Trivia: Most underwhelming "bus station"

[Roilshead]

Chapel St Leonards - just down the coast from Mablethorpe, mentioned earlier in the thread - is one roadside shelter, with various panels and windows missing and no timetable information nor indication of which services stop there.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

It used to be a more substantial affair. A 3 bay depot with travel office and large apron in front. That became a number of roadside shelters (or one long one?) and more recently the two referred to.

There is a picture here in its later days - cafe in the travel office (Busy Bees in pic), and a country store in 2/3 of the depot. The pictured buses are Ashbourne Community Transport who parked there in later years. Trent depot is now on the outskirts of town at Waterside Retail Park but you'll never spot it!

That was the old affair of referring any old bit of concrete in front of a depot as a bus station!


PTE's usually have good bus stations, and arguably, some like Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and West Midlands go a bit overboard with them. Merseytravel though has some good ones but a few duffers too - Prescot is, IIRC, about four bus shelters, two either side of a road.

 

[padbus]

Could I put in a shout for Tonypandy bus interchange. Just a few stops with some basic shelters on both sides of a road alongside a sort of square. The toilet was one of those unisex types that are supposed to clean themselves after use. No doubt there is a charge for using it but the door had been forced and was left in the open position. I was too shy to use it.

 

[90sWereBetter]

Controversial choice here, Newbury Park in East London. The arches may be impressive and listed, but underneath it has precisely one bus stop, serving buses only in the Romford direction. Buses going the other way towards Ilford and Leystonstone stop on the Eastern Avenue and passengers have to use a dingy subway to access the tube station...

 

[86247]

Speaking of Prescot bus station, back in Crosville days it only had 3 bus shelters.

 

[ian1944]

I don'i know if it's still referred to as a bus station, or even if it still exists, but Jedburgh's was just a windswept shelter on the edge of a car park. I passed through a few time on the long-gone Nat Ex 538 (?) Edinburgh - Wrexham via Gala, Newcastle, Darlington, Harrogate, Leeds, Bradford, Manchester and Chester, though never south of Manchester. A scenic route for the most part, and I recall that the Edinburgh - Manchester fare was rather less than on the preferred route via Glasgow and the motorways.

 

[galwhv69]

Whilst temporary, Basildon Bs Station is very basic, covered but limited seating and no information apart from a few taped on pieces of paper to indicate which stop is which
Chelmsford Bus Station. Has seats and is protected by roof however stop arrangements leave a lot to be desired. Buses constantly block each other up due to lack of bays and have to load/unload from middle of road. When buses are parked and another is boarding behind, fences and glass make it awkward trying to board. rying to find out which stop to wait out was also confusing, as the digital display only listed certain routes for some reason (the smaller displays at the actual stops showed departures properly though)

 

[Roilshead]

That was the old affair of referring any old bit of concrete in front of a depot as a bus station!


PTE's usually have good bus stations, and arguably, some like Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and West Midlands go a bit overboard with them. Merseytravel though has some good ones but a few duffers too - Prescot is, IIRC, about four bus shelters, two either side of a road.

On that basis I'll suggest the old Northallerton "bus station" - a strip of hard-standing barely an LS/MW/LH in length in front of United's depot . . . no shelter, no facilities, no travel office, nothing. Depot is now an ATS(?) centre.

 

[Ken H]

I can't find a pic but Bradford had a bus station out at Cutler Heights called Sticker Lane. It was another collection of bus shelters on the western side of the city and is long gone.

 

[JD2168]

Skegness Interchange seems very run down & in need of a refurbishment particularly on the bus side where you want to make a great first impression to tourists.

 

[Cesarcollie]

Whilst temporary, Basildon Bs Station is very basic, covered but limited seating and no information apart from a few taped on pieces of paper to indicate which stop is which
Chelmsford Bus Station. Has seats and is protected by roof however stop arrangements leave a lot to be desired. Buses constantly block each other up due to lack of bays and have to load/unload from middle of road. When buses are parked and another is boarding behind, fences and glass make it awkward trying to board. rying to find out which stop to wait out was also confusing, as the digital display only listed certain routes for some reason (the smaller displays at the actual stops showed departures properly though)

Basildon. Temporary?

 

[Simon75]

Tamworth interchange, is a row of bus shelters

 

[Cambus731]

Unfortunately Chelmsford's bus station, represents a huge missed opportunity. Considering the footprint of the old Tilling style bus station and depot, the potential was there for it to be so much better. There is no comfortable waiting area. I belive thete is literally just one toilet (what's the point)
As for the operational area, its like someone saw a photo taken decades ago of the old Cambridge bus station and decided to recreate it in Chelmsford.
It is far two cramped and barely fit for purpose

 

[Simon75]

Unfortunately Chelmsford's bus station, represents a huge missed opportunity. Considering the footprint of the old Tilling style bus station and depot, the potential was there for it to be so much better. There is no comfortable waiting area. I belive thete is literally just one toilet (what's the point)
As for the operational area, its like someone saw a photo taken decades ago of the old Cambridge bus station and decided to recreate it in Chelmsford.
It is far two cramped and barely fit for purpose

Even the locals prefer the old one , saying it was more practical (though run down) There is a waiting area (not sure if it gets used)

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Oct 2022 ==

Macclesfield bus station, by design is not bad design (it's about 15 years), thought it's needs work on it. One loo , which isn't in use, and gets cold has (even though its enclosed, has part chicken wire, near the roof, which makes it cold
On the plus side has seats, printed timetables and a drivers rest room

 

[lyndhurst25]

Waterloo (Merseyside) Interchange. Marked as a bus station in OS maps, but is just a turning circle and a single bus shelter. The footbridge to the station platform is now closed off, so you have to cross the main road. The only service to use it is the hourly 133 to Kirkby, with other buses stopping on the main road instead.

Looks like it could have been part of an integrated transport plan that failed, with local shuttle buses transferring passengers onto fast trains into Liverpool, like the early days on the Tyne and Wear Metro. Was this ever the case?

 

[busestrains]

If we include coach stations than Pool Valley Coach Station in Brighton has to be one of worst if not the worst. It has seen a massive decline over the years. There is about six bays and a couple of basic shelters and nothing else. But it is located in an alley with all of the restaurants back entrances on to the bus station so it is surrounded by rubbish bins and bags of rubbish. There is normally lots of restaurant staff and other people standing around smoking and often homeless people asking for money. It is very basic and very unpleasant.

It used to have a proper ticket office and waiting room and cafe and lots of facilities but that has all gone and has been boarded up for over ten years. Some of the long distance local buses used to depart from there like the Stagecoach 700 but now it is just used for the once an hour National Express 025 coach. It is now one of the most basic underwhelming unpleasant bus stations (well coach station really) in the UK. Honestly it should just be shut down and they can move the hourly National Express 025 to the nearby Old Steine which has plenty of bus stops and layover space.

 

[galwhv69]

Basildon. Temporary?

Not from around there, this is according to the few paper notices stuck around

 

[Statto]

Waterloo (Merseyside) Interchange. Marked as a bus station in OS maps, but is just a turning circle and a single bus shelter. The footbridge to the station platform is now closed off, so you have to cross the main road. The only service to use it is the hourly 133 to Kirkby, with other buses stopping on the main road instead.

Looks like it could have been part of an integrated transport plan that failed, with local shuttle buses transferring passengers onto fast trains into Liverpool, like the early days on the Tyne and Wear Metro. Was this ever the case?

Waterloo Interchange was part of an integrated transport plan; when it was built all the buses in the Waterloo area called at the interchange, even the buses that went direct via Crosby Road North & Crosby Road South. That arrangement went out of the window at deregulation.

 

[chessie]

Chapel St Leonards - just down the coast from Mablethorpe, mentioned earlier in the thread - is one roadside shelter, with various panels and windows missing and no timetable information nor indication of which services stop there.

I've been to Chapel today. The shelter is a shed but the timetables are absolutely up to date and, to be honest, what do you expect from the bus station when it's more or less a village stop? Most passengers don't start boarding till further down the road at Golden Palm, Fantasy Island etc.

 

[chiltern trev]

Keswick - a turning area with 3 stops - toilets in the Booths supermarket. Car park top left of screenshot with bus/coach spaces at rear (out of view).
Google maps screenshot attached.

 

[Ken H]

Keswick - a turning area with 3 stops - toilets in the Booths supermarket. Car park top left of screenshot with bus/coach spaces at rear (out of view).
Google maps screenshot attached.

Always makes me sad. I remember Keswick having a nice bus station and a garage on the site. I suppose people want supermarkets more than buses, but there again Booths is a fine emporium.

 

[christopher]

Considering recent events... Slough

 

[route101]

If we include coach stations than Pool Valley Coach Station in Brighton has to be one of worst if not the worst. It has seen a massive decline over the years. There is about six bays and a couple of basic shelters and nothing else. But it is located in an alley with all of the restaurants back entrances on to the bus station so it is surrounded by rubbish bins and bags of rubbish. There is normally lots of restaurant staff and other people standing around smoking and often homeless people asking for money. It is very basic and very unpleasant.

It used to have a proper ticket office and waiting room and cafe and lots of facilities but that has all gone and has been boarded up for over ten years. Some of the long distance local buses used to depart from there like the Stagecoach 700 but now it is just used for the once an hour National Express 025 coach. It is now one of the most basic underwhelming unpleasant bus stations (well coach station really) in the UK. Honestly it should just be shut down and they can move the hourly National Express 025 to the nearby Old Steine which has plenty of bus stops and layover space.

I used it recently and it is indeed poor. There was no National Express timetable or indication where the 025 would depart from.

 

[150249]

Considering recent events... Slough

Don't think the regular option is any better if you add a slight crispness.

 

[DunsBus]

How about the "interchange" at Berwick railway station? Not all services use it - if you want to catch a Borders Buses B1 and 235, or the Travelsure 32, 34 and 260 you have to make your way to nearby Castlegate.

 

[WibbleWobble]

I'm suprised nobody has mentioned Malakoff bus station in St Ives. It's nothing more than a reversing area and a small hardstanding for passengers. There's not even a shelter.

 

[geoffk]

Atherton services do run through for much of the day, it's only weekday lunchtime (ish), late evenings and all day Sundays, so most passengers will still travel through. It does create the odd scenario when Sunday buses between Atherton and Tyldesley are more frequent than on a Saturday!

It was designed more for passengers from other local services which acted as feeders, but they seem to have been getting cut left, right and centre! Car drivers would have parked up and waited no more than around 7-8 minutes pre-Covid, when V2s were also every 15 minutes - a maximum of 4-5 in the morning peak.

Is this the stop which is just branded "Astley Street", with no mention of Tyldesley? I took it up with TfGM before I moved away but I don't know if they altered the name.

 

[Roilshead]

what do you expect from the bus station when it's more or less a village stop?

Exactly, as a village stop its fine - actually no its not, but it would if the missing panels and windows in the shelter were replaced (at least the timetable situation has been addressed) - but it is not a bus station (as it is described).

 

[WibbleWobble]

Is this the stop which is just branded "Astley Street", with no mention of Tyldesley? I took it up with TfGM before I moved away but I don't know if they altered the name.

Technically, to include Tyldesley in the stop name would be incorrect. Department for Transport rules around stop naming forbids the presence of a locality in the stop name (unless it is part of the road name).

"Astley Street" is correct if using the "adjacent road" rule as the road the stop is located on is the Busway, and is also what the timing point is referred to in the timetable. Maybe Transport for Greater Manchester gave up on calling it Tyldesley Interchange.

 

[fgwrich]

Aldershot is fairly underwhelming. While it is a very sizeable bus station, it has basic bus shelters with no protection from the weather, broken next bus displays (now removed), and a Stagecoach managerial office that has the ticket shop closed. Although I'd say the bus station is well used for its size, as during the peak period one should expect all bays (seven or eight I believe?) to be taken up. However, Aldershot is set to become even more underwhelming when plans for redevelopment of the station forecourt goes ahead, which relocates and reduces to two bus bays. Perhaps operationally overwhelming as well!

Another South nomination I'm going to put forward is Basingstoke's bus station. Ok, granted, compared to some of the others mentioned here it is a relatively modern one having been rebuilt as part of the Festival Place shopping centre back in 2002. But, it's now feeling it's age with the paving slabs often lose, tree's growing up and causing associated paving damage, Stagecoach travel centre closed (so no indoor waiting area or information point) and roofs of the glass shelters dirty. As Festival Place is a no smoking shopping centre, someone also had the wonderful foresight to locate their smoking bins at the entrance to the bus station so you often have to walk through a cloud of smoke (and past the only remaining shop down there - Greggs). It's also suffered in part because of it's location - there seems to be an almost permanent and cold microclimate in certain areas of Basingstoke town centre, possibly caused by the large tall tower blocks which allow the wind to funnel around them, unfortunately the bus station is at the bottom of them (sandwiched between Festival Place and the Churchill Way building). It should have either been built with the passenger areas covered over completely, or shouldn't have had tree's plonked into the paving. Unfortunately it seems to either be down to Festival Place or Stagecoach to maintain, and neither seem particularly interested.

I'm suprised nobody has mentioned Malakoff bus station in St Ives. It's nothing more than a reversing area and a small hardstanding for passengers. There's not even a shelter.

To be fair to Malakoff, First Kernow has invested in it a little more since the street view car last came around, and is looking a little smarter than that now. I'm not sure if the building on the left is also now used as a staffed waiting room too?