Reedham (Surrey) railway station

Reedham (Surrey)
Reedham (Surrey) Location of Reedham (Surrey) in Greater London
Location	Purley
Local authority	London Borough of Croydon
Grid reference	TQ309606
Managed by	Southern
Station code	RHM
DfT category	E
Number of platforms	2
Fare zone	6
National Rail annual entry and exit
2004–05	0.181 million[1]
2005–06	0.184 million[1]
2006–07	0.284 million[1]
2007–08	0.282 million[1]
2008–09	0.275 million[1]
2009–10	0.257 million[1]
2010–11	0.262 million[1]
2011–12	0.267 million[1]
2012–13	0.265 million[1]
2013–14	0.281 million[1]
Railway companies
Original company	South Eastern Railway
Pre-grouping	South Eastern and Chatham Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
Key dates
1 March 1911	Opened (Reedham Halt)
5 July 1936	Renamed (Reedham)
12 May 1980	Renamed (Reedham (Surrey))
1982	Platforms lengthened to 8 cars
Other information
Lists of stations	DLR Underground National Rail Tramlink
External links	Departures Layout Facilities Buses
London Transport portal UK Railways portalCoordinates: 51°19′53″N 0°07′24″W / 51.3313°N 0.1233°W

Reedham railway station is a railway station in the south of Purley in the London Borough of Croydon on the Tattenham Corner Line. The local area is residential and the station is near the A23 Brighton Road. The Brighton main line is adjacent, but is not served by this station.

Although occasionally referred to as Reedham (London),^[2] it is more commonly and officially known as Reedham (Surrey)^[3] to distinguish it from Reedham railway station in Norfolk.

History

A 1905 Railway Clearing House map of lines around Reedham railway station.

The station was opened by the South Eastern and Chatham Railway on its branch line to Tattenham Corner as Reedham Halt on 1 March 1911.^[4][5][6][7] Situated 49 chains (990 m) from Purley railway station, it was built with 300-foot (91 m) long platforms and adjoined an overbridge crossing Old Lodge Lane in Purley.^[8] It took its name from the nearby Reedham Asylum for Fatherless Children,^[8][9] founded in Richmond by philanthropist Andrew Reed in 1844.^[10] The asylum was renamed Reedham Orphanage in 1904 and Reedham School in 1950. It closed in 1980, but the trust which ran it still occupies the original lodge (gatehouse) of the estate.^[10]

After a period of temporary wartime closure between 1917 and 1919,^{[5][6][11][7]} the halt became a station on 5 July 1936.^{[5][6][11][12]} On 12 May 1980, the suffix "Surrey" was added to the station's name to distinguish it from Reedham (Norfolk).^[6] Some timetables used to refer to the station as "Reedham (GLC)".^[12] Having first been lengthened in advance of electrification of the line in 1928,^[13] the platforms were again extended in 1982 to take eight-car trains^[12] in the days when a train had both a driver and a guard. However nowadays, due to lack of station CCTV to assist the driver to close the doors safely, trains without train-mounted external cameras are only permitted to open the doors on the first four carriages.

A new passenger footbridge was installed in late 2013, removing the existing disabled access;^[14] the platforms were also resurfaced.^[15]

Services

From 2018 as part of the Thameslink Programme it is proposed that services are extended beyond London Bridge through central London (calling at London Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon and London St Pancras) to Cambridge. ^[16]

Connections

London Buses route 455 serve the station.

References

Notes

1. "Station usage estimates". Rail statistics. Office of Rail Regulation. Please note: Some methodology may vary year on year.
2. thetrainline.com. "Trains to Reedham (London)". Retrieved 2014-03-06.
3. National Rail Enquiries. "Reedham (Surrey) (RHM)". Retrieved 2014-03-06.
4. Kidner (1985), p. 52.
5. Butt (1995), p. 196.
6. Quick (2009), p. 328.
7. Mitchell & Smith (1994), fig. 56.
8. Owen (1978), p. 7.
9. Mitchell & Smith (1994), fig. 57.
10. Former Children's Homes. "Reedham Orphanage". Retrieved 2014-03-06.
11. Clinker (1988), note 2263.
12. Mitchell & Smith (1994), fig. 59.
13. Owen (1978), p. 12.
14. Keate, Georgie (1 January 2014). "Disabled access removed in Reedham train station 'upgrade'". Croydon Advertiser. Retrieved 2014-03-06.
15. Walker Construction. "Contracts List 2013". Retrieved 2014-03-06.
16. Proposed Thameslink service pattern

Sources

• Butt, R. V. J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0508-1. OCLC 60251199.
• Clinker, C.R. (1988) [1978]. Clinker's Register of Closed Passenger Stations and Goods Depots in England, Scotland and Wales 1830–1980 (2nd ed.). Bristol: Avon-Anglia Publications & Services. ISBN 0-905466-91-8. OCLC 655703233.

• Kidner, R.W. (1985). Southern Railway Halts. Headington: The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-321-4. LP156.
• Mitchell, Victor E.; Smith, Keith (January 1994). Caterham and Tattenham Corner. London Suburban Railways. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 1-873793-25-1.
• Owen, N. (1978). The Tattenham Corner Branch. Tarrant Hinton: The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-224-2. LP108.
• Quick, Michael (2009) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (4th ed.). Oxford: Railway and Canal Historical Society. ISBN 978 0 901461 57 5. OCLC 612226077.

External links

• Train times and station information for Reedham (Surrey) railway station from National Rail
• The Reedham Trust and old map of Reedham Asylum for Fatherless Children