Sunshine Coast Line

Sunshine Coast Line is also a colloquial name referring to the Nambour and Gympie North railway line in Queensland, Australia.

Level crossing at Great Bentley station

The Sunshine Coast Line is a railway line linking Colchester to Clacton-on-Sea. There is also a branch line to Walton-on-the-Naze.

The stations served by the route are:

• Colchester - connections with Great Eastern Main Line to Ipswich, Norwich and London
• Colchester Town
• Hythe
• Wivenhoe

A branch, now closed, just east of Wivenhoe served Brightlingsea

• Alresford
• (Thorrington - station now closed. Image)
• Great Bentley
• Weeley
• Thorpe-le-Soken

The line then divides to serve either

• Clacton-on-Sea

or

• Kirby Cross
• Frinton-on-Sea
• Walton-on-the-Naze

The trains which serve Clacton are through trains from London, while those which serve Walton start at Colchester on weekdays and Saturdays, but at Thorpe-le-Soken on Sundays.

It began as the Tendring Hundred Railway Company which became the Tendring Hundred Line of the Great Eastern Railway. The line is electrified at 25 kV AC, using overhead wires. Passenger services are operated by 'one'. There are several level crossings on the line and most are still (in 2006) operated by hand.