Worst Railway Station in UK

[CarterUSM]

2nd city. I still snigger whenever i hear Birmingham described in such fashion!

 

[Geezertronic]

2nd city. I still snigger whenever i hear Birmingham described in such fashion!

Would you care to nominate another city that deserves 2nd city status better than Birmingham then?

 

[Oswyntail]

Would you care to nominate another city that deserves 2nd city status better than Birmingham then?

There was a long debate in The Times letters about this many years ago, which ended when someone wrote; "As a Mancunian, I had always assumed the second city was London". I can live with that.

 

[142094]

I thought it had recently changed to Manchester rather than Birmingham, certainly within the last two years.

 

[Geezertronic]

I thought it had recently changed to Manchester rather than Birmingham, certainly within the last two years.

The Mancs would certainly like to think so (depending on what survey you read), all I know is that Birmingham v Villa at the weekend is the Second City Derby

 

[CarterUSM]

Would you care to nominate another city that deserves 2nd city status better than Birmingham then?

Glasgow. Second city of the empire! Outranked!

 

[tbtc]

Glasgow. Second city of the empire! Outranked!

Railway-wise Glasgow has the second biggest local rail network in the UK

 

[SprinterMan]

Weeley on the Clacton Line is pretty bad. The stationhouse is completely abandoned and looks like something out of a horror movie. I have only been there once and it made me feel very uneasy.

 

[ANorthernGuard]

The MEN is the very reason for this. Vic was slaughtered in the 90's to build the MEN. But things are on the up for my depot now

It still will NEVER be as good as Picc lol (my depot)

No depot rivalry there....honest!! lol

 

[schmoo_smith]

Sunderland, hands down!

 

[Geezertronic]

Railway-wise Glasgow has the second biggest local rail network in the UK

I'll give you that, but not in England

Sunderland, hands down!

They were hands down today, I'll give you 5 reasons why Newcastle might be higher

 

[142094]

If you haven't changed your clocks back yet it is 5 past Sunderland...

 

[tbtc]

I'll give you that, but not in England

In all seriousness, does Birmingham have a better rail network than Manchester? I'm not sure of the relative numbers of departures per hour, or whether to include the two tram systems in the calculation.

Without checking the figures, I'd hazard a guess that Birmingham has more rail departures per hour from the city centre, though that includes a lot of long distance stuff.

 

[BrummyBoy]

I would asume Birmingham has more rail departures per hour than Manchester. Certianlly has a wider choice of destinations to travel to.

 

[4SRKT]

Why doesn't somebody spend half an hour with The Book counting departures and settle this question once and for all?

 

[mr williams]

I'd nominate Stapleton Road. Dirty, run down, very rough area, and a few years ago I saw a junkie shooting up on one of the disused platforms in broad daylight!!!

The station has actually become an official interchange point again for people connecting from the Severn Beach line but the idea of waiting there even for five minutes on a dark winters day does not appeal.

 

[chris_in_salop]

Craven Arms is a bit of a dump, although it reflects the rest of Craven Arms pretty well. All those problem families shipped out of Ludlow have to live somewhere!

 

[4SRKT]

I'd nominate Stapleton Road. Dirty, run down, very rough area, and a few years ago I saw a junkie shooting up on one of the disused platforms in broad daylight!!!

I saw this once at Kilbarrack station in Dublin, just down from the aforementioned Howth Junction. Such a nice welcome to a city.

 

[DarloRich]

sorry to resurrect but i just thought of another one - Great Yarmouth - Has it always been such a dump? It is terrible (but unlike some at least safe!)

 

[Eric]

sorry to resurrect but i just thought of another one - Great Yarmouth - Has it always been such a dump? It is terrible (but unlike some at least safe!)

I've not been to Great Yarmouth for years.

Are all four platforms still in use?

 

[DarloRich]

I've not been to Great Yarmouth for years.

Are all four platforms still in use?

I think so - they were the last time i was there!

 

[coupwotcoup]

Warrington Bank Quay - a toilet duck factory with a station bolted on the side!

I can remember waiting for a train there one morning on my return to London around 1985 - the place smells like a launderette. Can't remember how good or bad the place was though.
Isn't that where Paul Simon allegedly wrote 'Homeward Bound'?
As for bad stations, there are plenty on the Gospel Oak - Barking line that would make me check my insurance out before embarking.
As is the Wembley Central link into town.

 

[W-on-Sea]

As for bad stations, there are plenty on the Gospel Oak - Barking line that would make me check my insurance out before embarking.
As is the Wembley Central link into town.

Still?

London Overground/Tfl have done a fair bit of work on the stations on both the lines you mention - and I quite agree that they both had their fair share of unappetising stations a few yearws ago - probably most significantly, they've dramaticallly improved (and greatly increased) the platform lighting (I used to find Crouch Hill, in a cutting in a not terribly salubrious neighbourhood, Finsbury Park North really, fairly menacing at night), providing some kind of staffing, and, erm....hanging baskets (possibly of plastic flowers). Not sure I'd choose to hang about at South Tottenham for too long, but that is more to do with the station being in South Tottenham than anything else. I don't think they've barriered any of the stations on the line...which might be a good next move. (not that they are major hotbeds of crime, really)

I think it's more or less the same with the stations from Kenton to South Hampstead inclusive (and even on the North London line); the neglect really, IMHO, has started to be turned around. I think pretty much every station on both of the lines you mention is now in a very much better condition that it was back in Silverlink's days, or indeed, earlier than that. Maybe South Kenton is beyond redemption however, because of its bad design. i still don't think they are up to usual LUL standards, though.

 

[coupwotcoup]

I apologise, as it was in the days of yore - ie Silverlink - that I last travelled regularly on said lines.

 

[Fred26]

I've not been to Great Yarmouth for years.

Are all four platforms still in use?

They are. I don't know how often they're all used though - morning peak, maybe?
I wouldn't say the station is particularly bad. Unloved, but not awful. The town itself though... Christ what a hole.

I'd like to nominate Finsbury Park.

• No Lifts

• A mish-mash of corridors, tunnels and entrances

• Spiral staircases to the Underground at one entrance

• Ticket offices outside in the bus station

• No ticket barriers/barrier staff

I hate it. I do like the Bus station entrance, but apart from that the station wants bulldozing, re-building and being much more open.

 

[W-on-Sea]

I'd second Finsbury Park, on all of those points. It's a disgrace, for such a busy station. (Well, I'm sure it's not as bad as the usual suspect in Wakefield; but it certainly far, far, worse than Barking, which was named as one of the "worst ten busy stations in England" earlier in the year. In fact I am hard pressed to see what is so wrong with Barking nowadays. There was a time when it had all of its windows smashed on a regular basis, or left boarded up for months, but that no longer is the case)

 

[Fred26]

Barking's not pleasant, but you won't get lost there.

 

[DarloRich]

I can remember waiting for a train there one morning on my return to London around 1985 - the place smells like a launderette. Can't remember how good or bad the place was though.
Isn't that where Paul Simon allegedly wrote 'Homeward Bound'?
As for bad stations, there are plenty on the Gospel Oak - Barking line that would make me check my insurance out before embarking.
As is the Wembley Central link into town.

I think it is "alleged" he wrote the song there (I have also heard Wigan!) but i don't think either are true - cant remember where i read that mind!

 

[trentside]

I've only ever felt unsafe once when travelling by train. It's for this reason that my vote goes to Wakefield Kirkgate (sorry to throw this one into the mix again).

I first passed through the station on a Leeds-Sheffield fast service during the day and was surprised to see how derelict the station actually was. There was no one around at the time, and the whole station did actually feel abandoned.

My second visit was after dark, on a Nottingham-Leeds service late on a Sunday evening. At this time there was a breeze blowing and a jacked was caught over one of the canopy supports and was flapping around, producing a strange sound, and casting wild shadows over the dimly lit platforms. Amongst all of this there were some suspicious looking characters hanging around on the platforms including some I'd define as "ladies of the night". The train sat in the station for around 5 minutes, and I was hoping that the train would move off, as it was a 158/153 combination and the passengers were well spread out, and my carriage was quite empty. If I'd have actually been alighting at Kirkgate, I think I'd have had serious reservations about stepping off the train, as I didn't even feel safe sitting onboard.

Overall, a thoroughly unpleasant place!

 

[EWS 58038]

I would like to list Water Orton (near Brum)

Been there 3 years ago and I think it's the most neglected place I have ever seen. (Apart from Belgium... which is neglected from border to border)