from Berney Arms to Reedham and boarding the train back to Norwich.

This station visit could have started something off with in-use railway trips. There are also some viaducts outside Norfolk that I would like to visit in the future.

Has this started something off?

Please look at my Google Maps below for Details of these junctions and both railway lines between Brundall and Great Yarmouth.

Google Maps.

Berney Arms station entrance

Berney Arms railway station stands out as a unique entrance, unlike many others in the United Kingdom. It lacks a car park, footpath, or road and features only a farm gate.