Why does Pontefract have three stations?

[billio]

Getting back to Pontefract, I was on one of the two trains a day via Pontefract Baghill yesterday (the southbound afternoon train from York).
Grand total of 7 people, including a pushchair occupant, got off at Pontefract, and 2 people got on. I've seen double figures getting on northbound in the morning in the past, so there must be a few Pontefractians (? Pontefractions?) who use it for a quick trip to York shops.

What annoys me about this service is that although you get a reasonable amount of time in York if you are going north, you get virtually no time at Rotherham, Meadowhall or Sheffield if you are going south. Presumably this is because only one set is used for the service. If there was a proper timing of services in both directions I am sure it would be used by many more passengers.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

Getting back to Pontefract, I was on one of the two trains a day via Pontefract Baghill yesterday (the southbound afternoon train from York).
Grand total of 7 people, including a pushchair occupant, got off at Pontefract, and 2 people got on. I've seen double figures getting on northbound in the morning in the past, so there must be a few Pontefractians (? Pontefractions?) who use it for a quick trip to York shops.

I believe they call themselves Ponte-Carlons.

 

[Par]

Hyde - population 31,000 has [arguably] six stations:-

Hyde North
Hyde Central
Godley
Hattersley
Newton (for Hyde)
Flowery Field

 

[class303]

Greenock a contender. 44,000 population. 9 stations

IBM
Branchton
Drumfriochar
Whinhill
Fort Matilda
Greenock West
Greenock Central
Cartsdyke
Bogston

 

[IanD]

Hyde - population 31,000 has [arguably] six stations:-

Hyde North
Hyde Central
Godley
Hattersley
Newton (for Hyde)
Flowery Field

Greenock a contender. 44,000 population. 9 stations

IBM
Branchton
Drumfriochar
Whinhill
Fort Matilda
Greenock West
Greenock Central
Cartsdyke
Bogston

It's already been established that Tyndrum has one station per 83.5 head of population so on what planet are these contenders at 1/5166.67 and 1/4888.89?

 

[CockneySparrow]

For a town with a population of 28,000 compared to the town where I live that has a similar population of 23,000, why does Pontefract have three stations and my town has none?!

My question is not so much regarding to the infrastructure at the two locations, more the reason that one town has been able to keep (and warrant) three operational stations while another of similar size has not managed to keep the only one it had!

The obvious direction for this thread is Dr. Beeching, but I was more interested in how three stations had managed to be retained and maintain decent passenger numbers within such close proximity in the modern era.

Whilst not being familiar with the area I do know this town has a big race course, maybe that has contributed and the Beeching escape

 

[class303]

It's already been established that Tyndrum has one station per 83.5 head of population so on what planet are these contenders at 1/5166.67 and 1/4888.89?

Uranus.

 

[edwin_m]

Can't we do better than 1/83.5? Dovey Junction has zero population as far as I can see...

 

[IanD]

Can't we do better than 1/83.5? Dovey Junction has zero population as far as I can see...

Then that might legitimately be a contender even, Classs303, up on Uranus.

 

[Mojo]

You'd have to shift a couple of crossovers, but the cost saving of rationalising to 1 station (not to mention selling off the sites of Maidstone East & Maidstone West) would pay for itself in short order, with zero trains affected.

Where would the cost savings come from? It costs so much to build a station these days and surely the only costs you'd be saving would be staff (and West station is only staffed for one shift a day), and maintenance, which for such stations is fairly minimal.

 

[class303]

then that might legitimately be a contender even, classs303, up on uranus.

. . . . . .

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

Uranus.

No one knows how many stations or aliens might be there, the surface is still unknown.

What about Heathrow Airport? Last time I looked they are many numbered terminal stations on Network Rail and London Underground.
I doubt many people live in the airport.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

What about Heathrow Airport? Last time I looked they are many numbered terminal stations on Network Rail and London Underground.
I doubt many people live in the airport.

Can we really be sure about that? Remember this 2004 movie?

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

Can we really be sure about that? Remember this 2004 movie?

Good one! But even assuming that there's 1,000 stateless Tom Hanks living in Heathrow rather than the more likely detention centre a few miles away which is treating people badly according to foreign news agencies (BBC isn't writing about it) it's still the closest to Tyndrum's people per station rate. But if census figures are what counts this wins.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Can we really be sure about that? Remember this 2004 movie?

Good one! But even assuming that there's 1,000 stateless Tom Hanks living in Heathrow rather than the more likely detention centre a few miles away which is treating people badly according to foreign news agencies (BBC isn't writing about it) it's still the closest to Tyndrum's people per station rate. But if census figures are what counts this wins.

I can think of another airport station that's likely to have even fewer lost Forrests...

 

[Argosy]

Which urban area has the least stations per head of population?
Thorne has 2 on different lines.
Grimsby has 3 within town boundary on the same line.
Cromer has 2 and is small.
Ryde has a few. (Edited out Sandown as Lake is another town)
It just looks like luck is why these places can have local rail journeys but larger places can't.

Ryde has 3 stations because one is atop the pier. Esplanade is now an interchange station and since the tram went is where foot passengers access the rail link to the end of the pier. St John's Road is a suburb station. Was handy for school apart from the climb up the hill(!) and of course the works.

By the way Lake is not a town, it is a suburb of Sandown -just!