NORFOLK’S TUNNELS & VIADUCTS
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Part one: Norfolk’s Tunnels
Cromer Tunnel
Cromer Tunnel was built by the Norfolk and Suffolk Joint Railway to take their Cromer Beach to Mundesley line under the Great Eastern's Cromer High to Norwich line
Although the railway is no longer in operation, the tunnel remains in excellent condition. As expected, though, there is graffiti and looking around, there seems to be no structural damage to the tunnel.
When inside the tunnel, I found an old mortar spigot left behind from the war, and some old signal wire carriers as well.
Just past Cromer tunnel lies another old railway bridge that now carries the A149 coast road over the old track bed.
There is another tunnel in Aylsham, the only railway tunnel in Norfolk currently open to trains. The tunnel is used by the narrow-gauge Bure Valley Railway to pass under the Aylsham Bypass. It was built after the standard-gauge East Norfolk Railway closed.
There was once also a tunnel at Barsham that has since been partially demolished and is also covered on this web page.
The tunnel at Cromer and Cromer High Station are both shown on the maps.
Thanks to the National Library of Scotland.
Split modern and historic maps.
Historic maps showing when only one line was in use.
The Great Eastern-East Norfolk line to Norwich.
Historic maps show the second line as under construction.
Norfolk and Suffolk Joint Railway, North Walsham and Cromer via Mundesley line.
Later dated maps show the railway and tunnel as disused.
Photographed July 2021
When I arrived at the site, access to the tunnel was to the left of this picture, with the A149 main road also crossing the old track bed.
I first visited the tunnel in Cromer in 2021 and have updated this page in 2026. However, I have not returned to the site since 2021, so I cannot speak to the current access conditions. When I visited, access was not easy due to several trip hazards, and depending on the time of year, the site could be quite wet or overgrown.
The portal of Cromer Tunnel
Entering the tunnel.
The mortar spiggot inside the disused tunnel.
The other portal at the tunnel, after this point, the track bed is inaccessible.
Cromer A149 bridge crossing
There's also a bridge that spans over the old track bed and carries the A149 Norwich road. Even after all these years, the bridge is still in fantastic shape and is used daily by road traffic. A new steel footbridge has also been constructed between the A149 Bridge and the Cromer tunnel.
I also found some old signal wire carriers by the bridge.
Close to the old disused tunnel stand, these old buttresses that once carried the railway from Cromer High Station towards the tunnel.
Barsham Tunnel.
Barsham Tunnel was located on the Wells to Wymondham railway line.
Although the railway had a much longer lifespan, the Tunnel's existence was relatively short.
The Barsham Tunnel, situated 36 miles and 68 chains from Dereham, was the sole tunnel in Norfolk during the 1850s. It was built with a single line, spanning 176 yards in length and measuring 14ft in width.
The railway line had been constructed 60ft underground, but had to be shut down in 1898 due to structural problems.
The tunnel was built using red bricks and covered with a layer of concrete.
After some time, it was reopened with a sturdy embankment set in place. The excess debris was utilised to create a fresh embankment near the Stiffkey River.
Similar to the Cromer Tunnel, the Barsham Tunnel also had internal portals for workers to seek shelter as trains passed.
Historic maps show when the tunnel existed.
The next historic map shows where the tunnel once existed, but is now a cutting.
The next historic map shows the railway as dismantled.
Photographed 2022
The old track bed leading up to the site of the old tunnel.
All that remains of the old Tunnel are these concrete supports.
The original red brick behind the concrete render.
Raised embankments.