Coulsdon South railway station

LocationCoulsdonLocal authorityLondon Borough of CroydonManaged bySouthernStation codeCDSDfT categoryDNumber of platforms2AccessibleYesFare zone6National Rail annual entry and exit2018–19 1.681 million^[1]2019–20 1.850 million^[1]2020–21 0.459 million^[1]2021–22 1.222 million^[1]2022–23 1.556 million^[1]Railway companiesOriginal companySouth Eastern RailwayPre-groupingSouth Eastern and Chatham RailwayPost-groupingSouthern RailwayKey dates1 October 1889OpenedOther informationExternal links

• Departures
• Layout
• Facilities
• Buses

Coordinates51°18′57″N 0°08′17″W / 51.3157°N 0.138°W / 51.3157; -0.138 London transport portal

Coulsdon South railway station serves Coulsdon in the London Borough of Croydon, and is in Travelcard Zone 6, on the Brighton Main Line. It is 17 miles 3 chains (27.42 km) measured from London Charing Cross.^[2] The station is served by Southern and by Thameslink. It is the most southerly mainline station in London.

History

Coulsdon is on a stretch of line between Croydon and Redhill which the UK Parliament insisted should be shared by the London and Brighton Railway (L&BR) route to Brighton, and the South Eastern Railway (SER) route to Dover. As a result, there have been a number of railway stations at Coulsdon.

Coulsdon South

This station was opened by the South Eastern Railway (SER) on 1 October 1889. The line is on a steep gradient climbing towards Merstham Tunnel. It is 17 miles 3 chains (27.4 km) from Charing Cross, and has two platforms each long enough for a 12-coach train.^[3] It was originally called Coulsdon and Cane Hill, referring to the nearby psychiatric hospital: a covered way connected the station to the hospital. By the 1960s, the covered way had been removed.

Ticketing

The station remains staffed for most of the operational day, with a booking office located on the up (west) side of the station. At the entrance to the ticket office from the station approach road, there are two self-service ticket machines, one of which, most unusually, is wall-mounted.

A PERTIS self-service 'Permit to Travel' ticket machine was previously provided here but has been removed. Automatic Ticket Barriers were installed at the station in spring 2011

Other stations in Coulsdon

• Stoats Nest for Coulsdon and Cane Hill (later Coulsdon North) was opened on 8 November 1899, by the LB&SCR on their Quarry Line which bypassed Redhill. It closed 3 October 1983.
• Smitham (later Coulsdon Town) was opened in 1904 by the SER on their Tattenham Corner Line and is named after another nearby settlement. This station was renamed from Smitham in 2011 as part of Southern Railway's new franchise agreement. This change was made as a result of a local consultation carried out by Croydon Council and it intended to better reflect the location of the station near Coulsdon town centre.

Recent history

In May 2019, work began to install a new accessible footbridge with lifts and tactile paving. The work was completed in August 2020 having been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.^[4]

Services

Services at Coulsdon South are operated by Southern and Thameslink using Class 377 and 700 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:^[5]

• 2 tph to London Victoria
• 2 tph to Peterborough via London Bridge
• 2 tph to Reigate
• 2 tph to Horsham via Gatwick Airport

On Sundays, the service between London and Reigate reduces to hourly. In addition, the Peterborough to Horsham service also reduces to hourly and northbound, runs only as far as London Bridge

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
East Croydon		Thameslink Brighton Main Line		Merstham
Purley		Southern Brighton Main Line

Connections

London Buses routes 60, 404, 405, 463 and night route N68 serve the station.

Trivia

David Bowie's schizophrenic half-brother Terry, died by suicide on 16 January 1985 when he walked in front of a train at Coulsdon South railway station.^[6][7]

Notes and references

External links

Companies and
organisations

Transport for London (TfL)	London Underground Night Tube Bakerloo Central Circle District Hammersmith & City Jubilee Metropolitan Northern Piccadilly Victoria Waterloo & City London Rail Docklands Light Railway Elizabeth line Tramlink London Overground North London East London South London West London Gospel Oak to Barking Lea Valley Romford–Upminster Watford DC London Buses East London Transit Superloop Night buses Other Coach station Cycle hire Dial-a-Ride IFS Cloud Cable Car London River Services London Streets Source London Taxi and Private Hire office
Bus operators	Arriva Herts & Essex Arriva London Arriva Southern Counties Go-Ahead London Blue Triangle Docklands Buses London Central London General Metrobus Metroline RATP Dev Transit London London Sovereign London Transit London United Stagecoach London East London Selkent Thameside Transport UK London Bus Uno
River operators	Lower Thames and Medway Passenger Boat Company Uber Boat by Thames Clippers Thames River Services Westminster Passenger Services Association
Train operators	Arriva Rail London Avanti West Coast c2c Caledonian Sleeper Chiltern Railways East Midlands Railway Eurostar Govia Thameslink Railway Gatwick Express Great Northern Southern Thameslink Grand Central Great Western Railway Greater Anglia Stansted Express Heathrow Express Hull Trains MTR Elizabeth line London North Eastern Railway London Northwestern Railway Lumo South Western Railway Southeastern
Other	Global Infrastructure Partners Heathrow Airport Holdings Port of London Authority

Airports

Within London	City Heathrow London Heliport Military: Northolt Private: Biggin Hill
Outside London	Gatwick Luton Southend Stansted

Major stations

Central area	Baker Street Bank-Monument Blackfriars Bond Street Cannon Street Charing Cross City Thameslink Earl's Court Elephant & Castle Euston Farringdon Fenchurch Street Green Park King's Cross Liverpool Street London Bridge Marylebone Moorgate Oxford Circus Paddington St Pancras International Tottenham Court Road Vauxhall Victoria Waterloo Waterloo East Westminster
Other	Barking Bromley South Canary Wharf Clapham Junction Ealing Broadway East Croydon Finsbury Park Heathrow stations Highbury & Islington Lewisham London City Airport Richmond Stratford Surbiton Sutton Upminster West Ham West Hampstead stations Whitechapel Willesden Junction Wimbledon

Roads

Motorways	M1 M4 M11 M25 London Orbital Former: M41 (West Cross Route) A40(M) (Westway) A102(M) (East Cross Route)
Ring roads	London Inner Ring Road North Circular Road South Circular Road
Charging	Congestion charge Low emission zone Ultra Low Emission Zone

TicketingOtherFormer BR sectors