Loughborough Junction railway station

Loughborough Junction railway station is in Loughborough Junction, near Brixton in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is between Elephant & Castle and Herne Hill stations and is served by First Capital Connect and at peak hours by Southeastern.

History
In the 1860s the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) opened its City Branch to central London. The line remains in use; since 1990 it has been part of the Thameslink route.

In October 1864 the LCDR opened Loughborough Road station on the north-to-west Brixton spur which connects the City Branch to the Inner South London Line near Brixton station. On 1 December 1872 platforms were opened on the City branch and on the north-to-east spur (called the Cambria Road platforms and spur after nearby Cambria Road). The enlarged station was renamed Loughborough Junction. The Loughborough Road platforms closed permanently on 14 March 1916 as a wartime economy measure, by 1916 all LCDR City branch stations south of the Thames had been closed except Loughborough Junction. Rationalisation of services in the Southern Railway's suburban electrification led to the closure of the Cambria platforms on 12 July 1925.



After nationalisation the station was part of the Southern Region of British Railways and, from 1986, Network SouthEast. Around 1990 the station became part of the Thameslink route. From 1997-2006, rail services were provided by the Thameslink train operating company. Although this company is now defunct, the Thameslink name continues to be used for the line.

Services
Since 2006, the Thameslink line has been operated by First Capital Connect. Most passenger services from Loughborough Junction run between Bedford and Sutton, and additional SouthEastern services run from Loughborough Junction to Beckenham Junction.

Transport links
London bus routes 35, 45, 345 (24 hour), P4, P5 and night route N35.

December 2012
The Inner South London Line passes across the south end of Loughborough Junction station via a bridge but has never had platforms there. As part of phase 2 of the East London line extension project, this line is now part of the London Overground network operated by Transport for London. Completed on 9 December 2012, this extension connected the Inner South London Line to the East and West London Lines, allowing rail services to run across South London from Surrey Quays to Clapham Junction. This creates an orbital network around Central London, fulfilling the Orbirail concept.

The new route passes over both Loughborough Junction and Brixton stations, and the proposals were criticised for not including new interchange stations at these locations. No London Overground platforms are planned at Loughborough Junction as the line is on high railway arches, making the cost of any station construction prohibitive.