Having heard so much about it over so many years and considering that it could fall down at any moment I thought I might finally take advantage of the bank holiday (and the nice weather!) to actually visit the station and do the walk from the station to the terminal building for myself. So I made my way to Darlington on 2D11 the 0953 arrival into Darlington (in the hands of 156 482) and, having stocked up on water from Smiths (it was hot!), made my way north out of the station before intercepting the B6279 named "Tornado Way" in honour of the locomotive of the same name. My reason for this was this road (at this point) is actually on the route of the original Stockton & Darlington Railway. The line through present day Darlington station and on to Dinsdale actually came about later. Thankfully event the road gives way to a much more pleasant and slightly more obviously an ex-railway environment with a good surface underfoot and overhanging greenery giving relief from the traffic and tarmac!
A few miles outside of Darlington the old alignment intercepts the current railway just to the east of Dinsdale station having passed through the northern parts of Middleton St George. Whilst not clear from maps there is actually a footpath which follows the current railway on it's northside between it and the A67 until a convenient foot crossing allows you to cross the railway and access the road to the airport.
As you might imagine there's very little signage for the airport station but I did find one somewhat battered sign:
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(This sign has certainly seen better days but it does still at least point the way correctly!)
A few hundred meters further on and we reach our primary objective!
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(A shot of the subject of this thread, Teesside Airport station, in all its, er, glory?)
It was at this point that the two gentlemen who had been following me for the last five minutes or so caught up and revealed themselves to be members of Cleveland Police (the actual police not security) who enquired what I was up to and once I explained I'd come to check out the airport station they, whilst clearly slightly bemused, gamely engaged in a brief chat about the station and indeed the airport itself before wishing me well and resuming their foot patrol of the airport and its environs.
I had considered vaulting the fence to the access ramp just to quickly put a foot on the platform proper but with the police not long departed I decided discretion was the better part of valour and did not pass the metal fence blocking the entrance to the station (which ironically looks like it has only recently been refurbished as it's in extraordinarily good nick!).
So lets say our passenger has just arrived off of 2D32 the 1203 arrival from Bishop Auckland:
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(156 463 rattling through, of course in reality non-stop, on its way to Saltburn, but it looks close enough to stopped we can pretend it's actually called at the station)
They find themselves, and their suitcase, confronted with this on arrival:
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(This is taken from the bottom of the access ramp, if you squint you can just make out the retreating form of the two friendly police officers that stopped for a chat)
You will notice that there are no signs pointing the way, nor indeed is there a pavement. However there is only one obvious direction to go so our intrepid passenger heads the only way they can go:
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(The somewhat desolate station access road, no pavement so you have a choice of grass verge or road for yourself and your suitcase)
At the end of the road you find yourself facing a widening out area. Still no pavement, nor indeed signs, but thankfully there remains really only one direction to go in:
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(The road continues with no pavement nor, indeed, grass verge meaning our intrepid passenger can only really walk on the road)
A few hundred meters on (the reverse side of the sign that pointed us towards the station earlier) we find the only sign that I saw indicating which way the terminal buildings actually are but we can at least walk out of the road on the dusty gravel path which is next to the road:
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(The one sign indicating which way to go for the terminal)
A couple of hundred meters further we come to a junction, no signage, no pavement but thankfully there's only one way to go real as the other direction rapidly leads to a gate which I think must give access to the apron and control tower. The way we actually have to go however feels like you're wandering through the yard of a FedEx office rather than a recognised walking route to the airport terminal:
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(The fork in the road, to the left a gate and the air traffic control tower (not pictured) and to the right the way we need to go through a yard full of FedEx vans and lorries)
Finally a few hundred more meters on we reach journeys end, the terminal building in site!
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(The road directly outside the terminal building)
Now, there isn't actually a proper pedestrian crossing and, in reality, there is no pedestrian access. Those barriers block the road and the gate on the pavement (the first pavement we've had on this walk!) is locked with a code. But I won't hold that against the airport as presumably it would be simple for them to have the gate open for pedestrian access from the station were there any reason to do so.
In reality any passenger has to walk down the side of the car park (just to the right in the above image), then down a road marked as access for the airport hotel, swing down the side of the hotel, then through another gate which is not obviously for public use before finally being able to reach the airport terminal proper:
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(The walk through the car park, to the terminal building, having had to go somewhat out of my way to actually get there)
Now, like I said above, I won't hold this detour against the airport as why provide a route for people who don't exist (passengers using the airport station to access the airport terminal). But still, even without the detour, it's an impressively desolate and unwelcoming route. Also quite a distance.
Whilst in good weather like I had it's not an unpleasant walk in anything other than a sunny day such as night or in the rain it would be a trudge and whilst I take on board those that say "it's no further than walking around some terminals in Heathrow" it really doesn't feel the same as walking from say Manchester Airport station to the terminal buildings there where you're fully under cover, there's plenty of signage and your actually in the airport, if not the right terminal, almost immediately.
I've also done that walk and it felt nothing like as off-putting as the walk from Tesside Airport station to the terminal was.
Personally, having now done the walk for myself, I can only restate what I've said before (and what Northern and their BR forbears clearly thought), the station is a waste of time and money when it comes to serving the airport. You could call every train there and no-one would use it. Close it and be done with it. The thing is not saveable seemingly physically considering the results of the FOI nor indeed is it saveable from a service point of view.
As shown from the car park and personal experience. The people who use the airport drive and either park or get dropped off. They're unlikely to trade their car which can either drop them off directly outside or park directly outside for the kilometre long walk from the station. If they don't have a car or don't have a friend with a car (and can somehow afford a train but not a taxi on top of their holiday costs) there are direct services to Manchester Airport or Newcastle Airport is accessible with either one or two changes.
This station is pointless. Let it die.
As for me? Your intrepid correspondent headed back towards Middleton St George cutting over a few fields (using footpaths!) before gaining the main road through the village, stopped off at the village shop for another bottle of water (did I mention it was warm?) and then made their way to Dinsdale station to wait for 2D38 the 1329 back towards Saltburn (in the hands of 158 816 whose aircon wasn't not working but certainly wasn't working as well as you'd like!) and what they considered a well earned rest.
