Maidstone East Line

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Maidstone East Line (Swanley to Ashford)

Legend Chatham Main Line Swanley A20 18m 60ch M25 Eynsford Tunnel 19m 36ch Lullingstone never opened Eynsford Viaduct River Darent 20m 32ch Eynsford 22m 52ch Shoreham 24m 06ch Otford 24m 53ch M26 Bat & Ball spur Bat & Ball SEML To London Sevenoaks SEMLTo Tunbridge Wells 26m 79ch Kemsing 29m 52ch Borough Green & Wrotham 34m 61ch West Malling 35m 64ch East Malling 37m 43ch Barming Medway Valley Line River Medway 39m 76ch Maidstone East Wheeler Street Tunnel  358 yds 42m 59ch Bearsted M20 High Speed 1 45m 02ch Hollingbourne 47m 36ch Harrietsham 49m 11ch Lenham 53m 11ch Charing M20 55m 61ch Hothfield closed ? LCDR Ashford closed ? High Speed 1 and SEML 59m 19ch Ashford International Ashford to Ramsgate (via Canterbury West) line, High Speed 1, SEML and Marshlink Line

Swanley to Ashford (via Maidstone East) Line, shown with other railway lines in Kent.

The 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 off the Sevenoaks line (via Bat and Ball) at Otford. It continues via Borough Green & Wrotham to Maidstone East, which leads onto Ashford and on to east Kent. The line is double track throughout.

The line was electrified using the third rail system in 1939.

[edit] Services

Services on the Line are run by Southeastern. Services run to primarily London Victoria, with some peak services to London Blackfriars. Hourly fast off-peak services run to Cannon Street, with a few terminating at Charing Cross instead. During the daytime off-peak, the slowest trains from London Victoria terminate at Maidstone East, in the bay platform (Platform 3). All other services continue at least as far as Ashford International, with some (mainly in the mornings) running beyond Ashford to Canterbury West, Margate or Ramsgate on the Ashford to Ramsgate (via Canterbury West) line.

Due to its place between the two main lines through Kent, comparatively the line had infrequent services and longer journey times.

The map has been produced using data from Trackmaps^[1].

[edit] History

The line was built by the London, Chatham and Dover Railway from their first line (the Chatham Main Line). Upon the creation of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway the original Ashford terminus was demolished and the line extended to the South Eastern Railway's Ashford station. The line was electrified (750v DC third rail) to Maidstone East by the Southern Railway prior to World War Two. Electrification was completed under the 1955 BR Modernisation Plan.

[edit] References