Deserted Stations

[brad465]

Apart from the ones I've listed below, does anyone know of rarely used stations in this country?:roll:

Gainsborough Central in Lincolnshire- only has 21 passengers per year, with three trains a week in each direction.

Buckenham in Norfolk- has 29 passengers a year use it, with no weekday services and 4 trains in each direction on weekends.

Dorking West in Surrey- has only 40 passengers use it a year, and 1tp2h in each direction.

Teeside Airport- only used by 72 passengers in a year, and only one train a week in each direction.

 

[Oracle]

Goodness knows how many use Beaulieu Road, save for walkers on Sundays.

 

[466.networkers]

Swale isn't used much, but still has 2tph for most of the day until the evening when it goes down to 1tph.

 

[WatcherZero]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_train

 

[jopsuk]

Berney Arms!

Anywhere, such as Teeside, served by an absolute minimum "parliamentary" service. Somehow, even in the long run, it is cheaper to run the services than to close the stations.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

There's usage figures for all stations on the ORR website. Norton Bridge, still open by law, hasn't seen on-platform passengers for about 5 years

 

[Crossover]

Polesworth - One train a day from Northampton Northbound, South platform inaccessible - 220 passengers last year according to wiki

Reddish South and Denton on the Stockport-Stalybridge line - one service a week on a Friday morning, single direction only - last year 274 and 56 passengers respectively (though Reddish South was hugely up on the previous year)

I would also add in Ardwick in Manchester - it has 5 trains per day weekdays only and wiki shows useage by 576 passengers last year. I found this quite amusing when there was an open day at Ardwick TPE depot before Christmas one Sunday...they advertise that station as been the closest (naturally) but there were no services to there on that day!!!
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Berney Arms!

Anywhere, such as Teeside, served by an absolute minimum "parliamentary" service. Somehow, even in the long run, it is cheaper to run the services than to close the stations.

Why does it work out cheaper to run the services than close the station?

 

[Darandio]

Why does it work out cheaper to run the services than close the station?

It's just a long drawn out legal process to get a station closed and involves a lot of cost to the TOC involved. Taking the closest one to me, Tees-side Airport for example, the two services that do call there have to pass anyway so it isn't going cost a great deal to call there.

 

[brad465]

There's usage figures for all stations on the ORR website. Norton Bridge, still open by law, hasn't seen on-platform passengers for about 5 years

I think the reason why is it has become inacessible to the public, even though it is still classed as open :roll:

 

[MidnightFlyer]

I think the reason why is it has become inacessible to the public, even though it is still classed as open :roll:

I knew that. NR took the footbridge out in 2004 to make improvements to the overheads, and said it wasn't costworthy to reinstall it. A similar thing happened at Polesworth later. It now an island platform in the middle of the last with a bordered-up booking office, looking very sorry

 

[atomicdanny]

I would have said Three Oaks, Doleham and Winchelsea since I believe that they only have 1 or 2 trains a day. Although apparently the Marshlink Action Group wants them to have 2 trains an hourhock: (from the last thing that i read on their website!, I don't think they even needs a train every 2 hours though!)

 

[stut]

Manea and Shippea Hill, godforsaken Fenland halts. The flatness of the latter makes the name sound odd too (good reason for it, bit still...)

 

[Any Permitted]

I feel kind of proud that I make up 3 of those Buckenham passengers and 1 of the Dorking West passengers.

I sometimes take the dog for a walk from Buckenham on a Sunday, it's lovely around there and I have relatives whose nearest station is Dorking West so I always check if I can get there instead of Dorking when booking tickets.

 

[ess]

how many go through Pontefract Baghill? it gets three trains a day i think

 

[MidnightFlyer]

where do the station usage figures come from? how many go through Pontefract Baghill?

Theres a section on the ORR website
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I would have said Three Oaks, Doleham and Winchelsea since I believe that they only have 1 or 2 trains a day. Although apparently the Marshlink Action Group wants them to have 2 trains an hourhock: (from the last thing that i read on their website!, I don't think they even needs a train every 2 hours though!)

I thought it was one train every two hours in each direction! Doleham is often deserted, but Winchelsea and Three Oaks maybe could get busy

 

[jamesontheroad]

Theres a section on the ORR website

Clicky clicky.

Station - 08/09 Entries & Exits - 07/08 Entries & Exits - 08/09 Interchanges
Tees-Side Airport 44 52 0
Denton 56 53 0
Maidstone Barracks 70 399 5,753
Kirton Lindsey 88 126 0
Barry Links 94 98 0
Dorking West 104 52 0
Coombe 118 54 0
Sugar Loaf 120 111 0
Pilning 130 125 0
Buckenham 132 97 0
Golf Street 136 135 0
Elton & Orston 172 157 0
Kildonan 174 244 0
Chapelton 176 208 0
Beasdale 200 213 0
Breich 200 303 0
Rawcliffe 204 211 0
Altnabreac 212 177 0
Clifton 216 152 0
Polesworth 216 223 0

Although as discussed ad infinitum before, these figures are based on tickets sold. There are obviously towns with more than one station where tickets issued to "xxx Stations" hide the disproportionate use of one busier station over another.

 

[A60K]

Apart from the ones I've listed below, does anyone know of rarely used stations in this country?:roll:

Dorking West in Surrey- has only 40 passengers use it a year, and 1tp2h in each direction.

That's actually nonsense (the figure, not your post!) because a lot of the low figures for stations are a result of the way that 'Xxxxxxx Stations' tickets are allocated to just one station in the group by the statistics published. This has been discussed before, in relation to Tyndrum for example.

Edited because James beat me to it!

Just to add, Breich is probably the genuinely least used station if defined by number of unique people - AIUI it has one person as a regular, and that's just about the only passenger who ever uses it.

 

[swt_passenger]

That's actually nonsense (the figure, not your post!) because a lot of the low figures for stations are a result of the way that 'Xxxxxxx Stations' tickets are allocated to just one station in the group by the statistics published. This has been discussed before, in relation to Tyndrum for example.

It has been discussed before, but it's also shown in the written report that goes with the figures, that this year they have attempted to resolve the journeys at Group stations - see the 'Methodology changes' section of the report (as linky above).

e.g. Tyndrum Lower now 4552; Upper Tyndrum now 3488

I suspect they're assuming that the proportion of arrivals as well as departures will be roughly proportional to respective ticket sales - but there'll be other means as well, such as surveys.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Is it Sunningdale - its defo near Ascot - that gets about 2 trains a day? Places on the Dundee-Carnoustie will be dead: Broughty Ferry, Golf St, Balmossie, Barry Links etc. Wedgewood, Barlaston, Newhaven Marine, Normans Bay? Ulleskelf - never known anyone get on or off there, probs about 7,000 people a year.

 

[curly42]

Slightly off topic,but interesting - one of the test questions set by a former ticket instructor I know,to a group of new conductors -
"work me out a journey from Reddish South to Spooner Row,return"

cue much gnashing of teeth.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Actually I think that station near Ascot is Longcross

 

[brad465]

I would have said Three Oaks, Doleham and Winchelsea since I believe that they only have 1 or 2 trains a day. Although apparently the Marshlink Action Group wants them to have 2 trains an hourhock: (from the last thing that i read on their website!, I don't think they even needs a train every 2 hours though!)

yes they do have that many services, but around 15 years ago it was 1tph. , and they only need services at them in the peaks really, and maybe leave the rest of the day empty.
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This has been discussed before, in relation to Tyndrum for example.

Edited because James beat me to it!

Just to add, Breich is probably the genuinely least used station if defined by number of unique people - AIUI it has one person as a regular, and that's just about the only passenger who ever uses it.

That person must be unique for that reason, and I think most general stuff would have been discussed before.

 

[CarterUSM]

That's actually nonsense (the figure, not your post!) because a lot of the low figures for stations are a result of the way that 'Xxxxxxx Stations' tickets are allocated to just one station in the group by the statistics published. This has been discussed before, in relation to Tyndrum for example.

Edited because James beat me to it!

Just to add, Breich is probably the genuinely least used station if defined by number of unique people - AIUI it has one person as a regular, and that's just about the only passenger who ever uses it.

There used to be two passengers that used it, but only one now and i haven't seen them for ages.

 

[swt_passenger]

Actually I think that station near Ascot is Longcross

It gets 9 down and 11 up services on weekdays now as well...

 

[Chrius56000]

Hi!

Member Stut mentions Manea and Shippea Hill in the Fens, but a question that's intrigued me is why has Manea remained open? I believe originally from March to Ely there was Stonea, Manea, Chettisham and Black Bank.

Stonea closed in 1966 and a relay room for the level crossing indicates roughly where it was, but all trace of the others have gone that I can see!!!

What sort of service would Stonea have had at the time of its closure - does anyone know, and would it have been a DMU or steam service? The AA road atlas shows Stonea as four small squares clustered round the level crossing, what is its population?

Chris Williams

 

[NightatLaira]

No one's mentioned Dalwhinnie yet..


A fine station in breathtaking landscape - the coldest inhabited place in Britain with a year-round average of +6 degrees Celcius. With very few stopping Scotrail services, it is one of the leas used railway stations in Scotland, but gets a nightly sleeper calling, and a sprinkling of Scotrail Edinburgh or Glasgow to Inverness trains and vice versa. GNER tried calling there for about a year in 2005/6 time with the Highland Chieftain.

Also a very nice whisky! Produced nearby Highly recommended.
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And Eturia closed down in about 2006ish time - several years after the Steel Works at Shelton (Stoke on Trent) had closed.

 

[Lampshade]

Is it Sunningdale - its defo near Ascot - that gets about 2 trains a day?

Nope, SWT services between Waterloo and Reading call there (2tph).

EDIT: Yes it's Longcross, 7tpd to Reading and 8tpd to Waterloo, it was only 2tpd until a few years ago.

 

[route:oxford]

Perhaps it's time to play the "anti-Christmas No1" game - but with railway stations.

If your next rail journey takes you near one of the 10 stations with lowest ticket sales, and the additional cost would be small or not financially disadvantageous to you, why not choose the alternative destination? You don't (normally) actually need to go there.

There are, of course, some benefits to purchasing an "inter-city+connections" AP ticket to/from a more obscure station. Perhaps explains why I sometimes "start" a long journey in Islip, Appleford, Radley or Culham...

 

[krus_aragon]

I took a ride down the Conwy valley to Roman Bridge a few years back, partially to bump the figures up. Unfortunately it was a bit drizzly, so I didn't stray far as I waited for the train to run to Blaenau and back.

I've also been to Fishguard, but that was part of a bike ride.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Dunrobin Castle, and probs loads of other stuff in the Highlands, and stations Dovey Jn-Pwllheli