Staines and West Drayton Railway

Staines–West Drayton line
The former southern terminus, Staines West
Overview
Status	Part operational
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Greater London, Berkshire, Surrey
Termini	West Drayton Staines West
Service
Type	Freight
History
Opened	1884-1885
Technical
Line length	2 mi 74 ch (4.7 km) (operational); 6 mi (9.7 km) total
Number of tracks	1
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	none
Operating speed	20 mph (32 km/h) (maximum)

The Staines & West Drayton Railway (S&WDR), also the Staines–West Drayton line and the Colnbrook branch, is a partially open, freight-only railway line in southern England. Formerly it ran for around 6 miles (9.7 km) from the Great Western Main Line at West Drayton to Staines-upon-Thames in Surrey, passing through the village of Colnbrook in Berkshire. The operational part of the line, north of Colnbrook, runs for 2 mi 74 ch (4.7 km) and is used exclusively by freight trains.

The earliest plans for a railway linking Staines-upon-Thames to the Great Western Main Line were put forward in the 1840s, but were not approved by parliament at the time. The Colnbrook Railway Act was passed in 1866, but the powers expired before the necessary capital could be raised. Further bills were required to authorise the S&WDR before construction eventually began in 1882. The line from West Drayton to Colnbrook opened on 9 August 1884 and passenger services began running to Staines-upon-Thames on 2 November 1885.

Following the Beeching Report of 1963, all passenger services were withdrawn on 27 March 1965. The full length of the line remained open for freight trains, until the southern half was closed in 1981 to allow the construction of the M25 motorway.