Farnborough (Main) railway station is on the
South West Main Line
The South West Main Line (SWML) is a 143-mile (230 km) major railway line between Waterloo station in central London and Weymouth on the south coast of England. A predominantly passenger line, it serves many commuter areas including south w ...
and serves the town of
Farnborough Farnborough may refer to:
Australia
* Farnborough, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Livingstone
United Kingdom
* Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England
** Farnborough (Main) railway station, a railw ...
in
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by
South Western Railway. It is one of three stations in the town; the others, named
Farnborough North and
North Camp are both situated on the
North Downs Line. The station is usually known as Farnborough (Main) in order to distinguish it from Farnborough North, including by
National Rail
National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the ...
and South Western Railway,
although it is often signposted simply as Farnborough.
It is from
[Railways in the United Kingdom historically are measured in miles and ]chain
A chain is a wikt:series#Noun, serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression (physics), compression but line (g ...
s. There are 80 chains to one mile. and is situated between and .
History
Farnborough railway station was opened in 1838 by the
London and South Western Railway (then the London and Southampton Railway), on the line from London to Winchfield (then Shapley Heath).
The next year, the line was extended to
Basingstoke, then the next year it was connected to
Southampton
Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...
.
Throughout its life, Farnborough has been a through station.
In 1849,
South Eastern Railway built the
North Downs Line, and opened a station also known as Farnborough, but it was not renamed as its existing name Farnborough North until 1923. The main line railway station was often known as Farnborough (Main) and this has become its official name. It is referred to as simply 'Farnborough' on platform and road signs, but National Rail and South Western Railway officially use the suffix
(though not on timetables). It was sometimes advertised as 'Farnborough for Aldershot' at an early stage.
As with
Hook
A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...
and
Winchfield, there is a wide gap between the tracks. Originally, an island platform stood between them. When the railway was quadrupled, the existing up track became the down fast. The former up platform, an island which had a loop line running behind it was demolished with the loop line becoming the up fast. The new up slow line and a new platform for up services were built at this time (early 1900s).
One source suggests that it may have been used by
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
to get to Windsor Castle, though the main station she used for Windsor was
Slough until Windsor got its own station.
In 2011, the forecourt underwent refurbishment to add two lifts to the platforms plus a new transport interchange complete with taxi rank, three new bus stops and a large bicycle shelter. In 2012, the station booking hall underwent an extensive refurbishment and the booking hall was modernised and enlarged as a result. Furthermore, a double level car park was built in the station during 2014, which has greatly increased car parking capacity at the station.
Accidents and incidents
*On 26 November 1947, a passenger train was in a rear-end collision with another due to a signalman's error. Two people were killed.
*On 5 April 2016, the "country" side waiting room was targeted by arsonists, causing damage to the interior and attempting to set fire to the ticket office.
[http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/farnborough-main-railway-station-arson-11138132 Farnborough Main railway station 'arson attack' sees windows smashed and bins set on fire]
Services
South Western Railway operate all services at Farnborough (Main) station. The off-peak service per hour is:
* 2 trains each way between Basingstoke and London Waterloo;
* 1 train each way between Portsmouth Harbour and London Waterloo.
Facilities
The station has three coffee shops, a waiting room on each platform, a ticket office, self-service ticket machines, smartcard travel facilities and bicycle parking facilities.
Notes
External links
{{coord, 51.297, N, 0.756, W, type:railwaystation_region:GB, display=title
Railway stations in Hampshire
DfT Category C2 stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1838
Former London and South Western Railway stations
Railway stations served by South Western Railway
Farnborough, Hampshire