Eynsford railway station

Eynsford railway station serves Eynsford in Kent, England. It is 20 miles 32 chains (32.8 km) down the line from London Victoria and is situated between Swanley and Shoreham. Train services are provided by Thameslink.

Eynsford
Location
Place	Eynsford
Local authority	District of Sevenoaks
Grid reference	TQ535649
Operations
Station code	EYN
Managed by	Southeastern
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	E
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15	0.169 million
2015/16	0.174 million
2016/17	0.182 million
2017/18	0.189 million
2018/19	0.187 million
History
1 July 1862	Opened
6 January 1935	Electrified
May 1962	Closed (Goods)
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Eynsford from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

The ticket office, on the 'down' side, is situated in the substantial station building. This is manned only during part of the day; at other times a ticket machine may be used, which is located at the foot of the stairs leading from the car park to the Ashford-bound platform.

The platforms are connected by a concrete footbridge - a typical product of the Southern Railway concrete factory at Exmouth Junction. There is a small car park (charges apply) at the entrance to the station.

History

The Swanley to Sevenoaks Bat & Ball line was opened on 2 June 1862, by the London, Chatham and Dover Railway, initially with just a single track. The station at Eynsford came into use the following month, with two platforms and a passing loop; the second track came in 1863.

The main station building is on the "down" side, two storeys high, with chimney stacks and arched window frames. On the "up" side is a shelter with an elaborate valance and sides for protection from the weather. The track was crossed at ground level until a lattice footbridge was built in about 1910. The signal cabin was positioned at the southern end of the "up" platform.

Eynsford's goods yard was positioned on the "down" side, to the south of the main building, and comprised a pair of sidings, one of which passed over a wagon turntable through the pitched-roof goods shed. The platforms were extended twice, first in 1894 and again in 1932 when they were lengthened at their southern ends, requiring the demolition of the signal box. This was replaced by a porch on the ground floor of the station building's platform side.

Electric services between Bickley and Sevenoaks were introduced on 6 January 1935, when the station lost its lattice footbridge to a prefabricated concrete replacement. Goods traffic ceased in May 1962 and the goods shed was demolished soon after.

Lullingstone Viaduct

Approximately 1 km to the north west lie the remains of Lullingstone, built but never opened, as the development it was intended to serve never materialised. All that remains are the platforms (still in situ) and the platform canopies, now gracing Canterbury East station. Between the two, the line is taken over the River Darent by an impressive nine-arch red-brick viaduct.

Services

Off-peak, all services are operated by Thameslink. The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[1]

• 2 tph to London Blackfriars via Catford
• 2 tph to Sevenoaks

Southeastern services on the Maidstone East Line call here occasionally during times of service disruption.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Swanley		Thameslink Blackfriars to Sevenoaks		Shoreham
Swanley		Southeastern Maidstone East Line Limited Service		Shoreham
	Historical railways
Lullingstone Line open, station closed		Southern Railway Swanley to Ashford (via Maidstone East) Line		Shoreham Line and station open

Connections

Go Coach routes 2 (Mondays to Saturdays) and 429 (Sundays) serve the station.

References

1. "Timetable 03: London to Orpington and Sevenoaks" (PDF). Thameslink, December 2019.