IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Manygate Lane, SHEPPERTON, TW17 9ER

A South West Train waits at Shepperton Station. This is the end of the line and goes to London Waterloo via Strawberry Hill and Richmond or via Kingston and Wimbledon

Looking from the junction of Govett Avenue along Station Approach to Green Lane.

Looking east along Govett Avenue in Shepperton.

The entrance to the Business Park on Govett Avenue.

This is an interesting photograph because it shows a temporary platform that had been erected at Shepperton, not for the use of passengers, but for testing the first sliding-door stock that was to be introduced onto British Rail's Southern Region. The new train, known as a 4-PEP, was intensively tested on the branch before going into public service. Along the edge of the temporary platform can be seen iron weights, which were put onto the new train as required to simulate the weight of passengers the train would have to carry when in service. In the end, the new train was never put into large scale production, but it was the fore-runner of the Class 507 and 508 trains.

29 years after Neil's Image and the temporary platform is still in situ... Shepperton station was built on the London & South Western Railway's Thames Valley Line, opening in 1864. The original intention of extending the line to Weybridge is clear here as the station was built as though it was going to be a through station rather than a terminus. However the trackwork stops just beyond the end of the platform at the hedge in the distance. In view of the fact that the station is a terminus the message on the information board that the next train is not scheduled to call at the station might seem a tad curious, evoking memories of "Oh, Mr Porter!", Buggleskelly, and Harbottle telling the newly arrived station master, Mr Porter, that the "Next train's gone"! However there is a more prosaic reason. The last train, just departed, was the leaf buster Image

An unusual visitor to the station in the form of a Network Rail track cleaning or 'leaf buster' train with a driving unit at either end is about to depart back towards London. DR98922 is the near unit.