Trivia: Appalling stations next to better stations

[CyrusWuff]

Northumberland Park and Tottenham Hale. Granted the latter is currently something of a building site, but it's got a waiting room, cafe and public toilets on the Northbound platform thanks to being served by the Stansted Express.

 

[Mikey C]

The island platforms are only at Clapham's North and Common. Clapham South is a regular station with two platforms.

I'm not sure that tube stations are relevant here but my choice would be Blackfriars (modern and step free) to Mansion House (feels like 300 stairs to street level though probably only about 60). MH is one to avoid if you have heavy luggage.

I didn't word it very well, but I was trying to contrast South and Common, rather than suggesting both had island platforms!

Another Tube one would be London Bridge and Bank, as Bank is seriously overcrowded, with narrow platforms and meandering passageways

 

[Essan]

Locheilside and Glenfinnan - one a single windswept platform with a bus shelter in the middle of nowhere, the other a delightful tourist attraction in its own right

 

[Dr_Paul]

Richmond and North Sheen: the former is staffed, has quite a few facilities (disabled access, café, newsagent, toilets, well served by buses); the latter has a platform with a shelter and a few seats, no nearby bus-stops, no disabled access (lots of steps up and down to gain access), and is unmanned.

Kingston and Hampton Wick bear pretty much the same relationship as Richmond and North Sheen, except that Hampton Wick does have a bus-stop outside.

 

[gazr]

Derby and Peartree!

Peartree has a lot going for it... Best security of any station ive been to so far... So good, i needed to phone control to be let out!! Also has KFC across the road. As for Manors... It exists for Toon fans that alight there on match days judging by last Saturday. Otherwise, it is right up there with the worst of them.

 

[A Challenge]

Richmond and North Sheen: the former is staffed, has quite a few facilities (disabled access, café, newsagent, toilets, well served by buses); the latter has a platform with a shelter and a few seats, no nearby bus-stops, no disabled access (lots of steps up and down to gain access), and is unmanned.

I have to agree with that - North Sheen from the south level crossing gates down is over the bridge, across the road, down the path and then back over a footbridge onto the island platform with no facilities!

 

[SquireBev]

I was going to suggest Smethwick Galton Bridge, but then couldn't think of a neighbouring station that's actually nice, in any direction!

 

[davetheguard]

Reading & Reading West

 

[GatwickDepress]

Ore and Three Oaks.

Three Oaks is still a delightful wayside country halt, seemingly little changed from my Thumper trips in the late 80's. Ore on the other hand, looks very run down and unwelcoming, with ugly looking security fences everywhere.

Heck, you can add Ore and Hastings to that too. One's a fully-staffed four platform station with one of the few remaining semaphores on Southern metals, and the other feels like the station for Guantanamo Bay thanks to all the palisade fencing and security cameras. Obviously I'm exaggerating a little bit, but it doesn't help that being in a valley, Ore is incredibly still and quiet throughout most of the day lending it an eerie atmosphere.

Three Oaks is still quite nice. I have fond memories catching the last Thumper from Three Oaks home after an evening in the pub - well, my parents would be in the pub anyway. I think the platform shelter has been repainted recently as well.

 

[MG11]

Alfreton & Chesterfield

Alfreton station has asbestos, now only one toilet (cue large queues, spilling into the seating area), no refreshment kiosks, no lifts for disabled access and the footbridge leaves a lot to be desired.

Chesterfield has a bright and airy space, with 2 waiting rooms, adequate toilet facilities, refreshment facilities, newsagents, a well staffed ticket office and access for wheelchair users.

 

[Iskra]

Assuming you mean Wakefield as mentioned in the earlier post. The old Westgate was horrible but was often overlooked in these "bad station" discussions because of the sheer horror of Kirkgate. The new one is rather nice, but a bit soulless and less convenient for bus interchange than the old building, due to being further from Westgate (The road).

Kirkgate is much improved, but that isn't saying much! It's still intimidating once you step outside, it's a heck of a walk to get to the island platform, the café is hit-and-miss as to whether it'll be open (though it's very nice when it is open, and reasonably priced compared to the corporate SSP-outlets at Westgate)...

If the powers that be had sorted Kirkgate properly, comparisons between it and all neighbouring stations except Westgate would see Kirkgate as the "nice" one: none of Normanton, Streethouse, Darton or Mirfield are anything to write home about!

None of the catering outlets at Westgate are anything to do with SSP. Only the Greggs has slightly higher pricing than a normal outlet, Subway is just generally over-priced, the Costa is priced the same as any other, which is pretty reasonable.

 

[AndrewE]

Manchester Picc and Ardwick are also pretty extreme contrasts (or Picc and Levenshulme for that matter) Not counting the staff platform at Longsight!

 

[Dr_Paul]

North Sheen from the south level crossing gates down is over the bridge, across the road, down the path and then back over a footbridge onto the island platform with no facilities!

That is an improvement from what had been the case: until the footbridge at the level crossing was built, one couldn't get to the station from the south at all when the gates were down (unless one was daft enough to jump the gates -- it had been done, and caught on film), as the footbridge at the station was rebuilt giving access only to the north of the line. Passengers approaching from the south had to make sure that they were there in good time, otherwise they could be standing at the gates watching their train go into the station (and sometimes the stopping service isn't the first train to pass when the gates are down).

When I was a kid, as can be seen on this map, there were alleys to the station on both sides of the line, with stairs up to the footbridge on each side. Also, the station was manned and the ticket-collector would open the gates at the base of the footbridge to allow mums with prams or passengers with heavy or bulky luggage to cross the line on the porter's crossing. Moreover, the crossing-keeper would open the pedestrian gates on the level crossing between trains whilst motors were held for two or three trains.

 

[Rapidash]

Exeter Central - St James Park. It's a close call between SJP and Polsloe Bridge for 'Worst Exeter Suburban Station' but I think James gets it by dint of serving both the stadium and university, and letting both down.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Wolverton is a bit bleak compared with MKC.

 

[Strathclyder]

Coatbridge Sunnyside & Coatbridge Central. The former is surprisingly well-kept, topped off with a architecturally pleasant (if a tad rough around the edges) station building and frequent services to both Glasgow & Edinburgh; the latter is every bit the neglected, poorly served (1 tph in both directions on Mon-Sat with no Sunday service) backwater that you'd do everything humanly possible to avoid using after dark.

 

[gazthomas]

East Kilbride and Glasgow Central. Okay, they are not adjacent, but for such a big place East Kilbride must have one of the worst stations

 

[yorksrob]

Heck, you can add Ore and Hastings to that too. One's a fully-staffed four platform station with one of the few remaining semaphores on Southern metals, and the other feels like the station for Guantanamo Bay thanks to all the palisade fencing and security cameras. Obviously I'm exaggerating a little bit, but it doesn't help that being in a valley, Ore is incredibly still and quiet throughout most of the day lending it an eerie atmosphere.

Three Oaks is still quite nice. I have fond memories catching the last Thumper from Three Oaks home after an evening in the pub - well, my parents would be in the pub anyway. I think the platform shelter has been repainted recently as well.

Ah well, Hastings was my first consideration, however I just can't get used to the place without the old station building.

Apart from Ore, all the intermediate Marshlink stations are charming.

 

[farleigh]

Ore used to be very nice, but they smashed it.

 

[Colly405]

Pilning & Patchway.

Patchway isn't tip-top, but at least it has a footbridge

 

[davetheguard]

Exeter Central - St James Park. It's a close call between SJP and Polsloe Bridge for 'Worst Exeter Suburban Station' but I think James gets it by dint of serving both the stadium and university, and letting both down.

Sorry, I think you've got it the wrong way round. Perhaps SJP is not helped by being down in a cutting, while PB is up on an embankment with airy views across suburbia. But, SJP has plants and flowers (and daffodils in Spring), while all PB has is a disused platform choked with ivy.

 

[greyman42]

For Newcastle the comparison with Manchester and Ardwick is Central and Manors - an exposed platform with no facilities, essentially no services (and no real reason to carry on existing?)

None at all.

 

[tsr]

Leigh is incredibly spartan when compared to Tonbridge.

Riddlesdown is much worse for facilities and ambience than the stations either side.

Deepdene is a dive (in all but name - being on a slightly rickety elevated structure!) compared to the rather more characterful (if dysfunctional) Betchworth.

Aside from Wolverton, I’ve never much liked Bletchley compared to Milton Keynes Central. Or Leighton Buzzard, though that greenhouse ticket office is a bit much in the summer!

The other end of the Marston Vale, Bedford St Johns and Bedford Midland are in stark contrast.

I much prefer Berkhamsted to the prison-like maze of fences at Tring.

Flitwick is also rather worse than Bedford, although neither are things of beauty, really!

Paddington and whichever Ruislip are always amusing contrasts.

 

[Parallel]

Pilning & Patchway.

Patchway isn't tip-top, but at least it has a footbridge

I think Patchway is pretty run down. Until recently the lighting on the platform consisted of strip lights cable tied to a metal mesh fence. That said, Patchway is better than Pilning, which is now a building site with most station signage removed and only one platform.

--

Worcester Shrub Hill and Ashchurch-For-Tewkesbury
Plymouth and Devonport

Pre-refurbishment Port Talbot Parkway would have made it here too. Absolutely the worst station I'd ever used. How it was allowed to get that bad, I'll never know.

 

[Bletchleyite]

None at all.

I expect Ardwick may see use (and more services) if the land around there is developed for housing at some point...assuming the rusty footbridge doesn't fall down first.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Talking of Bat and Ball, the name always evoked the idea of a quainte olde Englishe village (tm) with a nice local pub with a wood fire and a game of cricket going on nearby. I'm guessing it's not like that?

 

[yorksrob]

East Malling, being an Exmouth Junction produced concrete structure, is rather more austere than the sumptuous architecture of West Malling.

 

[Crossover]

I expect Ardwick may see use (and more services) if the land around there is developed for housing at some point...assuming the rusty footbridge doesn't fall down first.

Well, I hear it has a TVM in preperation...along with Reddish South and Denton!

 

[Colly405]

I think Patchway is pretty run down. Until recently the lighting on the platform consisted of strip lights cable tied to a metal mesh fence.

At least Patchway has a taxi rank of sorts...

It also had a station buffet and a warm waiting room when BPW was shut. Ok, the buffet was a trolley selling bottled water, and the warm waiting room was the rail replacement First Bristol bus on layover...

Plymouth and Devonport

Thinking of Plymouth, what's Ivybridge like nowadays? Haven't been there for 12 years, and it had the potential to deteriorate then!

 

[Parallel]

Thinking of Plymouth, what's Ivybridge like nowadays? Haven't been there for 12 years, and it had the potential to deteriorate then!

I don't think I've ever been on a train that's actually stopped at Ivybridge, and I think that says it all.