Which stations that aren't already planned do you think have a good case for reopening or opening?

[backontrack]

I know that the likes of East Linton/Horden-Peterlee/Warrington West are either under construction or pretty definitely will be in the next few years. But what about the other places in the UK that have railways but no stations?

Some of these - such as Cross Hills/Haxby/Newburgh - are mentioned on the forum with a certain degree of frequency. Others are less usually mentioned. But which are viable? Which ought to be?

SUGGESTIONS SO FAR:

Bagillt for Holywell
Basford
Bawtry
Bannockburn
Beal
Bedford South Parkway
Beechwood
Beeston Castle & Tarporley
Belford
Bentley Motors
Birtley
Bletchley North
Bow Coborn Road
Box
Brierley Hill
Browns Wood
Bulkington
Burscough Mill Dam Lane
Burton Latimer
Caerleon
Carnforth (WCML platforms)
Carr Mill
Chapel-en-le-Frith Central
Cheadle
Cherry Willingham
Chipping Sodbury
City Road
Clackmannan
Corsham
Coppull
Cove
Crewe North
Crew Town
Cross Hills
Culgaith
Culloden
Cullompton
Culross
Dallam
Deeside
Desborough
Ditton Parkway
Donington
Dudley
Eastriggs
Elderslie
Elland
Elmesthorpe
Elstow
Evanton
Farington
Farnborough Southwell
Fender Way
Ferrybridge
Ferryhill
Finningley
Fulbourn
Fulwood
Galgate
Garsington Road/Morris Cowley
Garstang & Catterall
Garstang Town
Gilsland
Golborne
Great Bridge
Halbeath Parkway
Halkirk
Haxby
Hirwaun
Huyton East
Irchester & Rushden Parkway
Kew (Lancashire)
Kibworth
Kincardine
Liverpool Baltic Triangle/Liverpool St James
Liverpool Vauxhall
Lower Darwen
Magor
Marazion
Middlewich
Monk Fryston
Newtonhill
Oakley
Old Farm Park
Pinchbeck
Polesworth (proper service)
Plympton
Rossington
Royal Wootton Bassett
Sefton Park/Smithdown Road
Soham
Somerton
Spring Vale
Standish
St Blazey
St Clears
Strensall
Tullibody
Wavertree
Weedon
Wellington
Wilton
Wixams
Woodchurch
Yaxley

 

[jj1314]

I've often wondered whether Marazion might be a good idea. As a former commuter between Long Rock and St Ives, I'd watch trains fly past as my overcrowded bus struggled towards Crowlas in the seasonal A30 congestion and wish I could swap.

Link it with a regular (2 tph?) Penzance to St Ives service, perhaps passing one another at St Erth, and the new St Erth transport hub could serve beaches on north and south coasts as well as a relatively busy transport corridor.

Add in some vintage locomotives during the summer holidays and you'd be onto a winner!

 

[Bevan Price]

Provided given sensible services and time to develop traffic:
Golborne & Coppull (WCML in Lancashire)
Cheadle (Cheshire -Stockport/Altrincham line)
Chapel-en-le-Frith Central (service extension from New Mills Central & Chinley)
(Better situated than the station on the Stockport/Buxton line)

 

[Altfish]

Garstang (WCML)

 

[backontrack]

I've often wondered whether Marazion might be a good idea. As a former commuter between Long Rock and St Ives, I'd watch trains fly past as my overcrowded bus struggled towards Crowlas in the seasonal A30 congestion and wish I could swap.

Link it with a regular (2 tph?) Penzance to St Ives service, perhaps passing one another at St Erth, and the new St Erth transport hub could serve beaches on north and south coasts as well as a relatively busy transport corridor.

Add in some vintage locomotives during the summer holidays and you'd be onto a winner!

I did consider Marazion...

Provided given sensible services and time to develop traffic:
Golborne & Coppull (WCML in Lancashire)

Perhaps including Standish too?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Burscough Mill Dam Lane has a reasonable case, particularly if done as part of the reopening of the Burscough South Curve and the extension of Merseyrail to Burscough Bridge. It could be paid for (the station, not the whole thing) by developing more housing round there, extending Burscough slightly to the south.

It has been proposed for years.

I think there'd also be a good case for more local stations on the south WCML within MK, but there is not enough line capacity to do it; this couldn't really be considered if at all until post HS2. One that would definitely be useful would be Bletchley North serving the Stadium development.

On the Marston Vale, Old Farm Park and Browns Wood (one station roughly in the middle of the two).

On Merseyrail, Liverpool St James (probably call it Liverpool University or Liverpool Cathedral to avoid confusion with James St) which is between Central and Brunswick, itself quite new. The platforms are still visible.

 

[urbophile]

On Merseyrail, Liverpool St James (probably call it Liverpool University or Liverpool Cathedral to avoid confusion with James St) which is between Central and Brunswick, itself quite new. The platforms are still visible.

It has been mentioned frequently as a possibility/priority but how close to reality it has come it's hard to say. With the very rapid expansion of residential and commercial/creative activity in the area it will soon be desperately needed. Better to call it Baltic Triangle as it is nowhere near the university, and there are two cathedrals! (Three universities actually as well)

Similarly Vauxhall on the same line the other side of the city centre. There are many development projects envisaged which will make such a station highly desirable, though unlike St James there has never been a station there.

 

[6Gman]

Beeston Castle would be nice.

 

[6Gman]

And Weedon, post-HS2.

 

[james60059]

I would say Elmesthorpe (between Hinckley and Narborough), especially with the 000's of new dwellings that are currently proposed around Barwell and Earl Shilton, even the proposed new terminal and associated buildings too - assuming they ever get the go ahead.

 

[Wirewiper]

Coborn Road, Bow - there has been a lot of housing development in the vicinity, which is quite a walk from DLR and Underground stations. It could be served by the Liverpool Street (main) - Shenfield Crossrail, sorry Elizabeth Line trains.

 

[route:oxford]

Garsington Road is looking very likely.

 

[30907]

Garstang (WCML)

Two problems:
1. Finding space in the timetable (as with Galgate/Lancaster Uni on a previous thread).
2. The station site (or any alternative I can imagine) is a long way from Garstang or Catteral.
Shame, because there ought to be potential.

 

[daodao]

Some suggestions:
Plympton, Cullompton, Wellington, Somerton on GW main line to SW England
Royal Wootton Bassett and Corsham on the GW main line to Bristol
St Clears, Magor and Caerleon in South Wales
Rushden & Irchester, Burton Latimer, Desborough and Kibworth on the Midland main line
Bawtry on the GN main line
Finningley and Donington on the GN/GE joint line
Polesworth (only partly closed), Madeley and Coppull on the LNW main line
Middlewich (there is another thread about this line)
Haxby & Strensall on the York-Scarborough line
Ferryhill and Belford on the NE main line
Cove and Newtonhill between Aberdeen & Stonehaven

 

[backontrack]

Some suggestions:
Plympton, Cullompton, Wellington, Somerton on GW main line to SW England
Royal Wootton Bassett and Corsham on the GW main line to Bristol
St Clears, Magor and Caerleon in South Wales
Rushden & Irchester, Burton Latimer, Desborough and Kibworth on the Midland main line
Bawtry on the GN main line
Finningley and Donington on the GN/GE joint line
Polesworth (only partly closed), Madeley and Coppull on the LNW main line
Middlewich (there is another thread about this line)
Haxby & Strensall on the York-Scarborough line
Ferryhill and Belford on the NE main line
Cove and Newtonhill between Aberdeen & Stonehaven

All good suggestions, to which I would add:
Marazion and St Blazey in Cornwall
Chipping Sodbury and Box on the GW mainlines
Rossington, Birtley and Beal on the GN mainline
Pinchbeck on GN/GE joint line
Cherry Willingham between Lincoln and Market Rasen
Hirwaun in South Wales
Bagillt for Holywell in North Wales
Culgaith on the Settle and Carlisle
Elland and Ferrybridge in West Yorkshire
Monk Fryston and Cross Hills in North Yorkshire
Bulkington, Standish, Golborne, Fulwood, Garstang and Galgate on the WCML
Gilsland on the Tyne Valley Line
Eastriggs on the G&SW
Bannockburn, Kincardine, Clackmannan and Tullibody, near Stirling
Halbeath near Dunfermline
Beechwood near Inverness
Evanton near Dingwall

 

[Bletchleyite]

And Weedon, post-HS2.

Roade too - if only because that would mean we would have a station amusingly called "Roade Junction".

There are a lot of small to medium settlements on the WCML that lost their service purely because of "the needs of the many" when they wouldn't have done had it not been the UK's primary mainline requiring of more capacity. Long Buckby, as an example, I suspect probably only survived because it wasn't on the Weedon line.

 

[Bletchleyite]

One on the Far North line - open a station at Halkirk (not sure if there was one before, I think there was). You could probably close Scotscalder, and serve Georgemas only during the reverse, to save a bit of time. Not that time is very important up that way.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Similarly Vauxhall on the same line the other side of the city centre. There are many development projects envisaged which will make such a station highly desirable, though unlike St James there has never been a station there.

The case for that might be a bit weaker because, being so close to the city centre, travel by bus is not really that slow. Whereas St James is more useful as a destination than an origin. Not a bad idea, though.

 

[Altfish]

Two problems:
1. Finding space in the timetable (as with Galgate/Lancaster Uni on a previous thread).
2. The station site (or any alternative I can imagine) is a long way from Garstang or Catteral.
Shame, because there ought to be potential.

It'd have to be built on loop lines to alleviate the problems you highlight, I envisage it as predominantly a P&R facility, it has a large catchment area.
It'll never happen because it'll cost too much

 

[InTheEastMids]

Rushden & Irchester, Burton Latimer, Desborough and Kibworth on the Midland main line

These were discussed in another thread recently, and for these settlements North of Kettering, it's not clear they'd generate enough traffic, and you'd either kill the EMT service with extra stops, struggle to fit a stopping service in between the LDHS and freight traffic (mostly aggregates), or you'd need 4-tracking.

South of Kettering, I guess you'd be stopping the electric Corby services, and again the slowing down of services might not be popular. However, I personally quite like the idea Rushden/Irchester station, with link road to the A45, despite the proximity to Wellingborough

Wixams/Elstow/Bedford South Parkway must have a strong business case with local development, EWR interchange and proximity to the A6 and A421.

Question for all of the above is how much new traffic they'd generate, and how much would simply be cannibalisation of existing stations.

 

[Mikey C]

City Road on the Underground. Closed when the C&SL railway was modernised and combined into today's Northern Line as few people used the station, but the area is now far more popular and vibrant and the gap between Angel and Old Street is fairly large by central London standards (especially with the Angel entrance being relocated into Upper Street)

 

[The Ham]

New stations for SWR to serve on the SWML:
- Southwood (Farnborough)
- Oakley (Basingstoke)

Both could be served by the Basingstoke stoppers (the latter with a short extension of the third rail/electrification of it were to be on the WofE line) without requiring extra rolling stock over that already required. By turning back at Oakley it would ease some of the flat movements at Basingstoke.

 

[backontrack]

One on the Far North line - open a station at Halkirk (not sure if there was one before, I think there was). You could probably close Scotscalder, and serve Georgemas only during the reverse, to save a bit of time. Not that time is very important up that way.

I agree wholeheartedly, except for time being unimportant - there's a ferry connection!

Evanton is another one.

 

[InOban]

If time were important you wouldn't be on the train to the Far North. You would be on the bus.

 

[backontrack]

If time were important you wouldn't be on the train to the Far North. You would be on the bus.

Stagecoach have cut the X99 massively recently - there's only three buses a day and only one to Scrabster.

I have experience. I've used the line many times to connect with the ferries at Scrabster, and it does this, provided there's no delay.

Once we to run down the gangway à la Love Actually but we have never missed the ferry.

 

[InOban]

There's only two ferries! But aren't there buses to Gillsl Bay and the more frequent, shorter crossing?

 

[backontrack]

There's only two ferries! But aren't there buses to Gillsl Bay and the more frequent, shorter crossing?

At peak times there's three, and yet only one bus travels through to Scrabster. It also goes via Lybster, Wick and Castletown now.

There are buses to Gills Bay from Thurso and Wick, but I don't know whether these connect with the X99.

Anyway, to return this thread on-topic, I wonder whether Wilton, near Salisbury, could reopen.

 

[Ships]

I did consider Marazion...



Perhaps including Standish too?

Standish on the two track section would be an issue

 

[30907]

It'd have to be built on loop lines to alleviate the problems you highlight, I envisage it as predominantly a P&R facility, it has a large catchment area.
It'll never happen because it'll cost too much

Quite.

While we are fantasising - instead of putting in loops you could reopen to Garstang Town, the trackbed is there according to Googlemaps.
Wouldnt be any use for going North, but I suspect south is the bigger market.

 

[mcmad]

All good suggestions, to which I would add:
Bannockburn, Kincardine, Clackmannan and Tullibody, near Stirling

Limited market with nearby stations for Bannockburn and Tullibody with very limited sites, would also be a capacity challenge. The other 2 equally unlikely as there is no logical ways to serve them unless you think the Dunfermline - Alloa via Culross line is going to be rebuilt to passenger standards and a totally new south facing junction installed at the Dunfermline end and paths magically found across the bridge.