The "Name the Station" game

[Eagle]

Rhyl?

 

[gnolife]

This station has a unique suffix (is that even the right word - I mean something like Piccadilly in Manchester Piccadilly or Waterloo in London Waterloo) (5)

 

[Eagle]

Wrexham General fits all five of your clues!

 

[gnolife]

Wrexham General fits all five of your clues!

and is right

 

[Eagle]

1: This station is within 20 miles of an international airport.

 

[Temple Meads]

Parson Street?

 

[Eagle]

2: This station has been managed by the same TOC since privatization.

 

[dzug2]

Well I went to bed and missed all that. Was I responsible for it or just a coincidence?

Weston super mare

 

[Eagle]

Weston super mare

Wasn't WSM managed by Wessex before 2006?

 

[clagmonster]

Now, I'm trying to work out which franchises have not changed hands or been redrawn since the start of privatisation. Assuming it is not Heathrow Express (which I'm not sure was operating in 1996), I think we are left with Virgin West Coast. Therefore, I'm going to say Birmingham International.

 

[Eagle]

There are far more franchises that haven't changed hands than just that one.

3: This station was formerly the junction for a two-station branch.

 

[clagmonster]

I've just looked up a list of franchisees at the start of 1998. It seems the options are: Virgin West Coast, Merseyrail (the franchisee has changed but I think the trading name has remained constant - or did Arriva rename it Arriva Trains Merseyside or some such when they bought out MTL), Chiltern, South West Trains and possibly C2C, although I think when it was run by Prism it went through a spell of being officially called LTS, with some units running in a revised NSE livery but with a green stripe.

Princes Risborough, the airport being Luton?

 

[Eagle]

Merseyrail Electrics/Arriva Trains Merseyside is not the same TOC as the current Serco/Abellio-owned Merseyrail, in my opinion. (Otherwise you could claim the same about Scotrail, or Gatwick Express, and so on.)

Also you lose points as Princes Risborough fits neither clue 1 (the nearest airport, Luton, is 22 miles as the crow flies) nor clue 3 (there is no former branch here with just two stations).

 

[clagmonster]

Did the Chinor branch have more than 2 stations then?

 

[Eagle]

Did the Chinor branch have more than 2 stations then?

The Watlington branch, to give it its correct name, had at various points in its history between four and seven stations.

 

[martinsh]

Botley ?

 

[Eagle]

4: Although this station is normally only served by the one TOC, FGW have been known to call here exceptionally.

 

[martinsh]

4: Although this station is normally only served by the one TOC, FGW have been known to call here exceptionally.

Botley still fits ?

 

[Eagle]

Botley still fits ?

You can't repeat an answer, though.

The fact I gave another clue should indicate to you that Botley is not what I had in mind :P

 

[clagmonster]

Almost certainly SWT then. Chandlers Ford?

 

[Eagle]

Almost certainly SWT then. Chandlers Ford?

Has never been a junction station.

 

[clagmonster]

That was a bit of a gamble and I have just realised that my laptop clock is fast so -2 for me.
I'll leat Ivo adjudicate as to whether Martin loses 3 for repeating his own answer.

 

[Eagle]

Oh and by the way, I've checked and Weston-super-Mare does garner a –2 penalty, as it has variously been managed by FGW, Wessex and W&W.

 

[dzug2]

Axminster

 

[Eagle]

Axminster

Correct!

(Clue 5 would have been "This station is in Devon".)

 

[dzug2]

This station is north of London

 

[clagmonster]

Thurso?

 

[dzug2]

This station is AC electrified (2)

 

[clagmonster]

+Watford Jn?

 

[dzug2]

This station is normally served by one ToC(3)