LSWR Secondary Routes

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The London and South Western Railway inherited a series of secondary, cross-country routes that connected with the main line at various points. These were frequently utilised as diversionary routes during periods of engineering work, and also provided an extra flow of traffic to the main line, creating an extra commuter network to the various settlements on the line.

[edit] Reading and Portsmouth lines

In addition to the original main line, the L&SWR had the following routes:

• Waterloo to Wokingham (for Reading):
  • Richmond Railway opened from Clapham Junction to Richmond on 27 July 1846
  • Windsor, Staines & South Western Railway opened from Richmond via Staines to Datchet on 22 August 1848; to Windsor on 1 December 1849
  • Staines — Ascot opened on 4 June 1856
  • Ascot — Wokingham opened on 4 July 1856
  • from here to Reading the line was South Eastern Railway property

There were also many suburban lines in this area, including the Hounslow loop line; the Twickenham/Kingston upon Thames/Shepperton routes; and the Raynes Park to Epsom and Chessington South.

• Woking to Havant (for Portsmouth) via Guildford - The Portsmouth Direct Line
  • Guildford Junction Railway opened on 5 May 1845
  • Guildford — Godalming opened on 15 October 1849
  • Godalming — Havant opened on 1 January 1859
  • Bisley Camp branch (for rifle range) closed in 1952

• The Alton line
  • Brookwood — Farnham via Aldershot — Alton opened on 2 May 1870
  • Alton to Fareham (the Meon Valley Railway)opened in 1903
  • Here was the Brookwood Necropolis Cemetery line
  • Alton to Winchester line.
  • The L&SWR in association with the War Department built the Bentley and Bordon Light Railway to Bordon Camp, which connected with the Longmoor Military Railway. Both closed early in mid 20th century.
• Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth
  • Southampton & Dorchester Railway line opened (via Brockenhurst and Ringwood) on 1 June 1847
  • Ringwood — Christchurch opened on 13 November 1862
  • Brockenhurst — Bournemouth East opened on 14 March 1870
  • Poole — Bourneworth West station opened on 18 June 1874: link to Bournemouth Central completed on 20 July 1885

There is also the Lymington branch, opened by the Lymington Railway on 12 July 1858. See Lymington Flyer