Yalding railway station explained

Yalding
Symbol Location:gb
Symbol:rail
Borough:Yalding, Maidstone
Country:England
Coordinates:51.226°N 0.412°W
Grid Name:Grid reference
Manager:Southeastern
Platforms:2
Code:YAL
Classification:DfT category F1
Original:South Eastern Railway
Postgroup:Southern Railway
Opened:25 September 1844
Footnotes:Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Yalding railway station is on the Medway Valley Line in Kent, England, serving the village of Yalding. It is 38chain19chain down the line from London Charing Cross via and is situated between and . The station and all trains that call are operated by Southeastern.

History

The station opened on 25 September 1844 when the South Eastern Railway opened the line between and . The line was originally single track but was doubled in 1846.[1] In 1897 there were two platforms joined by a footbridge, a signal box and sidings both sides of the running lines.[2] The goods yard was able to accommodate most types of goods including live stock and was equipped with a 1¼ ton crane.[3] A camping coach was positioned here by the Southern Region from 1962 to 1967, from 1963 onwards it was a Pullman camping coach.[4]

Facilities

Yalding station is unstaffed. The station is fitted with a self-service ticket machine as well as modern help points on the platforms. Seated areas are available on both platforms and train information screens are provided for running information. The station has a small free car park located outside the station as well as a small cycle storage area. There is a level crossing on the road outside the ststion.[5]

The station used to have an APTIS-equipped ticket office (on the southbound platform) but this closed in 1989 and the building was then used for commercial purposes but has recently become disused.

No regular buses stop outside the station although Arriva Southern Counties routes 6 & 6X to Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells (including both Tunbridge Wells Hospital and Maidstone Hospital) stop a short walk away on Maidstone Road in Nettlestead Green.[6] [7]

Services

All services at Yalding are operated by Southeastern using EMUs.

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

A small number of morning, mid afternoon and late evening trains continue beyond Paddock Wood to .

On Sundays, the service is reduced to hourly in each direction.

Notes and References

  1. Book: White, H. P. . 1992 . 5th . A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain . 2 Southern England . Nairn, Scotland . David St John Thomas . 0-946537-77-1. 65.
  2. Web site: Yalding station on OS 25 inch map Kent LI.4 (Nettlestead; Yalding) . 1897 . National Library of Scotland . 16 July 2020.
  3. Book: The Railway Clearing House . 1904 . 1970 . 1970 D&C Reprint . The Railway Clearing House Handbook of Railway Stations 1904 . Newton Abbot . David & Charles Reprints . 0-7153-5120-6 . 597.
  4. Book: McRae, Andrew . British Railways Camping Coach Holidays: A Tour of Britain in the 1950s and 1960s . Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part Two) . Foxline . 1998 . 1-870119-53-3. 59.
  5. Web site: Yalding Station Information. Southeastern, June 2020.
  6. Web site: Routes 6/6A: Tunbridge Wells to East Peckham and Maidstone. Arriva Southern Counties, June 2020.
  7. Web site: Route 6X: Tunbridge Wells Hospital to Maidstone Hospital. Arriva Southern Counties, June 2020.