10 Facts About Cranleigh Line

Opportunity to construct the Cranleigh line came about from the fierce competition between the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway and the London and South Western Railway for the lucrative Portsmouth traffic.

Cranleigh Line was to acquire the necessary land for the railway by way of compulsory purchase by 6 August 1863 and to complete the construction works within two years of that date.

Cranleigh Line was never doubled and for 11 years Baynards was the only crossing point; in 1876 the 9.

The line was often used as a diversionary route when the Brighton Main Cranleigh Line was blocked, as was the case in August 1861 when a collision in the Clayton Tunnel forced that line's temporary closure.

Cranleigh Line came under government control again in the Second World War resuming heightened traffic.

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Weekday service of eight trains in each direction and an evening service to Cranleigh Line continued but the Sunday service was reduced to one train each way in the morning and evening.

Commuters from Bramley and Cranleigh travelling up to London via Guildford were the main users of the line, and an additional service between Cranleigh and Guildford was offered to season ticket holders commuting to London.

Cranleigh Line station was demolished and replaced by Stocklund Square in 1965; the Square was reduced in size in 2004 when a branch of Sainsbury's was built on part of the site.

The cost of reinstating the line between Guildford and Cranleigh was projected at £24 million which would include the base, civil, electrical, engineering and signalling works.

Guildford to Cranleigh Line route is acknowledged as an important rail corridor and, as such, is protected under the statutory planning process.