Kingston Upon Thames - Transport

Transport

The town is served by two South West Trains routes advertised from London as to Shepperton and to St Margarets, though the second route is a complete loop. Three railway stations prove closest to parts of the town on this line from London Waterloo station:

• Kingston
• Norbiton and
• Hampton Wick.

Norbiton is east of the town centre near Kingston Hospital, and Hampton Wick is to the west across Kingston Bridge. New Malden, Wimbledon and Richmond upon Thames are on the lines. A primary stop exists on the nearby main (express) line in nearby Surbiton which has a peak hour non-stopping service to Waterloo. The town led to the South Western Main Line being in Surbiton as much of Kingston's wealth and status were as a direct consequence of the road and stagecoach network developed as a result of its crossing on the Thames. Local landowners would not consent to the line coming through their land so in 1838 the rail station was built a few miles out at Surbiton, which was known as Kingston Upon Railway and led to the development of Surbiton. Kingston recognised the need for a railway, and in the 1860s Kingston opened. The line however, due to the eastern landowners' resistance, had to take a longer route via Richmond upon Thames. Only later did the line receive all the relevant permissions for a closer link, connecting to London Waterloo via Norbiton.

The A3 road runs from central London towards Kingston before by-passing the town to the east. The "Kingston bypass road" was one of the first arterial roads to be built in Britain. It was originally proposed in 1912 to relieve the pressure of traffic in the town centre, but World War I delayed the start of work until 1924. It was opened by Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin on 28 October 1927. Kingston is also served by the A240, the A307 (Portsmouth Road), A308 and A310.

Kingston has a large number of car parks, connected by a one-way system. It is also one of the main centres of the south west London bus network.

Riverboats run regularly between Kingston and Hampton Court as well as Richmond all during the summer season. There are also direct services to Putney and Westminster from Hampton Court connected by the 10-15 minute interval route 111 to London Heathrow which is the destination for X26 an express service also serving the bus station and the Bentall Centre. Of more local note, bus service connect in most directions including to Dorking (Surrey; similarly longer, notable routes include Putney and Tooting Broadway, London.