Waterloo Station

The London and South Western Railway opened the station in 1848 as Waterloo Bridge Station and it was raised above marshy ground on a series of arches. One of its most notable features is the Victory Arch, built of Portland Stone, and this commemorates the London and South Western and the Southern Railway men who gave their lives in the World Wars. As the station grew it became a ramshackle: when a little-used railway line crossed the main concourse and passed through an archway in the station building to connect to the South Eastern Railway's smaller station, now Waterloo East, whose tracks lie perpendicular to those of Waterloo. Waterloo today has 20 terminal platforms, making it the biggest station in the UK in terms of platform numbers. Trains are operated by South West Trains and mainly carry commuters from the south west into London.