Sandwich railway station

Sandwich railway station serves Sandwich in Kent, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Southeastern. The station is 8 14 miles (13.3 km) south of Ramsgate on the Kent Coast Line.

Sandwich
LocationSandwich, Dover
England
Grid referenceTR332576
Managed bySoutheastern
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeSDW
ClassificationDfT category E
History
Opened1 July 1847[1]
Passengers
2015/16 0.287 million
2016/17 0.315 million
2017/18 0.349 million
2018/19 0.355 million
2019/20 0.351 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

History

A 1945 Ordnance Survey map of Sandwich showing the station along with the East Kent Light Railway

The first proposal for a station at Sandwich was in 1836–37 by the Kent Railway.[2] An independent line to London was considered, but the South Eastern Railway (SER) decided they would construct a branch line from the Ashford to Ramsgate line at Minster towards Sandwich and Deal.[3] The station was opened on 1 July 1847.[1]

Sandwich had once been a significant port in the Middle Ages, but because of changing geography had suffered a lengthy decline. It was hoped a railway would reverse this trend. In 1853, the Sandwich Improvement Association hoped to collaborate with the SER and develop a more significant seaport here, but the SER were not interested. The station initially had a very limited service, with only seven trains running each way, and between 1855 and 1865 the line was single track.[4] A connection to Dover Priory opened on 15 June 1881.[5]

Goods services were withdrawn on 7 October 1963.[1]

In 2019, a major programme began to expand the station in preparation for The Open Championship at the Royal St George's Golf Club. The platforms were extended to 80 metres (260 ft) so they could accommodate the full 12-car British Rail Class 395 trains.[6][7] Work is expected to be completed by May 2020.[8]

Services

The off-peak service at the station in trains per hour is:[9]

During the peak periods the service is strengthened with additional services between London Charing Cross and Ramsgate via Tonbridge calling at the station.

Preceding station National Rail Following station
Deal   Southeastern
Kent Coast Line
  Ramsgate
  Southeastern
Kent Coast Line
Restricted Service
  Minster
  Southeastern
High Speed 1
London-Sandwich
  Terminus
Disused railways
Deal   Southern Railway
Kent Coast line
  Richborough Castle Halt
Station closed, line open

References

Citations

  1. McCarthy & McCarthy 2007, p. 126.
  2. Gray 1990, p. 251.
  3. Gray 1990, p. 252.
  4. Gray 1990, p. 254.
  5. Gray 1990, p. 256.
  6. "Sandwich Railway Station needs £4m upgrade if town is to host the 2020 Open". Kent Online. 18 October 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  7. "Sandwich Railway Station to get upgrade ahead of Open 2020 golf championships". Kent Online. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  8. "Sandwich station improvements". Network Rail. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  9. "December 2019: London - Ashford, Folkestone, Dover and Margate" (PDF). Southeastern. 15 December 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2020.

Sources

  • Gray, Adrian (1990). South Eastern Railway. Middleton Press. ISBN 978-0-906520-85-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • McCarthy, Colin; McCarthy, David (2007). Railway of Britain : Kent and Sussex. Ian Allan. ISBN 978-0-7110-3222-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

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