Folkestone Central railway station is one of three railway stations in Folkestone

Folkestone

Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...

. It is the more central of the two main stations in the town. The station, and all trains serving it, is operated by Southeastern

Southeastern (train operating company)

London & South Eastern Railway Limited, trading as Southeastern is a train operating company in south-east England. On 1 April 2006 it became the franchisee for the new Integrated Kent Franchise , replacing the publicly owned South Eastern Trains on the former South East Franchise...

.

History

The South Eastern Main Line reached Folkestone in 1843, with a station being opened at Folkestone Junction

Folkestone East railway station

Folkestone East is a former railway station in Folkestone, England. Opened by the South Eastern Railway in 1843 as part of its main line from London, it was Folkestone's first station and handled substantial boat train traffic travelling to the Continent via Folkestone Harbour...

 (Folkestone East) on 18 December 1843. Folkestone West

Folkestone West railway station

Folkestone West railway station is one of two open railway stations in Folkestone in Kent. The station is operated by Southeastern.The ticket office, in a room on the extensive 'up' side buildings on the London-bound platform, is manned only during part of the day; at other times a PERTIS 'permit...

 was then opened in 1864, with a station named Cheriton Arch being provided between the two on 1 September 1884. The name Radnor Park was adopted in 1886, and for a few years with just two platform faces, the station was rebuilt in 1890 to add a bay. The station was renamed Folkestone Central in 1895.

The station was rebuilt at the time of the route's electrification in 1961 with two island platform

Island platform

An island platform is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange...

s, linked by a subway and with ramps leading up from the ticket office and concourse, which is itself above street level (an approach road and accompanying pedestrian ramp leads up from Cheriton Road). In 1999 one island platform was abandoned, along with the subway; the platform has not been demolished, although all buildings have been removed.

Services

The typical off-peak service from the station is:

• 1tph (trains per hour) to London St Pancras
  St Pancras railway station
  St Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
  
  
• 2tph to London Charing Cross
  Charing Cross railway station
  Charing Cross railway station, also known as London Charing Cross, is a central London railway terminus in the City of Westminster, England. It is one of 18 stations managed by Network Rail, and trains serving it are operated by Southeastern...
  
  , which run via Sevenoaks
  Sevenoaks railway station
  Sevenoaks railway station serves the town of Sevenoaks in Kent. Train services are provided by Southeastern.Trains from the station run northbound to London Bridge, Cannon Street , Waterloo East and London Charing Cross via Orpington, to London Blackfriars via Swanley and Catford, and southbound to...
  
  
• 3tph to Dover Priory
  Dover Priory railway station
  Dover Priory railway station is the main station in Dover in Kent, with the other station being Kearsney situated on the outskirts of Dover. . All train services are provided by Southeastern...
  
   of which one continues to Ramsgate
  Ramsgate railway station
  Ramsgate railway station serves the town of Ramsgate in Thanet in Kent, England, and is located about 10 minutes away on foot from the town centre. The station lies on the Chatham Main Line 127 km east of London Victoria, the Kent Coast Line, and the Ashford to Ramsgate line...
  
  

External links