The National Rail station is officially named London Victoria, a name that is commonly used outside London, but rarely by Londoners<ref>Association of Train Operating Companies (2005). National Rail Enquiries - Station Facilities for London Victoria. Retrieved December 24 2005.</ref>. The eastern (Chatham) side, comprising platforms 1–8, is the terminus for services to Kent, and the western (Brighton) side, comprising platforms 9–19, is the terminus for lines to Surrey and Sussex, including Gatwick Airport and Brighton. Although this split is still generally held to, there are various crossovers allowing trains to access any platform. As the Brighton side is the busier of the two, disruption on that line sometimes results in some of its suburban services using the eastern side. Victoria also serves as the London terminus for the Venice Simplon Orient Express, from Platform 2, the longest platform.

[edit] Early history

Its origins lie with the Great Exhibition of 1851, when a the West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway came into existence, serving the site of the exhibition, which had been transferred to Sydenham from Hyde Park. The terminus of that railway was at Stewarts Lane in Battersea on the south side of the river. In 1858, a joint enterprise, the Victoria Station and Pimlico Railway, was set up to take trains over the river, 1.25 miles (2km) in length. The railway was owned by four railway companies: the Great Western (GWR); London & North Western (LNWR); the London, Brighton and South Coast (LBSCR); and the London, Chatham and Dover Railways (LCDR). It was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1858.

The station, opened in 1862, was in two parts: the western side, occupied by the Brighton company, with six platforms, ten tracks and a hotel (the 300-bedroom Grosvenor); while the Chatham company occupied a less imposing wooden-fronted building. The latter's station had nine tracks and was shared by broad-gauge trains of the GWR, which arrived from Southall via the West London Extension Joint Railway through Chelsea. The GWR remained part owner of the station until 1932, although its trains had long since ceased to use it. Each side of the station had its own entrance and a separate station master; a wall between the two sections emphasised that fact.

A plaque marks the arrival of the body of The Unknown Warrior at platform 8 at 20:32 on 10 November 1920.

[edit] Rebuilding

Image:Victoria Station Concourse.jpg At the start of the 20th century both parts of the station were rebuilt. It now had a decent frontage and forecourt, but not as yet a unified existence. Work on the Brighton side was completed in 1908 and was carried out in red brick; the Grosvenor Hotel was rebuilt at the same time. The Chatham side, in an Edwardian style with baroque elements, designed by Alfred Bloomfield, was completed a year later. The two sections were connected in 1924 by removing part of a screen wall, when the platforms were renumbered as an entity.

The station was now serving boat trains, and during World War I it became a terminus for trains carrying soldiers to and from France, many of them wounded. After the war the Continental steamer traffic became concentrated here, including the most famous of those trains, the Golden Arrow. The area around the station also became a site for other forms of transport: a bus station in the forecourt; a coach terminal to the south; and now a terminal for trains serving Gatwick Airport.

The station was redeveloped internally in the 1980s, with the addition of shops within the concourse, and above the western platforms (the "Victoria Place" shopping centre).

On February 18 1991 an IRA bomb exploded in a litter bin, killing David Corner ^{[citation needed]}, and injuring 38. The warning given by the terrorists was insufficient to evacuate the station.

[edit] London Underground

Image:Victoria Line southbound platform, Victoria LU station.jpg
Victoria Underground
Location
Place	Pimlico
Local authority	City of Westminster
Operations
Managed by	London Underground
Platforms in use	4
Transport for London
Zone	1
Annual entry/exit	68.863 million †
History
Key dates	Opened 1868
Transport for London List of London stations: Underground \| National Rail
† Data from Transport for London [1]
Image:Underground roundel sign at Epping.jpg Tube Portal

The London Underground station lies to the north of the mainline station concourse. There are two ticket halls: the hall closer to the mainline station serves the Victoria Line, and the other, further north along a tunnel, the District and Circle Lines.

[edit] History

The sub-surface Circle and District Lines opened on December 24 1868. The Victoria Line line arrived with the third phase of construction of the line, opening on March 7 1969, six months after the line had started running in north London.

[edit] Coach station

Main article: Victoria Coach Station

Victoria Coach Station is half a mile south-west of the railway stations. It is the main London coach terminal and serves all parts of the UK, and mainland Europe.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Image:Commons-logo.svg	Wikimedia Commons has media related to: London Victoria station

Station information on Victoria Station from Network Rail
Train times and station information for London Victoria station from National Rail
Street map and aerial photo of London Victoria station from Multimap.com

Preceding station		Following station
Sloane Square	Circle Line	St. James's Park
Sloane Square	District Line	St. James's Park
Pimlico	Victoria Line	Green Park
National Rail
Terminus	Southeastern	Denmark Hill
Terminus	Southeastern	Brixton
Terminus	Southern	Battersea Park
Terminus	Gatwick Express	Gatwick Airport
Terminus	Venice Simplon Orient Express	Folkestone Harbour

Railway stations of London Central area \| Greater London
Managed by Network Rail: Cannon Street • Charing Cross • Euston • Fenchurch Street • King's Cross • Liverpool Street • London Bridge • Paddington • Victoria • Waterloo
Managed by train operator: Blackfriars • Marylebone • Moorgate • St Pancras