Sole Street railway station
Sole Street railway station is on the Chatham Main Line in England, serving the village of Sole Street, near Cobham, Kent. It is 26 miles 71 chains (43.3 km) down the line from London Victoria and is situated between Meopham and Rochester. The station is managed by Southeastern.
Sole Street  | |
|---|---|
.jpg.webp) | |
| General information | |
| Location | Sole Street, Borough of Gravesham England |
| Grid reference | TQ655675 |
| Managed by | Southeastern |
| Platforms | 2 |
| Other information | |
| Station code | SOR |
| Classification | DfT category E |
| History | |
| Opened | 1 February 1861 |
| Passengers | |
| 2017/18 |  64,338 |
| 2018/19 |  64,698 |
| 2019/20 | 59,448 |
| 2020/21 | 13,862 |
| 2021/22 | 39,570 |
| Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road | |
Office of Rail Regulation statistics suggest that the decline in traffic at Sole Street that has been noted since 2009/10 coincided with the opening of fast High Speed One services from nearby Strood.
History
The main line of the London, Chatham and Dover Railway was opened in stages. The section between Rochester Bridge (then named Strood) and Bickley was opened on 3 December 1860;[1] but Sole Street station opened later, on 1 February 1861.[2][3]
Facilities and Connections
The station has a ticket office which is open during the morning peak only (06:00-10:00 Mon-Fri). At other times, the station is unstaffed and tickets can be purchased from the self-service ticket machine at the station. The station is fitted with modern help points and covered seating is available on both platforms. The station also has toilets which are located in the stations ticket office. There is also a small chargeable car park located outside the main entrance to the station. The station has step free access to the London bound platform however access to the Kent bound platform is via the stepped footbridge only so is not accessible.[4]
The station is served infrequently Monday-Saturday by the route 416 bus operated by Redroute Buses which provides connections to Gravesend and Meopham.[5]
Services
All services at Sole Street are operated by Southeastern using Class 375, 465 and 466 EMUs.
The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[6]
- 1 tph to London Victoria via Denmark Hill
- 1 tph to Gillingham
During the peak hours, the station is served by an additional hourly service between London Victoria and Gillingham, increasing the service to 2 tph in each direction.
On Sundays, the service to Gillingham is extended to and from Dover Priory.
| Preceding station | National Rail |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southeastern | ||||
| Disused railways | ||||
| Meopham Line and station open |
London, Chatham and Dover Railway |
Rochester Bridge Line and station closed | ||
References
- Dendy Marshall, C.F.; Kidner, R.W. (1963) [1937]. History of the Southern Railway (2nd ed.). Shepperton: Ian Allan. pp. 327, 502. ISBN 0-7110-0059-X.
- Dendy Marshall & Kidner 1963, p. 524
- Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 158. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
- "Sole Street Station Information". Southeastern, 2020.
- "Routes 416/417 Timetable: Gravesend to Meopham or Cliffe". Traveline South East, 2020.
- Table 212 National Rail timetable, December 2022
External links
Media related to Sole Street railway station at Wikimedia Commons- Train times and station information for Sole Street railway station from National Rail