The Addiscombe Line was a branch line in south east London, United Kingdom that ran between Elmers End (

London Borough of Bromley The London Borough of Bromley () is a London Borough, borough in London, England. It is the largest and southeasternmost borough in London, and borders the county of Kent, of which it formed part until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 ...

) and

Addiscombe Addiscombe is an area of south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. It is located south of Charing Cross, and is situated north of Coombe and Selsdon, east of Croydon town centre, south of Woodside, and west of Shirley. ...

(

London Borough of Croydon The London Borough of Croydon () is a London borough, borough in South London, part of Outer London. It covers an area of and had a population of 397,741 as of mid-2023, making it the most populous London borough. It is London's southernmost ...

History

The line was built by the South Eastern Railway (SER) as part of its extensive competition with

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 ...

(LBSCR). A proposed extension to Redhill was opposed by the LBSCR, therefore it was dropped. In 1885, Woodside opened. The branch line was electrified by the Southern Railway (SR) in February 1926 at 660 V (later 750 V) DC third rail. The line between Woodside and

Selsdon Selsdon is a village in South London, England, located in the London Borough of Croydon, in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Prior to 1965 it was in the historic county of Surrey. It now has the character of a suburb and sits at a high e ...

reopened in 1935 with the electrification. All services started or terminated at a London terminus until the Second World War, when a shuttle to Elmers End commenced. Through weekday trains were reinstated in 1948, but passenger traffic was starting to decline. In 1983, the line from Woodside to Selsdon was closed and the following year Woodside signal box was abolished. By the early 1990s the line went into decline, starting with the closure of the carriage depot at Addiscombe in 1993. Shortly afterwards, the stations at Addiscombe and Woodside became unstaffed. In 1996, the line was reduced from double to single track following Addiscombe signal box being destroyed by fire. The line permanently closed in 1997 for

Tramlink Tramlink, previously Croydon Tramlink and currently branded as London Trams, is a light rail tram system serving Croydon and surrounding areas in South London, England. It is the first operational tram system serving the London region since 195 ...

construction from Elmers End and Beckenham Junction to

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

via the

West Croydon to Wimbledon Line West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

, also an under-used line which closed on the same day as the Addiscombe line. The track was removed in 1998 and Addiscombe station was demolished in 2001. The route between Woodside and Addiscombe has now become Addiscombe Railway Park and the site of Addiscombe station has become the East India Way housing development.

References

Transport in the London Borough of Croydon Closed railway lines in London Railway lines closed in 1997 Standard gauge railways in England {{England-rail-transport-stub