Whitstable railway station

Whitstable railway station is on the Ramsgate branch of the Chatham Main Line in England, serving the town of Whitstable, Kent. It is 59 miles 6 chains (95.1 km) down the line from London Victoria and is situated between Faversham and Chestfield & Swalecliffe.

Whitstable
Location	Whitstable, City of Canterbury England
Grid reference	TR112664
Managed by	Southeastern
Platforms	2
Other information
Station code	WHI
Classification	DfT category D
History
Original company	London, Chatham and Dover Railway
Pre-grouping	South Eastern and Chatham Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
Key dates
1 August 1860	first station opened
1 January 1915	Resited and present station opened as Whitstable Town and Tankerton
1 February 1936	Renamed Whitstable and Tankerton
1979	Renamed Whitstable
Passengers
2015/16	0.829 million
2016/17	0.845 million
2017/18	0.886 million
2018/19	0.956 million
2019/20	0.942 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

The station and all trains that call are operated by Southeastern.

History

Whitstable has been served by five different stations on two different routes. The route between Faversham and Whitstable was opened by the Margate Railway on 1 August 1860, and was extended to Herne Bay on 13 July 1861.[1] The first station on that line to serve Whitstable was in Oxford Street, and had latterly been known as Whitstable Town; it closed after the last train on 31 December 1914.

The following day, a new station was opened 705 yards (645 m) to the east; this was named Whitstable Town & Tankerton. This was renamed Whitstable & Tankerton on 1 February 1936, and Whitstable in 1979.[2]

Whitstable station in 2006.

Facilities

The station has a ticket office which is staffed throughout the day Monday-Saturday and during Sunday mornings and early afternoons. The station also has a self-service ticket machine for ticket purchases for when the ticket office is closed.

The station has passenger help points located on both platforms as well as toilets and a waiting room which are open when the station is staffed. There is a chargeable car park (operated by Saba Parking) as well as cycle racks located at the entrance to the station. There is also a taxi rank at the station.[3][4]

The station has step-free access available to both platforms from the street although the platforms are linked via a stepped footbridge meaning step-free access is not possible between the platforms.

Bus Connections

The station is served by the Stagecoach South East routes 4 and 5 which provide connections to Whitstable Town Centre, Chestfield and Canterbury.

The Stagecoach operated Triangle service between Canterbury and Herne Bay can be caught from Whitstable Town Centre which is a short walk from the railway station.[5]

Services

All services at Whitstable are operated by Southeastern using Class 375 and Class 395 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[6]

• 1 tph to London St Pancras International via Gravesend (High Speed)
• 1 tph to London Victoria via Bromley South (Main Line)
• 1 tph to Ramsgate, continuing to London St Pancras International via Dover Priory and Ashford International (High Speed)
• 1 tph to Ramsgate (Main Line)

See also

• Whitstable Harbour railway station

References

1. Dendy Marshall, C.F.; Kidner, R.W. (1963) [1937]. History of the Southern Railway (2nd ed.). Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 330. ISBN 0-7110-0059-X.
2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 249. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
3. "Whitstable Station Car Parking". Saba Parking, September 2020.
4. "Whitstable Station Information". Southeastern, September 2020.
5. "The Triangle - Bus Times". Stagecoach South East, September 2020.
6. "Timetable 2: London to Medway Towns, Dover and Ramsgate" (PDF). Southeastern, September 2020.

External links

• Train times and station information for Whitstable railway station from National Rail