Chesham branch

Chesham branch
The sharply curved embankment into Chesham station and the entrance to the disused second platform
Overview
Type	Rapid transit
System	London Underground
Status	Operational
Locale	Buckinghamshire, England
Termini	Chalfont & Latimer Chesham
Stations	2
Ridership	427,000 per annum (2009)
Operation
Opened	8 July 1889
Owner	1889–1933 Metropolitan Railway 1933–1948 London Passenger Transport Board 1948–1963 London Transport Executive 1963–1970 London Transport Board 1970–1984 Greater London Council 1984–2000 London Regional Transport 2000–present Transport for London
Character	Rural rapid transit
Depot(s)	Neasden
Rolling stock
Technical
Line length	3.89 miles (6.26 km)
Number of tracks	1
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification	Fourth rail 630 V DC

The Chesham branch is a short single-track railway branch line in Buckinghamshire, England. Although no part of it is within London and it runs entirely above ground, it is owned and operated by the London Underground. It runs from a junction at Chalfont & Latimer with the Metropolitan line and the Chiltern Railways route to Aylesbury, and runs for 3.89 miles (6.26 km) northwest to its only other station at Chesham. Its terminus at Chesham has since 1961 been the westernmost and since 1994 the northernmost point on the London Underground network.

The line was built as part of Edward Watkin's scheme to turn his Metropolitan Railway (MR) into a direct rail route between London and Manchester, and it was envisaged that a station outside Chesham would be an intermediate stop on a through route running north to connect with the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). Deteriorating relations between the MR and LNWR led to the MR instead expanding to the northwest via Aylesbury, and the scheme to connect with the LNWR was abandoned. By this time much of the land needed for the section of line as far as Chesham had been bought. As Chesham was at the time the only significant town near the MR's new route, it was decided to build the route as far as Chesham, and to complete the connection with the LNWR at a future date if it proved desirable. Local residents were unhappy at the proposed station site outside Chesham, and a public subscription raised the necessary additional funds to extend the railway into the centre of the town. The Chesham branch opened in 1889 and Chesham became the terminus of the MR.

While construction of the Chesham line was underway, the Metropolitan Railway was also expanding to the northwest, and in 1892 the extension to Aylesbury and on to Verney Junction opened. The Chesham line became a branch line, with most trains operating as a shuttle service connecting to the main line rather than as through trains to London. The opening in 1899 of the Great Central Railway, Edward Watkin's connection between London and Manchester, as well as the highly successful Metro-land campaign encouraging Londoners to move to the rural areas served by the railway, led to an increase in traffic in the area, although the Chesham branch was less affected by development than most other areas served by the railway. In 1933 the Metropolitan Railway was taken into public ownership and became the Metropolitan line of the London Underground. London Underground aimed to concentrate on their core business of passenger transport in London, and saw the rural and freight lines in Buckinghamshire as an expensive anomaly. The day-to-day operation of the Chesham branch was transferred to the London and North Eastern Railway, although London Transport retained control. In 1960 the line was electrified, and from then 1962 on was operated by trains.