Basingstoke railway station

Infobox UK station
name = Basingstoke

---

caption = Basingstoke railway station,
as seen from Alençon Link
manager = South West Trains
locale = Basingstoke
borough = Basingstoke and Deane
code = BSK
usage0405 = 4.084
usage0506 = 4.162
usage0607 = 4.394
platforms = 5
start = 10 June 1839
latitude = 51.268333
longitude = -1.087778
gridref = SU6363352582

Basingstoke railway station, in the town of Basingstoke in the county of Hampshire in England, is on the South Western Main Line from London Waterloo, with local and fast services operated by South West Trains. It is also the terminus of First Great Western local services on the Reading to Basingstoke line. Long distance cross-country services operated by CrossCountry to Bournemouth from Birmingham, and further north, join the main line from the branch there. The station is sponsored by Winterthur Life Insurance who are based in the town.

History

The station was opened by the London and South Western Railway as a temporary terminus when its line to Southampton reached Basingstoke from London. It became a through station when the section running north from Southampton was completed later in 1839. Their intention to build a line from near Basingstoke to Bristol was dropped when the Great Western Railway was approved [cite web | last = | first = | author = Christopher J. Tolley | coauthors = | year = 2004 | url = http://web.ukonline.co.uk/cj.tolley/cjt-brhl.htm | title = BRH: On the Main Line | format = | work = | publisher = | accessdate = 2008-05-22] . The L&SWR did, however plan a line to Salisbury from Basingstoke but this was delayed by financial difficulties. Eventually, it was built reaching Andover in 1854 and Salisbury three years later, before being extended to became the West of England Main Line.

The Great Western Railway built its broad gauge line from Reading in 1845 with a separate station north of the L&SWR station. After its conversion to standard gauge in 1856, through services could run between Southampton and Reading. The GWR station was demolished in 1932. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2006 | url = http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/stat_1.htm | title = Great Western Railway publicity | format = | work = | publisher = The Great Western Archive | accessdate = 2008-05-22] . Although some through services were run to Windsor, there is no evidence that they ever ran to the GWR's London terminus at Paddington.

Basingstoke station was the terminus of the Basingstoke and Alton Light Railway, opened in 1901 to prevent the GWR from building a line on this route towards Portsmouth. The line was never profitable and during the First World War which the track was sold off. After the war, Southern Railway had the line reopened, only for it to be closed finally in 1932.

In the 1980s Platform 5 was converted to a bay platform to permit an entrance on the northern side. In 1993 an explosive device planted by the Provisional Irish Republican Army was found in a toilet, soon after a bomb scare at Reading railway station [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2003 | url = http://www.btp.police.uk/History%20Society/Publications/History%20Society/The%20history/A%20Time%20Line%20for%20Policing%20the%20Railways%201980%20-%20present.htm | title = History A Time Line of Policing the Railways
format = | work = | publisher = BTP History Society| accessdate = 2008-03-13] . In 2001 a suitcase was left outside the station containing the mutilated body of a man in his twenties. He had been stabbed to death. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2003 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/dorset/2928881.stm | title = 'Body in suitcase' monk guilty
format = | work = | publisher = BBC News - www.bbc.co.uk| accessdate = 2007-10-21]

Anglia Railways ran a London Crosslink service from Ipswich to Basingstoke via Stratford and the North London Line using Class 170 'Turbostars' between May 2000 and September 2002. South West Trains also ran a local service from Reading to Brighton until timetable changes on December 9 2007. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2007 | url = http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/SWTrains/News/_newTT.htm | title = New timetable: Service changes from 9 Dec 2007 | format = | work = | public = South West Trains - www.southwesttrains.co.uk/SWTrains | accessdale = 2008-1-21] . Southern railway services from Southampton and Portsmouth to Brighton were improved to compensate for that. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2007 | url = http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=473 | title = West CoastWay - How it affects you | format = | work = | public = Southern Railway - http://www.southernrailway.com/ | accessdale = 2008-1-21]

Platforms

The station has five platforms, all of which can be used bi-directionally. They are above street level and are accessed via stairs and lifts from the booking hall and subway.

Platform 1

Platform 1 is the closest to the main entrance on the south side. It is used by terminating slow services to and from London Waterloo. Regional services to Southampton and Poole also stop here, along with westbound CrossCountry and freight services to Southampton and Bournemouth.

Platforms 2 & 3

Platform 2 shares the island platform with Platform 3. Platform 2 is used by the other mainline services to Portsmouth and Southampton from Waterloo. It is also used by trains on the West of England Main Line to Salisbury, where most trains continue further down to as far as Exeter or Plymouth. Some peak-time trains divide at Salisbury and run to Bristol Temple Meads. Coming the other way, these trains use Platform 3 and are the fastest trains to London Waterloo.

Platform 4

Some slower trains to London Waterloo use Platform 4, on the northern side of station. It is also used by northbound CrossCountry which head to Reading before reversing and continuing to Birmingham, and onwards to the north. Northbound freight trains from Southampton docks heading this way also pass through here. The rear entrance to the station is located on this platform.

Platform 5

Platform 5 is a bay platform used by stopping services to Reading on the Reading to Basingstoke line operated by First Great Western.

Facilities

The station has two entrances. The main entrance to the south has access to a taxi rank, some car parks and a bus stop, with steps down to The Malls shopping centre. A bridge over Churchill Way leads to the bus station. Festival Place can be accessed from The Malls or the bus station, while Festival Square and the Top of Town are located beyond the bus station. The northern entrance on Platform 4 gives access to a car park.The south booking hall has ticket facilities (including ticket machines), information and a small shop. The station is staffed all day, and both entrances have ticket barriers.
There is a small café on the central island platform and another on Platform 4, as well as indoor waiting rooms.

Gallery

Services

Typical off peak service patterns:

South West Trains
South Western Main Line - Eastbound
*7tph London WaterlooServices are operated by Class 159, 444, 450 units, of which:
**1tph only calls at Clapham Junction
**1tph only calls at Woking
**1tph calls at Woking and Clapham Junction
**1tph calls at Farnborough (Main) and Woking
**1tph calls at Fleet, Farnborough (Main) and Woking
**2tph stopping which start here, calling at all stations to Woking then Weybridge, Walton-on-Thames and Surbiton, then:
***1tph calls at Clapham Junction, and the other doesn't.

South Western Main Line - Westbound
*3tph Winchester (18 Minutes), of which:
**1tph Portsmouth Harbour (1hr 23min) at xx.24 and xx.54
**2tph Southampton Central (30min), of which:
***1tph Poole (1hr 30min)
***1tph Weymouth (2hr 10min) at xx.50 (an additional express to Weymouth passes through without stopping - the only service that regularly does so).Services are this route are operated by Class 444, 450 units. Some peak time additional services use 158s.

West of England Main Line
*2tph Salisbury (40 Minutes) usually at xx.07 and xx.37, of which:
**3tp2h to Gillingham (Dorset) of which:
***1tp2h to Yeovil Junction (1hr 28min)
***1tp2h to Exeter St Davids, some of which continue to Paignton and Plymouth (2hr 30min)Services on this routes are operated by Class 159 units

CrossCountry
*1tph Birmingham at xx.47 and then to either Manchester, Glasgow (via ECML) or Aberdeen (via ECML)
*1tph Bournemouth at xx.10Services on this route are operated using Class 220/221 units.

First Great Western
*2tph Reading (stopping)(23min) at xx.07 and xx.37Services on this route are operated using Class 165 units.

References

External links

* [http://web.ukonline.co.uk/cj.tolley/cjt-brhm.htm Basingstoke’s railway history in maps]