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The Chatham Main Line is a British railway line that runs from London Victoria to Dover Priory or Ramsgate via the Medway Towns (of which Chatham is one, hence the name) and Bromley. Some trains on the service also run from Bedford via London Blackfriars (connecting at Bromley).
Services to Cannon Street follow the route as far as Chislehurst Junction where they diverge onto the Chislehurst line.
Services to Charing Cross as well as some slow Cannon Street services run in parallel from Gillingham to Rochester, diverging once across the River Medway at Rochester Bridge Junction onto the North Kent Line via Gravesend and Dartford.
A shuttle service operates on the Sheerness Line which joins at Sittingbourne.
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Services
Services on the Line are run by Southeastern.
After Bromley (when heading towards London) the services can divert via the Catford Loop Line or remain on the main line (via Herne Hill) to reach London Victoria.
Services currently consist of stopping trains from Ramsgate and Dover Priory joining at Faversham and running fast from Chatham to Bromley South, then Victoria (with the odd stop at Rochester or Longfield or Meopham). A stopping service stops at all stops from Faversham to St Mary Cray and Bromley South then fast to London Victoria. Stations prior to Farningham Road (as coming from London Victoria) are served by stoppers on the Swanley to Ashford (via Maidstone East) Line.
The opening of High Speed 1 will see the introduction of High Speed "Domestic Services" (CTRL-DS) to London St Pancras, and thus a significant remapping of services across Southeastern's network from December 2009.
History
The line was built by the London, Chatham and Dover Railway, who were in competition with the South Eastern Railway (hence the duplication of stations in Kent). They subsequently built lines to Sevenoaks and Ashford (via Maidstone) from the Chatham Main Line.
The line was electrified (750v DC third rail) in a series of stages. Initially the new Southern Railway electrified the urban (within London) workings of the SECR in the 1920s. In July 1925 "South Eastern Electrification (Stage 1)" saw the line from Victoria to junction with the South Eastern Main line at Bickley, including the Catford Loop Line electrified[1]. This was extend to outer suburban workings to Sevenoaks via Swanley (Bickley junction to Swanley) in two stages, reaching St Mary Cray in May 1934[1] and Swanley in January 1935[1]. Full outer suburban electrification was achieved with the "Maidstone & Gillingham Electrification" scheme in July 1939, extending electrification from Swanley to Gillingham[1]. Post war, under the BR's 1955 Modernisation plan, electrification was completed (Gillingham to Ramsgate and Dover) under "Kent Coast Electrification" stage 1 in 1959[1]. At the same time the four track section between Shortlands and St Mary Cray junction was extended to Swanley Junction with a complete rebuilding of the St Mary Cray Junction. Two passing loops were added (to create a four-track section) between Rainham and Newington.
Gallery
 A Class 375, near Farningham Road |
 Car parking at Chatham railway station, the Maidstone Road bridge and the portal to the Chatham Tunnel |
 A Class 375 in Gillingham Depot |
 A 1908 Railway Clearing House map of Chatham Main Line and surrounding lines between Beckenham Jct and Herne Hill |
 A 1914 Railway Clearing House map showing the two different routes of the Chatham Main Line in South London. |
 A 1914 Railway Clearing House map of the end of the Dover branch of the Chatham Main Line. |
 |A 1914 Railway Clearing House map of the line's final approaches to Victoria. |
References
- ^ a b c d e "Electric Railways". 'Stendec Systems'. 2007. http://www.electric-railways.co.uk/L2_DC_750_CR/1_general/g3_proj/prj-0d75-sr.html. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
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