The station is on the South West Main Line, 21 miles 54 chains (34.9 km) from London Waterloo.

[3] On 27 December 1946 the station was the scene of the derailment of a Bournemouth to London express service hauled by SR Lord Nelson class 4-6-0, 851 Sir Francis Drake.

It adjoins West Byfleet and Woodham which are suburban settlements in the boroughs of Woking and Runnymede, to the south and north of the line, respectively.

As of April 2015[update] at off-peak times the station has 4 trains per hour in each direction, alternating between Woking and Alton as to the end or start destination to the south-west and both having London (Waterloo) as their north-east terminus.

The station frontage appeared in the 1977 movie Adventures of a Private Eye starring Christopher Neil.