Swanley railway station
Swanley railway station is on the Chatham Main Line in England, serving the town of Swanley, Kent. It is 17 miles 31 chains (28.0 km) down the line from London Victoria and is situated between St Mary Cray and Farningham Road on the main line. The Maidstone Line branches from the main line south of Swanley and the next station on that route is Eynsford.
Swanley ![]() | |
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![]() ![]() Swanley Location of Swanley in Kent | |
Location | Swanley |
Local authority | District of Sevenoaks |
Grid reference | TQ509682 |
Managed by | Southeastern |
Station code | SAY |
DfT category | C2 |
Number of platforms | 4 |
Fare zone | 8 |
National Rail annual entry and exit | |
2015–16 | ![]() |
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2016–17 | ![]() |
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2017–18 | ![]() |
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2018–19 | ![]() |
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2019–20 | ![]() |
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Key dates | |
1 July 1862 | Opened as Sevenoaks Junction |
1 January 1871 | Renamed Swanley Junction |
16 April 1939 | Resited and renamed Swanley |
1959 | Rebuilt |
Other information | |
External links | |
WGS84 | 51.3934°N 0.1690°E |
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The station and most trains that call are operated by Southeastern. The station has four platforms.
Since March 2016, Oyster cards have been accepted at Swanley, with the station being placed into London's fare zone 8.[2]
History
The original location of the station was at grid reference TQ513684 at the junction with separate platforms for the main line and the Sevenoaks branch. It was first named Sevenoaks Junction and 1871 was changed to Swanley Junction. On 27 June 1937, there was a collision between two trains near the station, resulting in the deaths of four people and with 37 injured.[3] In 1939 a new station called Swanley was constructed approximately 440 yards (400 m) further west and the original station was closed. The present station was rebuilt in 1959 when the line was widened to four tracks.
Location
The station is located at Station Approach, half a mile from Swanley Town Centre.
Facilities
The station has a staffed ticket office. The station has a self-service ticket machine and is also fitted with Oyster Card readers. The station has passenger help points on its platforms and covered seating is available on all 4 platforms which are all fitted with passenger information screens. There are toilets located on platforms 1 and 2 as well as a passenger shop and buffet. The station has a chargeable car park (106 spaces) and a cycle rack at the station entrance. Step free access is available to all platforms from the Station Approach entrance.[4]
Services
Services at Swanley are operated by Southeastern and Thameslink. The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[5][6][7]
- 3 tph to London Victoria (2 of these run non-stop from Bromley South and 1 runs via Denmark Hill)
- 2 tph to London Blackfriars via Catford
- 2 tph to Sevenoaks
- 2 tph to Ashford International via Maidstone East of which 1 continues to Canterbury West
- 1 tph to Dover Priory via Chatham
Preceding station | ![]() |
Following station | ||
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St Mary Cray or Bromley South |
Southeastern Chatham Main Line |
Farningham Road | ||
Southeastern Maidstone East Line |
Otford | |||
Thameslink Blackfriars to Sevenoaks |
Eynsford |
Connections
The station is serves on Mondays to Saturdays by Go Coach route 429 and Arriva Kent Thameside route 477. Route 429 provides hourly links to Dartford and West Kingsdown and route 477 provides half-hourly links to Orpington and Bluewater.[8][9]
References
- "Station usage estimates". Rail statistics. Office of Rail Regulation. Please note: Some methodology may vary year on year.
- "Pay as you go travel with contactless and Oyster extends to Swanley". Transport for London. 10 November 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- "Report on the Accident at Swanley Junction on 27th June 1937" (PDF). railwaysarchive.co.uk. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
- "Swanley station information". Southeastern, June 2020.
- "Timetable 2: London to Medway Towns, Dover and Ramsgate" (PDF). Southeastern, December 2019.
- "Timetable 3: London to Ashford and Canterbury via Maidstone East" (PDF). Southeastern, December 2019.
- "Timetable 05: Luton to Orpington and Sevenoaks" (PDF). Thameslink, December 2019.
- "Route 429: Dartford to West Kingsdown". Go Coach, June 2020.
- "Route 477: Orpington to Bluewater". Arriva Southern Counties, June 2020.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Swanley railway station. |
- Train times and station information for Swanley railway station from National Rail
- Page at SouthernRailway.net with photo taken in 1959 during reconstruction of Swanley station