Watford Junction
The main entrance to Watford Junction
Watford Junction Location of Watford Junction in Hertfordshire
Location	Watford
Local authority	Borough of Watford
Managed by	London Northwestern Railway
Owner	Network Rail
Station code	WFJ
DfT category	B
Number of platforms	12 (10 in use)
Accessible	Yes[1]
Fare zone	A
National Rail annual entry and exit
2019–20	8.436 million[2]
– interchange	0.550 million[2]
2020–21	1.680 million[2]
– interchange	91,375[2]
2021–22	4.127 million[2]
– interchange	0.242 million[2]
2022–23	5.536 million[2]
– interchange	0.282 million[2]
2023–24	6.475 million[2]
– interchange	0.332 million[2]
Key dates
20 July 1837	Original station -Watford - opened.[3]
5 May 1858	Station relocated and renamedWatford Junction[3]
1909	Rebuilt
1980s	Refurbished throughout
Other information
External links	Departures Facilities
Coordinates	51°39′49″N0°23′45″W / 51.6635°N 0.3958°W /51.6635; -0.3958
London transport portal

Watford Junction is a railway station serving the town ofWatford inHertfordshire, England. The station is on theWest Coast Main Line (WCML), 17 miles 34 chains (28 km) fromLondon Euston^[4] and theAbbey Line, a branch line toSt Albans. It is also the northern terminus of theLioness line of theLondon Overground, which operates via theWatford DC line into central London.

Journeys into London take between 16 and 52 minutes, depending on the service. Trains also run toClapham Junction andEast Croydon, via theWest London line. The station is a major hub for local bus services and the connecting station for buses toWarner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter. The station is located north of a viaduct over theColne Valley and immediately south of Watford Tunnel.

The first railway station to open in Watford was situated on the north side of St Albans Road, approximately 200 metres (220 yd) further up the line from the present-day station. This small, single-storey red-brick building was built in 1836–7, when the first section of theLondon and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) was opened between London andBoxmoor. The station provided first and second-class waiting rooms, a departure yard, a carriage shed and engine house. The platforms were situated in a deep cutting which was accessed via a staircase.^[5]

In its 21 years of operation, it also served as a station for royalty; in the short period when theDowager Queen Adelaide was resident atCassiobury House (c.1846-49), this station was remodelled to provide her with a royal waiting room, and it was also reportedly used by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert on a trip to visit SirRobert Peel in November 1843, when they travelled by road fromWindsor Castle to take a train from Watford toTamworth.^[6]

The old station closed when it was replaced by a new, larger station, which opened on 5 May 1858. The newWatford Junction station was located south of St Albans Road in order to accommodate the newly constructed branch line to St Albans. The junction station was rebuilt in 1909, and was extensively redeveloped in the 1980s. The Grade-II-listed Old Station House still stands at 147A St Albans Road, a rare surviving example of architecture from the beginning of the railway age; today, the building is occupied by a second-hand car dealership.^[7]

In 1862, theWatford and Rickmansworth Railway opened a route from Watford toRickmansworth (Church Street). Now mostly closed, this route began by running south and west to a more central station onWatford's High Street, which remains in use.

From 1846, the L&BR was absorbed into theLondon and North Western Railway (LNWR) and Watford Junction was now run by this large, ambitious company. Seeking to compete with local buses and trams, the LNWR built an additional suburban line from Euston to Watford in the early years of the 20th century, known as theWatford DC line. This veered away from the main line at Bushey to loop around Watford to pass through the High Street station. A second suburban branch line was also built from High Street west towardsCroxley Green to serve new housing developments in that area. Both branches were later electrified as part of this improvement plan, on the same DC three-rail system. The Rickmansworth branch was connected to the Main Line, via two through platforms, with a junction to the north; these platforms have since been partly built over and their remaining southern sections form part of the present DC lines terminus. At one time, tube-style trains were used on the branches to counter the low voltage caused by the lack of a sub-station near Rickmansworth.

TheBakerloo line was extended to Watford Junction in 1917, giving a shared service north of Willesden Junction with the main line electric trains which servedEuston andBroad Street stations. However, since 1982^[8] the line north ofHarrow & Wealdstone has only been served by what is now theLondon Overground service from Euston station; this service uses these DC lines for its all-stations local service.

Oyster card capability was extended to this station on 11 November 2007 on both the London Overground andSouthern; it was extended toLondon Midland services on 18 November 2007. However, the station is outside London fare zones 1–9 and special fares apply.

With the electrification of the entireWest London line in the 1990s, it became practical to run services from Watford Junction to Clapham Junction, allowing passengers to cross London without changing trains. Southern operated an hourly service from Milton Keynes, now starting from Watford Junction, toEast Croydon with connections toBrighton andGatwick.

There is a well-known expression,North of Watford, which is used to mean the north of England, especially a place remote from London.^[9] An alternative variant phrase,North of Watford Junction, was used with similar meaning in the past, referring to Watford Junction railway station.^[10][11][12] The expression reflects the station's position as the last urban stop on the main railway line out of London to the north of England. In more recent years, it has been suggested that the phrase referencesWatford Gap services on the M1,^[13] however the original saying was in existence well before its opening in 1959.^[14][15][16]

The LNWR built alocomotive depot at the station in 1856, which was replaced by a larger building in 1872 and was further enlarged in 1890. It was closed byBritish Railways in March 1965.^[17]

In 1984, the Victorian station buildings were demolished and the station was rebuilt in amodern architectural style; there is a travel centre and a large office block above the station which is occupied by the lorry and bus manufacturing companyIveco. Some 19th-century waiting rooms survived, but were finally demolished in 1987.^[18] To enlarge the car park and provide more space, the St. Albans branch line was realigned northwards, with the original St. Albans platforms becoming a single terminating bay now mostly used by Southern services.

The station forecourt was extensively remodelled in 2013; the horseshoe-shaped taxi rank was moved to the side of the building, creating a larger pedestrian area in front of the station entrance, and the bus station enlarged. Due to problems with the road layout, buses were unable to gain access to the bus station, and there were problems with access to the relocated car park. London Northwestern Railway are considering revising the design.^[19]

Further redevelopment of the station and its surroundings is planned for the next 10 years. They may be delayed because the redevelopment of Watford Junction has been placed within the pre-qualification pool of proposed schemes by theDepartment for Transport.

1954 Watford Junction derailment
Accident summary Details Date 3 February 1954 Location Watford Junction railway station Country England Line West Coast Main Line Operator British Railways Incident type Derailment Cause Broken rail Statistics Trains 2 Injured 15 List of UK rail accidents by year

On 3 February 1954, an express passenger train became derailed in Watford Tunnel due to a broken rail. The last three carriages became divided from the train as it entered the station. One of them ended up on the platform. A passing express passenger train grazed the wreckage but only received minor damage. Fifteen people were injured.^[20]

On 16 October 1962 between Watford Junction and Watford High Street, a local passenger train running on the Watford DC line from Watford Junction to Euston collided with the rear of a stationary Bakerloo line train from Watford Junction to Elephant & Castle. In fog, the driver of the Euston train had passed a danger signal without stopping. This signal was provided with a subsidiary signal which authorised a train to proceed with caution provided that it had first stopped at the signal, and telephoned the signal box for permission to proceed. The collision occurred about 400 yards (370 m) after the signal, at a speed of between 10 and 15 miles per hour (16 and 24 km/h). Most of the damage occurred to the rear two cars of the seven-car Bakerloo train, and seven passengers were injured.^[21]

1975 Watford Junction rail crash
Accident summary Details Date 23 January 1975 23:30 Location Watford Junction railway station Country England Line West Coast Main Line Operator British Rail Cause Obstruction on line Statistics Trains 2 Deaths 1 Injured 11 List of UK rail accidents by year

On 23 January 1975, an express train from Manchester to Euston derailed just south of Watford Junction after striking somestillages that had fallen on to the track. It then collided with a sleeper service from Euston to Glasgow. The driver of the Manchester train was killed, and eight passengers and three railway staff injured. The stillages had fallen from aFord company goods train that had passed the station a few minutes earlier, conveying car parts fromDagenham toHalewood. Although the wagons of the goods train were sealed on departure from Dagenham, three were found to have open doors when the train was inspected after the accident. The official enquiry ruled that the doors had been forced by thieves or vandals, probably when the train was standing atGospel Oak.^[22]

In August 1996, aClass 321 passenger train, operated byNetwork SouthEast, passed a signal at danger. An empty Class 321 coaching stock train collided with the stationary passenger train approximately 700 m south of Watford Junction.

On 26 October 2014, aClass 350 electric multiple unit on the 06:42 service fromMilton Keynes Central to London Euston, operated byLondon Midland struck the door of a lineside equipment cabinet and suffered damage to a set of doors; however, no one was killed or injured. TheRAIB investigated the incident, and concluded that the lineside cabinet door had not been properly secured during maintenance work the previous night. The investigation also noted that the maintenance crew were likely suffering from fatigue due to a pattern of consistent night-shift work, regular overtime, and short-term sleep deprivation.^[23]

On 16 September 2016,Class 350electric multiple unit 350 264 collided with a landslide, caused by heavy rain the previous night, at the entrance of the Watford Tunnel and derailed. Class 350 unit 350 233 then collided with the derailed train. Two injuries were reported, and trains were disrupted for three days.^[24][25]

v t e London Overground
Cheshunt Theobalds Grove Enfield Town Turkey Street Romford Bush Hill Park Southbury Emerson Park Upminster Edmonton Green Silver Street Chingford White Hart Lane Highams Park Watford Junction Bruce Grove Wood Street Watford Seven Sisters Walthamstow Central High Street Harringay Blackhorse Road Walthamstow Queen's Road Bushey Green Lanes Carpenders Park Crouch Hill South Tottenham St. James Leyton Midland Road Hatch End Upper () Stamford Hill Street Leytonstone Headstone Lane Holloway Stoke Newington Clapton High Road Harrow & Kentish Town West Rectory Road Wanstead Park () Wealdstone Gospel Oak Camden Road () Hackney Woodgrange Park () Kenton () Caledonian Road Canonbury Dalston Kingsland Downs Barking South Kenton & Barnsbury Barking Riverside () North Highbury & Islington Hackney Central Wembley Hampstead Heath Dalston Wembley Finchley Road & Frognal () Junction London Fields Central West Hampstead () Haggerston Cambridge Homerton Stonebridge Brondesbury Hoxton Heath Hackney Wick Park Brondesbury Park Shoreditch High Street Bethnal Green Stratford Harlesden Kensal Rise Kensal Green Liverpool Whitechapel Willesden Queen's Park Street Shadwell () Junction Kilburn High Road Wapping South Hampstead Rotherhithe Shepherd's Bush () Euston () Canada Water Kensington (Olympia) Surrey Quays West Brompton Battersea Park Imperial Wharf () (limited service) New Cross Clapham Queens Road Peckham New Cross Gate Junction Peckham Rye Brockley Acton Central Wandsworth Road Denmark Hill Honor Oak Park South Acton ()Clapham Forest Hill Gunnersbury High Street Sydenham Kew Gardens Richmond Crystal Palace Penge West Anerley Norwood Junction West Croydon ()
Legend
Station National Rail Liberty line Accessible station Thameslink Lioness line Interchange station Elizabeth line Mildmay line Accessible interchange Docklands Light Railway Suffragette line Internal interchange London Underground Weaver line Out-of-station interchange London Trams Windrush line (   ) Nearby interchange London River Services

London Overground services at Watford Junction are operated usingClass 710EMUs.

The station is served by four trains per hour to and fromLondon Euston, calling at all stations via theLioness line.^[26][27]

London Northwestern Railway services at Watford Junction are operated usingClass 350 and730EMUs.

The station is served by two stopping trains per hour in each direction betweenLondon Euston andTring, as well as two stopping trains per hour in each direction between London Euston andMilton Keynes Central. It is also served by an hourly semi-fast service between London Euston andBirmingham New Street viaNorthampton which runs non-stop to and from London Euston.^[26] Additional services call during the peak hours.

v t e West London Route
Legend
Watford Junction Greater London boundary Harrow & Wealdstone Wembley Central West Coast Main Line toEuston North London line toStratford Grand Union Canal Shepherd's Bush Kensington (Olympia) West Brompton Imperial Wharf River Thames Brighton Main Line toVictoria Clapham Junction Wandsworth Common Balham Streatham Common Norbury Thornton Heath Selhurst East Croydon Brighton Main Line andOxted line

Southern services at Watford Junction are operated usingClass 377EMUs.

The station is served by one train per hour to and fromEast Croydon viaKensington (Olympia).

Avanti West Coast services at Watford Junction are operated usingClass 390EMUs,Class 805BMUs andClass 807EMUs.

Southbound services call to set down passengers only and northbound services call to pick up passengers only. This means that Avanti West Coast services cannot be used for travel to and from London Euston.

The station is served by one train per hour in each direction to and fromLondon Euston with northbound services generally alternating between running toEdinburgh Waverley orGlasgow Central every two hours. The station is served by two trains per day that run to and fromBlackpool North instead of Glasgow Central. Additional services call during the peak hours.^[26]

Watford Junction is also served in both directions by theLowland Caledonian Sleeper service betweenLondon Euston,Edinburgh Waverley andGlasgow Central which runs on Sunday-Friday nights.^[26]

TheCaledonian Sleeper service also cannot be used for travel to and from London Euston. TheHighland Caledonian Sleeper service does not call at Watford Junction.^[28]

Since 2003,FirstBus have operated a seven-day, hourlyRailAir service from Watford Junction toHeathrow Airport. The RA3 service stops atTerminal 2 andTerminal 3, and passengers can reachTerminal 4 andTerminal 5 by changing onto theElizabeth line or theLondon UndergroundPiccadilly line at no additional cost.^[29]

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Leighton Buzzard towardsBirmingham New Street		London Northwestern Railway London–Birmingham		London Euston Terminus
Kings Langley towardsMilton Keynes Central		London Northwestern Railway London–Milton Keynes		Bushey towardsLondon Euston
Hemel Hempstead towardsTring				Harrow & Wealdstone towardsLondon Euston
Watford North towardsSt Albans Abbey		London Northwestern Railway Abbey Line		Terminus
Terminus		Southern West London line		Harrow & Wealdstone
Milton Keynes Central		Avanti West Coast West Coast Main Line		London Euston
Carlisle		Caledonian Sleeper Lowland Caledonian Sleeper
Preceding station	London Overground			Following station
Terminus		Lioness line Watford DC line		Watford High Street towardsEuston
RailAir
Terminus		FirstBus Watford Junction-Heathrow Airport		Heathrow Central bus station
	Disused Railways
Terminus		British Rail Rickmansworth Branch		Watford High Street
		Network SouthEast Croxley Green Branch
	Former services
Preceding station		LUL		Following station
Terminus		Bakerloo line (1917-1982)		Watford High Street towardsElephant & Castle
	Abandoned Plans
Preceding station		LUL		Following station
Terminus		Metropolitan line Croxley Rail Link		Watford High Street towardsBaker Street orAldgate

Platform Usage:

• Platforms 1-4: Bay platforms for the four London Overground services (Lioness line) per hour to London Euston calling at all stations.
• Platform 5 was used by the Bakerloo line services of the London Underground but its use was discontinued on 16 September 1982.
• Platform 6 (Down Fast): For the hourlyAvanti West Coast service to Birmingham New Street, hourlyAvanti West Coast service to Glasgow Central or Edinburgh (alternating), and fast London Northwestern Railway services northbound.
• Platform 7 (Up Fast): For fast London Northwestern Railway services to London Euston and Avanti services only to set down.
• Platform 8 (Down Slow): For slow and semi-fast London Northwestern Railway services northbound and limited Southern services to Hemel Hempstead.
• Platform 9 (Up Slow): For slow, semi-fast and fast London Northwestern Railway services to London Euston, and Southern services to East Croydon via Kensington Olympia, Selhurst, Balham and Clapham Junction.
• Platform 10: For terminating Southern services to and from Kensington Olympia and Clapham Junction. There are additional terminating services to and from East Croydon, Balham, Selhurst and South Croydon on weekdays and Saturdays. London Northwestern Railway operate 2 trains on weekdays at 07:55 and 08:15 to London Euston in the morning, whilst one train terminates from London Euston at 17:55.
• Platform 11: Used for the hourly West Midlands Railway service to St Albans Abbey (1 every 45 minutes at peak time).

Local buses run to destinations includingHeathrow Airport,Stanmore,Uxbridge andBrent Cross in London,Amersham,Chesham andHigh Wycombe inBuckinghamshire,Hatfield,Harpenden andHertford inHertfordshire,Luton Airport inBedfordshire andHarlow inEssex.

Specific routes includeLondon bus routes142,258 and non-LondonArriva Shires & Essex routes 20, 320, 321, 322 and 725 as well as otherIntalink routes 306 (school journeys), 328, 336, 352, 501, 635, W1, W2, W3, W4, W20 and W30.

TheWarner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter shuttle bus route 311 also leaves from the station forecourt.

Green Line route 724 stops in the station forecourt. It runs directly toSt Albans andHarlow from stop 5 and toHeathrow Terminal 5 viaHeathrow Central andRickmansworth station from stop 2.

There are plans to upgrade the station and its access points. The scheme includes a newmulti-storey car park and a new access road to the station, connecting theA412 to Colonial Way and thus to theA4008M1 link road.^[30]

This scheme is currently in the Pre-Qualification pool, where to achieve funding a case for selection must be submitted and if successful the Watford Station redevelopments will be moved into the Development Pool where more than 24 transport projects will compete for about £600 million.^[31]

The Croxley Rail Link (also called the Metropolitan Line Extension) was a scheme to extend theWatford branch of theLondon UndergroundMetropolitan line via the disusedCroxley Green branch to terminate at Watford Junction. It was planned to open to passenger service in 2020,^[32] but due to funding issues, the project was abandonded.^[33]

TheLondon and South East Route Utilisation Strategy document published byNetwork Rail in July 2011 examined ways to increase capacity atLondon Euston in preparation forHigh Speed 2. The report recommended increased service frequency and longer trains on theWest London line route fromMilton Keynes Central via Watford Junction andKensington Olympia.^[34]

The 2011London & South East Rail Utilisation Strategy report also made recommendations for theCrossrail lines which were then under construction in central London. It proposed an extension of what is now theElizabeth line northwards into Hertfordshire via a new tunnel nearOld Oak Common and Watford Junction, connecting the Crossrail route to the West Coast Main Line. Services would have run from stations in theWest End of London via Watford Junction to terminate at Tring and Milton Keynes.^[35] The new alignment would have alleviated congestion at Euston and resolved capacity constraints on the Elizabeth Line, allowing trains that terminate atPaddington to continue east via the Hertfordshire branch.^[36] This proposal was abandoned in 2016.^[37]

The rail operatorChiltern Railways proposed in 2008 that a new east–west direct rail route from Watford Junction toAylesbury could be operated via the planned Croxley Rail Link and the northern section of theLondon to Aylesbury Line.^[38][39] A 2006 report by Hertfordshire County Council mentioned the possibility of a link running as far asAmersham.^[40]

A Draft Rail Strategy consultation published by Hertfordshire County Council in June 2015 again considered options for reconfiguring the Abbey Line, either as alight rail route or converting it to aguided busway.^[41][42]

• Watford Underground station (Metropolitan line)
• Watford High Street (Lioness line)
• St Albans Branch Line
• West Coast Main Line route modernisation

• Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995).The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.).Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd.ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7.OCLC 60251199.OL 11956311M.
• Jowett, Alan (March 1989).Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd.ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0.OCLC 22311137.

• Nock, O.S. (1965).Britain's new railway: Electrification of the London-Midland main lines from Euston to Birmingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Crewe, Liverpool and Manchester. London: Ian Allan.OCLC 59003738.
• Nock, O.S. (1974).Electric Euston to Glasgow. Ian Allan.ISBN 978-0711005303.
• WOLMAR, CHRISTIAN (2022).BRITISH RAIL-A new History. [S.l.]: MICHAEL JOSEPH.ISBN 978-0-241-45620-0.OCLC 1246353492.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toWatford Junction railway station.

• "Watford Locomotive Shed".
• "Redevelopment plans". Archived fromthe original on 17 January 2016.
• "Abbey Line Community Rail Partnership".
• "Public transport in Watford". Archived fromthe original on 28 September 2007.
• "Watford Junction at Live departures board".

• Rail transport stations in London fare zone A
• DfT Category B stations
• Railway stations in Watford
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• Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1858
• Railway stations served by Caledonian Sleeper
• Railway stations served by West Midlands Trains
• Railway stations served by London Overground
• Railway stations served by Govia Thameslink Railway
• Railway stations served by Avanti West Coast
• Proposed London Underground stations
• Croxley Rail Link
• John William Livock buildings
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