Sutton Loop Line

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title: "Sutton Loop Line" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["railway-lines-in-london", "railway-loop-lines", "transport-in-the-london-borough-of-merton", "transport-in-the-london-borough-of-sutton"] description: "Railway line in London" topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sutton_Loop_Line" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Railway line in London ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox rail line"]

Field	Value
name	Sutton Loop Line
image	Sutton (Surrey) station west junction.JPG
image_width	300px
caption	Sutton platform 2 looking towards West junction with the St Helier Line
elr	{{plainlist
type	Heavy rail
system	National Rail
status	Operational
locale	London Boroughs of Merton and Sutton
start	South Jn
end	Sutton
stations	14
routes	{{plainlist
owner	Network Rail
operator	Govia Thameslink Railway
depot	{{plainlist
stock	{{plainlist
tracks	{{plainlist
gauge
speed	Maximum 60 mph
map	[[File:Sutton Loop Line.png
(Click to expand)
map_state	uncollapsed
::

| name = Sutton Loop Line | color = | logo = | logo_width = | image = Sutton (Surrey) station west junction.JPG | image_width = 300px | caption = Sutton platform 2 looking towards West junction with the St Helier Line | elr = {{plainlist|

• SMS1 (Streatham South Jn–Wimbledon)
• SMS2 (Wimbledon–Sutton) | type = Heavy rail | system = National Rail | status = Operational | locale = London Boroughs of Merton and Sutton | start = South Jn | end = Sutton | stations = 14 | routes = {{plainlist|
• Thameslink
• Southern | daily_ridership = | open = | close = | owner = Network Rail | operator = Govia Thameslink Railway | character = | depot = {{plainlist|
• Bedford Cauldwell for Thameslink
• Selhurst for Southern | stock = {{plainlist|
• Class 377 "Electrostar"
• Class 700 "Desiro City" | linelength = | tracklength = | tracks = {{plainlist|
• 2
• 1 bi-directional line at | gauge = | electrification = | speed = Maximum 60 mph | elevation = | map = [[File:Sutton Loop Line.png|300px]] (Click to expand) | map_state = uncollapsed The Sutton Loop Line, also known as the Wimbledon Loop, is a railway line that diverges from the Portsmouth Line at Streatham South junction and rejoins it near Sutton station. Trains leave southwards from to enter the loop and then return going northwards. The short section between station and West junction is known as the "Wall of Death", possibly due to the very steep concrete walls to the cutting on both sides and the sharpness of the curve which resemble the motorcycle ride at a funfair.

Stations

In a clockwise direction round the loop, the stations are:

• Sutton

Infrastructure

Traction current is supplied at 750 volts DC via the third rail. The supply for this is overseen by Selhurst Electrical Control Room.

History

Services

Thameslink

Thameslink runs services from St Albans, via round the loop. Clockwise services are described as "Sutton via Mitcham Junction" and anti-clockwise as "Sutton via Wimbledon". Occasionally, during service disruption or when the core section of the Thameslink route is closed, Sutton Loop services start and end at .

Recent proposals were to increase the frequency of the Thameslink service by terminating at Blackfriars. This would have allowed the trains through the core section to be replaced with longer trains which could not use the loop, but this did not proceed due to objections from loop passengers about the withdrawal of their through service.

References

References

1. (Apr 2001). "Southern Appendix". Network Rail.
2. (21 January 2013). "Government safeguards future of the Wimbledon Loop". Department of Transport.
3. Quail Map 5 - England South & London Underground [page 22] September 2002.
4. "Wimbledon to Croydon tram link - Transport for London".
5. Herne Hill website http://www.hernehill.org.uk/direct-trains-may-end-thameslink-programme

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::