Mothballed, Closed or What ?

[03_179]

Morning one and all,

A little clarity is needed on the what the status of the the following stations are:
Barleston
IBM
Manchester United Football Club
Redcar British Steel
Sampford Courtney
Stanlow and Thornton
Teeside Airport
Wedgwood

Have I missed any Mothballed stations?

I was considering including Angel Road but that's fully closed and technically replaced by Meridian Water.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Sampford Courtney

Pretty sure this one was never taken into use as a National Rail station and thus in effect doesn't exist at all.

 

[03_179]

Pretty sure this one was never taken into use as a National Rail station and thus in effect doesn't exist at all.

Thanks.
It has this listed on the National Rail site.

Sampford Courtenay Station | National Rail

Discover Sampford Courtenay railway station. Getting to & from, buying & collecting train tickets, staffing, facilities, accessibility, & mobility access.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

Made me wonder.
So we can defo say this is a closed.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Thanks.
It has this listed on the National Rail site.

Sampford Courtenay Station | National Rail

Discover Sampford Courtenay railway station. Getting to & from, buying & collecting train tickets, staffing, facilities, accessibility, & mobility access.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

Made me wonder.
So we can defo say this is a closed.

Interesting. I wonder if it was being considered for reopening at some point then?

Seems definitive as closed from that.

 

[03_179]

Yep.
I looked earlier at tat and did wonder.
Possibly sometime in the future if enough people campaigned it potentially get a reopening as from Google Maps it appears there is still a platform there.

 

[pdeaves]

Interesting. I wonder if it was being considered for reopening at some point then?

Seems definitive as closed from that.

Sampford Courtenay was served latterly by the Devon 'Sunday Rover'/'Dartmoor Rover' (I forget the exact name) services. So it was served by 'National Rail' services, after a fashion. Any member of the public could travel to/from the station. The first call was May 2004, no scheduled calls there since the route became part of the normal national network operation.

 

[03_179]

Thanks

 

[A S Leib]

It's long ago enough that I suspect that its status is clear, but did Workington North have to go through the normal closure process, given that it was always intended to be a temporary station?

 

[AMD]

Workington North - probably not as it would have been set up a different way, just like Preston Maudlands (March 1991) and Culross (June 1992) were temporary stations for specific reasons. Which leads into this old forum thread - https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/temporary-stations.89800/

 

[Strathclyder]

IBM was mothballed in the sense that no services call there presently. Whether or not it ever sees passenger use again hinges on the proposed redevelopment of the former IBM site going ahead.

If it ever does and the business case for retaining a station there is sound, I'd expect a name change. Either Valley Park (the business park was renamed as such in 2009), Spango Valley or Ravenscraig (reusing the name of the station near what would become the IBM site which was closed in 1944) are the most viable candidates in such a hypothetical scenario.

 

[Peter0124]

Ravenscraig (reusing the name of the station near what would become the IBM site which was closed in 1944)

Wouldn't that potentially confuse people with the Lanarkshire Ravenscraig, which might be getting a new station?

 

[Bletchleyite]

IBM was mothballed in the sense that no services call there presently. Whether or not it ever sees passenger use again hinges on the proposed redevelopment of the former IBM site going ahead.

If it ever does and the business case for retaining a station there is sound, I'd expect a name change. Either Valley Park (the business park was renamed as such in 2009), Spango Valley or Ravenscraig (reusing the name of the station near what would become the IBM site which was closed in 1944) are the most viable candidates in such a hypothetical scenario.

For what it's worth the Ordnance Survey map now just calls the area Spango.

 

[trainmania100]

Pretty sure this one was never taken into use as a National Rail station and thus in effect doesn't exist at all.

Take at whatever value you want the Wikipedia Passenger Usage section lists sampford Courtenay as having National Rail passengers earlier in its life , not including heritage operating.

Dartmoor line - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[matchmaker]

Wouldn't that potentially confuse people with the Lanarkshire Ravenscraig, which might be getting a new station?

I was going to make the same comment.

 

[Strathclyder]

Wouldn't that potentially confuse people with the Lanarkshire Ravenscraig, which might be getting a new station?

I actually wasn't aware of that potentially being the case; I knew about the Lanarkshire Ravenscraig site being redeveloped, not about it potentially gaining a new station.

Though in either case, given the OS maps now just refer to the area as Spango as @Bletchleyite notes above, Spango Valley seems a more likely choice.

 

[Trainfan2019]

Barleston and Wedgwood mothballed. Not currently served by trains but not officially closed either. Been in this status for a long time now.

 

[Farigiraf]

Morning one and all,

A little clarity is needed on the what the status of the the following stations are:
Barleston
IBM
Manchester United Football Club
Redcar British Steel
Stanlow and Thornton
Teeside Airport
Wedgwood

Have I missed any Mothballed stations?

That's all of the ones that would count as mothballed for the time being. Some may have some hope for the future while others may be considered permanently closed.

Teeside Airport

The Tees Valley Mayor has committed to expanding and improving the airport itself, which may involve reopening of the station. However I don't see them finding the money to do so, as you can only do so much improvement of a basket case station near a basket case airport before you realise that it's a lost cause.

Stanlow and Thornton

It's located in the middle of the oil refinery, so unless the refinery shuts down and is redeveloped, any reopening would most likely be at the request of the refinery. Increased WFH levels mean that the demand probably isn't there though, especially with the limited service pattern. The most probable scenario (which involves any change) is the line being converted to Merseyrail eventually, with the station being formally closed.

Manchester United Football Club

The stadium is being relocated, and any rail link to the new stadium would be considered an entirely new station, so I can be confident in saying this'll never be reopened.

Redcar British Steel

IBM

These two are subject to the redevelopment of the area into (primarily) housing. This may or may not happen, we shall see.

Barleston

Wedgwood

When the reopening of these stations has been suggested in the past 20 (!) years since being mothballed, generally the idea has been to open one and formally close the other. Barlaston serves the larger amount of people so would be reopened, with Wedgwood formally closed. Considering that the line now has a Crewe-Stafford local service it wouldn't be too difficult to reopen Barlaston. However the campaign has quietened down recently so I wouldn't get my hopes up.

 

[Gloster]

For Sampford Courtenay Quick’s Chronolgy lists it as ‘service suspended after last train Sunday 8 September 2019’. However, the source is Wikipedia, so despite his normal thoroughness he knows no more than others. The entry does suggest that it was part of the national network, but this not explicit.

 

[03_179]

Thank you everyone.

Some amazing replies and suggestions.

Given me a lot to think about.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Sampford Courtney is maintained by a group of local people to a usable standard. It had tactile paving long before many other NR stations in the area. The one thing it lacks is lighting which would make regular use difficult.
It was used earlier this year to evacuate passengers off a stranded train that was trapped by fallen trees.

 

[John Luxton]

Sampford Courtney is maintained by a group of local people to a usable standard. It had tactile paving long before many other NR stations in the area. The one thing it lacks is lighting which would make regular use difficult.
It was used earlier this year to evacuate passengers off a stranded train that was trapped by fallen trees.

Could it not be possible only to call during daylight hours? I am sure there have been halts in the past where the timetable noted that trains only call during daylight hours?

It probably wouldn't see a lot of use but having it as a request stop might make sense.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Could it not be possible only to call during daylight hours? I am sure there have been halts in the past where the timetable noted that trains only call during daylight hours?

Falls of Cruachan station on the Oban line, is normally only ever open April to October, doesn't have any lighting and so, when it is actually open, doesn't, I think, have any late night or early calls.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Falls of Cruachan station on the Oban line, is normally only ever open April to October, doesn't have any lighting and so, when it is actually open, doesn't, I think, have any late night or early calls.

Worth a thread in its own right I think:

Stations with no lighting?

Could it not be possible only to call during daylight hours? I am sure there have been halts in the past where the timetable noted that trains only call during daylight hours? It probably wouldn't see a lot of use but having it as a request stop might make sense. Falls of Cruachan station on...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[Thebaz]

Could it not be possible only to call during daylight hours? I am sure there have been halts in the past where the timetable noted that trains only call during daylight hours?

It probably wouldn't see a lot of use but having it as a request stop might make sense.

The reason I've seen oft-cited that Sampford Courtenay does not receive calls is because of the tight turnaround times on the current Okehampton-Exeter services. I would hope in the future that this could change along with Yeoford calls as well. AFAIK there would need to be infrastructure improvements and stock availability changes to facilitate this.

 

[och aye]

Wouldn't that potentially confuse people with the Lanarkshire Ravenscraig, which might be getting a new station?

I thought that plans for a station at Ravenscraig (former steel works) had been canned due to lack of capacity a few years ago?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 6 Nov 2025 ==

IBM was mothballed in the sense that no services call there presently. Whether or not it ever sees passenger use again hinges on the proposed redevelopment of the former IBM site going ahead.

If it ever does and the business case for retaining a station there is sound, I'd expect a name change. Either Valley Park (the business park was renamed as such in 2009), Spango Valley or Ravenscraig (reusing the name of the station near what would become the IBM site which was closed in 1944) are the most viable candidates in such a hypothetical scenario.

The Easdale brothers are planning on redeveloping the former IBM site with 450 homes.

SNP councillor 'should resign' over IBM site conflict of interest

The Easdale brothers, who plan to build on the former facility, are now considering their legal options

www.insider.co.uk

Originally, an application was made for 450 homes as part of a mixed-used development which would include retail, leisure and commercial units. The Easdales were then told in March 2022 that the council would only allow 270 houses, which they stated made the entire project unviable.

The businessmen behind bus operator McGill's lodged an appeal against the decision, before permission was finally given to build 450 houses a year later.

 

[SargeNpton]

For Sampford Courtenay Quick’s Chronolgy lists it as ‘service suspended after last train Sunday 8 September 2019’. However, the source is Wikipedia, so despite his normal thoroughness he knows no more than others. The entry does suggest that it was part of the national network, but this not explicit.

When Network Rail took over ownership of the Okehampton branch, it (and GWR) did not adopt Sampford Courtenay station. When it was served by the Sunday service running from Exeter to the Dartmoor Railway it was a station belonging to that railway, so outside of the DfT/ORR requirements for closure proceedings.

Sampford Courtenay closed when the Dartmoor Railway folded, so no closure notice required as it was not part of the national rail network.

 

[flitwickbeds]

My thread for nearly 3 years ago, which I was intending to maintain but the thread got closed.

Closed/Under Threat Stations Watchlist

Similar to the New Stations Calendar thread, I thought it would be a good idea to start a Closed/Under Threat Stations master thread. With the number of stations mothballed recently due to infrastructure issues and therefore temporarily closed by stealth, combined with stations which haven't...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[Buttsy]

IBM was mothballed in the sense that no services call there presently. Whether or not it ever sees passenger use again hinges on the proposed redevelopment of the former IBM site going ahead.

If it ever does and the business case for retaining a station there is sound, I'd expect a name change. Either Valley Park (the business park was renamed as such in 2009), Spango Valley or Ravenscraig (reusing the name of the station near what would become the IBM site which was closed in 1944) are the most viable candidates in such a hypothetical scenario.

I would cheekily comment that the name should be Inverbraemore to keep the IBM 3 letter code!