Preston Park RCTS Rail Tour geograph-2979089-by-Ben-Brooksbank

Preston Park railway station is on the

Brighton Main Line The Brighton Main Line (also known as the South Central Main Line) is a major railway line in the United Kingdom that links Brighton, on the south coast of England, with central London. In London the line has two branches, out of and station ...

in England, serving Preston Village and the northern suburban areas of the city of

Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages. Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...

, East Sussex. It is down the line from via and is situated between and . The station is managed by Southern, which is one of two companies that serve the station, alongside

Thameslink Thameslink is a 24-hour main-line route in the British railway system, running from , , , and via central London to Sutton, , , Rainham, , , , and . The network opened as a through service in 1988, with severe overcrowding by 1998, carrying ...

. Between 2008 and 2018,

Gatwick Express Gatwick Express is a high-frequency rail passenger service between , Gatwick Airport, and in South East England. It is the brand name used by the Govia Thameslink Railway train operating company on the Gatwick Express route of the Thameslink, ...

also served Preston Park with a limited number of services at peak times only; these services were withdrawn as part of the May 2018 timetable change. There are also two spur tracks which run south from Preston Park through Prestonville Tunnel to .

History

The

London Brighton and South Coast Railway The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR; known also as the Brighton line, the Brighton Railway or the Brighton) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a rough triangle, with London at its ...

opened a new station named ''Preston'', on 1 November 1869 to serve the growing parish of Preston, then north of the Brighton boundary. The station was enlarged and remodelled to its present design in 1879 during the construction of the Cliftonville Curve spur line from the main line to

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th c ...

and the West Sussex coast line. The station was then renamed ''Preston Park'' although the nearby Preston Park did not exist until 1883. In 1881 the railway murderer

Percy Lefroy Mapleton Percy Lefroy Mapleton (also known as Percy Mapleton Lefroy; 23 February 1860 – 29 November 1881) was a British journalist and murderer. He was the British "railway murderer" of 1881. He is important in the history of forensics and policing a ...

alighted at the station after having killed Isaac Frederick Gold and dumped his body in

Balcombe tunnel Balcombe tunnel is a railway tunnel on the Brighton Main Line through the Sussex Weald between Three Bridges and Balcombe. It is long. The track is electrified with a 750 V DC third-rail. History The tunnel was constructed by the London a ...

Facilities

The station has a pair of island platforms, linked by a subway; only three platform faces are now in operation. The three tracks through the station reduce to two before traversing

Patcham Tunnel Patcham Tunnel (or Compulsory Tunnel) is a railway tunnel on the Brighton Main Line through the South Downs between Preston Park and Hassocks in East Sussex, England. It is 446 metres (488 yards) long. Its construction was neither necessitated ...

, almost two miles (3.2 km) further north. Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club's former home,

Withdean Stadium Withdean Stadium is an athletics stadium in Withdean, a suburb of Brighton. It was constructed in 1930. It was the home track of Olympic athlete Steve Ovett. Between 1999 and 2011 it was the home ground of football team Brighton & Hove Albion ...

is located a short walk from the station, and for this reason, during its tenancy of the stadium, the club offered free travel vouchers with its match tickets — allowing fans to travel from Brighton to Preston Park without there being an apparent surcharge of the train fare.

Services

Off-peak, services at Preston Park are operated by Southern and

using and EMUs. The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is: * 2 tph to via * 2 tph to * 2 tph to * 2 tph to via During the peak hours and on Saturdays, the service between London Victoria and Littlehampton is increased to 2 tph. There are also a number of peak hour Thameslink services to and Littlehampton. In addition, the station is served by a number of peak hour

services which usually pass through Preston Park. These services run non-stop from to London Victoria and are operated using EMUs.

References

External links

{{TSGN and SE Stations, Brighton Express=y, Gatwick Express=y, Mainline West=y, CityFlyer=y, SE None=y Railway stations in Brighton and Hove Former London, Brighton and South Coast Railway stations DfT Category D stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1869 Railway stations served by Govia Thameslink Railway 1869 establishments in England

History

Facilities

Services

See also

References

External links