Sandilands Tunnel

Sandilands Tunnel is an ex-railway, brick arch tunnel in south London, currently serving the Croydon Tramway, which cuts through the Addington Hills and serves as a key section of the Tramlink route connecting central Croydon from East Croydon Station to New Addington tram stop, Elmers End station and Beckenham Junction station.

A tram exiting Sandilands Tunnel

Location

Sandilands Tunnel is located a short distance from Sandilands tram stop in the London Borough of Croydon and is the collective name for three contiguous ex-railway tunnels, routed under the Addington Hills. The three tunnels consist of the Radcliffe Road (Woodside) tunnel which is 243 metres long (266 yards), Park Hill tunnel which is 112 metres long (122 yards) and Coombe Lane tunnel which is 144 metres long (157 yards).[1][2] The three tunnels are the only tunnels on the Croydon Tramway Network and can be found at Park Hill Tunnel (Croydon) OS Grid Ref TQ337651 (South portal) & TQ340656 (North portal)

History

Sandilands Tunnel is of brick arch construction and was the main engineering feature The Woodside and South Croydon Joint Railway which opened on 19 August 1885, operating from the South Eastern Railway's Mid-Kent line at Woodside, to a junction with the Croydon & Oxted Joint (LB&SCR & SER) line which had opened on the 10th March 1884.[3] Park Hill Tunnel, which is the middle tunnel of the three, linking Woodside tunnel and Coombe Road tunnel, was constructed in the early part of the 20th century as a cut and cover tunnel to manage slipping issues with the previous cutting.[4]

References
  1. "Sandilands Railway tunnel lengths". Railway Codes. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
  2. Wrottesley, John. (1979) The Great Northern Railway: Volume I origins and development. London: Batsford. p. 52. ISBN 9780713415902
  3. "Site Name: Park Hill Tunnel (Croydon)". Subterranea Britannica. 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  4. "Croydon Tramlink – New Addington Branch". croydon-tramlink.co.uk. 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.

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