This article needs additional citations for verification .(April 2012) |
General information | |
---|---|
Location | Basingstoke, Borough of Basingstoke and Deane England |
Coordinates | 51°16′06″N1°05′16″W / 51.2683°N 1.0878°W |
Grid reference | SU637525 |
Managed by | South Western Railway |
Platforms | 5 |
Other information | |
Station code | BSK |
Classification | DfT category B |
History | |
Original company | London and South Western Railway |
Pre-grouping | London and South Western Railway |
Post-grouping | Southern Railway |
Key dates | |
10 June 1839 | Station opened |
Passengers | |
2018/19 | 5.979 million |
Interchange | 1.875 million |
2019/20 | 5.702 million |
Interchange | 3.146 million |
2020/21 | 1.279 million |
Interchange | 0.414 million |
2021/22 | 3.662 million |
Interchange | 1.369 million |
2022/23 | 4.004 million |
Interchange | 1.077 million |
Location | |
Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road |
Railways around Basingstoke | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Basingstoke & Alton Light Railway | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Basingstoke railway station serves the town of Basingstoke in the county of Hampshire in England. It is on the South West Main Line from London Waterloo, with local and fast services operated by South Western Railway. It is the terminus of Great Western Railway local services on the Reading to Basingstoke Line. Long-distance cross-country services operated by CrossCountry to Bournemouth from Birmingham (the Bournemouth to Birmingham route), Manchester and further north, join the main line from the branch there.
It is 47 miles 61 chains (76.9 km) down the line from London Waterloo, and 51 miles 39 chains (82.9 km) from London Paddington. [1]
The station was opened by the London and South Western Railway as a temporary terminus when its line to Southampton reached Basingstoke from London. It became a through station when the section running north from Southampton was completed later in 1840. The intention to build a line from near Basingstoke to Bristol was dropped when the Great Western Railway was approved. [2] The L&SWR did, however plan a line to Salisbury from Basingstoke but this was delayed by financial difficulties. Eventually, it was built reaching Andover in 1854 and Salisbury three years later, before being extended to become the West of England Main Line.
The Great Western Railway opened its broad gauge line from Reading on 1 November 1848 with a separate station north of the L&SWR station. [3] After its conversion to mixed gauge on 22 December 1856 through services could run between Southampton and Reading. The broad gauge rail was removed on 1 April 1869. [4] The GWR station was closed on 1 January 1932 [5] and demolished the same year. Since then trains from Reading have used the main station. [6]
Basingstoke station was the terminus of the Basingstoke and Alton Light Railway, opened in 1901 to prevent the GWR from building a line on this route towards Portsmouth. The line was never profitable. During the First World War some of the track was sold off. After the war the Southern Railway reopened the line, but it was closed finally in 1932.
In the 1980s Platform 5 was converted to a bay platform to permit an entrance on the northern side by British Rail. In 1993, an explosive device planted by the Provisional Irish Republican Army was found in a toilet, soon after a bomb scare at Reading railway station. [7] In 2001 a suitcase was left outside the station containing the mutilated body of a man in his twenties. He had been stabbed to death. [8]
Anglia Railways ran the London Crosslink service from Ipswich to Basingstoke via Stratford and the North London Line using Class 170s between May 2000 and September 2002. South West Trains also ran a local service from Reading to Brighton until timetable changes on 9 December 2007. [9] Southern railway services from Southampton and Portsmouth to Brighton were improved to compensate for that. [10]
In 2012, improvements were made to the station, including a new stainless steel and glass frontage, an enlarged booking hall and a new waiting room on platforms 2 and 3. [11] In 2022, South Western Railway introduced staff members called "Welcome Hosts" at this station and some others to provide information and sell tickets. [12] [13]
The station has five platforms, four of which can be used bi-directionally. They are above street level and are accessed via stairs and lifts from the booking hall and subway. [14] There is a secondary entrance on Platform 4.
The station has two entrances. The main entrance to the south has access to a taxi rank, some car parks and a bus stop, with steps down to The Malls shopping centre. A bridge over Churchill Way leads to the bus station. Festival Place can be accessed from The Malls or the bus station, while Festival Square and the Top of Town are located beyond the bus station. The northern entrance on Platform 4 gives access to a car park. The south booking hall has ticket facilities (including ticket machines), information and a small shop. The station is staffed all day, and both entrances have ticket barriers.
There is a small café on the central island platform and another on Platform 4, as well as indoor waiting rooms.
The station area and its various routes have been controlled by colour light signalling since the mid-1960s. The 1966 panel box (which controlled the main line from west of Woking through to Micheldever and Andover along with part of the line to Reading) was located on the north side of the line to the east of the station, but this was superseded by a new facility in 2007 when the area was resignalled. It was announced in 2013 that a new Network Rail signalling operating centre would be built in Basingstoke; the contract was for £30 million. Twelve such regional control centres were to be built in the following 15 to 30 years, which will be responsible for all the signalling in the Wessex & South West England area (right through from London Waterloo to Weymouth, Portsmouth Harbour and Exeter). [16] Several routes have had their signal control moved to Basingstoke, including the West of England main line Salisbury to Exmouth Jn in 2012 [17] and the Poole - Wareham - Wool section of the line to Weymouth in 2015.
On 19 December 2008 an over-height container on a freight train struck and damaged 140 yards (130 m) of the canopy of platform 1. [18] The train was stopped before it reached the tunnels north of Micheldever.
The London and South Western Railway opened a locomotive shed on the south side of the main line, to the west of the station in 1839. This was closed in 1909 to make way for station enlargement. It was replaced by a larger structure on the north side of the line. This was closed by British Railways in March 1963, but remained in use as a servicing point until the end of steam in July 1967. It was demolished in 1969. [19]
The Berks and Hants Railway opened a small shed to the east of the station on the north side of the line in 1850. This was closed by British Railways in November 1950, and demolished to make way for sidings. [19]
Services at Basingstoke are operated by South Western Railway, Great Western Railway and CrossCountry. The off-peak service at the station in trains per hour is:
South Western Railway
Great Western Railway
CrossCountry
Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
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Hook | South Western Railway Waterloo to Basingstoke | Terminus | ||
Fleet or Farnborough (Main) or Woking or Clapham Junction | South Western Railway South West Main Line Fast/Semi-Fast Services | Winchester | ||
South Western Railway South West Main Line Stopping services | Micheldever | |||
Woking | South Western Railway West of England Main Line | Overton | ||
Reading | CrossCountry Bournemouth-Manchester | Winchester or Southampton Airport Parkway | ||
Bramley | Great Western Railway Reading to Basingstoke Line | Terminus | ||
Historical railways | ||||
Farnborough (Main) | Anglia Railways London Crosslink | Terminus | ||
Disused railways | ||||
Terminus | Basingstoke and Alton Light Railway | Cliddesden | ||
Terminus | Park Prewett Hospital Railway | Park Prewett Hospital |
Waterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a major central London terminus on the National Rail network in the United Kingdom, in the Waterloo area of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is connected to a London Underground station of the same name and is adjacent to Waterloo East station on the South Eastern Main Line. The station is the terminus of the South West Main Line to Weymouth via Southampton, the West of England main line to Exeter via Salisbury, the Portsmouth Direct line to Portsmouth Harbour which connects with ferry services to the Isle of Wight, and several commuter services around west and south-west London, Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire.
Clapham Junction railway station is a major railway station and transport hub near St John's Hill in southwest Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is 2 miles 57 chains from London Victoria and 3 miles 74 chains from London Waterloo; it is on both the South West Main Line and Brighton Main Line as well as numerous other routes and branch lines passing through or diverging from the main lines at this station. Despite its name, Clapham Junction is not located in Clapham, a district situated approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) to the southeast and is instead sited in Battersea.
Winchester railway station is a railway station in Winchester in the county of Hampshire, England. It is on the South West Main Line and was known as Winchester City from 1949–67 to distinguish it from Winchester (Chesil) station. It is 66 miles 39 chains (107.0 km) down the line from London Waterloo.
The West of England line is a British railway line from Basingstoke, Hampshire, to Exeter St Davids in Devon, England. Passenger services run between London Waterloo station and Exeter; the line intersects with the Wessex Main Line at Salisbury. Despite its historic title, it is not today's principal route from London to the West of England: Exeter and everywhere further west are reached more quickly from London Paddington via the Reading–Taunton line.
The South West Main Line (SWML) is a 143-mile major railway line between Waterloo station in central London and Weymouth on the south coast of England. A predominantly passenger line, it serves many commuter areas including south western suburbs of London and the conurbations based on Southampton and Bournemouth. It runs through the counties of Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset. It forms the core of the network built by the London and South Western Railway, today mostly operated by South Western Railway.
Surbiton railway station is a National Rail station in Surbiton, south-west London, in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. The station is managed and served by South Western Railway, and is in Travelcard Zone 6. It is 12 miles 3 chains (19.4 km) from London Waterloo and is situated between Berrylands and Esher on the main line.
Bournemouth railway station is the main railway station serving the seaside town of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. It was previously known as Bournemouth East and then Bournemouth Central. It has long been treated as an obligatory stop on the South West Main Line from London Waterloo to Weymouth. It is 108 miles 2 chains (173.8 km) down the main line from Waterloo and is situated between Pokesdown and Branksome.
Brockenhurst railway station serves the village of Brockenhurst in Hampshire, England. It is located on the South West Main Line from London Waterloo to Weymouth. It is also the junction of the Lymington Branch Line with the main line. It is 92 miles 66 chains (149.4 km) down the line from Waterloo. It is managed and served by South Western Railway and it is also served by CrossCountry trains.
Woking railway station is a major stop in Woking, England, on the South West 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.
St Denys railway station serves the St Denys and Portswood suburbs of Southampton in Hampshire, England. It is 77 miles 10 chains (124.1 km) down the line from London Waterloo.
Salisbury railway station serves the cathedral city of Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. It is 83 miles 43 chains (134.4 km) from London Waterloo on the West of England line to Exeter St Davids. This is crossed by the Wessex Main Line from Bristol Temple Meads to Southampton Central. The station is operated and served by South Western Railway (SWR), and is also served by Great Western Railway (GWR).
Havant railway station is a railway station in Havant, Hampshire, near Portsmouth, located on the Portsmouth Direct Line which runs between London Waterloo and Portsmouth Harbour.
Fareham railway station is on the West Coastway Line situated about 0.62 miles (1 km) from the town of Fareham in Hampshire, England. It is 84 miles 21 chains (135.6 km) down the line from London Waterloo.
Eastleigh railway station serves the town of Eastleigh in the county of Hampshire in England. It is located on the South West Main Line and is the junction station for two other routes, the Eastleigh-Fareham Line and the Eastleigh-Romsey Line. It is 73 miles 35 chains (118.2 km) from London Waterloo. South of the station are Eastleigh Railway Works and Eastleigh Depot.
Southampton Central railway station is a main line station serving the city of Southampton in Hampshire, southern England. It is on the South West Main Line and also serves the Wessex Main Line and the West Coastway Line. The station is approached from the London direction by passing through Southampton Tunnel and is 79 miles 19 chains (127.5 km) measured from London Waterloo.
Fleet railway station serves the town of Fleet in Hampshire, England. It is situated on the South West Main Line, which has four tracks through the station. There are two platforms on the outer pair of tracks, which are served by trains between London Waterloo and Basingstoke and Southampton. The centre pair of tracks have no platforms and are used by through-services.
Southampton Airport Parkway railway station is on the South West Main Line located in the south of Eastleigh in Hampshire, England, 74 miles 66 chains (120.4 km) down the line from London Waterloo. It is adjacent to Southampton Airport.
Totton railway station serves the towns of Totton and Eling, Hampshire, England and is on the South West Main Line. It is 82 miles 43 chains (132.8 km) down the line from London Waterloo. It is managed by South Western Railway who also operate the only services to stop at the station.
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South Western Railway is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup (70%) and MTR Corporation (30%) that operates the South Western franchise.