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Rochester railway station

Coordinates: 51°23′21″N 0°30′25″E / 51.38904°N 0.50689°E / 51.38904; 0.50689
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Rochester
National Rail
Rochester station building opened on 13 December 2015
General information
LocationRochester, Borough of Medway
England
Coordinates51°23′21″N 0°30′25″E / 51.38904°N 0.50689°E / 51.38904; 0.50689
Grid referenceTQ745684
Managed bySoutheastern
Platforms3
Other information
Station codeRTR
ClassificationDfT category D
Key dates
1 March 1892Opened
13 December 2015Resited
Passengers
2018/19Increase 2.057 million
 Interchange Increase 30,417
2019/20Increase 2.122 million
 Interchange Increase 33,003
2020/21Decrease 0.585 million
 Interchange Decrease 10,336
2021/22Increase 1.458 million
 Interchange Increase 22,799
2022/23Increase 1.784 million
 Interchange Increase 55,711
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Rochester railway station is on the Chatham Main Line in England, serving the town of Rochester, Kent. It is 33 miles 61 chains (54.3 km) down the line from London Victoria and is situated between Sole Street and Chatham.

The station and most trains that call are operated by Southeastern and Thameslink, including a handful of peak services to and from Bedford operated by the latter.

In December 2015 a new station on Corporation Street opened 500 metres (1,600 ft) to the west of the original station which it replaced. It is now closer to the town centre and its historic buildings.

Original station

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The first station opened as part of the East Kent Railway in 1892. It was set back some distance from the High Street to the east of the busy junction at Star Hill, and access to the platforms was via tunnels from the ticket office. The station buildings and platforms were taken out of use in December 2015.

New station

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In 2013, Medway Council approved plans submitted by Network Rail to construct a new station for a cost of £26m. On 16 January 2014 Gallagher Ltd cast the reinforced concrete base slab for a new subway for the station with construction continuing into 2015.[1][2] According to the billboards adjoining the station site, the 900-tonne (890-long-ton; 990-short-ton) concrete subway was to be the first part of the project to be completed; this took place over Easter 2015.[3] Office of Rail Regulation confirmation of the closure of the old station were exhibited at Charing Cross station and elsewhere in October 2015.[4]

The new station was opened for passenger use on 13 December 2015 with its official opening by the Duke of Kent on 24 February 2016.[5][6]

Layout

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Platform 1 serves trains towards Strood, Gravesend, Ebbsfleet International, Dartford, Meopham, Bromley South into London.

Platform 2 serves trains towards Gillingham, Faversham, Margate, Ramsgate, Canterbury East, Dover Priory, and Ashford International via Sandwich and Deal.

Platform 3 has now opened up at a through platform, service trains towards Gillingham, Faversham, Ashford International and the Kent Coast. Trains can also terminate here before heading back towards London. As the through line runs all the way through Platform 4 of the old Rochester station, it can be used to hold long freight services to allow passenger services to pass, removing a bottleneck.

Services

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Medway Towns
Halling
Cuxton
Strood
Rochester Bridge | Strood (1st)
Goods station
Rochester Common
Rochester
(2015–)
Rochester
(1892–2015)
Chatham Central
Chatham
Gillingham
Rainham

Services at Rochester are operated by Southeastern and Thameslink using Class 375, 395, 465, 466 and 700 EMUs.

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[7]

Additional services, including trains to and from London Charing Cross via Sidcup, and fast trains to and from London Cannon Street call at the station during the peak hours.

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Sole Street
or
Meopham
  Southeastern
  Chatham
Southeastern
Thameslink
Southeastern
Peak Hours Only
Southeastern
Peak Hours only
Disused railways
Rochester Bridge
Line and station closed
  London, Chatham and Dover Railway
  Chatham
Line and station open

References

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  1. ^ "Reinforced concrete base slab cast at new Rochester Station". gallagher-group.co.uk. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  2. ^ "Rochester railway station taking shape as transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin given tour". Kent Online. 8 April 2013. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  3. ^ "Rochester's new station on the way". networkrail.co.uk. 14 April 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  4. ^ "Consultation outcome, Rochester railway station: closure". gov.uk. 5 February 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  5. ^ "Rochester's £26m railway station opens to trains". BBC News. 13 December 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  6. ^ "HRH The Duke of Kent officially opens Rochester station". Network Rail. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  7. ^ Table 194, 200, 201, 212 National Rail timetable, December 2023
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