Expanded stations

[quantinghome]

In recent decades there have been a significant number of stations which have seen their capacity expanded. However, unlike new stations, there doesn't appear to be any publicly available list, comprehensive or otherwise, of existing stations which have been expanded. So I thought I would make a start:

Station Name	Current platforms	Previous platforms	Upgrade date
Bradford Forster Square	4	3	2025
Bristol Parkway	4	3	2018
Bristol Parkway	3	2	2007
Bromsgrove	4	2	2016
Cambridge	8	6	2011
Doncaster	9	8	2016
Leeds	18	17	2021
Leeds	17	12	2002
London Bridge	15	15*	2018
London Kings Cross	11	11*	2010
London Marylebone	6	4	2006
London St Pancras	15	4?	2007
Peterborough	7	5	2013
Reading	15	12	2014
Stevenage	5	4	2020

* - new platforms built which increased capacity, but no overall change in number of platforms.

What other capacity upgrades and rebuilds have there been in recent decades?

 

[The exile]

Add Filton Abbey Wood - from 0 to2, then 3 then 4 (don’t have the dates)

 

[Djgr]

Liverpool Lime Street (main line) 9 to 10 2018?

 

[43010]

Newquay: 1 to 2, 2025

St James Park (Exeter) and Eggesford had both of their platforms extended in 2020 and 2021, respectively

 

[steamybrian]

Ashford International 4 to 6
Gatwick Airport 6 to 7
Gravesend 2 to 3
Marylebone 4 to 6?
Oxford 3 to 4?
Princes Risborough 2 to 4
Rainham (Kent) 2 to 3
Redhill 3 to 4
Stratford (London) has increased but number unknown
Swindon 3 to 4

 

[W-on-Sea]

Charlbury, Ascott-under-Wychwood and possibly others on the North Cotswolds line 1>2 circa 2012.

Stratford (London). I think the new 1 and 2 for the Overground are the only brand new platforms on the NR side, but there are other platforms that were previously used much less regularly than is now the case (any or all of 9, 10,10a, 11, 12) or that were temporarily closed during reconstruction (e.g. the former low level 1 and 2 that now serve the DLR line to West Ham and beyond)

3a was added to the Central line I think for the Olympics, and the DLR moved from the bay platform 4 to the new and separate 4a and 4b sometime earlier.

 

[Bald Rick]

Tottenham Hale
Northumberland Park
Angel Road / Meridian Water
Shenfield
Beccles
Abbey Wood
Doncaster
Darlington*
Dunbar
Gatwick
Wellingboro’
Kettering
Tring
Bletchley*
Milton Keynes
Rugby
Nuneaton
Wolverhampton
Stockport
Salford Cresecent*
Roby
Huyton
Kirkham & Wesham
Waterloo
Clapham Jn
Redhill
Oxford
Bham Moor St
Finsbury Park
Ally Pally
Swindon
Haddenham & Thame
Bicester North
Princes Risboro’
Edinburgh Waverley
Glasgow Central
Newport (Wales)


*yet to see passenger services

I’m sure there’s lots more.

 

[Magdalia]

London Kings Cross went up from 11 to 12 when platform 0 opened, then back down to 11 again in 2021(?).

Finsbury Park is complicated depending on how you count. In terms of platform numbering it has gone up from 6 to 8 but in terms of tracks with platforms from 5 to 6. The old platform 4/5 had platforms on both sides of the same track, and this is now platforms 6/7. The old platform 1 now has platforms on both sides numbered 2/3.

Old St Pancras had 7 platforms.

Old Blackfriars had 5 platforms but new Blackfriars only has 4.

 

[John Griffiths]

London Waterloo? It has 24 platforms, and I seem to remember when I was young there were 21.

 

[MatthewE707]

Manchester Airport - 3rd platform opened in 2008 and then the 4th in 2015

 

[tumbles]

Bristol Temple Meads reopened Platform 15 when Bath Road Depot closed I think?

Always thought reopening P2 as Terminus for Portishead branch would be good but think needs track rework

 

[spp]

Wolverhampton platform 4 in 2004

 

[MadMac]

Airdrie, Drumgelloch, Livingston North and Uphall all gained platforms when the line was redoubled. Haymarket Platform 0? Forres?

 

[John R]

Lots in South Wales.
Cardiff Queen St 3 to 4 to 5
Pontypridd 1 to 3.
Many other valley line stations have had additional platforms over the last few years, some reinstatements of rationalisations in the 70s and 80s.
Bridgend 2 to 4
Cardiff Central 6 to 8.
Newport 2 to 4.

 

[Sir Felix Pole]

Manchester Piccadilly - Plat. 12 reinstated.

Taunton - central island platforms reinstated.

Happened during the Railtrack era - can't remember exact dates.

 

[Cheshire Scot]

Airdrie, Drumgelloch, Livingston North and Uphall all gained platforms when the line was redoubled. Haymarket Platform 0? Forres?

Yes to Haymarket and Forres - Airdrie regained the platform it had earlier lost.

 

[Broseley man]

Manchester Airport - 3rd platform opened in 2008 and then the 4th in 2015

Cardiff Central

 

[Torfaen]

Newport 2 to 4.

Newport was previously 3

 

[John R]

Newport was previously 3

My recollection from the late 70s is that Platform 1 was not used for passenger traffic, which is what I was thinking of, but you are right that there has always been a platform there.

 

[DH1Commuter]

Dore & Totley went from 1 to 2.

 

[rf_ioliver]

Add Filton Abbey Wood - from 0 to2, then 3 then 4 (don’t have the dates)

Got me thinking as I remember them building the station. Filton Juncton closed Sept '96, and Filton Abbey Wood with 2 platforms opened 1996, I guess September. A third platform was added in 2004 and a fourth in 2018

 

[Mr. SW]

Loughborough 2 to 3, Nottingham I think and Derby.

 

[Ian Hardy]

Add Filton Abbey Wood - from 0 to2, then 3 then 4 (don’t have the dates)

The original Pts 1 (UP) & 2 (DN) opened 11/03/1996.
Pt 3 (UP) opened 28/08/2004 and pts 1 & 2 swapped their numbers so 1 became 2 and 2 became 1 on the same date, this was so that the numbering was in a sensible order, if the numbers had not been altered it would have been from east to west: 2 (DN), 1 (UP), 3 (UP).
Pt 4 (UP) opened and Pt 3 became a DN pt on 19/11/2018.

 

[Brightonboy]

A lot of these seem to me to be reinstatements of previously reduced capacity rather than actual new capacity. What is ratio of reinstatements to new build - does anyone know?

 

[drb61]

Glasgow Central went from 15 to 17 (sometime around 2013 or 2014 I think) when the former car park was removed to make space for two additional platforms (now 12 and 13). Originally part of the ill-fated Glasgow Airport Rail link plan, but provided extra capacity for additional services to Ayrshire.

 

[Parallel]

Swindon had platform 4 added in 2003.

Dinas Rhondda had a second platform added (or reinstated) in 2024.

Ynyswen had a second platform added in 2025.

Dovey Junction was remodelled at some point with a single platform style passing loop, allowing hourly services.

Penryn on the Falmouth branch received similar treatment, allowing half-hourly services along the branch.

I recall Welshpool had some enhancement work done, bringing a second platform into use, to allow for hourly services along the line.

 

[quantinghome]

A lot of these seem to me to be reinstatements of previously reduced capacity rather than actual new capacity. What is ratio of reinstatements to new build - does anyone know?

Good point. The Leeds station expansions in 2002 and 2021 built platforms on an old part of the station that had been rationalised to reduce capacity back in 1967. But I'm mostly concerned with looking at where we've seen increased station capacity since the railways started growing again in the 1980s/90s.

 

[stadler]

In recent years both London Liverpool Street and London Paddington have both lost one high level platform each but gained two low level Crossrail platforms.

• London Liverpool Street - It went from 18 to 17 platforms when it lost P18 in 2021. This was done to provide space to extend and widen P16 and P17. But then in 2022 it gained PA and PB giving an overall gain of one platform as it now has 19 platforms.

• London Paddington - It went from 14 to 13 platforms. when it lost P13 in 2016. This was done to provide space to extend and widen P12 and P14. But then in 2022 it gained PA and PB giving an overall gain of one platform as it now has 15 platforms.

So both of these stations have overall gained one platform each which i think counts.

• Farringdon - It went from 2 to 4 national rail platforms (or 4 to 6 if you include tube platforms) in 2022 when the Elizabeth Line opened and PA and PB were built for them.

• Gatwick Airport - It went from 6 to 7 platforms in 2014 when the new P7 and new track was opened.

• London Waterloo - It went back from 19 to 24 platforms in 2019 with the five platforms having been closed since 2007 when Eurostar ceased.

There are probably dozens and dozens of other stations all over the country that have had extra platforms built.

 

[Llandudno]

Chesterfield 2 platforms to 3 about 10 years ago.

 

[Bodiam]

Whitby had the second platform brought back into use when NYMR services began to run through.
Dartford went from 3 to 4 platforms - I think in connection with the resignalling 50+ years ago.
Ashford increased from 4 platforms to 6 but 2 were exclusively for Eurostar trains and are currently not used