Visiting every train station (by car!)

[crispy1978]

I don't know if this has been covered elsewhere but a search on the name pulled nothing up.

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/rail-passion-trainsedge-hill-university-6484306

A trainee teacher has visited all 2,548 railway stations in Britain – in his car.

Edge Hill University student Andrew Dowd, 23, began his mission after taking a family photo with a station sign in the background.

From there, he decided to visit every station in Greater Manchester before setting a target of seeing every one in England, Scotland and Wales.

And four years later, Andrew, who is studying at the university in Ormskirkto be a maths teacher, has completed his epic journey.

But he insists that he is not a trainspotter.

And he admits he travelled to each station by car because he decided it was quicker and cheaper.

Andrew said: “I don’t know where it’s come from. No-one in my family has worked on trains – for me it’s just to see more of the country.

“I thought what if I could do all around where I live, and then it spiralled.”

Andrew finished all of Greater Manchester’s stations in just three days.

Since the age of 19, he has visited an average of 12 stations a week.

He said: “I thought it would take me the rest of my life but then I thought it’s easier if I just do it now.”

At home, he now has four files of maps, filled with the stations visited in alphabetical order, including pictures taken at each station. But for Andrew there is nothing unusual about the achievement although he says he is probably ‘one of very few’ to have completed the challenge.

Andrew, from Wigan, said: “The inspiration was seeing places I had never been.

“Some of my mates are amazed because I’ve been to places we’ve never heard of before.”

The plan is usually the same – he draws up a route encompassing the stations he aims to visit and then jumps in his car. I take a picture and depending of what time of day I have a bite to eat and a drink. I take a little look round if it’s interesting but most aren’t very interesting.

“Stations like St Pancras I’ll spend longer in.”

When he visited the furthest point north, in Thurso, Scotland, he broke up the journey into two days.

He said: “Some people might say I’m a trainspotter but it’s not the trains themselves – it’s from a geographical perspective.”

Soon, he will finish university and although new stations are being built, Andrew may now call it a day.

Quite an incredible achievement - and a different way to go about it.

One wonders how you'd get to a station like Berney Arms, Altnabreac, etc by car - let alone Redcar British Steel, etc

 

[Hyphen]

That was from a year ago! I'm sure it was discussed here at the time.

 

[yorkie]

That person looks rather familiar

Didn't we have a thread on this already? Edit: ah, I think it was brought up in a thread about some backwater called Lincolnshire )) and wasn't really discussed

I won't say his username as he might not want that to be revealed, but he is on this forum!

 

[Bodiddly]

Two stations in particular, Corrour and Altnabreac, are both served by access roads. but in both cases you need to have permission from the estate owners to use them. Not sure about Altnabreac but I have in the past contacted Corrour estate numerous times to access the station and had no problems.

 

[steamybrian]

Several have no road access such as-
Smallbrook Junction
Berney Arms

Dovey Junction has a "dirt track" unmade road but unsure if it available to the public.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Apart from those mentioned above, I wonder how he got on at Lympstone Commando....?

 

[crispy1978]

I found it on my News Feed on Facebook, so assumed it was recent - didn't realise it was a year ago.

It's the more inaccessible stations which I find most interesting

 

[IanD]

At home, he now has four files of maps, filled with the stations visited in alphabetical order

Must have taken ages to visit them in alphabetical order.

 

[crispy1978]

Must have taken ages to visit them in alphabetical order.

Pretty sure he didn't visit them in alphabetical order - that's just his filing system.

 

[tsr]

Apart from those mentioned above, I wonder how he got on at Lympstone Commando....?

There is now a nice* public footpath by the station, IIRC.

*subjective

 

[Kite159]

There is now a nice* public footpath by the station, IIRC.

*subjective

Although you can't access the platform.

I wonder if he had a nice walk to Stanlow and Thornton, or did he ask Shell nicely if he could use their road by it?

 

[Gathursty]

Hi,

It was hard to describe to the journalists that in some cases the car was more time-friendly than a train (Denton etc...) but that I didn't have a car when I started my station thing. The percentage of stations visited by car is clearly much more than those visited by train, walking or bicycle but journalists these days prefer a soundbite rather than the full story.

It would be nonsensical for me go alphabetically as it would anyone else, hence when I got a car I planned more methodically as fuel was expensive two years ago Ie: to cover West Wales overnight I drove to Fishguard via Aberystwyth then to Clarbeston Road, all stations to Milford Haven, over the toll bridge to Pembroke Dock, all stations to Narberth, upto Clunderwen, all along to Llansamlet (including Bynea and Llangennech), then to Pontarddulais and all of the HoW line stations to Church Stretton, double backed to Leominster then across to Lye, all stations to Rowley Regis and up the M5 home.

Again, it's a bit of a mouthful for journalists so they simplify such things. They also asked about the cost which I thought was a bit personal but thanks to my route planning, every station was worth about £2.

As for Lympstone Commando - walked from Lympstone Village and when noone was looking put my arm over the fence and took a reach-around picture. The Wikipedia photo was better so just deleted mine.
Stanlow & Thornton - Before I had a car, I had a bike so took the train to Helsby, cycled to Ince and Elton then down Oil Sites Road with no security stop or any interest in me. Took train home to Wigan from Ellesmere Port via Liverpool.

Corrour - Drove to Tulloch and took a train and the return was 30 minutes later.
Rannoch - Drove from Pitlochry all the way there and turned around and headed to Newtonmore.
Altnabreac - Walked it from the closed forest gates. A long way. :P
British Redcar Steel - E-mailed them and they let me but chauffered me. Security had never been asked by anyone before and didn't mind one bit.

Anymore?

 

[crispy1978]

Hi,

It was hard to describe to the journalists that in some cases the car was more time-friendly than a train (Denton etc...) but that I didn't have a car when I started my station thing. The percentage of stations visited by car is clearly much more than those visited by train, walking or bicycle but journalists these days prefer a soundbite rather than the full story.

It would be nonsensical for me go alphabetically as it would anyone else, hence when I got a car I planned more methodically as fuel was expensive two years ago Ie: to cover West Wales overnight I drove to Fishguard via Aberystwyth then to Clarbeston Road, all stations to Milford Haven, over the toll bridge to Pembroke Dock, all stations to Narberth, upto Clunderwen, all along to Llansamlet (including Bynea and Llangennech), then to Pontarddulais and all of the HoW line stations to Church Stretton, double backed to Leominster then across to Lye, all stations to Rowley Regis and up the M5 home.

Again, it's a bit of a mouthful for journalists so they simplify such things. They also asked about the cost which I thought was a bit personal but thanks to my route planning, every station was worth about £2.

As for Lympstone Commando - walked from Lympstone Village and when noone was looking put my arm over the fence and took a reach-around picture. The Wikipedia photo was better so just deleted mine.
Stanlow & Thornton - Before I had a car, I had a bike so took the train to Helsby, cycled to Ince and Elton then down Oil Sites Road with no security stop or any interest in me. Took train home to Wigan from Ellesmere Port via Liverpool.

Corrour - Drove to Tulloch and took a train and the return was 30 minutes later.
Rannoch - Drove from Pitlochry all the way there and turned around and headed to Newtonmore.
Altnabreac - Walked it from the closed forest gates. A long way. :P
British Redcar Steel - E-mailed them and they let me but chauffered me. Security had never been asked by anyone before and didn't mind one bit.

Anymore?

Great insight!!

How about Berney Arms? Dovey Junction?

 

[IanD]

Great insight!!

How about Berney Arms? Dovey Junction?

I'm sure he wrote up a vast number of trip reports which I enjoyed reading at the time.

(and also remember offering suggestions on parking in Walthamstow and Haringey!)

 

[yorkie]

How about Berney Arms? Dovey Junction?

See:-

I've walked to Berney Arms but not from Reedham, rather through all the cows from Wickhampton St Andrew's Church which I wasn't feeling too chipper about. I have a worry I'll be charged by one of them!! Still, from any direction, it is a medium-distance walk and you should have good walking gear when doing it. I didn't want to walk to the pub as there were some big cows looking at me in front. I will return again though! :P

Dovey Junction - long walk from the A487.

 

[Gathursty]

Berney Arms - Left Wigan, drove straight to Huntingdon, then all stations from Waterbeach-King's Lynn, Sheringham-Cromer-Norwich-Reedham, drove to Wickhampton and walked over the broads to Berney Arms and back, Lingwood-Great Yarmouth, Haddiscoe-Lowestoft-Woodbridge, Felixstowe-Ipswich-Bury St Edmunds, Diss, Wymondham-Shippea Hill, Kennett-Cambridge, St Neots, Sandy, Bedford-Ridgmont, fell asleep, Ridgmont-Bletchley-Wolverton, King's Sutton, Banbury, Heyford, Bicester North/Town-Islip, Tackley-Oxford-Moreton-in-Marsh, home.

Dovey Junction - Wigan, Drove straight to Llandecwyn via Bala, followed the Cambrian Coast to Barmouth, around to Morffa Mawddach to Penhelig, into Machynlleth, pulled up at the row of houses at Dovey Junction and walked up and down to the station, continued onto Borth and Aberystwyth, and went all stations to Shrewsbury, Wem, Yorton and Prees then drove home.

 

[Hornet]

Well done. Now you should start planning the same thing but do as I have done. Try and photograph every Station with a Train in it. Have about 10 to go. Attached are abridged documents of those that I have already done. One Document shows the header on my Standard Document. Most Photos are Print and held in 27 100 leaf Photo Albums. They have also been digitised along with those Station captured by my digital camera.

 

[Hornet]

Two stations in particular, Corrour and Altnabreac, are both served by access roads. but in both cases you need to have permission from the estate owners to use them. Not sure about Altnabreac but I have in the past contacted Corrour estate numerous times to access the station and had no problems.

Altnabreac was the hardest Station for me to do, as I had to ride a 1000cc BMW along miles of gravelled road with only an OS map for directions. Most of the other difficult to reach were done by Train or Motorcycle with the Train the best option for NSE and the Metropolitan areas. (Lympstone Commando was access to all when I was there, and British Steel Redcar had a regular daily service). The VoR remote Stations were also awkward, especially those away from the road.