It lies on the outskirts of Epsom and is the closest station for Epsom Downs Racecourse, where the Derby is held and the British monarch traditionally alights from the British Royal Train in those years when attending the Derby. The line serving it was opened (as the "Chipstead Valley Railway") in stages between 1897 and 1901, with the commissioning of the final section coinciding with the opening of the station on 4 June that year (by which time the SER had absorbed the independent company). The station closed in September 1914 and was used occasionally for race specials from 1920 until full public service restored (upon electrification) on 25 March 1928. In its heyday, the station had seven platforms (to handle the sizeable amounts of racecourse traffic) but today only three remain in use.