Tattenham Corner

Tattenham Corner

Tattenham Corner is a small town in Surrey, UK, located inside the M25 motorway thus being part of the London commuter belt. It is home to the Epsom Downs Racecourse. The location is to the west of the A240, with the M25 approximately five miles to the south...

 railway station is in Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

, in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The station and all trains serving it are operated by Southern

Southern (train operating company)

Southern is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. Officially named Southern Railway Ltd., it is a subsidiary of Govia, a joint venture between transport groups Go-Ahead Group and Keolis, and has operated the South Central rail franchise since October 2000 and the Gatwick Express service...

, and it is the terminus of the Tattenham Corner Line

Tattenham Corner Line

The Tattenham Corner Line is a railway line in Southern England. It was opened in two parts: from Purley to Tadworth as the Chipstead Valley Railway in 1893, and to Tattenham Corner as the Epsom Downs Extension Railway in 1894. Both companies were then acquired by the South Eastern Railway...

. London-bound trains head south as far as Tadworth

Tadworth railway station

Tadworth railway station is in the county of Surrey. It is the penultimate station on the Tattenham Corner Line. Train services and the station are operated by Southern...

, then turn east and finally north.

It is the closest station for Epsom Downs Racecourse

Epsom Downs Racecourse

Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse near Epsom, Surrey, England. The "downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course is best known for hosting the Epsom Derby, the United Kingdom's premier thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old colts and fillies, over a mile and a half...

, where the Derby

Epsom Derby

The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...

 is held. It lies on the outskirts of Epsom

Epsom

Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England. Small parts of Epsom are in the Borough of Reigate and Banstead. The town is located south-south-west of Charing Cross, within the Greater London Urban Area. The town lies on the chalk downland of Epsom Downs.-History:Epsom lies...

. It is where Queen Elizabeth II alights from the British Royal Train

British Royal Train

The Royal Train is a set of railway carriages dedicated for the use of the British Monarch, other members of the Royal Family, and their staff. The train enables members of the Royal Family to carry out busy schedules over an extended period, in a secure environment which minimises disruption and...

 on race days.

Services

The typical off-peak service is two trains an hour to London Bridge

London Bridge station

London Bridge railway station is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex in the London Borough of Southwark, occupying a large area on two levels immediately south-east of London Bridge and 1.6 miles east of Charing Cross. It is one of the oldest railway stations in the...

 via East Croydon

East Croydon station

East Croydon station is a railway station and tram stop in Croydon, 10.35 miles south of London Bridge in Travelcard Zone 5. It is the largest and busiest station in Croydon and the busiest in London outside Travelcard Zone 1 in terms of the number of passengers entering and exiting...

 and one train an hour to Purley

Purley railway station

Purley railway station is at Purley in the London Borough of Croydon, on the main London to Brighton line, in Travelcard Zone 6. It is a junction, with branches to Caterham and Tattenham Corner. There are sidings used by the Day and Son gravel company, part of whose installation has been given a...

. In the evenings the trains run to London Victoria, which is also served by some morning and evening peak services.

Incidents

Early on the morning of 1 December, 1993 and under the influence of alcohol

Alcohol

In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....

, the driver of a train from London Victoria made it to Tattenham Corner without mishap. However, he did not stop at the terminus and took the train through the buffers, across the station concourse and into the wooden station building, which had survived intact for 92 years. No one was hurt, but the station, a listed building, was severely damaged (it was subsequently demolished), and it was due to this accident that the current drugs and alcohol policy for railways was introduced.