EPW001718 ENGLAND (1920). The town centre, Leatherhead, 1920

At the top of this picture the two viaducts over the River Mole bring the London and South Western railway curving in from Effingham Junction alongside the London Brighton and South Coast Railway from Dorking. The line passes through two parallel stations before joining somewhere near the right hand (northern) side of the picture for the journey to Epsom - see image EPW006480.

Shortly after the amalgamation of the railways in 1923 (two and a half years after this picture was taken) the new Southern Railway made some relatively simple efficiency savings and improvements to connectivity by using one station at Leatherhead. The lines were joined as soon as they came off the viaducts and all trains used what had been the ‘Brighton’ on the line nearest the photographer. The LSWR station remained for many years, with the tracks being used as carriage sidings, the building becoming a maintenance liability. These developments brought about effective change that offered a better service to travellers, even if they did not maximise income for the railway by realising the value of the land and buildings no longer required at Leatherhead.