History
The South Eastern Railway opened a line from Redhill to Ashford and on to Dover in 1842. This bypassed the county town of Maidstone, and a station named Maidstone Road was opened in a rural location on 31 August 1842 to serve the town, eight miles to the north. The village of Paddock Wood developed quickly around the station, which took the name Paddock Wood in 1844 when the branch line to Maidstone West was opened. Another branch line - the Hawkhurst Branch - to the village of Hawkhurst existed between 1892 and 1961.
The station has Up and Down platforms (1 and 2 respectively) with a pair of fast lines between them. On the Down side, a bay platform (platform 3) is used for the Medway Valley Line services to Maidstone and beyond. A matching bay platform existed on the Up side when the Hawkhurst branch was in operation. The main station building is on the Up platform; there are long canopies on both platforms. Transfer between platforms is by footbridge.
Read more about this topic: Paddock Wood Railway Station
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