Sandling
National Rail
General information
LocationSandling, Folkestone & Hythe
England
Coordinates51°05′24″N 1°03′58″E / 51.090°N 1.066°E / 51.090; 1.066
Grid referenceTR148368
Managed bySoutheastern
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeSDG
ClassificationDfT category E
History
Opened1 January 1888
Original companySouth Eastern Railway
Pre-groupingSouth Eastern Railway
Post-groupingSouthern Railway
Key dates
1 January 1888Opened as Sandling Junction
3 December 1951Renamed as Sandling for Hythe
12 May 1980Renamed as Sandling
Passengers
2018/19Increase 94,630
2019/20Increase 96,612
2020/21Decrease 20,000
2021/22Increase 53,828
2022/23Increase 70,978
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Sandling railway station is on the South Eastern Main Line in England, serving the village of Sandling and the town of Hythe, Kent. It is 65 miles 36 chains (105.3 km) down the line from London Charing Cross. The station and all trains that call are operated by Southeastern.

History

The station was opened as Sandling Junction on 1 January 1888 by the South Eastern Railway (SER). The station was situated at the junction of the SER mainline (between Ashford and Folkestone and the Sandgate branch line that had opened in 1874 between Westenhanger and Sandgate.[1][2]

There were four platforms with a footbridge over the mainline, two signal boxes and goods sidings either side of the branch line. The goods yard was able to accommodate most types of goods, including livestock.[3][4]

The up branch platform was closed when the line to Sandgate was cut back to Hythe and the branch line singled in 1931.[5]

The station was host to a Southern Railway camping coach in 1939.[6]

The branch line to Hythe was closed on 3 December 1951 and the down branch platform was closed.[7] At the same time the station was renamed Sandling for Hythe.[1]

A camping coach was also positioned here by the Southern Region from 1954 to 1959, the coach was replaced in 1960 by two Pullman camping coaches until 1964 then from 1965 to 1967 there were three of them.[8] The coaches were fitted with a full kitchen, two sleeping compartments and a room with two single beds.[9]

On 12 May 1980 the station was renamed as Sandling.[1]

It is the closest station to Saltwood Castle (where Alan Clark lived until his death) and it is frequently mentioned in the Alan Clark Diaries.

In 2022 the disused branch platform is still in situ and a short section of the Hythe branch is available as a footpath.

Facilities

The station has a ticket office which is staffed during weekday mornings only (06:20-13:00 Mon-Fri). At other times, the station is unstaffed and tickets must be purchased from the self-service ticket machine. The station has passenger help points located on each of the two platforms.[10]

The station has a small cycle rack as well as a chargeable car park at the entrance, operated by Saba Parking.[11]

The station has step-free access available to the platforms although the Dover-bound platform can only be reached from the station building via the footbridge, meaning step-free access is not possible if ticket facilities are required, as there is no ticket machine on the Dover platform.

Services

All services at Sandling are operated by Southeastern using Class 375 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[12]

During the peak hours, there are also services to and from London Cannon Street and there is also 1 train per day to London Victoria.

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Southeastern
Disused railways
Westenhanger   British Rail
Southern Region
   Hythe

Bus Connections

The station is served by the following bus routes, all operated by Stagecoach South East:

References

  1. 1 2 3 Quick, Michael (2022) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (PDF). version 5.04. Railway & Canal Historical Society. p. 400. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 November 2022.
  2. ↑ "Westenhanger Station". Folkestone Express, Sandgate, Shorncliffe & Hythe Advertiser. 31 December 1887. p. 7. Retrieved 10 July 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  3. ↑ "Sandling Junction station on OS 25 inch map Kent LXXIV.7 (Newington; Saltwood)". National Library of Scotland. 1898. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  4. ↑ The Railway Clearing House (1970) [1904]. The Railway Clearing House Handbook of Railway Stations 1904 (1970 D&C Reprint ed.). Newton Abbot: David & Charles Reprints. p. 476. ISBN 0-7153-5120-6.
  5. ↑ "Closing of Sandgate Station". Dover Express. 31 December 1887. p. 19. Retrieved 10 July 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ↑ McRae, Andrew (1997). British Railway Camping Coach Holidays: The 1930s & British Railways (London Midland Region). Vol. Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part One). Foxline. p. 33. ISBN 1-870119-48-7.
  7. ↑ Hurst, Geoffrey (1992). Register of Closed Railways: 1948-1991. Worksop, Nottinghamshire: Milepost Publications. p. 7 (ref 0261). ISBN 0-9477-9618-5.
  8. ↑ McRae, Andrew (1998). British Railways Camping Coach Holidays: A Tour of Britain in the 1950s and 1960s. Vol. Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part Two). Foxline. pp. 57 & 59. ISBN 1-870119-53-3.
  9. ↑ "Pullman Cars as Camping Coaches". Railway Magazine. 107 (711): 449–450. July 1960.
  10. ↑ "Sandling station information". Southeastern, September 2020.
  11. ↑ "Sandling station car park". Saba Parking.
  12. ↑ Table 207 National Rail timetable, December 2021
  13. ↑ "Route 10: Ashford to Folkestone". Stagecoach South East.
  14. ↑ "Route 18: Canterbury to Hythe". Stagecoach South East.
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