Purley Oaks railway station

Purley Oaks
Purley Oaks
Location	Sanderstead
Local authority	London Borough of Croydon
Managed by	Southern
Station code(s)	PUO
Number of platforms	4 (2 in use)
Fare zone	6
National Rail annual entry and exit
2004–05	0.411 million
2005–06	0.401 million
2006–07	0.603 million
2007–08	0.645 million
2008–09	0.556 million
Key dates
5 November 1899	Opened
Other information
External links	Departures; Facilities;
	London transport portal

Purley Oaks railway station is in the London Borough of Croydon in south London. The station is on the Brighton Main Line between Croydon and Redhill. All trains serving it are operated by Southern and it is in London Travelcard Zone 6. The station comprises four platform faces, that on the west side completely unused (up fast line), and an island platform whose western face is unused (down fast) and whose eastern face is used by up stopping trains. The layout is completed by a platform on the eastern side served by down trains.

The ticket office (staffed for part of the day) is on the Island platform with a self-service passenger-operated ticket machine located in the subway which runs beneath the station. No self-service PERTIS (PERMIT TO TRAVEL) passenger-operated coin-in-the-slot ticket machine is available.

The illustration shown to the right of this text shows the station as viewed from the west. The staircase shown to the right of the entrance is currently unused and leads to the northbound fast line platform.

A short walk away from Purley Oaks Station, is Sanderstead railway station, also in Zone 6, with northbound services to London Victoria station and London Bridge and southbound services to East Grinstead and Uckfield (change at Oxted).

History

The present station was opened by the London Brighton and South Coast Railway on 5 November 1899. It was built as part of the improvements to the main line and the opening of the Quarry Line.

Until 1983, semi-fast trains to London Victoria from Coulsdon North stopped on Platform 1 (calling at South and East Croydon, Clapham Junction and Victoria), with returning trains stopping at Platform 2 (calling at Purley and Coulsdon North). Semi-fast trains to London Bridge and Charing Cross from Caterham/Tattenham Corner stopped at Platform 3 (calling at South and East Croydon, New Cross Gate, London Bridge, Waterloo East and Charing Cross), returning trains stopping at Platform 4 (the train divided at Purley, with the front portion stopping at all stations to Caterham, and the rear portion stopping at all stations to Tattenham Corner). Coulsdon North closed in 1983, and Platform 1 at Purley Oaks was gutted by fire in 1989; Croydon Model Railway Society's clubrooms on Platform 1 were destroyed in the blaze.