Which stations are closest to the Greater London boundary?
This is a question I've long wanted to answer but never have, in part because it's hard to answer accurately, but mainly because I'd have felt the need to visit them and that would have been a hassle. Thankfully the current lockdown removes the possibility of travelling anywhere, so I'm publishing the following list completely guilt-free.
I've calculated distances by measuring from the station building... or more likely the end of a platform... to the closest point on the Greater London boundary. Practically speaking I superimposed a kml file onto an aerial view using Google Maps, then tested out all the most likely suspects. This has enabled me to make two 'closest' lists, one for stations just inside London and one for stations just outside. [Google map]
The 10 London stations closest to the Greater London boundary
1)Knockholt(20m) No London station is nearer to not being in London than Knockholt, a lonely outpost at the southeastern tip of the capital. Technically it serves the Kent village of Knockholt, but it doesn't serve it very well because that's two miles away across a golf course and some country lanes. This, and the lack of a TfL bus service, may help explain why Knockholt is the capital's 20th least used station. The Greater London boundary follows London Road which passes along the front of the station. The eastern tip of the London-bound platform is just 20m away from where Kent starts, on the other side of the old bridge.
2)Belmont(80m) Belmont's on the Epsom Downs line, the first station south of Sutton. It's no great shakes - a halt with a single track, a single platform and a small shelter. Not only is it devoid of anything solidly architectural, it's also quiet enough to make it London's 12th least used station. Across Brighton Road is a bus turning point, in London, and beyond that the edge of Banstead Downs, in Surrey. Almost no distance at all.
3)Worcester Park(100m)
On the other side of Sutton we find Worcester Park, its station located to the north of Central Road. Surrey starts a short distance down the line, on the other side of the bridge, so you need to be at the southern end of the platform to get as close as possible.
4)Hadley Wood(220m)
Way up north in Enfield, on the East Coast mainline, Hadley Wood is an unusual open-air station sandwiched between two tunnels. Hertfordshire ends inside the northern tunnel, so standing at the extreme end of the platform is the place to be.
5)Hainault(280m)
Here's the first tube station on the list, located at the loopy end of the Central line. The station was built before the current boundary of Greater London was ever dreamed of, so it's a bit of a coincidence that Essex begins on the other side of Hainault depot, specifically on the Limes Farm estate.
6)Woodmansterne(310m)
Like Knockholt, Woodmansterne is a London station named after a village located outside the capital. It's on the Tattenham Corner line, almost on the edge of Croydon, just two streets away from some woods in Surrey.
7)Crayford(490m)
Crayford pretty much merges into Dartford these days, the official boundary going almost unnoticed. Kent lies about half a kilometre away from the far end of platform 2, which is approximately the length of Heathview Avenue.
8)Cheam(500m)
Meanwhile, back in Sutton, the western end of the platforms at Cheam station are exactly half a kilometre from Nonsuch High School for Girls in Surrey.
9)Malden Manor(550m)
Southwest London is over-represented in this Top 10, likely because it has more peripheral suburban stations than any other corner of London. Of the four stations on the Chessington branch, Malden Manor is marginally the closest to Epsom & Ewell.
10)Northwood(610m)
Northwood on the Metropolitan rounds off this list, amid a Metro-land suburb which merges seamlessly into southwest Herts. If you're interested, 11th and 12th places are taken by Surbiton and Uxbridge.
The 10 stations closest to Greater London
1)Roding Valley(3m) The least used station on the London Underground is also the closest station not in London. The boundary runs along the southern edge of the station, and is at its closest along the fence seen here to the left of my photo. Step out from the Woodford-bound platform and Station Approach is in Redbridge. Step out from the Hainault-bound platform and that's very much in Essex.
2)Grange Hill(10m)
Unexpectedly, the second-closest station is two stops down the line. The Central line runs almost direct across the M11, whereas the Greater London boundary wiggles inwards so that residents of Chigwell can pay their council tax to Essex instead. The boundary runs immediately alongside Grange Hill's southbound platform, and I suspect the closest spot to London is at the back of the gents toilets.
3)Banstead(40m) On the opposite side of London, also fractionally outside, lies Banstead station. It's a bit grim, especially the stairwelll, and not a very pleasant walk from the Surrey town of the same name. The far end of the single platform is barely any distance away from Cuddington in Sutton (which I visited earlier in the year). With Belmont appearing at number 2 in the other list, the Epsom Downs line boasts two of the very closest stations to the Greater London border.
4)Whyteleafe(50m)
Whyteleafe's on the Caterham line and marginally in Surrey. The northern end of the London-bound platform is just one street away from the southern edge of the borough of Croydon.
5)Hampton Court(110m)
Although Hampton Court is in London its namesake station is on the opposite side of the Thames, with the Surrey boundary running approximately mid-river.
6)Kempton Park(160m)
On the Shepperton line, serving the racecourse of the same name, the platforms at Kempton Park are a grandstand away from the Greater London boundary.
7)Waltham Cross(180m)
The platforms at Waltham Cross stretch halfway from the station entrance to the London/Hertfordshire border, which here is marked by the edge of the M25 motorway.
8)Swanley(220m)
Swanley may be in Kent, but its platforms are only a short distance from the gravel pits on the London side of the A20 bypass.
9)Stoneleigh(240m)
The railway line south from Worcester Park is all borderline Surrey, but the last suburban street in Sutton is surprisingly close to the end of Stoneleigh's platforms.
10)Upper Warlingham(350m)
This station's only a very short walk from Whyteleafe, which was at number four, but on an entirely separate line. Upper Warlingham gives Surrey its sixth appearance in this Top 10. Denham would have been 11th, if you were wondering where northwest London had got to.
