View source for West London line

{{Short description|Clapham Junction-Willesden Junction rail route}}
{{distinguish|West London Route|West London Orbital|Great Western Main Line}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2017}}
{{Infobox rail line
| name                            = West London line
| color                           = {{rcr|London Overground}}
| image                           = Unit 378013 at Imperial Wharf.JPG
| image_width                     = 300px
| caption                         = A {{brc|378}} train operated for London Overground at {{rws|Imperial Wharf}}, September 2009
| status                          = Operational
| owner                           = [[Network Rail]]
| locale                          = [[Greater London]]
| start                           = [[Willesden Junction station|Willesden Junction]]<br />{{coord|51.5324|-0.2446|type:railwaystation_region:GB|display=inline|name=West London Line, Willesden Junction terminus}}
| end                             = {{rws|Clapham Junction}}<br />{{coord|51.4642|-0.1703|type:railwaystation_region:GB|display=inline|name=West London Line, Clapham Junction terminus}}
| stations                        = 6
| type                            = {{Hlist
   | [[Suburban&nbsp;rail]]
   | [[freight&nbsp;rail]]
   }}
| system                          = {{Unbulleted list
   | [[London Overground]]
   | [[National Rail]]
   }}
| operator                        = {{Unbulleted list
   | Overground: [[Arriva Rail London]]
   | National Rail: [[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]]
   }}
| stock                           = {{Unbulleted list
   | Overground: {{brc|378}} / {{brc|710}}
   | Southern: {{brc|377}}
   }}
| tracks                          = [[Double-track railway|Two]]
| gauge                           = {{RailGauge|sg|allk=on}}
| electrification                 = {{750 V DC|conductor=third rail}}<br />{{25 kV 50 Hz|conductor=overhead}}
| map                             = {{switcher
|[[File:West London line.png|300px]]<br />([[:commons:File:West London line.png|Click to expand]])
|Show static map
|{{West London Line|inline=y}}
|Show diagram map
}} 
}}

The '''West London line''' (WLL) is a short railway in inner West London that links {{rws|Willesden Junction}} in the north to {{rws|Clapham Junction}} in the south. The line has always been an important cross-London link, especially for freight services. [[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]] and [[London Overground]] provide regular passenger services; detailed below.

From autumn 2024 the [[North London line]] and the West London section of the London Overground will be merged and named the ''Mildmay line'' (to honour the [[Mildmay Mission Hospital]] which treated victims of the [[HIV/AIDS in the United Kingdom|HIV/AIDS crisis]] in the 1980s) and will be coloured light blue on the [[Tube map]].<ref name ="Names" />

== History ==
{{Main|West London Railway}}

=== Origins ===
The Birmingham, Bristol & Thames Junction Railway was authorised in 1836 to run from the [[London and Birmingham Railway]] (L&BR), near the present Willesden Junction station, across the proposed route of the [[Great Western Railway|Great Western]] (GWR) on the level, to the [[Kensington Canal]] Basin. For about twelve years, the railway ran alongside the Kensington Canal, formerly [[Counter's Creek]], a minor tributary of the [[Thames River]] until it was filled in, the water course turned into a sewer and the future [[District line]] built over it. Construction was delayed by engineering and financial problems. Renamed the [[West London Railway]] (WLR) the line officially opened on 27 May 1844, and regular services began on 10 June, but before that trials to demonstrate the potential of the [[atmospheric railway]] system had been held from 1840 to 1843 on a half-mile section of track adjacent to [[Wormwood Scrubs]], leased to that system's promoters;<ref>Samuda, J. D'A (1841), ''[https://archive.org/details/atreatiseonadap00samugoog/page/n20 <!-- pg=8 quote=birmingham, bristol and thames junction railway. --> A Treatise on the Adaptation of Atmospheric Pressure to the Purposes of Locomotion on Railways.]''  London: John Weale, 59 High Holburn.</ref> The WLR used conventional power but was not a commercial success. After only six months it closed on 30 November 1844.

An Act of 1845 authorised the GWR and the L&BR (which became part of the [[London and North Western Railway]] [LNWR] in 1846) to take a joint lease of the WLR. The line was used only to carry coal, and passenger service was not re-introduced. The lack of success of the line became such a regular target of ''[[Punch (magazine)|Punch]]'' magazine that the line was called ''Punch's Railway''.<ref name="Punch's Railway Intelligence">{{cite news |title=Punch's Railway Intelligence |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2UhIAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA113 |access-date=29 May 2020 |work=[[Punch (magazine)|Punch]] |date=1849 |page=113|last1 = Lemon|first1 = Mark|last2 = Mayhew|first2 = Henry|last3 = Taylor|first3 = Tom|last4 = Brooks|first4 = Shirley|last5 = Burnand|first5 = Francis Cowley|last6 = Seaman|first6 = Owen}}</ref><ref name="Another Punch at Punch's Railway">{{cite news |title=Another Punch at Punch's Railway |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P0tCAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA110 |access-date=29 May 2020 |work=[[Punch (magazine)|Punch]] |date=1850}}</ref>

An Act in 1859 granted those two companies, with the [[London, Brighton and South Coast Railway]] (LB&SCR) and the [[London and South Western Railway]] (L&SWR), powers to construct the West London Extension Joint Railway <!-- DO NOT LINK THAT. IT REDIRECTS BACK TO THIS ARTICLE -->on the filled-in canal south from the Kensington Basin to the bridge under the [[Kings Road]], to bridge the [[Thames]] and to connect near Clapham Junction to railways south of the river.<ref name="survey">[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50329 The Kensington Canal, railways and related developments], ''[[Survey of London]]'': volume 42: Kensington Square to Earl's Court (1986), pp. 322-338. Date accessed: 2 September 2008.</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=London's Iron Belt|work=The St. James's Magazine and United Empire Review|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8EMxAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA265|year=1861|publisher=A.H. Moxon|pages=265|quote=Some of my readers may have noticed a rusty weed-grown line of railway, running under the high road near Hammersmith Turnpike...it starts from no place in particular, and can hardly be said to have had any definite destination. It had no traffic, except an occasional coal truck...on the whole, nobody could comprehend why such a line ever was made, and of what use it was when made. Now, however, a brighter future is before it...the highly important duty of connecting the railways on the north of the Thames with the railways and terminal points on the south.}}</ref> The existing line was doubled, and the flat crossing of the GWR main line, where a number of collisions had occurred, was replaced by a flyover.<ref>Nick Catford, [http://www.subbrit.org.uk/sb-sites/stations/w/west_london_junction/index.shtml West London Junction], Subterranea Britannica disused station project, August 2009. Accessed 28 January 2010.</ref> The new line opened on 2 March 1863 with a passenger station at Addison Road (now [[Kensington (Olympia) station|Kensington (Olympia)]]) slightly north of the original Kensington station, and was then well used by various inner London services for the remainder of the nineteenth century.

=== Operations to 1940 ===
For a time, the West London line formed part of the GWR's [[Middle Circle]] route (1872–1905) which ran (clockwise) from {{stl|London Underground|Mansion House}} to {{stl|London Underground|Aldgate}} (originally Moorgate) via {{stl|London Underground|Earl's Court}}, Kensington Olympia, {{stl|London Underground|Latimer Road}} and {{stl|London Underground|Baker Street}}. The West London line was also part of London Underground for a time and operated as a branch of the [[Metropolitan Railway]] between {{stl|London Underground|Edgware Road|Circle}} and Addison Road. The branch was eventually closed and the link between the West London line and today's [[Hammersmith & City line]] was dismantled in 1930.

A branch was installed to allow trains from the former [[Southern Railway (Great Britain)|Southern Railway]] to access to the [[West Coast Main Line]] and vice versa: in summer the [[London Midland and Scottish Railway]] ran from as far north as Glasgow to the South Coast. Through trains in the steam era changed locomotives here. From the 1920s there was a [[United Dairies]] depot on the site of a former dairy farm here, which up until the late 1970s had regular [[British Railway Milk Tank Wagon|milk train]] deliveries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22605#n151|title = Willesden: Economic history &#124; British History Online}}</ref>

The northern section of the line, from Willesden Junction to Kensington Olympia and on to Earls Court, was electrified by the [[Suburban electrification of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway|LNWR]] in 1915.

=== Decline after World War II ===
After a period of popularity, passenger usage dwindled on the West London Railway. Competition from the new deep-level [[Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway|Underground railways]] and [[trams in London|electric tramways]] took away custom by offering more direct routes into [[Central London]]. With the onset of [[World War II]], the West London line was badly hit in some parts by enemy action during [[the Blitz]] and the demise of the line was hastened by wartime bombing. In 1940, [[London, Midland and Scottish Railway|LMS]] steam trains from {{stnlnk|Clapham Junction}} to [[Kensington (Olympia) station|Kensington]] ceased on 20 October and the services to [[Willesden Junction railway station|Willesden]] and [[Edgware Road tube station (Circle, District and Hammersmith & City lines)|Edgware Road]] Met electric services ceased on 3 and 20 October respectively.<ref name=subbrit>{{cite web|title=Chelsea & Fulham|url=http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/c/chelsea_fulham/index.shtml|work=Disused Stations|publisher=Subterranea Britannica|access-date=15 August 2013}}</ref>

In 1948, the line became part of [[British Rail]], following the [[History of rail transport in Great Britain 1948–1994#The 1940s: Nationalisation|nationalisation of the railways]], but remained mostly in use as a freight route. For many years, limited passenger trains ran on workday mornings and evenings, to carry workers at the [[National Savings and Investments|Post Office Savings Bank]] headquarters, [[Blythe House]], near Olympia from Clapham Junction and back again, but these services were not publicly advertised.

Kensington Olympia was used as late as the 1970s as a location for collecting milk tanks (for the west country) from various terminals in the London area such as Ilford. This activity later transferred to Clapham Junction.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hallet |first1=Graham |title=Bringing home the milk |journal=Great Eastern Journal |date=July 2020 |volume=183 |pages=14, 15}}</ref>

{{multiple image
| title             = Evolution of the West London line
| total_width       = 600
| width1            = 2029
| height1           = 1787
| image1            = The Circle Routes of Victorian London.png
| caption1          = Map of the former Middle Circle route (1872–1905)
| width2            = 2861
| height2           = 1890
| image2            = Earls Court, Studland Road, Bishops Road, Addison Road, Hammersmith, Kensington, North Pole, South Kensington, Uxbridge Road & Westbourne Park RJD 39.jpg
| caption2          = A 1911 map of the West London line and junctions
| alt2              = A 1911 map of the West London line (running south to north, depicted in yellow and red) and its junctions
| width3            = 1045
| height3           = 909
| image3            = Tube map 1926.jpg
| caption3          = A 1926 Tube map showing West London line stations
| footer            = The West London line has been used by London's railways in many ways over time
}}

=== Reinstatement of passenger services ===
Since the 1940s the line has often been used for excursion and other special through trains across London to the South Coast. Between April 1963 and June 1965 the section between Willesden Jn and Kensington Olympia was used for trains diverted from Euston during the rebuilding of Euston station<ref>Passengers No More by G.Daniels and L.Dench second edition page 47</ref> section. Kensington Olympia station was refurbished accordingly. During 1967 passenger services were diverted from Paddington between Old Oak Common and Kensington Olympia during engineering works at Paddington station.

In the late 1970s, the [[Greater London Council]] began to revitalise the [[North London line]] (NLL), incorporating it onto the [[Tube Map]] in 1977 as a white line with black borders marked "British Rail" and electrifying the route from Dalston to Woolwich in 1985.<ref>{{cite book|last=Anson|first=Terry Gourvish; research by Mike|title=British Rail, 1974–97 : from integration to privatisation|year=2004|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-926909-9|page=199|edition=Paperback}}</ref> The limited Clapham Junction – Kensington Olympia service appeared in the public timetables, but full passenger services on the West London line were not re-introduced until 1994 by [[Network SouthEast]] service. In 1997, as part of the [[privatisation of British Rail]], operation of both the West London line and North London line was brought under the North London Railway franchise, and taken over by [[National Express]], trading as [[Silverlink]]. For a decade, the West London line was operated with the green-and-purple liveried Silverlink Metro trains.

[[Channel Tunnel]] infrastructure work in 1993 [[Railway electrification in Great Britain|electrified]] the line at 750 V DC third rail from the South to the North Pole depot. The line is electrified at 25 kV AC overhead wires from Westway (near the overbridge carrying the Hammersmith and City Line) to Willesden and the North. Until the [[High Speed 1]] railway line from {{rws|St Pancras}} opened in November 2007, [[Eurostar]] trains from {{rws|Waterloo International}} used the West London line to access their [[North Pole depot]].

The line was crucial to the planned [[Regional Eurostar]] service, and between 1995 and 1997 carried two daily services connecting the ECML and WCML respectively to Waterloo for international passengers. However the idea was cancelled.<ref>{{cite Hansard |jurisdiction=Parliament of the United Kingdom |house=House of Commons (Select Committee on Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs) |date=26 January 1999 |page=Appendices Section 4 |title=Memorandum by Inter-Capital and Regional Rail Ltd (RES 4) |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199899/cmselect/cmenvtra/89/89ap07.htm}}</ref>

Platforms were reinstated at [[West Brompton station|West Brompton]] in 1999.  In 2007, Transport for London took over the North London Railway franchise as the [[London Overground]] concession, introducing new rolling stock and rebranding the West London line trains and stations in orange livery. The line appears today on the Tube Map as an orange stripe. New stations opened at {{rws|Shepherd's Bush}} in 2008 and {{rws|Imperial Wharf}} in 2009, bringing main line rail services to a large catchment area in West London.

=== Renaming ===
In July 2023, TFL announced that it would be giving each of the six Overground services unique names by the end of the following year.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Naming London Overground lines |url=https://www.tfl.gov.uk/travel-information/improvements-and-projects/naming-overground |access-date=2024-02-11 |website=Transport for London }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-08-25 |title=London Overground lines to be given unique names |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-66609039 |access-date=2024-02-11 |work=[[BBC News]] }}</ref> In February 2024, it was confirmed that the North London / West London section would be named the ''Mildmay line'' (to honour the Mildmay Hospital which treated victims of the [[HIV/AIDS in the United Kingdom|HIV/AIDS crisis]] in the 1980s) and would be coloured blue on the updated network map.<ref name="Names">[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-68296483 London Overground: New names for its six lines revealed], BBC News, 15 February 2024</ref>

{{multiple image
| title             = Historical West London line operators
| total_width       = 600
| width1            = 1105
| height1           = 554
| image1            = PO Workers train Olympia 1968.jpg
| caption1          = The unadvertised Post Office workers' train at Olympia in 1968
| width2            = 640
| height2           = 418
| image2            = Clapham Junction - geograph.org.uk - 786843.jpg
| caption2          = The West London line passenger service, revived in 1994 by BR Network Southeast and run as a diesel service (pictured here at Clapham Junction in 1995)
| width3            = 1600
| height3           = 1200
| image3            = Silverlink 313122 at Kensington Olympia 03.jpg
| caption3          = the fully electric West London line service during the days of Silverlink at Olympia (2006)
| footer            = The changing face of passenger trains on the West London line
}}

=== Regional and InterCity services ===
In 1966 British Rail launched [[Motorail (British Rail)|Motorail]], a long-distance [[Motorail|accompanied car train]] which transported passengers and their cars to the [[West of England]] and [[Scotland]]. The London Motorail  terminal was at Kensington (Olympia), using the West London line for its wide connections to the UK mainline rail network. Motorail ceased operations in 1981.<ref name=motorail>{{cite web|title=Kensington Olympia|url=http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/k/kensington_olympia/index2.shtml|work=Disused Stations|publisher=Subterranea Britannica|access-date=19 August 2013}}</ref>

Intercity prior to 1997, and then from 1997 to 2007 [[Virgin CrossCountry]] operated a long-distance service between {{rws|Edinburgh Waverley}} and {{stnlnk|Manchester Piccadilly}} and {{stnlnk|Brighton}}, in addition Intercity operated Summer Saturday services Liverpool to Dover Western Docks and Manchester to Eastbourne which use the West London line route to cross from {{stnlnk|Acton Main Line}}, stopping at Olympia and passing through Clapham Junction. The CrossCountry franchise was taken over by [[Arriva CrossCountry]] and in 2008 the Brighton route was terminated.<ref name=argus2012>{{cite news|last=Elliott|first=Emily-Ann|title=Train services from Brighton withdrawn|url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/3749781.Train_services_from_Brighton_withdrawn/|access-date=19 August 2013|newspaper=The Argus|date=12 October 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121007094726/http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/3749781.Train_services_from_Brighton_withdrawn/|archive-date=7 October 2012|location=Brighton}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk/AboutCrossCountry/FAQs2.aspx#FAQ10 |title=Frequently Asked Questions: How will the timetable change and when? |author=CrossCountry |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080822094855/http://www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk/AboutCrossCountry/FAQs2.aspx#FAQ10 |archive-date = 22 August 2008}}</ref>

In 2009, Southern introduced its cross-London service from Milton Keynes to East Croydon.<ref>{{cite web|title=DIRECT WEST LONDON LINE SERVICE TO SOUTH LONDON STATIONS|url=http://www.westlondonlinegroup.org.uk/docs/061123%20Poster%20-%20WLL%20stns%20re%201729%20MF%20ex-WJ%20fm%20SF.pdf|publisher=West London Line Group|access-date=19 August 2013}}</ref> For a brief period, Southern and Connex also operated a direct service from {{rws|Rugby}} to {{stnlnk|Brighton}} via {{stnlnk|Gatwick Airport}}, but this was withdrawn in 2001.<ref>{{cite web|title=CROSS-CLAPHAM WEST LONDON LINE SERVICES AT RISK……AGAIN!|url=http://www.westlondonlinegroup.org.uk/docs/070807-08Aug07Newsletter.pdf|publisher=West London Line Group|access-date=19 August 2013}}</ref>

== Train services ==
[[File:Unit 378205 at Clapham Junction.JPG|thumb|right|275px|[[London Overground]] train on the West London line]]
[[File:Southern 377203 at Kensington Olympia 02.jpg|thumb|right|275px|[[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]] train on the West London line]]

=== London Overground ===
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2024}}
The core operation of the West London line is the [[rapid transit|metro]]/[[commuter rail]] operated by London Overground. Four trains per hour run between Clapham Junction and Willesden Junction, with most trains continuing on the [[North London line]] to and from [[Stratford station|Stratford]]. It forms the western section of the Overground's orbital rail route which was completed in December 2012 when the [[East London line]] was extended to Clapham Junction via the [[South London line]], linking it to the West London line.

=== Cross-London services ===
Along with the [[Thameslink (route)|Thameslink]] and the [[East London line]] routes, the West London line presently forms part of the [[West London Route]] which is one of three National Rail routes which run across London instead of terminating in the central area.<ref name=crsslonond-RUS>{{cite web|title=Cross London Route Utilisation Strategy|url=http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/rus%20documents/route%20utilisation%20strategies/cross%20london/37846%20cross%20london%20rus.pdf|publisher=Network Rail|access-date=2 December 2012|page=14|date=August 2006}}</ref> This regional rail service operated by [[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]] connects the [[West Coast Main Line]] in the north to the [[Brighton Main Line]] in the south. Hourly trains run between {{rws|East Croydon}} and {{rws|Watford Junction}}, with additional peak services between {{stnlnk|Shepherd's Bush}} and {{rws|Clapham Junction}}. Southern services  pass through Willesden Junction without stopping as the mainline platforms were removed in 1962. However there are plans for these services to stop at Willesden Junction in the future which will mean building new main line platforms at Willesden Junction.

This regional service previously ran from {{rws|Brighton}} to Watford Junction. It was originally conceived as a Brighton-Birmingham service, and until December 2008 a twice-daily [[CrossCountry]] service ran from Brighton via Kensington (Olympia) and {{rws|Reading}} to {{rws|Birmingham New Street}}. The service was curtailed due to the difficulty in securing train paths in the congested West Midlands, and operated only as far as {{stnlink|Rugby}}. With engineering works on the upgrade of the West Coast Main Line, the service was shortened to terminate at Watford, and was discontinued, later revived as a shorter regional route as part of the [[Southern (train operating company)|South Central franchise]] in 2008. Due to congestion on the West Coast Main Line, the service did not run north of {{rws|Milton Keynes Central}},<ref name=sc-franchise>{{cite web|title=South Central Franchise Consultation|url=http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/southcentralfranchise/southcentralfranchisecons.pdf|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20080808013937/http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/southcentralfranchise/southcentralfranchisecons.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=8 August 2008|publisher=Department for Transport|access-date=2 December 2012|page=36|date=May 2008}}</ref> and in May 2022 was curtailed to Watford Junction.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220528034813/https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/48.aspx Changes to National Rail Timetable] [[National Rail]] 15 May 2022</ref>

<gallery widths=180>
File:Cross-london-rail.png|Map of cross-London rail routes present and planned
File:London Overground 2013.png|The orbital lines of the London Overground network ''(as of 9 December 2012)''
File:West-london-line-diagram.svg|Line map of the West London line, showing connections and travelcard zones
</gallery>

== Route ==
From north to south, to line follows the following route with current and former stations, junctions with other railways and other features:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Image !! Feature !! Location !! Interchange & notes
|-
| [[File:Willesden Junction station MMB 19 378005.jpg|100px|alt=Willesden Junction]] || {{stl|London Overground|Willesden Junction}}<br />|| {{coord|51.53266|-0.24547|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} ||
{{rail-interchange|london|underground}} {{rcb|London Underground|Bakerloo|inline=route}}<br />{{rail-interchange|london|overground|north london}} [[North London line]]<br />{{rail-interchange|london|overground|watford dc}} [[Watford DC line]]
{{----}}West London line trains use the high-level platforms shared with the [[North London line]] (NLL); Watford DC & Bakerloo lines use the low-level platforms
|-
| [[File:Willesden junction map.png|100px|alt=Map of Willesden Junction station and lines]] ||style=white-space:nowrap| West London Junction|| {{coord|51.530213|-0.244515|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || After Willesden Junction, the line heads south and crosses the [[West Coast Main Line]] via a bridge; the WLL separates from the NLL, which heads southwest towards Richmond.
|-
| [[File:WLL-WCML-branch.png|100px|alt=Map of the branch of the West Coast Main Line branch]] ||Mitre Bridge Junction || {{coord|51.527017|-0.236132|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} ||
Junction located just south of bridge over Hythe Road; the WLL curves east before turning south towards Shepherd's Bush. [[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]] services from {{rws|Watford Junction}} join the WLL at this junction after branching off from the WCML near Willesden Junction and curving south over a [[level crossing]].
|-
| [[File:First Great Western trains near Old Oak Common (geograph 2387650).jpg|100px|alt=Mitre Bridge]] || Mitre Bridge || {{coord|51.527017|-0.236132|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || [[Cantilever bridge]] which crosses the [[Great Western Main Line]] and the [[Grand Union Canal]] close to [[Old Oak Common TMD]]
|-
| [[File:North Pole depot trainshed.JPG|100px|File:North Pole depot trainshed]] || North Pole Junction || {{Coord|51.523965|-0.232855|type:landmark_region:GB_scale:5000|display=inline}} || End-on junction; connection to former [[Eurostar]] [[North Pole depot]], which is parallel to the GWR main line. The WLJR proper starts here.
|- style=background:lightgray
| [[File:North Pole Road in London, 2013.jpg|100px|Bridge over North Pole Road]] || {{rws|St Quintin Park & Wormwood Scrubs}} (closed) || {{Coord|51.5204|-0.2279|type:landmark_region:GB_scale:5000|display=inline}} || Destroyed by wartime bombing in 1940
|-
| [[File:Travellers site under the Westway, from the West London Line (geograph 2830548).jpg|100px|The Westway from the West London line]] || [[A40 road in London|Westway flyover]] || {{Coord|51.5168|-0.2233|type:landmark_region:GB_scale:5000|display=inline}}|| Just north of the Westway flyover is the AC/DC changeover point where electric trains switch power supply: 25 kV AC [[overhead lines]] to the north, 750 V DC [[third rail]] to the south
|- style=background:lightgray
| [[File:The Circle Routes of Victorian London.png|100px|alt=Map of the Circle Routes of Victorian London showing the Latimer Rd link]] || Junction with the [[Metropolitan Railway]] (dismantled) || {{coord|51.510551|-0.219868|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || This former eastbound spur linked the WLL to the line which is today the [[Hammersmith & City line]] via [[Latimer Road tube station|Latimer Road]] when the WLL formed part of the [[Middle Circle]] route from 1872 to 1905
|-
| [[File:Shepherd's Bush Overground stn high northbound.JPG|100px|Shepherd's Bush Overground stn]] || {{stl|London Overground|Shepherd's Bush}} || {{Coord|51.505128|-0.217561|type:landmark_region:GB_scale:5000|display=inline}}|| {{rail-interchange|london|underground}} {{rcb|London Underground|Central|inline=route}}
{{----}}Opened September 2008 on the site of the former [[Uxbridge Road tube station|Uxbridge Road station]].
|- style=background:lightgray
| [[File:Hammersmith Railway Map, 1889.jpg|100px|1889 map showing the L&SWR junction with the WLL]]|| Junction with the [[London and South Western Railway|L&SWR]] (dismantled) || {{coord|51.502141|-0.215121|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}}|| A former westbound spur connecting the WLL to the [[Hammersmith & City line]] via [[Shepherd's Bush railway station (L&SWR)|Shepherd's Bush]], removed in 1930
|-
| [[File:Kensington olympia from above.jpg|100px|File:Kensington Olympia]] || {{stl|London Overground|Kensington (Olympia)}} || {{coord|51.4986|-0.2108|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || {{rint|london|underground}} {{rcb|London Underground|District|inline=route}}
{{----}}Opened in 1862 as ''Addison Road''
|-
| [[File:Earls Court, Studland Road, Bishops Road, Addison Road, Hammersmith, Kensington, North Pole, South Kensington, Uxbridge Road & Westbourne Park RJD 39.jpg|100px|1914 diagram of railways in the Earls Court area]] || West London Extension Junction || {{coord|51.494673|-0.205319|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || End-on junction between the two parts of the line; extensive goods yards owned by LNWR and GWR
|-
| [[File:West Brompton stn Overground high southbound.JPG|100px|West Brompton West London line platforms]] || {{stl|London Overground|West Brompton}} || {{coord|51.4866|-0.1957|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || {{rint|london|underground}} {{rcb|London Underground|District|inline=route}}
{{----}}WLL platforms situated parallel to the Underground platforms closed in 1940 following World War II bomb damage; reopened 1999, restoring District line interchange
|- style=background:lightgray
| [[File:The West London Line (geograph 3420713).jpg|100px|The West London line at Fulham]] || [[Chelsea and Fulham station|Chelsea & Fulham]] (closed) || {{coord|51.480267|-0.18749|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || Station closed in 1940 following World War II bomb damage; a goods line branched off south of the station to Chelsea Basin (the present-day site of [[Chelsea Harbour Pier]])
|-
| [[File:Imperial Wharf stn look north.JPG|100px|Imperial Wharf station]] || {{stl|London Overground|Imperial Wharf}}  || {{coord|51.47517|-0.18281|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}}|| {{rail-interchange|london|river}} [[London River Services|River]]
{{----}}Opened 2009 as part of the expansion of London Overground
|-
| [[File:Battersea Bridge.jpg|100px|Battersea Bridge]] || [[Battersea Railway Bridge]] || {{coord|51.47306|-0.17917|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}}  || Crosses the [[River Thames]]
|- style=background:lightgray
| [[File:Site of Battersea Station (West London Extension Railway) - geograph.org.uk - 1772392.jpg|100px|Site of Battersea Station in 1962]] || {{rws|Battersea}} (closed) || {{coord|51.47152|-0.17219|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || Closed in 1940 following World War II bomb damage
|-
| [[File:Clapham Junction, Stewarts Lane, Lavender Hill & Longhedge RJD 17.jpg|100px|alt=diagram of Latchmere Junctions and Clapham Jcn]] || Latchmere Junctions || {{coord|51.470823|-0.167775|display=inline|region:GB_scale:5000}} || Connections to the [[South West Main Line]] ([[London Waterloo railway station|Waterloo]]) & the [[Brighton Main Line|Brighton]] & [[Chatham Main Line]]s ({{rws|London Victoria}}). Southern trains branch off here to traverse the main lines via a [[dive-under]]. When the WLL formed part of the [[Outer Circle (London)|Outer Circle]] route (1872–1908), trains would branch off here to Victoria.
|-
| [[File:Clapham Junction stn platform 2 look east with Unit 378138 Dec 2012.JPG|100px|An overground train terminates at Clapham Junction]] || {{stl|London Overground|Clapham Junction}} || LOC ||
{{rail-interchange|london|overground|south london}} [[South London line]]<br />
{{rail-interchange|london|rail}} [[National Rail]]
{{----}} WLL terminates in a [[bay platform]] parallel to [[Waterloo to Reading Line]], shared with terminating [[South London line]] services. Southern trains call at platforms on the other side of the station before continuing south to {{rws|East Croydon}}.
|}

The [[West Cross Route]], one side of the [[London Ringways#Ringway 1|Ringway 1]] inner [[ring road]], would have paralleled the line.

== Rolling stock ==
Trains in scheduled passenger services on the West London line are as follows:
{|class="wikitable"
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Class&nbsp;
! rowspan="2" |Image
! rowspan="2" |Type
! colspan="2" |&nbsp;Top speed&nbsp;
! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Routes operated&nbsp;
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
!&nbsp;mph&nbsp;
!&nbsp;km/h&nbsp;
|-
|rowspan=2|{{brc|377|f}}/2
|rowspan=2|[[File:Southern377215-WestBrompton-20040927.JPG|200px|alt=Southern Class 377 at West Brompton]]
|[[Electric multiple unit|EMU]]
|100
|160
|Southern<br />{{stnlnk|Watford Junction}} to {{stnlnk|East Croydon}}
|-
| colspan="4" |[[File:Southern Class 377 Diagram.PNG|center|400px]]
|-
|rowspan=2|{{brc|377|f}}/7
|rowspan=2|[[File:7 number 377705 at East Croydon.jpg|center|200px]]
|[[Electric multiple unit|EMU]]
|100
|160
|Southern<br />{{stnlnk|Watford Junction}} to {{stnlnk|East Croydon}}
|-
| colspan="4" |[[File:Southern Class 377-7.png|center|400px]]
|-
|rowspan=2|{{brc|378|f}}/2
|rowspan=2|[[File:Shepherd's Bush railway station MMB 05 378017.jpg|200px|alt=London Overground class 378 train at Shepherd's Bush railway station]]
|[[electric multiple unit|EMU]]
|75
|120
|London Overground<br />{{stnlnk|Willesden Junction}} to {{stnlnk|Clapham Junction}}
|-
| colspan="4" |[[File:London Overground Class 378-2.png|center|400px]]
|-
|rowspan=2|{{brc|710|f}}/3
|rowspan=2|[[File:710263 Willesden Junction.jpg|200px|alt=London Overground class 710 train at Willesden Junction railway station]]
|[[electric multiple unit|EMU]]
|75
|120
|London Overground<br />{{stnlnk|Willesden Junction}} to {{stnlnk|Clapham Junction}}
|-
| colspan="4" |[[File:LO Class 710-2 5 Car w-pantograph.png|center|400px]]
|}

== Passenger volume ==

These are passenger volume statistics for the line from the years beginning April 2002 to April 2022. The large increases in the year beginning April 2006 were due to travelcards for National Rail journeys being made available from stations with London Underground ticket offices, and also using a different methodology to estimate likely journeys made from National Rail stations in Zone 1. The large increases in the year beginning April 2010 were due to increased train frequencies helped by the introduction of new rolling stock. Shepherd's Bush opened 2008 and Imperial Wharf the following year.<ref name=sta>{{cite web|title =Station Usage|work =Rail Statistics|publisher =Office of Rail Regulation| url=http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.1529|access-date = 26 April 2012}}</ref> There was a significant change in methodology for estimating usage of London stations in 2015–16, resulting in large changes in usage numbers for some stations.<ref name="ORR1516">{{cite web |title=Estimates of Station Usage 2015-16 |date=5 December 2016 |url=https://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/23353/estimates-of-station-usage-2015-16-key-facts.pdf |publisher=Office for Rail and Road |archive-url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20190603122602mp_/https://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/23353/estimates-of-station-usage-2015-16-key-facts.pdf |archive-date=3 Jun 2019 |url-status=live|access-date= 20 March 2024}}</ref>

{{UKsta-u|
{{UKsta-u A|stn=Willesden Junction
|u1=1,658,719
|u2=1,858,277
|u3=1,976,305
|u4=1,472,634
|u5=1,350,707
|u6=1,202,578
|u7=1,780,980
|u8=2,377,316
|u9=3,504,304
|u10=3,651,506
|u11=3,964,254
|u12=4,802,446
|u13=6,243,172
|u14=6,196,804
|u15=6,069,606
|u16=5,943,590
|u17=6,019,360
|u18=2,795,956
|u19=5,357,538
|u20=6,367,758
}}
{{UKsta-u A|stn=Shepherd's Bush
|u1={{n/a}}|u2={{n/a}}|u3={{n/a}}|u4={{n/a}}
|u5=2,675
|u6=247,534
|u7=1,014,896
|u8=2,240,736
|u9=3,148,594
|u10=3,818,228
|u11=3,932,956
|u12=4,433,470
|u13=8,653,428
|u14=7,984,042
|u15=7,952,788
|u16=7,955,106
|u17=7,647,088
|u18=2,271,628
|u19=5,008,562
|u20=5,705,198
}}
{{UKsta-u A|stn=Kensington Olympia
|u1=762,103
|u2=1,159,086
|u3=1,244,273
|u4=1,391,740
|u5=1,790,062
|u6=1,923,962
|u7=1,833,537
|u8=2,311,792
|u9=5,936,984
|u10=5,290,538
|u11=7,290,836
|u12=7,249,102
|u13=10,904,840
|u14=4,117,608
|u15=4,049,392
|u16=3,636,880
|u17=3,353,060
|u18=738,934
|u19=1,742,806
|u20=2,281,904}}
{{UKsta-u A|stn=West Brompton
|u1=131,414
|u2=313,725
|u3=411,667
|u4=518,781
|u5=632,970
|u6=643,852
|u7=887,692
|u8=1,506,006
|u9=2,103,946
|u10=2,501,626
|u11=2,524,228
|u12=3,365,504
|u13=5,625,750
|u14=5,226,416
|u15=5,249,830
|u16=4,936,112
|u17=4,516,992
|u18=1,411,158
|u19=3,027,020
|u20=3,510,570
}}
{{UKsta-u A|stn=Imperial Wharf
|u1={{n/a}}|u2={{n/a}}|u3={{n/a}}|u4={{n/a}}|u5={{n/a}}|u6={{n/a}}
|u7=119,250
|u8=737,388
|u9=1,230,734
|u10=1,579,564
|u11=1,818,380
|u12=1,982,780
|u13=3,290,200
|u14=3,133,002
|u15=3,193,608
|u16=3,123,322
|u17=2,863,374
|u18=1,010,064
|u19=2,324,442
|u20=2,706,930
}}
{{UKsta-u A|stn=Clapham Junction
|u1=17,122,208
|u2=12,550,035
|u3=12,426,542
|u4=18,868,026
|u5=19,881,295
|u6=17,445,432
|u7=17,758,808
|u8=19,671,342
|u9=21,918,116
|u10=23,622,718
|u11=25,287,250
|u12=26,465,840
|u13=32,282,220
|u14=30,680,766
|u15=29,444,710
|u16=29,520,132
|u17=28,892,348
|u18=8,370,706
|u19=17,397,120
|u20=20,790,150
}}
}}

== Future ==

The [[Crossrail]] project instated the [[Elizabeth line]], a new east-west cross-London route which uses the [[Great Western Main Line]] up to {{stnlnk|Reading}}, and crosses the West London line {{convert|0.5|km}} south of Willesden Junction at Old Oak Common. A new station, [[Old Oak Common railway station]], is planned at this site to provide an interchange between the Elizabeth line, the GWML and [[High Speed 2]]. Due to the proximity of Willesden Junction, it has been suggested that an interchange could be added with the [[North London line|North London]], [[Bakerloo line|Bakerloo]], [[Watford DC line|Watford DC]] and West London lines. A 2010 Department for Transport command paper highlights opportunities for interchanges at Old Oak Common with [[London Underground]], [[London Overground]] and [[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]]'s cross-London services,<ref name="DFT">{{cite web|url=http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/highspeedrail/commandpaper/pdf/cmdpaper.pdf#page=107|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100513152957/http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/highspeedrail/commandpaper/pdf/cmdpaper.pdf#page=107|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 May 2010|title=High Speed Rail|publisher=[[Department for Transport]]|page=107|access-date=7 January 2011}}</ref> while a report prepared by [[Terry Farrell and Partners]] for the Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham proposes the construction of an overhead [[light rail]], [[people mover|automated people mover]] or [[personal rapid transit]] system linking "Old Oak Central" {{sic}} with Willesden Junction.<ref name=lbhf-park-royal>{{cite web|title=A Vision for Park Royal City|publisher=London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham|access-date=17 June 2013|author=Terry Farrell|pages=21 & 34|date=August 2011|url=http://www.lbhf.gov.uk/Images/110907_OOC-report-low_tcm21-167835.pdf|archive-date=24 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424233916/http://www.lbhf.gov.uk/Images/110907_OOC-report-low_tcm21-167835.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> However, {{as of|2013|lc=y}}, no firm proposals exist to create an interchange with these lines.<ref>{{cite web|title=Old Oak Common Station|url=http://hs2ltd.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/old-oak-common-station_0.pdf|work=High Speed Rail Consultation|publisher=Department for Transport|access-date=14 June 2013}}</ref>

Proposals for Old Oak Common being considered by Transport for London include a scheme to realign the routes of both the West London and North London lines around the Old Oak Common site to create a new London Overground interchange station. The proposal envisages diverting the NLL Richmond route to curve around the eastern side of Old Oak Common, and re-routing the WLL to branch west south of the Mitre Bridge before curving north along a short section of the [[Dudding Hill Line]] to join the West Coast Main Line. The NLL and WLL would meet at a point on the southern side of Old Oak Common, adjacent to [[Wormwood Scrubs]], where new interchange platforms would be built. Alternative versions of this scheme also consider cheaper options such as terminating the WLL at Old Oak Common or two separate London Overground stations.<ref name=moth>{{cite web|title=High Speed 2 – Old Oak Common station proposals|url=http://www.goldenmilegroup.org.uk/wla/goldenmile.nsf/Files/WTA-170/$FILE/Golden%20Mile%20-%20TfL.ppt|access-date=11 July 2013|author=Peter Moth – Principal Transport Planner, TfL|format=PPT}}</ref><ref name=lr-wll>{{cite web|title=Old Oak Common: A Vision and Challenge For Crossrail (Part 1)|url=http://www.londonreconnections.com/2013/old-oak-common-a-vision-and-a-challenge-for-crossrail-part-1/|work=London Reconnections|date=9 July 2013|access-date=11 July 2013}}</ref>

The West London line passes beneath the [[Earls Court Exhibition Centre]] along a complex intersection of track which crosses over the subsurface junction of three District line branches. The planned redevelopment of the site by [[Capital & Counties Properties]] envisages demolishing the Exhibition Centre to make way for retail and housing; as part of these plans, the West London line is to be enclosed by a concrete box. Commentators have noted that the proposals make no allowance for any future quadrupling of the track to increase capacity on the line.<ref>{{cite web|title=West London Line cocooned by Earls Court development|url=http://www.londonreconnections.com/2013/west-london-line-cocooned-by-earls-court-development/|work=London Reconnections|date=13 June 2013|access-date=14 June 2013}}</ref>
<gallery widths=180>
File:Earls court.jpg|The West London & District lines passing under Earls Court
File:Willesden Junction map with Old Oak Common.png|Map of the planned Old Oak Common station in relation to existing rail services
File:Old Oak Common East Junction geograph-2397031-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg|The West London line crosses Old Oak Common via Mitre Bridge (pictured here in 1979)
</gallery>

== References ==

{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==

*{{Citation | surname=Nisbet | given=A F.  | author-link=Alistair Nisbet  | title=Punch's Railway and the Winkle Railway | journal=BackTrack | volume=20 | issue=2 Feb) | year=2006 | page=117 to 121 }}.
* [[Thomas Faulkner (topographer)|Thomas Faulkner]] (1839), ''[https://archive.org/details/historyandantiq01faulgoog <!-- quote=Birmingham, Bristol & Thames Junction Railway. --> The History and Antiquities of the Parish of Hammersmith]'', pp 65–68.
* J.B. Atkinson "The West London Joint Railways" Ian Allan 1984.
* Vic Mitchell and Keith Smith "West London Line – Clapham Jn. to Willesden Jn." London Suburban Railways Series, Middleton Press 1996.

== External links ==
{{GeoGroup}}
*[http://www.westlondonlinegroup.org.uk/ West London Line Group], representing the interests of users of the West London line.
*[http://www.abandonedstations.org.uk/West_London_Line.html West London Line] from abandonedstations.org.uk
*{{subbrit|k/kensington_olympia/index2.shtml}}  Detailed pages on the history of each station on the line (current and disused).
*{{commons category-inline|West London Line}}

{{Railway lines in London}}

{{London Overground navbox|NLL=y}}
{{TSGN and SE Stations|West London=y}}
{{coord|51.4991|-0.2116|dim:10000_region:GB|display=title}}

[[Category:London Overground]]
[[Category:Transport in the London Borough of Wandsworth]]
[[Category:Transport in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea]]
[[Category:Transport in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham]]
[[Category:Transport in the London Borough of Brent]]
[[Category:Railway lines in London]]
[[Category:Railway lines opened in 1844]]
[[Category:Standard gauge railways in London]]
[[Category:25 kV AC railway electrification]]
[[Category:750 V DC railway electrification]]