Aerial view of the new Train Ferry Dock.
In 1933 work started on the construction
of the new train ferry dock to the east of the Admiralty
Pier. The dock was built like a large lock because
the linkspan which connected the train ferry to the
land had to be more or less level to operate. A large
steel gate was raised from the floor of the dock once
the ferry had entered and the water in the dock pumped
to the required level.
The Southern
Railway built three train ferries to operate in
conjunction with the new dock, the “Hampton Ferry”,
“Twickenham Ferry” and “Shepperton Ferry”. On 28th September
1936 the “Hampton Ferry” was manoeuvred into the dock
and the first railway freight trucks were shunted aboard.
The dock was used mainly for freight
but carried one passenger service daily in each direction
- the famous “Night Ferry”
London to Paris sleeping car service. The old dock was
closed in 1988 when a new train ferry dock was built
on the Admiralty Pier
extension.
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