Preston Park
National Rail
Preston Park in 2006
General information
LocationPreston Village, City of Brighton and Hove
England
Grid referenceTQ299067
Managed bySouthern
Platforms3
Other information
Station codePRP
ClassificationDfT category D
Key dates
1 November 1869Opened (Preston)
1 July 1879Renamed (Preston Park)
Passengers
2018/19Increase 0.545 million
2019/20Increase 0.673 million
2020/21Decrease 0.222 million
2021/22Increase 0.674 million
2022/23Increase 0.844 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road
RCTS railtour in 1962.

Preston Park railway station is on the Brighton Main Line in England, serving Preston Village and the northern suburban areas of the city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex. It is 49 miles 21 chains (79.3 km) from London Bridge via Redhill, between Hassocks and Brighton.

The station is managed by Southern, which is one of three companies that serve the station, alongside Thameslink and Gatwick Express. Gatwick Express provides a limited number of services at peak times only.

There are also two spur tracks which run south from Preston Park through Prestonville Tunnel to Hove.

History

The London Brighton and South Coast Railway opened a new station named Preston, on 1 November 1869 to serve the growing parish of Preston, then north of the Brighton boundary. The station was enlarged and remodelled to its present design in 1879 during the construction of the Cliftonville Curve spur line from the main line to Hove and the West Sussex coast line.[1] The station was then renamed Preston Park although the nearby Preston Park did not exist until 1883.

In 1881 the railway murderer Percy Lefroy Mapleton alighted at the station after having killed Isaac Frederick Gold and dumped his body in Balcombe tunnel.

Facilities

The station has a pair of island platforms, linked by a subway; only three platform faces are now in operation. The three tracks through the station reduce to two before traversing Patcham Tunnel, almost two miles (3.2 km) further north.

Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club's former home, Withdean Stadium is located a short walk from the station, and for this reason, during its tenancy of the stadium, the club offered free travel vouchers with its match tickets — allowing fans to travel from Brighton to Preston Park without there being an apparent surcharge of the train fare.

Services

Off-peak, services at Preston Park are operated by Southern and Thameslink using Class 377 and 700 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[2]

During peak hours, there are also a number of peak hour Thameslink services to Cambridge, as well one southern train per day in each direction between Littlehampton and London Bridge.

In addition, the station is served by a number of peak hour Gatwick Express services which usually pass through Preston Park. These services run non-stop from Gatwick Airport to London Victoria and are operated using Class 387 EMUs.

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Thameslink
Gatwick Express
Peak Hours Only
Southern

See also

References

  1. ↑ Turner, John Howard (1979). The London Brighton and South Coast Railway 3 Completion and Maturity. Batsford. pp. 105–7. ISBN 0-7134-1389-1.
  2. ↑ Table 184, 188 National Rail timetable, May 2022
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