The London-Ashford-Dover Line is one of two long-distance routes serving the coast of Kent, England; the other being the Chatham Main Line, which runs along the north Kent coast to Ramsgate and Dover via Canterbury East. The Chatham Main Line is the British railway line that runs from London Victoria to Dover Priory or Ramsgate via the Medway Towns (of which Chatham is one, hence the name) and Bromley). ... The Kent Coast Line runs from Faversham, where it meets the Chatham Main Line, to Dover Priory via Ramsgate. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... The Chatham Main Line is the British railway line that runs from London Victoria to Dover Priory or Ramsgate via the Medway Towns (of which Chatham is one, hence the name) and Bromley). ... Ramsgate railway station serves the town of Ramsgate in Thanet in Kent. ... Dover Priory railway station is the main (and currently only) station in Dover in Kent. ... Canterbury East railway station is one of two stations in Canterbury in Kent. ...

Services

Services on this line take the inland route via Sevenoaks, Tonbridge and Ashford to reach Dover. Sevenoaks railway station serves the town of Sevenoaks in Kent. ... Tonbridge railway station serves the town of Tonbridge in Kent. ... Ashford International railway station serves Ashford in Kent. ... Dover Priory railway station is the main (and currently only) station in Dover in Kent. ...

The Ashford via Maidstone East Line diverges from the Chatham Main Line at Swanley Junction and joins the "London to Ashford to Dover Line" at Ashford. The Ashford via Maidstone East Line diverges from the Chatham Main Line at Swanley Junction (after Swanley), proceeds down the Darenth valley (via a Tunnel to Eynsford) where the line diverges to Sevenoaks (via Bat and Ball) and Maidstone East which leads onto Ashford. ... The Chatham Main Line is the British railway line that runs from London Victoria to Dover Priory or Ramsgate via the Medway Towns (of which Chatham is one, hence the name) and Bromley). ... Swanley railway station is on the Chatham Main Line, and serves the town of Swanley in north Kent. ...

Trains on the routes are run by Southeastern. Southeastern is a train operating company that began operations in south-east England on 1 April 2006, replacing the former publicly-owned operator South Eastern Trains. ...

Services start from Charing Cross or Cannon Street. Other trains run via the Ashford via Maidstone East Line). Charing Cross Charing Cross railway station is a central London railway terminus. ... Cannon Street is a National Rail and London Underground station in the City of London financial district of London, England. ... The Ashford via Maidstone East Line diverges from the Chatham Main Line at Swanley Junction (after Swanley), proceeds down the Darenth valley (via a Tunnel to Eynsford) where the line diverges to Sevenoaks (via Bat and Ball) and Maidstone East which leads onto Ashford. ...

History

The line was built by the South Eastern Railway (SER), who were in competition with the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR), hence the duplication of stations in Kent. The London and Greenwich Railway (LGR) and the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway (CWR) in East Kent were the earliest railways to serve the then county of Kent: eventually both became parts of the South Eastern Railway (SER). ... Crest of the LCDR on the first Blackfriars Railway Bridge The London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) was a railway company that operated in south-eastern England between 1859 and 1923 before grouping with three other companies to form the Southern Railway. ...

The original main line was given sanction by Act of Parliament in 1836, running from London Bridge via Croydon East and Redhill (the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway's Brighton Main Line), Tonbridge, and Ashford to Folkestone and Dover. This circuitous route was the result of insistence on the part of Parliament that only one southerly route out of the capital was necessary; forcing the SER to share the LB&SCR's Brighton Main Line. This completely ignored the fact that the main London - Dover road had, since ancient times, followed a much more direct route; and it ignored the fact that the other great railway building projects did take direct routes whenever feasible. A passenger to Dover had a 20-mile longer journey than by the coaching route! In Westminster System parliaments, an Act of Parliament is a part of the law passed by the Parliament. ... London Bridge station is a National Rail and London Underground station in the London Borough of Southwark, which occupies a large area on two levels, immediately south-east of London Bridge and 1. ... East Croydon station is a railway station and tram stop in Croydon. ... The station entrance Redhill railway station serves the town of Redhill, Surrey, England. ... The LB&SCRs coat of arms, displayed above the entrance to Gipsy Hill railway station. ... The Brighton Main Line is the railway line from London Victoria and London Bridge to Brighton. ... Tonbridge railway station serves the town of Tonbridge in Kent. ... Ashford International railway station serves Ashford in Kent. ... Folkestone Central railway station is the more central of the two stations in Folkestone in Kent. ... Dover Priory railway station is the main (and currently only) station in Dover in Kent. ... The Houses of Parliament, seen over Westminster Bridge The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. ... A stagecoach is a type of four-wheeled enclosed passenger and/or mail coach, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, widely used before the introduction of railway transport. ...

The main line reached Ashford on December 1, 1842; the outskirts of Folkestone by June 28, 1843; and Dover by February 7, 1844. Their locomotive works was built in 1845 moving from New Cross in London. Ashford is a town spanning the confluence of the River Upper Great Stour, River East Stour, Aylesford Stream, Whitewater Dyke, Ruckinge Dyke and the resulting River Great Stour, in the borough of Ashford, located just south of the North Downs, in Kent, United Kingdom. ... December 1 is the 335th (in leap years the 336th) day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Folkestone Harbour, picture taken from the golf court Folkestone (pronounced fōkstun) is a coastal resort town in the Shepway district of Kent, England. ... June 28 is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 186 days remaining. ... 1843 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Arms of Dover Borough Council This article is about the English port town. ... February 7 is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1844 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Ashford railway works was in the town of Ashford in the county of Kent in England. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

Due to competition with the LCDR (who had constructed the quicker Chatham Main Line and Ashford via Maidstone East Line (to Sevenoaks, Canterbury, Dover, Ramsgate, Ashford and Maidstone), the SER built a very expensive line via Sevenoaks and Orpington through the North Downs by means of summits and then long tunnels at both Knockholt and Sevenoaks. This "cut-off" line, 24 miles in length, reached Chislehurst on July 1, 1865, but took three more years to reach Orpington and Sevenoaks (opening date March 2, 1868) and Tonbridge (May 1, 1868). The Chatham Main Line is the British railway line that runs from London Victoria to Dover Priory or Ramsgate via the Medway Towns (of which Chatham is one, hence the name) and Bromley). ... The Ashford via Maidstone East Line diverges from the Chatham Main Line at Swanley Junction (after Swanley), proceeds down the Darenth valley (via a Tunnel to Eynsford) where the line diverges to Sevenoaks (via Bat and Ball) and Maidstone East which leads onto Ashford. ... Sevenoaks railway station serves the town of Sevenoaks in Kent. ... Orpington railway station serves the town of Orpington in the London Borough of Bromley, and is in Travelcard Zone 6. ... The North Downs in England are a ridge of chalk hills that stretch about 100 mi (160 km) from Hampshire through Surrey and Kent. ... Knockholt railway station is in the London Borough of Bromley, in Travelcard Zone 6. ... Chislehurst railway station is in the London Borough of Bromley in south London. ... July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 183 days remaining. ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... March 2 is the 61st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (62nd in leap years). ... 1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ... 1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ...

When the SER and LCDR merged in 1899 to form the South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SECR) the stations and track layout at Ashford and Dover were rationalised. Coat of Arms. ...

The line was electrified (750v DC third rail) to Sevenoaks by Southern prior World War Two. Post war under the 1955 BR Modernisation plan, electrification was completed. 40% (3,062 miles / 4,928 km) of the British rail network is electrified and 60% of all rail journeys are by electric traction (both by locomotives and Multiple Units). ... The Southern Railway in the United Kingdom was geographically the smallest of the four railway systems created in the Grouping ordered by the Railways Act 1921. ... Logo of British Rail British Railways (BR), later rebranded as British Rail, ran the British railway system from the nationalisation of the Big Four British railway companies in 1948 until its privatisation in stages between 1994 and 1997. ...

The Channel Tunnel Rail Link run in parallel to the line from Ashford to where it diverges at Cheriton. CTRL redirects here. ...

External link

• SET timetables (map of line via PDF)