Bat & Ball railway station is on Bat & Ball Road in the suburban town of Sevenoaks, Kent, England. The station is managed by Southeastern, although all trains that serve the station are Thameslink. It is 25 miles 51 chains (41.3 km) from London Victoria, although all northbound trains run to London Blackfriars.
Bat & Ball  | |||||
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| General information | |||||
| Location | Sevenoaks, District of Sevenoaks England | ||||
| Coordinates | 51°17′24″N 0°11′38″E / 51.290°N 0.194°E | ||||
| Grid reference | TQ530568 | ||||
| Managed by | Southeastern | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | BBL | ||||
| Classification | DfT category F2 | ||||
| History | |||||
| Original company | London, Chatham and Dover Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | SE&CRCJMC | ||||
| Post-grouping | Southern Railway | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 2 June 1862 | Opened as Sevenoaks[1] | ||||
| 1 August 1869 | Renamed Sevenoaks Bat & Ball[1] | ||||
| 1 January 1917 | Closed[1] | ||||
| 1 March 1919 | Reopened[1] | ||||
| 5 June 1950 | Renamed Bat & Ball[2] | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2019/20 |  0.147 million | ||||
| 2020/21 |  51,838 | ||||
| 2021/22 | 0.134 million | ||||
| 2022/23 | 0.171 million | ||||
| 2023/24 | 0.206 million | ||||
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History
edit
The station opened in 1862 with the name Sevenoaks.[1] Some years later, it was named Sevenoaks Bat & Ball and then again in 1950 to its current name.[2] The name derives from the Bat & Ball Inn, a pub which no longer exists.
A long lease of the building was granted to Sevenoaks Town Council in 2017 for refurbishment supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.[3] Works began in March 2018 for a building reopening in January 2019.[4] It is a listed building in the initial, mainstream category, Grade II (two).[3][5]
Facilities
editThe station is near the hospital, in the ecclesiastical parish of St John's Hill[6] and in the broader town council's civil parish.[7] It is on a south coastbound route from London via Swanley and via Otford. The northbound platform has a bench under a shelter and, in 2014, new benches and service tannoy have graced the other platform.[citation needed] Southeastern has fitted an electronic screen showing departures.[citation needed]
The station has a car park. Once free, a fee of £3 per day to park began in 2020. This resulted in the displacement of parking by commuters into surrounding residential streets, particularly Chatham Hill Road. Per the local press, parking problems for local residents were common, whilst leaving the station's car park almost deserted.[8]
A PERTIS permit to travel machine was at the entrance to the southbound platform, later replaced by a card payment-only ticket machine in 2016.[citation needed]
As part of the refurbishment project undertaken by Sevenoaks Town Council, the station building will house a public cafe, public toilets and community meeting rooms, due to open January 2019.[9]
Services
editAll services at Bat & Ball are operated by Thameslink using Class 700 EMUs.
The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[10]
- 2 tph to London Blackfriars via Catford
- 2 tph to Sevenoaks
During the peak hours, the service to London Blackfriars is extended to and from Welwyn Garden City via Finsbury Park.
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thameslink | ||||
| Disused railways | ||||
| Terminus | London, Chatham and Dover Railway |
Otford Junction | ||
| Kemsing | ||||
References
editCitations
edit- ^ a b c d e Butt (1995), page 208
- ^ a b Butt (1995), page 29
- ^ a b "Station - Bat & Ball". www.batandballstation.com. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
- ^ King, Debbie (27 March 2018). "Work starts on £1.3 million station make-over". kentlive. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
- ^ Historic England. "Bat & Ball Railway Station (1085975)". National Heritage List for England.
- ^ Church of England Ecclesiastical Parish name and its extent.
- ^ Sevenoaks Town Council Map showing parish (town council) boundary
- ^ "Residents' fury as commuters' cars clog roads". Kent and Sussex Courier. Local World Limited. 12 November 2010. Archived from the original on 22 December 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
- ^ "HLF Restoration Project - Bat & Ball Station". www.batandballstation.com. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
- ^ Table 195, 196 National Rail timetable, December 2024
=Sources
edit- Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
- Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
- Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.
External links
edit
- Train times and station information for Bat & Ball railway station from National Rail