Walton-on-Thames railway station serves Walton-on-Thames and north Hersham in Surrey. Platform 1 is used by trains towards London Waterloo. Platform 2 is used by trains towards Weybridge, Woking and destinations farther west and south-west, including selected services to Guildford, Basingstoke and Portsmouth Harbour.
The station is on the South West Main Line, approximately 17.1 miles by rail from London Waterloo. South Western Railway manages the station and operates its passenger services. The station code is WAL. The station has four platforms in total; Platforms 1 and 2 are operational, while the other two, beside the central fast lines, are out of use, gated and inaccessible.
Check live departures from Walton-on-Thames ↗
Checked against National Rail and South Western Railway: August 2026. Always check live running information for the day you're travelling, since this page can't reflect disruption or timetable changes in real time.
Walton-on-Thames station at a glance
| Official name | Walton-on-Thames |
|---|---|
| Station code | WAL |
| Address | Station Avenue, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, KT12 1NR |
| Operator | South Western Railway |
| Line | South West Main Line |
| Platforms | 4 in total: 2 operational, 2 gated and out of use |
| Platform 1 | Trains towards London Waterloo |
| Platform 2 | Trains towards Weybridge, Woking and onward destinations |
| Distance from Waterloo | Approximately 17.1 miles by rail |
| Fastest direct trains to Waterloo | Usually around 22 to 25 minutes |
| Walk to Walton town centre | Approximately 20 to 25 minutes |
| Step-free access | Yes, lifts plus separate ramped entrances. Official Category B1 |
| Ticket office and machines | Yes |
| Oyster | Not accepted |
| Contactless pay as you go | Not accepted for tap-in and tap-out travel |
| SWR Touch Smartcard | Available free from the ticket office or online |
| Car park | Yes, paid |
| Cycle storage | 132 spaces |
| Toilets | Yes, including an accessible toilet during ticket office hours |
| Coffee shop | Yes, on Platform 1 |
Platforms and destinations
| Direction or destination | Usual platform | Service pattern |
|---|---|---|
| London Waterloo | 1 | Direct stopping and semi-fast services |
| Surbiton, Wimbledon, Clapham Junction, Vauxhall | 1 | Served by selected London-bound trains |
| Weybridge | 2 | Direct services |
| Woking | 2 | Direct trains normally run several times an hour |
| Guildford | 2 | Direct at some times; otherwise change at Woking |
| Basingstoke | 2 | Direct services |
| Portsmouth Harbour | 2 | Selected direct services |
Platform allocations and calling patterns can change during disruption or engineering work.
Trains from Walton-on-Thames
Walton-on-Thames has frequent South Western Railway services towards London and the wider south-west network. The exact timetable changes between weekday peaks, off-peak periods, evenings, Sundays and periods of engineering work.
To London Waterloo, Platform 1
Direct services run throughout the day. The fastest trains usually take about 22 to 25 minutes; services making more stops commonly take around 30 to 35 minutes, depending on the service, calling at some or all of Surbiton, Wimbledon, Clapham Junction and Vauxhall before Waterloo. Clapham Junction connects onward to Victoria, Gatwick Airport and south London; Vauxhall connects with the Victoria line; Wimbledon connects with the District line and London Trams.
Towards Weybridge, Woking and beyond, Platform 2
Direct destinations can include Weybridge, Woking, Guildford, Basingstoke and Portsmouth Harbour, with Southampton and other south-west destinations sometimes requiring a change. Woking is the main interchange for onward journeys towards Guildford, Portsmouth, Southampton, Bournemouth, Salisbury and Exeter.
For an exact journey, use the South Western Railway journey planner ↗ or the National Rail journey planner ↗. This page deliberately doesn't hard-code first and last train times, since they change too often and can be affected by engineering work.
Live departures and disruption
- Live departures from Walton-on-Thames ↗
- South Western Railway service updates ↗
- National Rail planned engineering work ↗
During planned closures, rail replacement buses normally leave from the station forecourt off Station Avenue.
Tickets, Oyster, contactless and smartcards
Walton-on-Thames has a staffed ticket office and ticket machines, and accepts tickets, eTickets and compatible smartcards.
Oyster and contactless
Walton-on-Thames is outside the London fare zones, and neither Oyster cards nor ordinary contactless pay-as-you-go tap-in/tap-out travel are accepted. A contactless bank card can still be used to pay for a ticket at a machine or the ticket office, which is a different thing from tapping directly at the gate.
SWR Touch Smartcard and Tap2Go
The SWR Touch Smartcard is a free, reusable card available from the ticket office while you wait, or ordered through an SWR online account for delivery normally within five working days. Tickets bought online or via the SWR app can be loaded onto it. The same card also supports Tap2Go, SWR's own pay-as-you-go product; it isn't Oyster, and on its own it doesn't extend onto the London Underground, London Overground or London buses.
Ticket office hours
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday to Saturday | 06:10 to 20:40 |
| Sunday | 08:10 to 19:40 |
Ticket machines are available whenever the office is closed. Hours may differ on public holidays; check SWR's Walton-on-Thames station page ↗ for the current times.
Station entrances and layout
The station sits between Station Avenue on the north side and Mayfield Road on the south side, close to the boundary between Walton-on-Thames and Hersham.
The main Station Avenue entrance, beside Platform 1, has the ticket office, main forecourt, taxi rank and principal cycle storage, and is the most convenient entrance from Walton town centre and Ashley Park. Platform 1 is reached from here by a ramp of around 1:12; lifts and the footbridge give an accessible route to Platform 2 when they're operating.
The Mayfield Road entrance gives direct access to Platform 2 from the Hersham and Burwood Park side, via a longer ramp of around 1:20, and serves as an alternative step-free route to Platform 2 if the lift or footbridge is out of action. The road route between the two entrances is longer than crossing via the footbridge.
A modern footbridge connects the platforms, with lifts and new stairs added as part of a £6 million Access for All project completed in August 2024 (see History). The older subway is not the station's accessible route.
Accessibility
Walton-on-Thames is officially classified as a Category B1 step-free station: both operational platforms have step-free access, though the route depends on which entrance you use and whether the lifts are working.
- Lifts between the platforms and footbridge
- Ramped access to Platform 1 from Station Avenue, and a longer ramp to Platform 2 from Mayfield Road
- Accessible ticket machines and an induction loop
- Passenger help points on both platforms, with visual departure screens and audio announcements
- A boarding ramp and a wheelchair available for passenger use
- An accessible drop-off point
- An accessible toilet in the Platform 1 booking hall (RADAR/National Key, normally available only while the ticket office is open)
South Western Railway's own station page lists a Changing Places toilet as not available at Walton-on-Thames.
If a lift is out of service, Platform 1 remains reachable from Station Avenue and Platform 2 from Mayfield Road; reaching the opposite platform then means a road journey around the railway rather than crossing the footbridge.
Passenger assistance
South Western Railway provides boarding and alighting assistance while services are running, normally arranged through Passenger Assist. The published SWR assistance number is 0800 528 2100, and assistance can usually be booked up to two hours before travel. See Passenger Assist information ↗.
Parking
There's a paid station car park, generally open 24 hours. Published sources currently disagree on its size: National Rail and South Western Railway list 140 spaces, including two accessible bays, while the car park operator, APCOA, lists 250 spaces. We haven't been able to resolve that discrepancy this session, so treat the operator's own page as the most current word on availability.
| Parking period | Published price |
|---|---|
| Peak day (Monday to Friday) | £6.60 |
| Off-peak, from 12:00 | £3.30 |
| Saturday, Sunday or bank holiday | £3.30 |
| Hourly off-peak, via RingGo | £1.10 |
| Weekly | £26.30 |
| Monthly | £92.00 |
| Quarterly | £276.00 |
| Annual | £920.00 |
Complimentary parking is available to registered Blue Badge holders under the operator's scheme. For current prices, payment methods and the RingGo location code, see the APCOA Walton-on-Thames station car park page ↗.
Alternative public car parks
Elmbridge Borough Council separately operates car parks nearby on Station Avenue and Mayfield Road, with their own restrictions and charges.
Drop-off, pick-up and taxis
The main forecourt off Station Avenue handles drop-off, pick-up, taxis and rail replacement services, and has a taxi rank. The Mayfield Road entrance, on the opposite side of the railway, isn't directly connected to the forecourt by road.
Buses
Bus stops outside the station link to Walton town centre, Hersham, Esher, Kingston, Shepperton, Staines and nearby communities. National Rail's current onward travel poster lists routes 458 and 459 serving destinations including Hersham, Esher, Kingston, Thames Ditton, Lower Halliford, Shepperton, Laleham, Staines and Whiteley Village; the poster's own stop-letter assignments are the most reliable source for exactly which stop to use for each direction, so we've linked it below rather than reproduce the detail here. Older station guides sometimes list routes 461, 555 or 564, but these don't appear on the current poster.
View the current National Rail onward travel poster for Walton-on-Thames ↗
Walking to Walton town centre
The station isn't in Walton town centre; allow approximately 20 to 25 minutes to walk to the central shopping area, mainly along Ashley Park Road and Ashley Road through a residential area. The River Thames, Walton Bridge and the riverside lie beyond the town centre. The station also serves Ashley Park, the Halfway area, north Hersham and parts of Burwood Park; Hersham itself has a separate station on the branch towards Hampton Court.
Cycling
There are 132 sheltered, CCTV-covered cycle storage spaces outside the main entrance, accessible 24 hours a day with basic maintenance tools available. South Western Railway doesn't list a station cycle-hire scheme, and restricts full-size bicycles on some peak services; see the SWR bicycle policy ↗ for current rules.
Facilities
Ticketing and information
Staffed ticket office, self-service machines, ticket gates, live departure screens, public-address announcements, help points on both platforms, CCTV, station Wi-Fi and an induction loop.
Waiting and refreshments
A heated waiting area in the booking hall, and a coffee shop on Platform 1. There are no other retail units at the station.
Toilets
Standard toilets and baby-changing facilities, plus a RADAR/National-Key accessible toilet in the Platform 1 booking hall, normally available only during ticket office hours. There is no Changing Places toilet.
Luggage and lost property
There's no left-luggage facility or luggage-trolley service. Lost property is handled through South Western Railway's central process associated with London Waterloo, rather than a dedicated office at Walton-on-Thames.
History
Walton-on-Thames is one of the oldest railway stations in Surrey, opening on 21 May 1838 as part of the London and Southampton Railway's first public section, from Nine Elms in London to Woking Common. The line's London terminus moved to Waterloo in 1848, creating the direct approach into central London that the station still uses today.
According to research prepared for this page, the station's name has since changed several times, reflecting its position between Walton and Hersham; we haven't been able to independently verify the exact sequence of dates against a primary source this session, so the table below should be read as reported rather than independently confirmed.
| Period | Reported name |
|---|---|
| From 1838 | Walton |
| From 1849 | Walton & Hersham |
| From 1913 | Walton for Hersham |
| From 1935 | Walton-on-Thames |
As traffic grew, the line through Walton developed into today's four-track railway; Platforms 1 and 2 use the outer lines, while the two former central platforms, beside the fast lines, are out of use, gated and inaccessible, with non-stopping trains passing through the centre of the station at up to 90mph. Full electric services on the extensions towards Woking, Guildford and Portsmouth began in July 1937, part of the wider Southern Railway electrification of the route in the 1930s. The railway helped establish Walton as a commuter town, with residential development spreading around Ashley Park, the Halfway area and the station approaches as regular travel to London became practical.
The 2024 Access for All project
A £6 million Access for All scheme began in September 2022 and was formally opened on 30 August 2024, delivering a new footbridge, two lifts, new staircases, a widened Platform 1 and upgraded CCTV, giving passengers a step-free route between the platforms for the first time. See Network Rail's project announcement ↗.
The March 2024 derailment
At around 05:40 on 4 March 2024, the 04:54 South Western Railway service from Basingstoke to London Waterloo, travelling at around 85mph, struck a section of redundant rail that had been left too close to the running line on the approach to Walton-on-Thames after engineering work. The leading wheelset derailed, though the train remained upright and came to a stand around 500 metres beyond the point of impact; around 100 passengers were on board, and no injuries were reported. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch found that checks carried out before the railway was handed back for normal running hadn't identified the hazard, and published its final report, 04/2025, in February 2025. See the RAIB report ↗.
How busy is the station?
The Office of Rail and Road estimated 2,425,886 passenger entries and exits in 2024/25, a figure that measures journeys entering and leaving the station rather than unique people.
| Year | Estimated entries and exits |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | Approximately 2.035 million |
| 2023/24 | Approximately 2.264 million |
| 2024/25 | 2,425,886 |
Frequently asked questions
How many platforms are there at Walton-on-Thames station?
Four. Platforms 1 and 2 are operational; the other two, beside the central fast lines, are out of use, gated and inaccessible.
Which platform is for London Waterloo?
Platform 1. Depending on the service, calls may include Surbiton, Wimbledon, Clapham Junction and Vauxhall.
Which platform is for Woking, Guildford, Basingstoke or Portsmouth?
Platform 2. Some journeys are direct, others require a change, commonly at Woking.
How long is the train from Walton-on-Thames to Waterloo?
The fastest direct services usually take about 22 to 25 minutes. Trains making more stops commonly take around 30 to 35 minutes. Times vary by service and day.
Is Walton-on-Thames station in Zone 6?
No. The station is outside the London fare zones.
Can I use Oyster at Walton-on-Thames?
No. Oyster is not accepted at Walton-on-Thames.
Can I use contactless pay as you go?
No. Ordinary contactless bank-card pay as you go is not currently available. Accepted options include rail tickets, eTickets and the SWR Touch Smartcard.
Is the station step-free?
Yes, both operational platforms have step-free access. The station is officially Category B1. Lifts connect the platforms, and separate ramped entrances serve Platform 1 from Station Avenue and Platform 2 from Mayfield Road.
Does Walton-on-Thames station have parking?
Yes, a paid car park with accessible bays. National Rail and South Western Railway list 140 spaces; the car park operator, APCOA, lists 250. Check APCOA's page for the current figure.
Is there cycle parking?
Yes, 132 sheltered spaces with CCTV and basic maintenance tools, accessible 24 hours a day.
How far is the station from Walton town centre?
Approximately a 20 to 25 minute walk, mainly via Ashley Park Road and Ashley Road.
Is Walton-on-Thames station a listed building?
We have not found an official Historic England listing for the station. Some online pages appear to confuse it with other listed buildings near Station Avenue.
Useful official links
- National Rail station information ↗
- South Western Railway station information ↗
- South Western Railway timetables ↗
- Office of Rail and Road station usage data ↗
This guide covers the station itself. For getting to Walton-on-Thames more generally, including car and bus routes, see Getting Here; for the town centre, things to do and Walton's history.