Harrow & Wealdstone station

Harrow & Wealdstone is a London Underground station in Wealdstone, Greater London. It is served by London Overground, London Midland, Southern and London Underground Bakerloo Line services. The next stop southbound on the Bakerloo Line is Kenton. The station is located at the southern end of High Street, Wealdstone at the end-on junction with "The Bridge". It is the site of a serious rail crash which occurred in 1952 killing 112 people.

History
The station was opened by the London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) as Harrow on 20 July 1837 in what was then rural Middlesex. At the time the station was built, the area was fields and the nearest large settlement was at Harrow on the Hill about 1.5 miles to the south. Wealdstone was a collection of houses at the north end of what is now Wealdstone High Street, about 1 mile north of the station. The station buildings on the south-west (Harrow) side of the station are the older part of the station, located beside what were the fast lines until the platforms were used for the later Euston to Watford DC Line and the main line tracks were re-routed through the previous slow line platforms and newer platforms to the North-West; a newer station building was also erected on the Wealdstone side of the station. The station footbridge was originally constructed with a full-height central barrier with passengers using the "London" side and railway and postal staff using the "Country" side to move goods and mails via lifts which were removed in the early 1970s leaving two parcels elevators serving the DC line platforms for the remaining postal traffic.

On 18 December 1890, a short branch line was opened by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR, successor to the L&BR) to Belmont and Stanmore to the north-east of the main line. Services to Belmont on the train known affectionately as the "Belmont Rattler".

By the end of the 19th century Wealdstone had developed in size and the station was given its current name on 1 May 1897 to more accurately reflect its location.

On 16 April 1917, Bakerloo Line services were extended from Willesden Junction to Watford Junction running on the newly electrified local tracks (the "New Lines", which were originally steam-worked) and calling at Harrow & Wealdstone from that date.

On 15 September 1952, the passenger service to Stanmore Village was withdrawn.

On 8 October 1952, the station was the site of a serious train crash in which 112 people were killed and 340 were injured when a Scottish express train collided with the rear of a local train stopped at platform 4. Seconds later a northbound express hauled by two locomotives collided with the wreckage causing further injury and demolished one span of the footbridge and the northern end of platforms 2 and 3. A memorial plaque was placed above the main entrance on the eastern side of the station to mark the 50th anniversary in 2002. During the early 1960s, as part of the West Coast Main Line electrification, the bridge carrying the A409 road (The Bridge/Station Approach) over the railway was rebuilt easing the previous severe road gradients and offering higher clearance over the tracks to allow for overhead cabling.

On 6 July 1964, passenger services on the branch line to Belmont station were withdrawn as part of the cuts of the Beeching Axe. The track south of Harrow and Wealdstone station was removed but the disused platform 7 on the eastern side of the station was left in place as a siding for a further few years until it too was removed.

On 24 September 1982, Bakerloo Line services to Harrow & Wealdstone ended when services north of Stonebridge Park were ended. The closure was short-lived, and the Bakerloo Line to Harrow & Wealdstone was reinstated on 4 June 1984 with the station acting as the terminus.

In the 1990s major reconstruction of local roads made to by-pass High Street, Wealdstone sent a new road (Ellen Webb Drive) through what remained of the station yard and part of the forecourt of the eastern entrance to the station.

The station today
The station has undergone several improvements in recent years, with the footbridge improved by removal of the central barrier to allow use of the full width, new lifts for the use of disabled persons, and newly painted and brightly illuminated waiting rooms. In recent years the two-track reversing sidings (used for turning Bakerloo Line trains) located between the tracks of the DC line at the northern end side of the station have been replaced by a single siding and the curve at the down end of the platform eased.

The station footbridge links both entrances and all platforms.

Ticket barriers have been installed to both entrances.

Service patterns from 13th December 2009 On Sundays, it is:
 * 2tph to London Euston only. (London Midland) Platform 6.
 * 2tph all stations to Tring. In the evening these trains have a multitude of stopping patterns and run to Bletchley/Milton Keynes Central. (London Midland) Platform 5.
 * 3tph to London Euston on the DC Lines via Wembley Central. (London Overground)Platform 2.
 * 3tph to Watford Junction on the DC Lines via Watford High Street. (London Overground) Platform 1.
 * 1tph to Clapham Junction/East Croydon. (Southern) Platform 6.
 * 1tph to Watford Junction/Milton Keynes Central. (Southern) Platform 5.
 * appox 6tph all stations to Elephant & Castle Underground. (London Underground) Platform 1 or Platform 2.
 * As above for Southern and London Underground services.
 * 2tph instead of 3 on London Overground services.
 * 3tph to London Euston only. (London Midland) Platform 6.
 * only 2tph northbound (London Midland);
 * 1tph to Milton Keynes Central (xx06) fast to Watford Junction and Hemel Hempstead, then all stations to Milton Keynes Central.
 * 1tph to Tring.

Fast trains pass through platforms 3 and 4, which are usually not for customer use. Southern services towards Clapham Junction run fast to. However, due to a certain rule in the Virgin Trains contract, 'moderation of competition', customers aren't allowed to leave the train there and continue to Shepherd's Bush for Westfield London.

Transport connections
Bus routes 140 (24 hour), 182, 186, 258, 340, H9, H10 and night bus route N18 serve various stops beside or near the station. All the buses that serve the station also serve Harrow on the Hill station but not all as direct services.

The station has one car park, located at the back of the station. It is best to be picked up here by car - the front entrance leads directly to the main road and the slip road is often full of booked taxis.