Shepperton branch line
| Shepperton Branch Line | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Type | Commuter rail, Heavy rail |
| System | National Rail |
| Status | Operational |
| Locale |
Greater London South East England |
| Termini |
London Waterloo Kingston Shepperton |
| Stations | 6 |
| Services | 1 |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 1 November 1864 |
| Owner | Network Rail |
| Operator(s) | South West Trains |
| Depot(s) | Wimbledon |
| Rolling stock |
Class 455 Class 450 |
| Technical | |
| Number of tracks | 2 |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
| Electrification | 750 V DC third rail |
| Operating speed | 60 mph (97 km/h) |
Miles and chains from Waterloo via Twickenham
The Shepperton Branch Line is a railway line in the south west of London and north Surrey. It is also known as the Shepperton Line and connects to the Kingston Loop by a triangular junction between Strawberry Hill and Teddington stations.
The line opened on 1 November 1864 briefly named The Thames Valley Railway with access only from the Twickenham direction. The line was originally intended to reach a terminus on the north bank of the River Thames immediately east of Chertsey Bridge and the town itself but this plan was abandoned in 1862. The line's optional curve linking Fulwell and Teddington initially opened only to freight on 1 July 1894 and first carried passengers on 1 June 1901. The line was electrified by the L&SWR using 630v DC third rail on 30 January 1916.
'Even the railway is a quite retiring type of line, ending abruptly at Shepperton, which is not in the way of being a metropolis; and so for many years a single train ran quietly to and fro upon a single line, resting a good deal and never hastening. And it is still in this state...till the racing tap is turned on every month or so.'
Demand and population in the area increased after the railway's relatively late introduction. Hampton station is the line's busiest with more than 1.2 million journeys made in the 2014-2015 financial year Its recorded use was 0.7 million ten years before. The total of journeys per year of the six stations on the line has reached 2.848 million recorded journeys. Hampton station has formally been assigned C2 (Important feeder) status as its station category.
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Wikipedia