West Ealing

West Ealing railway station is on the Great Western Main Line in Ealing, west London. It is 6 miles 46 chains (10.6 km) down the line from London Paddington and is situated between Ealing Broadway to the east and Hanwell to the west. Its three-letter station code is WEA.

Most trains serving it are currently operated by Great Western Railway and TfL Rail with Chiltern Railways operating one service a day. In 2019 the TfL Rail service will become part of the Elizabeth line and in December 2019 will open for its full length from Reading to Shenfield.

History
The station was opened in 1871 as Castle Hill and Ealing Dene on the Great Western Railway, which was constructed from London Paddington through Ealing to Maidenhead in 1836–1838.[3] From 1 March 1883, the station—then named Castle Hill (Ealing Dean)—was served by District Railway services running between Mansion House and Windsor. This service was discontinued as uneconomic after 30 September 1885.[4][5] The station was located next to the London Co-operative Society's main creamery, and so was equipped with a dedicated milk train platform.

Originally the station consisted of four platforms in a staggered layout: platform 1 (along with a siding) and the island comprising platforms 2 and 3 to the west of the Drayton Green Road bridge, and platform 4 on the east side.[6] Platform 1 and its siding were demolished in the late 1960s; platform 4 was demolished and moved west of the bridge by early 1990, partially covering the site of the then long-closed milk depot;[7] platform 2 was partially demolished and fenced off by early 1991 as trains on the main line no longer serviced the station. From around 1985 to 1990, access to the original platform 4 was opposite the station building, across Drayton Green Road bridge. The current station building was completed in early 1987, following the demolition of the previous century-old building a year earlier. A west-facing terminating platform, platform 5, was added in 2016 for trains on the Greenford branch.

Accidents and incidents[edit]
On 5 August 1989, an express passenger train travelling from Oxford to Paddington collided with a piece of rail left on the track, probably by vandals, and the locomotive, Class 5050025 Invincible, was derailed along the points near to platform 2 (these points were removed by November of that year). There were no serious injuries.