Kingston Railway Bridge

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Kingston Railway Bridge
Kingston Railway Bridge.JPG
South West Trains service crossing Kingston Railway Bridge
Coordinates 51°24′48.66″N0°18′30.49″W / 51.4135167°N 0.3084694°W / 51.4135167; -0.3084694
CarriesKingston-Richmond loop line
Crosses River Thames
Locale Kingston upon Thames
Characteristics
MaterialSteel
Height22 feet 4 inches (6.81 m) [1]
Longest span22 feet 11 inches (6.99 m)
No. of spans5
Piers in water2
History
DesignerJ W Jacomb Hood
Opened1863
Location
Kingston Railway Bridge

Kingston Railway Bridge in Kingston upon Thames, London, crosses the River Thames on the reach above Teddington Lock. It carries the Kingston Loop Line train service (for passengers only) from London Waterloo station, where the majority of services begin and end and which line includes a maintenance depot. The loop diverges from main lines at New Malden and Richmond. East and west of the bridge along the line are Kingston and Hampton Wick stations. The loop returns to the south bank of its terminus via Richmond Railway Bridge. The loop feeds a branch line, a further incentive for the 1863 construction of the bridge, Shepperton Branch Line.

Contents

History

First Kingston Railway Bridge and its 1907-built replacement

The present bridge was designed by J W Jacomb Hood and built in 1907, replacing a cast-iron bridge designed by J E Errington, [2] first discussed in 1860 and completed in 1863. [3]

Design specifications

The bridge has five arches: three span the Thames; two span dry land, which on the Kingston bank includes a road. The bridge has elevated track approaches varying from on viaduct to on embankment, which navigate curves and fly over an urban grid of roads.

Former industrial surroundings

Twin power stations were close to the bridge on the Kingston bank from 1893 to 1959 as to one and from 1948 to 1980 as to the later. Being close to the Thames, coal came up river by barge, and ash was sent away the same way. [4] The barge dock was constructed at Kingston Railway Bridge close to the present the upstream entrance to Canbury Gardens. Much of these sites has been landscaped for public park use and accommodates high-specification 21st century mid- and high-rise apartments. [5]

Operational use

The bridge carries the South Western compass sector operator's suburban Kingston Loop, with trains starting and ending at its sole London terminus: Waterloo. The loop diverges from main lines at New Malden and Twickenham. Within 400 m along the line from the bridge are Kingston (to the east) and Hampton Wick (to the west). The loop returns to the south bank of the Thames via Richmond Railway Bridge on the combined, major Windsor and Reading (from Waterloo) line. The loop also feeds a branch line, the Shepperton Branch Line.

Complementary uses

When part of the Kingston Loop is unable to operate, the bridge enables continued passenger services, typically using the capacity of bay platform 1 at Kingston railway station, the only example on the loop. The Shepperton Branch Line branches off the loop about halfway between the two Thames bridges, and the capacity of a bay platform means various service patterns have been used since the bridge was built. Both lines are used entirely for stopping services, except when either main line is diverted, more typically the Windsor and Reading lines which must be diverted via Kingston or via Hounslow when the busiest stretches of that line are being repaired. The loop has Strawberry Hill maintenance depot which can accommodate a few regular trains.

See also

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Hampton Wick railway station

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Kingston railway station is in Kingston upon Thames in south-west London. It is 12 miles 9 chains (19.5 km) down the line from London Waterloo. The station and all trains serving it are operated by South Western Railway. It is in Travelcard Zone 6.

Fulwell railway station

Fulwell railway station on the Shepperton Branch Line serves Fulwell in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is in Travelcard Zone 6. It is 12 miles 75 chains (20.8 km) down the line from London Waterloo.

Hampton railway station (London)

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Sunbury (Surrey) railway station

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Shepperton railway station

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Staines railway station

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Kingston loop line

The Kingston loop line is a railway line built by the London and South Western Railway (L&SWR) in South West London. It runs in an overall southeasterly direction from a junction west of Twickenham on the Waterloo to Reading Line to join the South West Main Line west of New Malden; both connections face Central London, permitting a continuous loop service from Waterloo back to Waterloo. The five stations on the loop line are:

The Shepperton branch line is a railway line in the south west of London and north Surrey. It is also known as the Shepperton line and connects to the Kingston loop by a triangular junction between Fulwell, Strawberry Hill and Teddington stations.

This article deals with the development of the London suburban railway lines of the London and South Western Railway (LSWR). For the wider view of the LSWR in general, see London and South Western Railway.

South Western Railway (train operating company) British train operating company

First MTR South Western Trains Limited, trading as South Western Railway (SWR), is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup (70%) and MTR Corporation (30%) that operates the South Western franchise. It operates commuter services from its Central London terminus at London Waterloo to South West London. SWR provides suburban services in the counties of Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset, as well as regional services in Devon, Somerset, Berkshire and Wiltshire. Its subsidiary Island Line operates services on the Isle of Wight.

References

  1. ↑ River Thames Alliance. Bridge heights on the River Thames.
  2. ↑ Malcolm Tucker (1983). "Thames Crossings" in Bridget Cherry and Nikolaus Pevsner The Buildings of England – London 2: South. London: Penguin Books. p. 716. ISBN   0 14 0710 47 7.
  3. ↑ Fred S Hacker (1968) [1920]. The Thames Highway: Volume II - Locks and Weirs. David & Charles.
  4. ↑ Greater London Industrial Archaeology Society
  5. ↑ Thames Landscape Strategy Archived 1 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
The railway bridge, with Kingston Bridge behind it, from downstream KingstonRlyBr02.JPG
The railway bridge, with Kingston Bridge behind it, from downstream
Next crossing upstream River Thames Next crossing downstream
Kingston Bridge Kingston Railway Bridge Teddington Lock Footbridges

Coordinates: 51°24′48.6″N0°18′30.4″W / 51.413500°N 0.308444°W / 51.413500; -0.308444

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