Watford West railway station

Watford West
The remains of the station in May 2014.
Watford West Location of Watford West in Hertfordshire
Location	Watford
Local authority	Watford
Grid reference	TQ098955
Railway companies
Original company	London and North Western Railway
Pre-grouping	London and North Western Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
15 June 1912	Station opened
22 March 1996	Services ceased
6 November 2002	Official closure
Other information
Lists of stations	DLR Underground National Rail Tramlink
WGS84	51°38′55″N 0°24′51″W / 51.6485°N 0.4143°WCoordinates: 51°38′55″N 0°24′51″W / 51.6485°N 0.4143°W
London Transport portal UK Railways portal

Watford West is a disused railway station in Watford, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom on the branch line from Watford Junction to Croxley Green, last operated in 1996.

History

The station opened in 1912 and was temporarily closed in 1996 before being permanently closed on 6 November 2002.^[1] Facilities at the station had been downgraded in the years prior to closure. At first the station was temporarily closed so the remaining station furniture, including the lampposts, drivers mirrors and the station and street-level signage, was left in situ^[2][3][4] although by the time clearance work began at the site in preparation for the building of the Croxley Rail Link, both mirrors had collapsed and almost all of the station-level signage had disappeared.

In 2004–05, several years after the station was mothballed, ten passengers purchased tickets for travel to the station,^[5] placing it higher than Gainsborough Central.

Future

The track will be re-opened as part of the Metropolitan line Croxley Rail Link, approved by the Government on 14 December 2011.^[6] It is not planned to re-open Watford West because a new station, Watford Vicarage Road, will be built on Vicarage Road. The electrical substation required for the new line will be built on land adjacent to Tolpits Lane to the south of Watford West. The platform on the north side will be demolished.^[7]

• 
  The station in 1985
• 
  The overgrown remains of the station in 2008.
• 
  Clearance work at the site of the station in 2014. Being carried out in preparation for the Croxley Link.

References

1. The decision to accept the Closure Notice published by the Strategic Rail Authority (dated 23 March 2001) was given in a letter from the then Minister of State for Transport, John Spellar, to the Chief Executive of Network Rail, John Armitt.
2. Pictures of Watford West station
3. Pictures of Watford West station taken in 2008
4. Disused stations - Watford West
5. "Estimates of station usage". Office of Rail Regulation. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
6. "Croxley Rail Link plan approved by Government". The Watford Observer. Retrieved 2011-12-13.
7. "Major Scheme Business Case - Main Report" (PDF).

External links

• Picture of Watford West station in June 1985 and of the line shortly after closure
• Footage of Watford West station filmed in 1990
• Pictures of the Croxley Green branch in its disused state (including Watford West)
• Pictures of Watford West station when open and in the years after abandonment
• Pictures of the Croxley line, including Watford West station, taken in 2009
• Croxley Rail Link - official website
• TfL - Croxley Rail Link

Preceding station	Disused railways			Following station
Croxley Green Line and station closed		Network SouthEast Croxley Green Branch		Watford Stadium Line and station closed