West Croydon station

West Croydon is a combined railway, bus station and tram stop in Croydon, south London. It is served by National Rail, London Overground, Tramlink and London Buses services and is in Travelcard Zone 5.

For the Australian station, see West Croydon railway station, Adelaide.

West Croydon Tramlink London Overground National Rail London Buses
West Croydon is located in Greater London
West Croydon
West Croydon
Location of West Croydon in Greater London
LocationCroydon
Local authorityLondon Borough of Croydon
Managed byLondon Overground
OwnerNetwork Rail
Station codeWCY
DfT categoryC2
Number of platforms3 (formerly 4)
AccessibleYes[1]
Fare zone5
Tramlink annual boardings and alightings
2009–101.312 million[2]
2010–111.502 million[3]
National Rail annual entry and exit
2017–18Decrease 5.372 million[4]
– interchange Decrease 0.587 million[4]
2018–19Increase 5.419 million[4]
– interchange Decrease 0.523 million[4]
2019–20Decrease 5.056 million[4]
– interchange Decrease 0.464 million[4]
2020–21Decrease 1.738 million[4]
– interchange Decrease 0.124 million[4]
2021–22Increase 3.148 million[4]
– interchange Increase 0.241 million[4]
Railway companies
Original companyLondon and Croydon Railway
Pre-groupingLondon Brighton and South Coast Railway
Post-groupingSouthern Railway
Key dates
5 June 1839Opened as Croydon
April 1851[5][6]Renamed West Croydon
Other information
External links
WGS8451.3782611°N 0.1025444°W / 51.3782611; -0.1025444
 London transport portal

The East London line, part of London Overground, was extended to the station in 2010. On the National Rail network it is 10 miles 35 chains (10.44 miles, 16.80 km) measured from London Bridge.

Facilities

Railway station
West Croydon (2008 image) with Southern branding

The main entrance is on London Road, a short distance from the main shopping area. There are ticket barriers protecting the platforms. Trains run to London Victoria, London Bridge, Highbury & Islington, and Sutton and from there to west Surrey and West Sussex.

By December 2009 station remodelling and tracklaying were completed for the southern extension of the East London line, of which West Croydon is a terminus. The space occupied by former bay platform 2, out of use since the Wimbledon service was withdrawn in 1997 and replaced by Tramlink in 2000, has been utilised to extend platform 3, the London-bound platform. Bay platform 1 has been retained. There is no Platform 2.

In April 2012 a new entrance was constructed in Station Road, allowing direct access to the railway station from the adjacent bus and tram stops.[7]

Bus station and tram stop
The tram and bus interchange at West Croydon. The white building in the distance is the original station entrance
West Croydon Bus Station (this building has since been demolished)
A Croydon tram in 2000

A short distance from the main entrance is Station Road, where West Croydon bus station and tram stop are located. The tram stop is next to, but was for a long time physically separate from, the rail platforms, until the construction of the new entrance. All Tramlink routes use West Croydon, which is a single platform stop on the unidirectional loop around central Croydon. The bus station is a hub for London Buses, with 24 bus routes terminating or passing through. A new bus station opened in 2016.[8]

London Buses routes 50, 60, 64, 75, 109, 154, 157, 166, 194, 198, 250, 264, 289, 367, 403, 407, 410, 450, 455 and 468, Superloop routes SL6 and SL7 and night routes N68, N109 and N250 serve the railway and bus stations.[9][10]

History
A 1908 Railway Clearing House map of lines around the Brighton Main Line between South Croydon and Selhurst/Forest Hill, and surrounding lines

From 1809 to 1836 the site was the terminal basin of the Croydon Canal. The canal was drained and became part of the route of the London & Croydon Railway, opening on 5 June 1839.[5] In 1845 the L&C inaugurated the atmospheric system of propulsion; it worked for about a year but was not successful.[5] On 23 September 1846, a fire broke out in a lamp room, severely damaging the station and destroying thirteen carriages. Damage was estimated at £10,000.[11] The station was originally named Croydon; in April 1851 it became West Croydon.[5]

The canal basin was served by a short private branch from the terminus of the Surrey Iron Railway (SIR) at Pitlake. From 1855 the station was the terminus of the West Croydon to Wimbledon Line, which followed much of the route of the SIR. This line closed on 31 May 1997, to be replaced by Tramlink. Platform 2, the terminal bay for the Wimbledon line, was trackless until 2008. Very little remains of this platform apart from a little section at the western end, as most of it was filled in to extend platform 3 to allow trains to stop closer to the stairs.

In 1912 the composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875–1912), who was a resident of Croydon, collapsed whilst on the station. This was due to overwork and pneumonia. He died at home a few days later.

During the 1930s the station saw major alterations and reconstruction. A new ticket office was built on London Road. The original station buildings, ticket office and entrance in Station Road were closed and are still standing, converted to a shop.

Services

West Croydon is Croydon's second station, used mainly by suburban trains: the main station is East Croydon, served by express trains to London and the South Coast and suburban trains.

Services at West Croydon are operated by Southern and London Overground using Class 377 and 378 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[12]

During the peak hours, the station is served by an additional half-hourly service between London Victoria and Sutton.

The station is also served by a small number of services to Dorking and to London Bridge via Forest Hill in the early mornings.

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Southern
Preceding station London Overground Following station
Norwood Junction
towards Highbury & Islington
 East London line Terminus
Preceding station Tramlink Following station
Centrale
One-way operation
 Tramlink
Wimbledon to Beckenham Junction		 Wellesley Road
towards Beckenham Junction
Tramlink
Wimbledon to Elmers End		 Wellesley Road
towards Elmers End
Tramlink
New Addington to Croydon town centre		 Wellesley Road
towards New Addington
Disused railways
Waddon Marsh   Connex South Central
   Terminus

References
  1. "Network Map". Southern Railway. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
  2. "Tram Stop Usage 2009-10 (FOI)" (XLS). Tramlink annual passenger performance 2009-2010. Transport for London. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  3. "Tramlink numbers 2010-2011" (PDF). Tramlink annual passenger performance 2010-2011. Transport for London. 28 March 2012. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  4. "Estimates of station usage". Rail statistics. Office of Rail Regulation. Please note: Some methodology may vary year on year.
  5. Butt, RVJ (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens. pp. 73, 245. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  6. Forgotten Stations of Greater London by J.E.Connor and B.Halford
  7. "New entrance to West Croydon station provides better access for all". Transport for London. 5 April 2012. Archived from the original on 27 June 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  8. ""Milestone" bus station opens as part of West Croydon's multimillion pound redevelopment". Your Croydon. Croydon Council. 14 October 2016.
  9. "Buses and trams from West Croydon" (PDF). TfL. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  10. "Night buses from Croydon" (PDF). TfL. June 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  11. "Serious Fire at the Croydon Terminus". Hampshire Advertiser and Salisbury Guardian. No. 1207. Southampton. 26 September 1846. p. 3.
  12. Table 171, 172, 177, 178 National Rail timetable, May 2022
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