Cambridge railway station serves the city of Cambridge in eastern England. It stands at the end of Station Road, off Hills Road, 1 mile (1.6 km) south-east of the city centre. It is the busiest railway station in the East of England, used by 8.8 million passengers in 2011/12.
Several routes start at the station including the West Anglia Main Line to London Liverpool Street, the Fen Line to King's Lynn, the Breckland Line to Norwich, services to Ipswich on the Ipswich to Ely Line, and the Cambridge Line, heading southwards and following an alternate route, to London King's Cross, via Hitchin. These routes are electrified at 25 kV AC overhead, except for the Ipswich to Ely and Cambridge to Norwich lines, which are diesel-operated. The station has the third-longest platform in England. Ticket barriers are in operation.
The station building, with its long classical façade and porte-cochère (infilled during the 20th century), has been attributed to both Sancton Wood and Francis Thompson and is listed Grade II. The long platform (platforms 1 and 4) is typical of its period but was unusual in that (apart from a brief period in the mid-19th century) it was not supplemented by another through platform until platforms 7 and 8 were added in 2011. There were major platform lengthenings and remodellings of the main building in 1863 and 1908. The station layout was altered in 1896 by deviating the Newmarket line approaches.
At 514 yards (470 m), Cambridge has the third-longest railway platform in the UK, after Colchester and Gloucester. This platform is divided into Platforms 1 and 4 with a scissors crossover in the middle to divide it in two, which allows trains from either direction to pass those already stopped there. Bay platforms exist at both ends of the station: Platforms 2 and 3 at the southern end of the station and Platforms 5 and 6 at the northern end. Platforms 7 and 8 are located on an island platform on the eastern side of the station. These came into use in December 2011.
Platform 1 is a 12-car bi-directional through platform generally used for northbound services to Ely, King's Lynn and Birmingham New Street. It is also used for some early morning southbound services to London King's Cross and London Liverpool Street and for some late evening terminating services.
Platforms 2 (10-car) and 3 (8-car) are south-facing bay platforms generally used for services to and from London King's Cross or London Liverpool Street (with some Sunday services to Stratford).
Platform 4 is a bi-directional 10-car through platform generally used for northbound services to Ely, King's Lynn and Birmingham New Street. It is also used for some early morning southbound services to London King's Cross and London Liverpool Street and for some terminating late evening services.
Platform 5 is a 6-car north-facing bay platform generally used for services to and from Norwich (and occasional services to and from Birmingham New Street).
Platform 6 is a 6-car north-facing bay platform used for services to and from Ipswich (with occasional services to and from Harwich International).
Platforms 7 and 8 are bi-directional 12-car through platforms generally used for southbound services to London King's Cross, London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport. These platforms are also used for longer terminating trains from London Liverpool Street and London King's Cross.
Several bus services stop outside the main station building, linking the railway with the city centre and other parts of Cambridge, including Addenbrooke's Hospital. Buses also travel from the station out of the city to Sawston, Saffron Walden and Imperial War Museum Duxford to the south and Histon and Impington and Cottenham to the north. A taxi rank and a large area for bicycle parking are also located outside the station, although only a small number of free spaces are available for cycles.