Trains to Epsom Downs

Epsom Downs station dates back to 1865, and was built to serve the high number of passengers travelling to Epsom for its famous horse racing track. The station would have been built much closer to the racetrack, but the Epsom Grandstand Association boycotted the proposals, and eventually the development went ahead half a mile from the course. The location didn't dent the station's success, however. In its first year alone it welcomed some 70,000 people during the six-day Epsom Derby - and a few hundred horses too. Things would change drastically in the early 1900s. The arrival of Tattenham Corner, built closer to the racecourse, drove much of the traffic away from Epsom Downs, and a steady decline followed. In the 1980s, the station was completely rebuilt, and today it's a single-track station taking local commuters to London Victoria in just under an hour.