West Drayton Elizabeth line
Station entrance seen in May 2022
West Drayton is located in Greater London
West Drayton
West Drayton
Location of West Drayton in Greater London
LocationYiewsley
Local authorityLondon Borough of Hillingdon
Managed byElizabeth line
OwnerNetwork Rail
Station codeWDT
DfT categoryE
Number of platforms4
Fare zone6
National Rail annual entry and exit
2018–19Increase 2.197 million[1]
2019–20Increase 2.380 million[1]
2020–21Decrease 0.712 million[1]
2021–22Increase 1.731 million[1]
2022–23Increase 2.262 million[1]
Key dates
4 June 1838Original station opened as West Drayton
9 August 1884Station re-sited
1895Renamed West Drayton and Yiewsley
6 May 1974Renamed West Drayton
Other information
External links
WGS8451°30′35.79″N 0°28′20.15″W / 51.5099417°N 0.4722639°W / 51.5099417; -0.4722639
 London transport portal

West Drayton railway station serves West Drayton and Yiewsley, western suburbs of London. It is served and managed by the Elizabeth line. It is 13 miles 71 chains (22.3 km) down the line from London Paddington and is situated between Hayes & Harlington to the east and Iver to the west.

History

West Drayton station is on the original line of the Great Western Railway, and was opened on 4 June 1838 at the same time as the line.[2][3] However the original station was located slightly to the west of the current station, and was relocated to its current position from 9 August 1884 when the Staines and West Drayton Railway branch line to Staines was opened.[3][4] From 1 March 1883, the station was served by District Railway services running between Mansion House and Windsor. The service was discontinued as uneconomic after 30 September 1885.[5][6]

Uxbridge (Vine Street) Branch Line
 Uxbridge Vine Street
1856–1962
 Cowley
1904–1962
Grand Junction Canal
West Drayton
Great Western Main Line
Left arrow Reading │ Paddington Right arrow
Staines & West Drayton Railway

West Drayton was the junction station for both the Staines branch, and an earlier branch to Uxbridge Vine Street that opened on 8 September 1856.[7] The Uxbridge branch line closed to passengers on 10 September 1962, but the line south of the Grand Union Canal was retained for freight traffic until 8 January 1979.[7] The Staines branch closed to passengers on 29 March 1965, but freight trains still run from West Drayton serving the aviation fuel terminal for Heathrow Airport at Colnbrook and aggregates depots at Thorney and Colnbrook.[7]

From 1895 the station was named West Drayton and Yiewsley; it reverted to the original name West Drayton on 6 May 1974.[3]

In preparation for the introduction of Elizabeth line services, the operation of the station was transferred from Great Western Railway to MTR Crossrail on behalf of Transport for London at the end of 2017.

Description

West Drayton station is situated on Station Approach in Yiewsley. It is north of the centre of West Drayton and immediately to the south of the Grand Union Canal, in the London Borough of Hillingdon.

The station has five platforms. Platform 1 down main line (away from London), platform 2 is the up main line (towards London), platform 3 is the down relief line, platform 4 is the up relief line. A fifth platform on the up goods line is not used for passenger services. This is used for freight services to access the branch line to Colnbrook and also to wait to continue on the up relief line. The platforms on the main lines see little use, other than when the relief lines are closed for maintenance. Access between the platforms is via steps and a pedestrian underpass.

Crossrail and the Elizabeth line

The station received major improvements through the Crossrail construction project in preparation for Elizabeth line services which commenced in May 2022. A new glass and steel extension was built together with a redeveloped main ticket office and new platform canopies. The platforms were extended to be greater than 200m long, accessed by a new over platform footbridge with four lifts.[8]

Services

Off-peak, all services at West Drayton are operated by the Elizabeth line using Class 345 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[9][10]

Additional services call at the station during the peak hours, increasing the service to up to 6 tph in each direction.

The station is also served by a small number of early morning and late evening Great Western Railway services between London Paddington and Reading.

Preceding station   Elizabeth line   Following station
Iver
towards Reading
   Elizabeth line   Hayes & Harlington
towards Abbey Wood
National Rail National Rail
Great Western Railway
Limited Service
  Historical services  
Preceding station   London Underground   Following station
Langley
towards Windsor
   District line   Hayes & Harlington
Disused railways
Line and station closed
Great Western RailwayTerminus
Line and station closed
Great Western Railway
Line and station open

Connections

London Buses routes 222, 350, 698, U1, U3 and U5 serve the station.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Estimates of station usage". Rail statistics. Office of Rail Regulation. Please note: Some methodology may vary year on year.
  2. ↑ MacDermot, E T (1927). History of the Great Western Railway. Vol. 1 (1833–1863) (1 ed.). London: Great Western Railway.
  3. 1 2 3 Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 245. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  4. ↑ Aerofilms (2006). London's Railways from the Air. Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-3144-4.
  5. ↑ Rose, Douglas (December 2007) [1980]. The London Underground: A Diagrammatic History (8th ed.). Harrow Weald: Capital Transport. ISBN 978-1-85414-315-0.
  6. ↑ Day, John R.; Reed, John (2008) [1963]. The Story of London's Underground (10th ed.). Harrow: Capital Transport. p. 26. ISBN 978-1-85414-316-7.
  7. 1 2 3 Nick Catford. "Disused Stations Site Record - West Drayton". www.disused-stations.org.uk. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  8. ↑ Crossrail. "West Drayton Station". www.crossrail.co.uk. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  9. ↑ Table 117 National Rail timetable, May 2023
  10. ↑ "Elizabeth line timetable: May 2023" (PDF). Transport for London. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
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