Dartford railway station

Dartford
Dartford Location of Dartford in Kent
Location	Dartford
Local authority	Borough of Dartford
Grid reference	TQ543743
Managed by	Southeastern
DfT category	C1
Number of platforms	4
Accessible	Yes
Fare zone	8
National Rail annual entry and exit
2004–05	2.894 million[1]
2005–06	2.963 million[1]
2006–07	3.147 million[1]
2007–08	3.311 million[1]
2008–09	3.213 million[1]
2009–10	3.034 million[1]
2010–11	3.049 million[1]
2011–12	3.067 million[1]
2012–13	3.022 million[1]
2013–14	3.020 million[1]
Key dates
30 July 1849	Station opened
Other information
Lists of stations	DLR Underground National Rail Tramlink
London Transport portal UK Railways portalCoordinates: 51°26′51″N 0°13′09″E / 51.4475°N 0.2193°E

Station clock of Dartford's 19th century station building (1895)

Dartford railway station serves the town of Dartford in Kent, England. All train services from the station are operated by Southeastern, which also manages the station. Dartford is a major interchange station in the North Kent region of the Southeastern network. Ticket barriers control access to the platforms.

The station is where three lines from London meet:

• the North Kent Line, via Woolwich Arsenal
• the Bexleyheath Line
• the Dartford Loop Line via Sidcup.

Scheduled services terminate west of Dartford at London Charing Cross, London Cannon Street (both via London Bridge) and London Victoria.

History

The first station was opened here by the South Eastern Railway it extended its North Kent Line from Gravesend on 30 July 1849, taking the line from there to London. The original station building had an Italianate design; this was replaced by a glass and metal ticket office complex in 1972. A footbridge leads across the line to the two island platforms, which are capable of a very large number of train movements during a working day. There are four carriage sidings at the country end of the station. Replacement of the 1972 station building was approved in 2011,^[2] with enabling works started late that year, and major works commencing in mid-2012. The new building was opened in August 2013 with all works scheduled for completion by November of that year.^[3]

In the future, Dartford station may form part of a Crossrail extension line, linking to Canary Wharf, London Paddington station and Heathrow airport.^[4]

In 1960, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards met by chance at the station, going on to be the core writing team of the The Rolling Stones.^[5][6][7]

In the latter years prior to their acceptance, Dartford railway station gained a lot of attention due to the high numbers of people travelling using this line, mistakenly not knowing Oyster cards were not valid, and there was evidence of being approached by staff and receiving unnecessary fines.^[8]

Services

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:

• 2 to London Cannon Street via Greenwich
• 2 to London Charing Cross Semi-fast service via Woolwich Arsenal and Lewisham
• 2 to London Victoria via Bexleyheath and Lewisham
• 2 to London Charing Cross via Bexleyheath and Lewisham
• 2 to London Charing Cross via Sidcup
• 2 to Gillingham
• 2 to Gravesend

Connections

Arriva Kent Thameside Routes 414, 423, 455, 477, 480, 490 serve the station.

Fastrack routes A and B serve the station.^[9]

London Buses Routes 96, 428 and 492 serve the station. London Travelcards and Bus Passes are valid on these throughout the entire route.

Concessionary and electronic ticketing

Oyster and contactless bank cards

Dartford entered the TfL zonal Oyster/contactless system on Sunday 6 September 2015, in Zone 8. Whilst season tickets, daily capping and contactless weekly capping are set at standard Zone 8 levels, single fares from Dartford are lower than "standard" Zone 8 fares.^[10]

This followed Southeastern agreement to seek to bring Oyster/Contactless PAYG to Dartford by 31 January 2016 as part of the 2014-2018 franchise extension.^[11]

Passenger representation

Dartford Rail Travellers' Association^[12] campaigns for improvements across the seven railway stations in the Dartford area - Dartford, Stone Crossing, Greenhithe for Bluewater, Swanscombe, Ebbsfleet International, Longfield and Farningham Road. The group operates through social media on Facebook and Twitter.

References

1. "Station usage estimates". Rail statistics. Office of Rail Regulation. Please note: Some methodology may vary year on year.
2. https://web.archive.org/web/20140105040041/http://www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/news/latest-news/dartford-station-upgrade-plans-revealed
3. http://www.breakingtravelnews.com/news/article/dartford-station-uk-investment-delivers-a-better-railway-for-passengers/
4. http://www.crossrail.co.uk/route/safeguarding/abbey-wood-to-hoo-junction
6. Victor Bockris, Keith Richards: The Unauthorised Biography - Page 21, 2002, Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-8868-4
7. Christopher Sandford, Keith Richards: Satisfaction - Page 174, 2004, Carroll & Graf Publishers, ISBN 0-7867-1368-2
8. http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/9735720.Passenger_angry_at_fine_for_not_knowing_he_could_not_use_Oyster_card_at_Dartford_station/
9. http://www.arrivabus.co.uk/uploadedFiles/Network_Maps/South_East/Thameside_Ntwrk_Dgm_(Mar08).pdf
10. https://tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/national-rail-adult-fares.pdf
11. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/389306/RED_LSER_Franchise_Agreement_DA__x_.pdf
12. http://www.drta.org.uk

External links

• Photograph of station building