Wimbledon, London Spencers attempted to get parliamentary permission to enclose the common as a new park with a house and gardens and to sell part for building. Following an enquiry, permission was refused and a board of conservators was established in 1871 to take ownership of the common and preserve it in its natural condition. Transport links improved further with railway lines to Croydon (Wimbledon and Croydon Railway, opened in 1855) and Tooting (Tooting, Merton and Wimbledon Railway, opened in 1868). The District Railway (now the London Underground District line) extended its service over new tracks from Putney in 1889. In the
West Croydon to Wimbledon Line West Croydon to Wimbledon Line The West Croydon to Wimbledon Line was a railway line in south London. It was built by the Wimbledon and Croydon Railway (W&CR) over part of the trackbed of the Surrey Iron Railway. It opened on 22 October 1855 connecting the South West Main Line of the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR). National Rail services ceased and the line eventually shut down in 1997 for it to be changed over into a new route for the Tramlink network which eventually rolled into passenger service in