![[NWR] Edenbrige station](https://www.railadvent.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/NWR-Edenbrige-station-860x1012.jpg)
Network Rail has announced that it has completed a £500,000 upgrade at Edenbridge station to improve safety for passengers in Kent.
A new platform surface has been installed, reducing the step for passengers while providing increased safety for all users.
In addition to the resurfacing work, track maintenance machines have updated the railway track, keeping it smooth and correctly aligned.
The refurbishment was completed earlier than projected and without any major disruption to passengers.
Located on Albion Way towards the north of the town, Edenbridge Station is on the route from London Bridge to Tonbridge via Croydon.
What did the officials say?
Ian Hanson, Stations Director for Network Rail, said:
“At Network Rail, keeping people safe on and around the railway is at the heart of everything we do.
“We're continually working on a programme of upgrades that will make stations safer and this is a great example of how we are investing to meet the needs of local communities.”
Patrick Clements, Head of Safety & Environment (Infrastructure & Facilities) at Govia Thameslink Railway said:
“We very much welcome this investment in passenger safety. It reduces the risk of tripping when boarding or alighting, and also helps passengers who have mobility difficulties.
“We identified Edenbridge as one of several priority stations for this type of improvement and it is an excellent example of successful joint working between our safety team and Network Rail's Southern Region.”
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Plans to increase the area population with 3,500 new homes would mean significant traffic increase, although much new traffic would likely use the better services to London Bridge from Town station. Through services via Redhill stopped a couple of years ago. With this in mind early electrification of the line to Uckfield, with some re-doubling of track would seem a logical development, notwithstanding the possibility of 3rd rail/battery units proving viable in the future.
‘Interesting’ to see Edenbridge station’s recent refurb – looks a whole lot different now, to the rural image I have of it, from school Youth Hostelling trips from Redhill in 1958-59, when conditions were almost primitive. In those days steam still ruled the SR cross-country routes, and in the lack of passenger footbridge across the tracks, we were obliged to use the wooden duckboards. In so doing we would place coins on the rail having first listened closely to hear it ‘humming’ to the sound of an approaching steam-hauled train, which determined how long we’d have to wait before our coins would be flattened! Complete lack of ANY of today’s nannying H & S rules & regs, let alone platform supervision – certainly none of the pimply platform – surfacing and yellow stripes so ubiquitous today. I also note in the photo, the presence of new-build housing abutting the railway – I think in those 60 years ago, the land might have been the goods yard & sidings, that almost every railway station had, before BR & Beeching decimated the railways and hived off all available assets for redevelopment. Prior to that happening, the British railways network had a great parcels and goods transport system that (give or take the odd human error hitch), was pretty efficient – certainly for the needs of the day, but again BR/Beeching sold all that off (BRS & National Carriers) forcing employees into redundancy, and goods traffic into the hands of entrepreneurial road transport operators, clogging up the roads. Might be interesting (?) to come back in another 60 yrs and see what else Notwork Fail has achieved…..more yellow lines and H & S notices, no doubt!