[MattE2010]

Although I can maybe see the point of it in the Milton Keynes and Telford cases (allowing for future expansion), I'd scrap suffixes for the only station in the town, such as Dover (Priory).

[IanD]

But where else in Milton Keynes are you going to put a station? There's not really room to the north before Wolverton and to the south before Bletchley. Fenny Stratford, Bow Brickhill and Woburn Sands already serve the Southern boundary. Perhaps Wolverton and Bletchley should be renamed to MK North and MK South respectively.

[PR1Berske]

From the thread which inspired this one:

Salford Central

cle
Member

Join Date: 17 Nov 2010
Posts: 491

It seems obvious and such a relatively easy win, especially with Spinningfields (and the new footbridge!) - a rebrand of the station (rename?) might help also.

snail
slowcoach
Member

Join Date: 16 Jun 2011
Location: t'North
Posts: 619

Salford is something of an oddity when it comes to finding its centre. Central station is I think so named because it is close to the former town hall in Bexley Square. It was plain 'Salford' until Salford Crescent was opened in the 1980s. Bexley Square was (and may still be for all I know) the measuring point for 'Salford' on road mileages.

The social centre migrated west to Pendleton in the mid-20th century so Salfordians of that vintage will see that area as the centre. A good example is the naming of Salford Crescent which, confusingly for outsiders, replaced Pendleton Broad Street station a few hundred yards away (which even more confusingly wasn't on Broad Street!). The civic centre, OTOH, moved out to Swinton with the 1974 reorganisation as they had a larger, much more suitable building in its own grounds.

Perhaps Swinton station should become Salford Central, with that station becoming Spinningfields?

[Eagle]

Originally Posted by IanD

But where else in Milton Keynes are you going to put a station?

It's not that, it's that it's the most central of the several stations in Milton Keynes. Before MKC was built, probably the best station for MK was Bletchley, which had intercity services; this new station was named to highlight the fact it was a more central station for MK. (Of course it doesn't help that there's an area of MK called Central, which isn't where the station is.)

Telford Central is the same; before it was built Telford had two or three pre-existing stations; it needed a new central station and it was named thus.

[Lampshade]

Originally Posted by VTPreston_Tez

Buckshaw Parkway to Runshaw Parkway (& Superstore)? Its location seems more fitting therefore.

What about people travelling to Buckshaw who don't know about Runshaw College?

If Preston gets a second station, rename the main one either Fishergate, Cannon Street, South, Broadgate, City Centre or Franklin. They'd all work in theory.

There has been a Fishergate Hill, but Cannon Street? There are so many things wrong with that idea I don't know where to begin

[VTPreston_Tez]

Originally Posted by Lampshade

What about people travelling to Buckshaw who don't know about Runshaw College?

Err...Runshaw Parkway for Buckshaw Village?

Originally Posted by Lampshade

There has been a Fishergate Hill, but Cannon Street? There are so many things wrong with that idea I don't know where to begin

Maybe it is a bit too far away but anything that makes Preston sound more...long. And cool.

[Eagle]

Originally Posted by VTPreston_Tez

Maybe it is a bit too far away but anything that makes Preston sound more...long. And cool.

Preston's an unusual example of a large town where all the competing railway companies used the same passenger station, so there was never any need for disambiguating suffixes. (For goods yards, however, there were a few: West Lancs, Butler Street, Christian Road and Ribble Dock: the first two belonging to the LYR, the third to the LNWR and the last to the Corporation itself.)

[reb0118]

Originally Posted by Eagle

Preston's an unusual example of a large town where all the competing railway companies used the same passenger station, so there was never any need for disambiguating suffixes. (For goods yards, however, there were a few: West Lancs, Butler Street, Christian Road and Ribble Dock: the first two belonging to the LYR, the third to the LNWR and the last to the Corporation itself.)

I announce Preston as Preston Fishergate (but then I do have Victorian Sideburns and an old fashioned watch & whistle set - just looking for a decent waistcoat to complete the ensemble)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

How about Chorley ROF Halt (there's not enough Halts left) for Buckshaw?

[SprinterMan]

East Anglia
Shippea Hill to Mildenhall Road or Prickwillow Parkway
Lakenheath to Lakenheath Road or Lakenheath Nature Reserve
Derby Road to Ipswich East
Hythe (Colchester) to Colchester East
Wickham Market to Campsea Ashe
Audley End to Saffron Walden Parkway
Eccles Road to Snetterton
Harling Road to Roudham or Larling

The Rest Of England
Cosford to Cosford Parkway or West Midlands Parkway
Tees-side Airport to DO NOT ALIGHT HERE
Moorfields to Liverpool Moorfields or Liverpool Lemon Street

Wales
Gobowen to Gobowen & Oswestry Parkway
Shotton to Shotton & Connah's Quay
Bodorgan to Bethel

Adam

[Mintcake Maker]

Originally Posted by Eagle

If it weren't such an ingrained name I'd suggest Oxenholme become Kendal Junction.

Funny you should mention Oxenholme should change its name. Several years ago the then mayor-elect of Kendal suggested that the name be changed to somehow include Kendal, since this would (hopefully) increase tourist numbers arriving by rail and also help stop the problem whereby people have been known to get off at Oxenholme not realising it is in Kendal, waiting nearly an hour for the Windermere shuttle service to get to Kendal only to then have to get a taxi back to the south end of town to wherever they were going.

However as you have suggested Oxenholme is very engrained in the mind and the best some locals could come up with on the Westmorland Gazettes forum was: OXENHOLME – for Kendal and The Lakes which is even longer than the current full name.

Therefore I suggest Kendal Oxenholme Road (since the station is on Oxenholme Road and keeps Oxenholme in the name) and then Kendal either stays the same or changes to Kendal Town or Kendal Central

[MattE2010]

I have an early 1990s edition of RAIL I picked up once from the East Lnancashire Railway, which stated (bear in mind this was 20 years ago) that it was likely Oxenholme would be renamed 'Kendal Mainline'!

[LE Greys]

Originally Posted by MattE2010

Although I can maybe see the point of it in the Milton Keynes and Telford cases (allowing for future expansion), I'd scrap suffixes for the only station in the town, such as Dover (Priory).

That was BR policy for quite some time. Southampton lost its 'Central' for a few years before the airport opened, and we nearly ended up with stations called 'Birmingham', 'Bristol' and 'Edinburgh' - as reflected in their station codes.

In some cases though, I think it should go the other way to reflect history. I like the idea of Norwich Thorpe, Carlisle Citadel and Darlington Bank Top. It would be useful for tourism if nothing else if important stations have a suffix.

[Eagle]

Originally Posted by LE Greys

...and we nearly ended up with stations called 'Birmingham', 'Bristol' and 'Edinburgh' - as reflected in their station codes.

According to National Rail Edinburgh is just Edinburgh.

Bristol I can kind of see the rationale for, being as the only other Bristol-named station is not actually in Bristol. Birmingham I guess would have been done if the plan to close Moor St ever happened (this was a real proposal in the late 70s or early 80s).

Station codes are a bit of a red herring as they came rather later, and even in places like Dorchester or Wakefield which have two central stations of roughly the same size, the one with longer-distance services seems to get the unsuffixed name.


When did Leeds City become Leeds? It must have been fairly recent as there are still some Network Rail-branded signs with the old name on.

[dvboy]

Originally Posted by SprinterMan

Cosford to Cosford Parkway or West Midlands Parkway

Cosford is fine as it is.

The problem with having any station called West Midlands Parkway is that it's only going to be useful for the area of the West Midlands it's near to. At Cosford that's no used to anyone over by Coventry way.

Contrast with East Midlands Parkway station which is situated roughly central to the three major urban areas of the East Midlands as most people think of it.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Originally Posted by Eagle

According to National Rail Edinburgh is just Edinburgh.

Bristol I can kind of see the rationale for, being as the only other Bristol-named station is not actually in Bristol. Birmingham I guess would have been done if the plan to close Moor St ever happened (this was a real proposal in the late 70s or early 80s).

Station codes are a bit of a red herring as they came rather later, and even in places like Dorchester or Wakefield which have two central stations of roughly the same size, the one with longer-distance services seems to get the unsuffixed name.


When did Leeds City become Leeds? It must have been fairly recent as there are still some Network Rail-branded signs with the old name on.

Lincoln Central is just Lincoln on the platform indicators now, though it is announced and referred to in places as Lincoln Central still.

[Eagle]

Originally Posted by dvboy

Lincoln Central is just Lincoln on the platform indicators now, though it is announced and referred to in places as Lincoln Central still.

I notice the indicators at Durham not only refer to "Edinburgh Waverley", but also "Newcastle Central", which I've never seen used to refer to the NR station before (Newcastle is also suffixless due to being the only main station, although unlike Preston this is due to one company having a monopoly).

King's Cross's new ones also mention "Edinburgh Haymarket" which just looks wrong to me.