Dorking railway station

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22+12 mi (36 km) journey to Waterloo originally took 45 minutes, although this was considerably lengthened when trains began to stop at all stations shortly afterwards. Additional hourly electric services to London Bridge via Mitcham Junction and Tulse Hill began on 3 March 1929; the 25 mi (40 km) journey took 53 minutes.

The mid-Sussex electrification of 1938 resulted in the express steam services from Portsmouth and Bognor Regis being replaced by electric services which were routed through Dorking, calling only at Sutton and London Victoria. These gave commuters from Dorking their fastest ever link to London Victoria – 34 minutes during peak hours. Some steam services to other unelectrified lines (such as the Steyning Line) continued until their final withdrawal in January 1964, during the closures associated with the Beeching Axe.

In the timetable change of May 1978 the mid-Sussex and Portsmouth express services were routed via Three Bridges to serve Gatwick Airport, and the off-peak service provision to Dorking was reduced to two semi-fast services from Victoria per hour, with services to Horsham running every two hours. Now the average journey time to London termini takes a passenger 55 minutes.

The route to Horsham was neglected for some years during the 1980s, with shuttle services between Dorking and Horsham operating every two hours at off-peak times. In contrast, the service pattern now provided is one train an hour through from London to Horsham (headcode 84). The off-peak service provision of two trains from London Bridge to Horsham via Sutton and Dorking existed for a number of years from about 1985 but ceased by 2000. The former Horsham–Waterloo trains via Dorking (headcode 15) had ceased as early as 1980.

Signal box

View from the north (April 2006) showing the signal box (left) Dorking station and signal box (geograph-158885-cropped).jpg
View from the north (April 2006) showing the signal box (left)

The resignalling scheme of 1938 introduced three-aspect colour signals to replace the original semaphore signals. A new signal box was constructed and opened on 15 May 1938, ahead of the introduction of electric express services. It is one of many built in the Odeon style by the Southern Railway during the 1930s. The original frame was an A2 type Westinghouse with 44 levers. The box controls the line from Box Hill & Westhumble to just south of Dorking station. It controls one of the last examples of a Southern Railway "Dummy" Signal, which controls the exit of the carriage siding.

Services

Services at Dorking are operated by Southern and South Western Railway using Class 377 and 455 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service is: [4]

On Saturday evenings (after approximately 18:45) and on Sundays, there is no service south of Dorking to Horsham.

Unlike other towns in the London commuter belt, Dorking does not receive any express services, which gives overcapacity towards the suburban terminus due to the longer journey times and overcrowding on the inner-city phase of journeys. [5]

Dorking
National Rail logo.svg
2012 at Dorking station - entrance.jpg
General information
Location Dorking, District of Mole Valley
England
Grid reference TQ170504
Managed by Southern
Platforms3
Other information
Station codeDKG
Classification DfT category C1
Key dates
11 March 1867Opened
9 July 1923Renamed Dorking North
7 November 1966Goods yard closed
6 May 1968Renamed Dorking
23 August 1982New station building opened
Passengers
2018/19Decrease2.svg 1.285 million
 Interchange Increase2.svg 0.108 million
Preceding station National Rail logo.svg National Rail Following station
Leatherhead or
Box Hill & Westhumble
  Southern
  Holmwood
or Terminus
Box Hill & Westhumble   South Western Railway
 Terminus

Future proposals

In November 2018, the Dorking Town Forum submitted a proposal to Network Rail for a £21 million upgrade of the Dorking station area. While the majority of the proposal focuses on improvements to nearby Dorking Deepdene station, the plan also envisages the construction of a new direct 100-metre (330 ft)-long foot link between Dorking and Dorking Deepdene, which would allow for easier interchanging between the two stations. [6] [7]

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References

  1. TRACKatlas of Mainland Britain (3rd ed.). Platform 5. 2017. pp. 19, 112, 115–16, 119. ISBN   978-1909431-26-3.
  2. "Dorking Deepdene" (PDF). National Rail Enquiries. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 January 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Dorking (Main) (DKG)". National Rail Enquiries.
  4. Southern timetable
  5. "10-car SWR hangs in balance". Modern Railways. London. December 2010. p. 52.
  6. Meudell, John; Heaps, Chris (19 November 2018). "Dorking Deepdene Station - Access for All Funding Application" (PDF). Dorking Town Forum.
  7. Boyd, Alex (21 November 2018). "Huge £21m upgrade proposals for Dorking Deepdene include new platforms and elevated walkway linking stations". Surrey Live. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.

51°14′28″N0°19′26″W / 51.241°N 0.324°W / 51.241; -0.324