East Putney is a
London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...
station in
Putney
Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
History
Putney is an ancient paris ...
in the
London Borough of Wandsworth
Wandsworth () is a London boroughs, London borough in southwest London; it forms part of Inner London and has an estimated population of 329,677 inhabitants. Its main named areas are Battersea, Balham, Putney, Tooting and Wandsworth, Wandsworth ...
. It is on the branch of the
District line
The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One branch runs to in south-west London and a short branch, with a limited servic ...
, between and , and is on the boundary between
Travelcard Zones 2 and
3. The entrance to the station is on Upper Richmond Road (
A205).
History
The station was opened by the
District Railway
The Metropolitan District Railway, also known as the District Railway, was a passenger railway that served London from 1868 to 1933. Established in 1864 to complete an " inner circle" of lines connecting railway termini in London, the first par ...
(DR, now the District line) on 3 June 1889 as part of an extension from Putney Bridge station to . The extension was built by the
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway (LSWR, sometimes written L&SWR) was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Originating as the London and Southampton Railway, its network extended to Dorchester and Weymouth, to Salisbury, Exeter ...
(LSWR), which from 1 July 1889 ran its own trains over the line via connecting tracks from its Waterloo to line at Point Pleasant Junction, just west of Wandsworth station (now ), to East Putney.
The section of the District line from Putney Bridge to Wimbledon was the last part of the line to be converted from steam operation to electric. Electric trains began running on 27 August 1905.
Regular passenger services between Waterloo and Wimbledon through East Putney were ended by the
Southern Railway (successor to the LSWR) on 4 May 1941, although the line remained in
British Rail
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...
ownership until 1 April 1994 when it was sold to London Underground for the nominal sum of £1. Until the sale, the station was branded as a British Rail station. The route from Wandsworth Town to Wimbledon, including the connection between Point Pleasant Junction and East Putney (largely reduced to single track in 1990
), is still used by
South Western Railway for empty stock movements and occasional service train diversions, as well as three daily SWR services which run to and from Waterloo via the route in the early hours of the morning (to maintain train crews' knowledge of the route) without stopping at East Putney. There are very infrequent movements of Network Rail engineering trains and light engine movements through the station as well.
Station layout
![Putney Bridge & Fulham, Evesham, Romford RJD 133](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Putney_Bridge_%26_Fulham%2C_Evesham%2C_Romford_RJD_133.jpg)
The junction between the District line and the connection to the
Waterloo–Reading line
The Waterloo–Reading line is a National Rail electric railway line between London Waterloo and Reading. The line runs west through a series of South West London suburbs to Reading, in central Berkshire. Its passenger operation is by South Wes ...
is immediately to the south of the station, with the District line tracks on the western side of the station and the connection's tracks on the eastern side. The station is thus laid out as follows, from west to east: a side platform for northbound District line trains, a Y-shaped central island platform for southbound District line trains and eastbound main line trains, and a side platform for westbound main line trains. The street-level station entrance and buildings lie between the two arms of the island platform.
The side platform for westbound main line trains has been out of use since regular services between Waterloo and Wimbledon through the station were ended in 1941, and is overgrown, while a barrier seals off the right arm of the island platform, previously used by eastbound main line trains. The rest of the eastern side of the island platform remains in working order, and although not served by regular trains is very occasionally used for terminating services from Wimbledon in connection with engineering works.
The station has four staircases, two up to the island platform and one up to each side platform, although the one up to the disused side platform for westbound main line trains is not accessible to the public.
The connection to the Waterloo–Reading line was originally double track throughout, with the eastbound track diverging from the westbound track north-east of East Putney to cross over the Waterloo–Reading line on a
viaduct
A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...
, then running parallel to the line before joining it at Point Pleasant Junction. In 1990, this track was lifted between the divergence point and Point Pleasant Junction, and the decking over the Waterloo–Reading line was removed, although the central piers and abutments of the viaduct remain intact. The westbound track is now bi-directional between Point Pleasant Junction and the former divergence point. South Western Railway continues to use the connection for empty stock movements and occasional train service diversions.
Connections
London Buses
London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus se ...
routes
37 and
337 serve the station.
Past plans
East Putney was a proposed stop on the
Chelsea-Hackney Line
Crossrail 2 is a proposed hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit route in South East England, running from nine stations in Surrey to three in Hertfordshire, providing a new North–South rail link across Greater London. It would connect the S ...
(now
Crossrail 2
Crossrail 2 is a proposed hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit route in South East England, running from nine stations in Surrey to three in Hertfordshire, providing a new North–South rail link across Greater London. It would connect the S ...
). It was envisaged that the station's
District line
The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One branch runs to in south-west London and a short branch, with a limited servic ...
service would have been replaced by the new line.
Gallery
File:EastPutney2.jpg, The platforms at East Putney station in September 2006, with a southbound District line train arriving on the left.
File:East Putney signalbox.jpg , The signal box that formerly controlled East Putney junction, seen in 1987. The box was closed in 1991 and subsequently demolished.
References
External links
London Transport Museum Photographic Archive**
**
{{Chelsea–Hackney line navbox
District line stations
Proposed Chelsea-Hackney Line stations
Tube stations in the London Borough of Wandsworth
London Underground stations located above ground
Former London and South Western Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1889
Putney
1889 establishments in England