Railway stations

The National Rail station is officially named London Victoria, a name that is commonly used outside London, but rarely by Londoners. Operationally, there are effectively two separate stations

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 approach tracks and station were built on the route and basin of the Grosvenor Canal.

Victoria station, in its current form, has grown from the amalgamation of two stations. The Kent side provides services to Medway towns and the Kent coast. The remainder serves routes to Sussex. Over 115 million people pass through the station each year