Catford loop line

Catford loop line
Southeastern Class 465 at Peckham Rye in 2014
Overview
Status	Operational
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Greater London
Termini	Nunhead Ravensbourne
Stations	8
Service
Type	Suburban rail, Heavy rail
System	National Rail
Services	1
Operator(s)	Southeastern Thameslink
Depot(s)	Grove Park
Rolling stock	Class 700 Class 375 "Electrostar" Class 465 "Networker" Class 466 "Networker"
History
Opened	1 July 1892
Technical
Number of tracks	2
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	750 V DC third rail
Operating speed	Maximum 60 mph (97 km/h)
Route map (Click to expand)

v t e Catford loop line
Legend
South London line to Battersea Park │ Chatham Main Line to Victoria Shepherds Lane Junction Brixton Junction Brixton East Brixton Chatham Main Line via Herne Hill Canterbury Road Junction Loughborough Junction Farringdon–Herne Hill line Cambria Junction Denmark Hill Crofton Road Junction Portsmouth line Peckham Rye South London line Nunhead Lewisham line Crystal Palace & South London Jct Rly to Crystal Palace (High Level) Brighton Main Line London Bridge branch Crofton Park Mid-Kent line to Lewisham Catford│Catford Bridge Mid-Kent line to Hayes Bellingham Bellingham carriage sidings Beckenham Hill Ravensbourne Chatham Main Line via Herne Hill Shortlands Chatham Main Line to Ramsgate

The Catford loop line is a railway line in southeast London. It carries a suburban stopping passenger service from central London to Sevenoaks, and is also a relief route for the Chatham Main Line carrying passenger trains from London Victoria to the Kent coast. There is also much freight activity as this is the main route to Willesden and the north via Latchmere Junction. Freight traffic includes aggregates trains to and from locations along the Thames estuary, and Kent, aviation fuel running between Colnbrook (for Heathrow) and the Isle of Grain, and a small number of international workings from the Channel Tunnel via the yard at Dollands Moor. Until around 2013, a significant quantity of intermodal traffic from Thamesport used the line - however, the opening of London Gateway meant that the larger container ships stopped serving Thamesport and this traffic then ceased.

The line begins at Brixton Junction,^[1][2] where it diverges from the Chatham Main Line, and ends when it rejoins the Chatham Main Line (now extended to pairs of fast and slow lines) at Shortlands Junction,^[3][4] west of Shortlands station.