Guildford railway station is at one of three main railway junctions on the Portsmouth Direct Line and serves the town of Guildford in Surrey, England. It is down the line from via Woking. It provides an interchange station for two other railway lines: the North Downs Line northwards towards , which has a connection to ; the same line eastwards to ; and the New Guildford Line, the alternative route to , via Cobham or . Guildford station is the larger, more frequently and more diversely served of the two stations in Guildford town centre, the other being on the New Guildford Line. History The station was opened by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) on 5 May 1845, but was substantially enlarged and rebuilt in 1880. The Reading, Guildford and Reigate Railway opened its services on 4 July 1849, and was operated by the South Eastern Railway. LSWR services to via began on 8 October 1849 and the New Guildford Line to and on 2 February 1885. On the latter line is the other Guildford station, London Road. The line to it describes a curve around the town on an embankment, crossing the River Wey by a high bridge. Guildford station was also the northern terminus of the, now-closed, Cranleigh Line which was opened 2 October 1865 by the London Brighton and South Coast Railway and closed almost one hundred years later on 12 June 1965. This line ran to by way of , and . Accidents and incidents On 8 November 1952, an electric multiple unit suffered a brake malfunction approaching the station. It overran signals and collided with a stationary steam locomotive. Two people were killed and 37 were injured. On 28 July 1971, a parcels train was derailed at the station. On 7 July 2017, an explosion occurred in an underframe equipment case of unit 455901 at Guildford station. Debris was thrown up to away with fragments, described as "quite sizeable" by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, scattered across platforms and an adjacent car park. No injuries occurred. The cause of the explosion was a faulty capacitor which had been fitted when the units' electrical equipment was upgraded. Platform layout The main station buildings are on the Down side. At the end of the Down side platform is a bay for the New Guildford Line. There are now three islands with seven platform faces plus