Staplehurst railway station is on the South Eastern Main Line in England, serving the village of Staplehurst, Kent. It is 41 miles 70 chains (67.4 km) down the line from London Charing Cross . The station and all trains that serve the station are operated by Southeastern.
Staplehurst  | |||||
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| General information | |||||
| Location | Staplehurst, Borough of Maidstone England | ||||
| Grid reference | TQ783444 | ||||
| Managed by | Southeastern | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | SPU | ||||
| Classification | DfT category C2 | ||||
| History | |||||
| Opened | 31 August 1842 | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2019/20 |  0.855 million | ||||
| 2020/21 | 0.152 million | ||||
| 2021/22 |  0.474 million | ||||
| 2022/23 | 0.612 million | ||||
| 2023/24 | 0.688 million | ||||
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1950
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The station opened in August 1842. It is well known for the Staplehurst rail crash on 9 June 1865 on which Charles Dickens was a passenger.
History
editThe station was opened by the South Eastern Railway on 31 August 1842, when the line was extended from Tonbridge to Headcorn.[1][2] The platforms were widened in 1889.[3] A footbridge over the platforms was installed in 1961, in preparation for the electrification of the South Eastern Main Line.[4]
A coal depot was established at Staplehurst in September 1965. All goods facilities were withdrawn on 4 October 1971.[5]
Facilities
editStaplehurst is located in the north of the urban area on the A229 road which runs from Chatham to Hastings via Maidstone.[6] The ticket office is located on the London-bound platform 1. A passenger-operated self-service ticket machine is located next to the station.[7]
The station is used by commuters to London from Cranbrook, Sissinghurst and Hawkhurst, which have no stations of their own. Arriva Southern Counties bus 5 links these three settlements to the station.[8]
Services
editAll services at Staplehurst are operated by Southeastern using Class 375 EMUs.
The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[9]
- 2 tph to London Charing Cross
- 1 tph to Dover Priory
- 1 tph to Ramsgate via Canterbury West
Additional services, including trains to and from London Cannon Street and Ramsgate via Deal call at the station during the peak hours.
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southeastern | ||||
Incidents
editThe stretch of line near the station which crosses the River Beult was the site of a fatal train accident on 9 June 1865, which killed ten people and injured forty. This accident is well known in literary circles as Charles Dickens was on the stricken train and survived. The accident left Dickens very anxious about rail travel.[10]
On 15 September 1940, during the Battle of Britain, a Hurricane piloted by Belgian Georges Doutrepont crashed into the station. This also killed the 18 year old station clerk, Charles Ashdown.
On 21 January 1960, the up platform buildings were destroyed by fire. They were replaced by a modern construction.[4]
On 14 September 1996, a train derailed at the station.[11] The cause of the accident was excess speed.[12]
References
editCitations
- ^ Butt 1995, p. 219.
- ^ Gray 1990, p. 17.
- ^ Gray 1990, p. 154.
- ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 1990, Fig. 94.
- ^ Mitchell & Smith 1990, Fig. 91.
- ^ Mitchell & Smith 1990, Staplehurst - Map and Fig. 92.
- ^ "Staplehurst". SouthEastern. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
- ^ "5 Maidstone to Sandhurst Bus Services". Arriva Bus Services. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
- ^ Table 207 National Rail timetable, December 2023
- ^ Gray 1990, pp. 146–147.
- ^ "Freight Train Derailments". Hansard. 20 May 1997. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
- ^ "Staplehurst 14/09/1996" (PDF). Rail Safety & Standards Board. Retrieved 22 June 2011. [dead link]
Sources
- Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
- Gray, Adrian (1990). South Eastern Railway. Middleton Press. ISBN 978-0-906520-85-7.
- Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (1990). Redhill to Ashford. Middleton Press. ISBN 0-906520-73-8.
External links
edit
- Train times and station information for Staplehurst railway station from National Rail
- Signal box diagrams for 1950 and 1962
- Staplehurst station on navigable 1940 OS map