The branch line between and was opened in 1912 by the
London and North Western Railway (LNWR), connected to the Watford- line that it had acquired from
Lord Ebury's
Watford and Rickmansworth Railway (W&RR) in 1881. The W&RR had not been a commercial success, and the LNWR sought to improve passenger traffic by creating new connections in the area to central London. The LNWR also planned an intermediate station, initially to be named
Hagden Lane, which opened as Watford West. It consisted of a single platform with a canopy and a red brick ticket office on Tolpits Lane. In the 1980s during the
British Rail era, platform signs bore the name
West Watford, although this is presumed to be an error. Facilities at the station had been downgraded in the years prior to closure. At first the station was temporarily closed so the remaining station furniture, including the lampposts, drivers mirrors and the station and street-level signage, was left in situ. In 2004–05, after the station was mothballed, ten passengers purchased tickets for travel to the station.
Croxley Rail Link Plans were announced in 2005 to re-open the disused railway line as an extension of the
London Underground Metropolitan line. The
Croxley Rail Link was planned to link to
Croxley tube station, but instead of re-opening Watford West, a new station was planned to open nearby,
Watford Vicarage Road tube station. Work began in 2014 to clear the overgrown track bed in preparation for construction work on the new line. By 2017, all work had been halted due to funding problems, and the scheme has since been abandoned. ==References==