Woking railway station

Woking railway station is a major stop in Woking, England, on the South Western Main Line used by many commuters. It is 24 miles 27 chains (39.2 km) down the line from London Waterloo. The station is managed by South Western Railway, who operate all trains serving it. Many South Western Railway services call at Woking, including:

Woking
Woking railway station's distinctive signal box
LocationWoking, Borough of Woking
England
Coordinates51°19′05″N 0°33′25″W
Grid referenceTQ006587
Managed bySouth Western Railway
Platforms6
Other information
Station codeWOK
ClassificationDfT category B
History
Original companyLondon and Southampton Railway
Pre-groupingLondon and South Western Railway
Post-groupingSouthern Railway
Key dates
21 May 1838 (1838-05-21)Station opened as Woking Common
c. 1843Renamed Woking
Passengers
2015/16 7.989 million
2016/17 7.998 million
2017/18 7.642 million
 Interchange  1.381 million
2018/19 7.729 million
 Interchange  1.424 million
2019/20 7.352 million
 Interchange  1.232 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Fast trains from Woking take approximately 26 minutes to reach London Waterloo (some stop at Clapham Junction). Trains from the Alton Line take roughly 35 minutes, and the stopping service 50 minutes, to Waterloo.

An hourly National Express bus service runs between the terminus beside the station and Heathrow Airport, a journey of about 50 minutes.

The station's southern exterior is an art deco rounded-edge building in a mixture of concrete and stock brick courses. It features less uniformity and glass than the town centre side

History
Class 33 008 passes Woking station with a down train

The London and Southampton Railway (L&SR) was authorised on 25 July 1834.[1] It was built and opened in stages, and the first section, that between the London terminus at Nine Elms and Woking Common was opened on 21 May 1838.[2] Woking Common became a through station with the opening of the next section of the line, as far as Winchfield, on 24 September that year.[3] On 4 June 1839, the L&SR was renamed the London and South Western Railway (LSWR),[4] and Woking Common station assumed its current name of Woking around 1843.[5]

Woking became a junction with the opening of the Guildford Junction Railway (GJR) on 5 May 1845;[6] it had been authorised less than a year earlier, on 10 May 1844.[7] The GJR was always operated by the LSWR, and was absorbed by that company on 4 August 1845.[8]

The signal box, built by the Southern Railway, is a Grade II listed building.[9]

Platforms
Woking station
Note: cafés on south and central platforms
 
Townside ticket hall
1
South Western main line
stopping service to/from London
 Main line westbound
5
Platform 6 (little-used)
Downside ticket hall etc.

Woking Station has six platforms, two of which act as termini with buffers.

  • Platform 1 – Semi-fast London-bound services. Adjoins the main station house and town centre to the north.
  • Platform 2 – Fast London-bound services. Part of a single island with 3 and 4 below.
  • Platform 3 – Stopping service to/from London, terminus. At the far east end of platforms 2 to 4.
  • Platform 4 – Trains to Exeter St Davids, Portsmouth Harbour (via Basingstoke), Salisbury and Weymouth.
  • Platform 5 – Portsmouth Direct Line services, Alton line and Basingstoke stopping services.
  • Platform 6 – a west-facing bay platform, terminus, the first train of the day to Portsmouth Harbour via Eastleigh starts from this platform, and it is often used to stable diesel locomotives in the event of a train failure.

Services

South Western Railway operates northbound suburban and mainline services to London Waterloo. Southbound services operates to Alton, Weymouth, Basingstoke, Haslemere, Exeter St David's, Portsmouth Harbour and Salisbury. Limited destinations served at peak times include: Bristol Temple Meads and Yeovil Pen Mill.

A Class 159 DMU calls at the station
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Clapham Junction
or London Waterloo		   South Western Railway
Portsmouth Direct Line		   Guildford
  South Western Railway
Portsmouth Direct Line
(Stopping service)		   Worplesdon
  South Western Railway
South Western Main Line		   Farnborough (Main)
or Winchester
  South Western Railway
West of England Main Line		   Basingstoke
West Byfleet   South Western Railway
Alton Line		   Brookwood
  South Western Railway
Waterloo to Woking
(Stopping service)		   Terminus
Weybridge   South Western Railway
Waterloo to Basingstoke
(Stopping service)		   Brookwood
  Historical railways  
Staines   Anglia Railways
London Crosslink		   Farnborough (Main)
Seated Man by Sean Henry on Platform 1

References
  1. Williams 1968, p. 20.
  2. Williams 1968, pp. 35–36.
  3. Williams 1968, p. 38.
  4. Williams 1968, p. 122.
  5. Butt 1995, p. 253.
  6. Williams 1968, p. 132.
  7. Williams 1968, p. 126.
  8. Awdry 1990, p. 187.
  9. Historic England. "Woking signal box (1236967)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  10. Wells 1975, p. 59.
  11. YouTube upload of video showing station with Network SouthEast signage
  12. McKeon, Christopher (29 September 2017). "Woking railway station is going to be on TV!". Get Surrey. Retrieved 13 October 2017.

Bibliography
  • Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. London: Guild Publishing. CN 8983.
  • Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  • Wells, H.G. (1975) [1898]. The War of the Worlds. London: Pan Books. ISBN 0-330-24332-2.
  • Williams, R.A. (1968). The London & South Western Railway, volume 1: The Formative Years. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-4188-X.
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