Using station as pedestrian through-route

[Dish]

Yes - I'm sure I remember once trying to leave the eastern end of the Waterloo East platforms, after that link down for a connection to (the then new) Southwark Underground was introduced, thinking it would be a useful short-cut to Blackfriars Road. But I found you had to go in and out of tube barriers on the way. I have no idea why it isn't usable as a way to and from the main line station there - there's quite a catchment area (including bus routes on Blackfriars Road) for whom that would be the easiest way to and from those lines rather than going to Waterloo East via Waterloo itself, or to London Bridge the other way.

I regularly pass through here to/from work and use Southwark Station as an entrance to Waterloo East. Tap in/out with the same card at either end of Southwark and there is no charge/you are allowed through.

 

[Surreyman]

It was discussed on the forum before, the footbridge at Guildford was not and is not a public right of way, but public access across the station via the footbridge results from an agreement associated with planning permission.

They 'close' the Footbridge one day a year (Xmas day - no surprise, no trains running) - I believe for legal reasons i.e not available 365 days a year, to ensure it does not become a public right of way.
There have been proposals to provide a separate non railway pedestrian crossing, tied in with the redevelopment of Guildford Stn, not sure whats happened with this, may have been quietly shelved.
I know from observation that a handful of people ask for a bridge pass and then board a train(ticketless), SWR are wise to this but the ticket barrier on Guildford Park Rd entrance isn't manned all the time.

 

[KT550]

I thought TfL allowed a few minutes [<5?] to allow for disinclination to travel due to delay etc.

Recently at London City Airport DLR, I had been waiting for 7 p.m. (for cheaper fares) but discovered the lower level entrance and forgot I was waiting for 7 p.m.
I tapped out again and wasn't charged for the first pair of taps.

I started my journey at the high level entrance after 7 p.m.

Actually, the correct start of journey at 19:01 was amalgamated with the in/out taps and the journey started at the pink reader at Canada Water during the journey.
Correct fare was still paid.

Tuesday 15th March 2022​

Fare for this journey: £0.00​

18:56

London City Airport

18:57

London City Airport

19:01

London City Airport

****
This also worked a few years ago at a fully barriered station (Harrow & Wealdstone) when I entered just before 7 p.m. and then realised train was delayed.
I was able to exit without charge and re-enter after 7 p.m.

 

[urpert]

Beckenham Junction is ungated and the footbridge (currently closed) is a useful shortcut to Waitrose. Never quite sure of the legal status of doing this though!

 

[swt_passenger]

I thought TfL allowed a few minutes [<5?] to allow for disinclination to travel due to delay etc.

Recently at London City Airport DLR, I had been waiting for 7 p.m. (for cheaper fares) but discovered the lower level entrance and forgot I was waiting for 7 p.m.
I tapped out again and wasn't charged for the first pair of taps.

I started my journey at the high level entrance after 7 p.m.

Actually, the correct start of journey at 19:01 was amalgamated with the in/out taps and the journey started at the pink reader at Canada Water during the journey.
Correct fare was still paid.

Tuesday 15th March 2022​

Fare for this journey: £0.00​

18:56

London City Airport

18:57

London City Airport

19:01

London City Airport

****
This also worked a few years ago at a fully barriered station (Harrow & Wealdstone) when I entered just before 7 p.m. and then realised train was delayed.
I was able to exit without charge and re-enter after 7 p.m.

The TfL system automatically deals with an in/out/in sequence within a certain time as the second entry overrides the same station exit and starts a new journey.

 

[YorksLad12]

Low Moor station can be used as a pedestrian footpath over the footbridge from the sustrans route 66 (a disused railway line now a cycletrack) onto the A638 Cleckheaton road.

Similarly (and I can't believe I forgot one of mine), Kirkstall Forge has an ungated route from the canal area at the south to the main site and A65 to the north.

 

[ricoblade]

There is no public right-of-way across the station bridge at Sheffield (indeed, it's one of the reasons they fastidiously clear and lock the station up each night to prevent one from being implicitly created), however the council was involved with funding the bridge refurb and got assurances that it would be open to the public whenever the station was open. In the end it came down to planning permission and the council would not grant EMT permission for barriers, the secretary for state got involved and the whole idea was quietly dropped, with vague promises about looking again after the bridge just to the south of the station was replaced or upgrade.

That second bridge has now been closed for over a year. The decking was quite "bouncy" in places and had numerous temporary covers added in recent years. There was also constant evidence of vandalism (including burn marks on the decking and the metal wire which roofed it had been cut open in numerous places) and it was blind until you were on the actual bridge, so was a notorious spot for muggings. That bridge does carry a right-of-way, so I'm surprised there is no public announcements about what is planned for it.

Is there still a similar dodgy bridge to the north of the station, I can see the entrance to it off South Street on StreetView but have no idea if it is open. I think I went across it many years ago.

At one point, the TOC tried to stop passengers without tickets from crossing the bridge and it caused a local hoo-hah but seems to have gone away.

 

[ijmad]

There is the frustrating case of Stainer Street at London Bridge. This is supposed to provide a pedestrian shortcut when the station is closed overnight, but the southern part of it has been behind locked gates or hoardings for most of the last four years. Seemed like it was set up as a holding area for Millwall fans at one point but now it just seems perpetually closed off. Not really sure why.

When London Bridge is open you can, of course, walk from the Tooley Street to St Thomas Street entrances via the 'unticketed' side of the concourse.

 

[Allwinter_Kit]

Alas, the southern entrance opened after MetroCards were replaced by MCards. With the ordinary card you could wave it at the ticket person as you entered on one side, and again as you left on the other. With MCard the gate realises you only checked in a few minutes earlier and won't open to let you out (been there, done that, but not for several years now). I don't know how long you have to wait before the system decides you must have gone somewhere. If only there was a pub inside the barrers... you could wait in comfort

If you've got an M-Card you can always tap-in on one side and then, at the other gateway, do a "[shrug!] Not sure why it ain't working guv!" at the barrier assistant and they'll let you through.

 

[greyman42]

Edinburgh Waverley is another, the high level walkway across the centre of the station from Market Street, on the south side, over to the foot of the substantial steps up to Princes Street. That used to get a lot of use.

It is easier to use Waverley Bridge.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 20 Apr 2022 ==

There was a similar situation at York, where the then franshisee (this it was National Express at the time) wanted or had been told by DfT to install barriers, which was blocked by the city council declining planning permission. That would have been a particularly difficult station to barrier anyway as it has four entrances.`

You could easily get it down to two (main entrance and Leeman Road NRM) without inconveniencing the passengers.

 

[30907]

Blackburn has a convenient subway, which has now been split lengthwise so that all tickets can be checked at one location. Annoying if going from the station car park to platform 4!

 

[Dr_Paul]

Richmond: It's possible to walk from Church Road along the path to the station, through the station and out of the main entrance in Kew Road without going through the ticket barriers. As public toilets are few and far between in this town these days, it's worth knowing that the station's toilets are on the side of this way through, and thus accessible to non-ticketholders.

At both Norbiton and Kew Gardens, the subway is outside the ticket barriers and can be used by non-ticketholders. The footbridge at the latter has never been within the station confines, although it goes over the platforms and looks as if it's part of the station; there's a similar footbridge over Twickenham station that has no access to the platforms. (That could be another thread: 'Stations that have Footbridges Over Them (Or Subways Under Them) From Which There Is No Access to the Platforms'.)

The footbridge at Teddington looks as though there was at one time a public crossing outwith the ticket barriers and next to it a crossing within the barriers for passengers. Perhaps someone can confirm this one way or the other.

 

[Trackman]

... I believe for legal reasons i.e not available 365 days a year, to ensure it does not become a public right of way ...

There was a church near where I used to live that did this so you couldn't use it as a shortcut.
..
Back OT:
Hither Green subway.
I wonder before the station was partly rebuilt in the early 70's if pedestrians could walk down the subway, otherwise it would be a real pain to walk the long way around.

 

[silexa]

I used to cross derby station footbridge quite often to access my work premises, and they would give you a ticket that would just allow you through the gates and across the bridge; but this was only if you actually asked. Quite a lot of people would just flash their ID badge from work and would be let through. Not sure what it's like now though as this was back in 2018/2019...

 

[Dr_Paul]

They 'close' the Footbridge one day a year (Xmas day - no surprise, no trains running) - I believe for legal reasons i.e not available 365 days a year, to ensure it does not become a public right of way.

The shops on the main road near me used to rope off the frontage between the pavement and the shops once a year, Boxing Day I think, to show that this was not a right-of-way. I don't think this has been done for many years now. Many buildings in London, including new ones, have brass studs on the ground to show the boundary between the frontage and the pavement.

 

[Richardr]

Derby.

The platform footbridge continues through to the Pride Park entrance/exit and is used every weekday by hordes of students who attend the college in what was part of the former loco works. They have a barrier pass for the purpose but that wouldn't stop them accessing the platforms and boarding a train.

Also, the footbridge is used by football fans whenever Derby County have a home game and I've never understood why the facility is afforded to them, the steps either side of the lift shaft are non too wide and if you're unlucky enough to become embroiled in a crowd of fans in full chant or song it can be quite scary. It's also absolutely impossible to buy a ticket at the booking office when the fans are passing through the hall, due to the noise!

I've used Derby in this way, if necessary staff allowing me through (to reach a bus the other side rather than football or college).

Is there any reasonable alternative?

 

[unlevel42]

Is there still a similar dodgy bridge to the north of the station, I can see the entrance to it off South Street on StreetView but have no idea if it is open. I think I went across it many years ago.

At one point, the TOC tried to stop passengers without tickets from crossing the bridge and it caused a local hoo-hah but seems to have gone away.

The footbridge to the south end is always open. There are steps at both ends.
There are three foot crossing to the North end which involve using the tram bridge over the railway and crossing the tram tracks 1-3 times. None are as convenient as the station footbridge and its entrance to the new tram stop.
There was an attempt to issue numbered tickets for those crossing the station. A tram ticket was also accepted at that time. It was planned to issue residents and students a pass.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 20 Apr 2022 ==

Bangor station footbridge is used frequently as a route from the 'West End' Caernarfon Road - via NCP to Deiniol Road for the University etc.

 

[Fenchurch SP]

Off the top of my head, I think there's a public right of way across the footbridge at Merstham. Also, I think at Castle Cary, though with the old footbridge partially dismantled, one has to now walk along the island platform and across the (newish) structure at the western end of the station.

The Merstham one is a public footpath but isn't really within the station. During the day the only access to the up platform is through the main station entrance. There's a similar one at Coulsdon South which now has an additional footbridge within the station.

 

[noddingdonkey]

Dewsbury I think is available as a shortcut - possibly the reason for the strange gateline arrangement, and I daresay Shipley has several shortcut routes across it

 

[Kent99]

I’ve often used Witham station as a cut through - the buses stop at the front of the station and it’s easier to walk through than around to reach areas beyond the car park. Ticket inspectors who sometimes stand at the top of the stairs allow you through

 

[RH Liner]

Platform 2 at Mansfield can be used by people walking from one of the retail parks into the town centre. It’s then possible to go through the subway, across the high level connecting bridge and down on the lift into the bus station with an easy walk from there into the main shopping centre.

 

[xotGD]

The Leeds-bound platform at Bingley can be used as a shortcut.

 

[Dan_Lockton]

I used to do a touch-in touch-out at Amsterdam Centraal frequently with my ov-chipKaart without being charged anything beyond the minimum fare (from memory, you need to have at least 20 euros balance available on the card when you touch in) which was then refunded in full upon touching out. This is about the only sensible way to interchange between trams and buses at this location. As far as I'm aware this works just about anywhere in the Netherlands; I don't think I ever tried it on a bus or tram but, provided the vehicle doesn't move, I can't think of a reason why it shouldn't work. There are ungated stations, but also a high rate of ticket checks and the penalties for ticket-less travel are high.

I do this very regularly, similarly at Eindhoven Centraal and Utrecht Centraal. Particularly in Eindhoven it is the "default" route between the city centre and the university and vice versa, with the alternatives being much less appealing and less direct. In Utrecht it's maybe the default route between the two sets of bus platforms on either side of the station, or bus to tram, etc (although you could walk around the side of the station instead). My Dutch colleagues thought I was eccentrically overthinking things by being concerned about being charged something for using the station as a cut-through, but I was haunted by memories of the hassle of having to phone TfL to get a charge refunded on my Oyster card many years ago.

I don't know what the time limit is on the Dutch set-up though. It seems as though it ought to be feasible to (for example) meet someone for a coffee at one of the cafés within the barriered areas, and not travel at all, and be refunded when touching out on exit, but I haven't tested what the time limit is before an actual journey is assumed.

I would note also that Amsterdam Centraal does also have a parallel passage through the station, with more shops, which doesn't require touching in/out, and is framed as being a shopping destination itself.

 

[AlbertBeale]

I regularly pass through here to/from work and use Southwark Station as an entrance to Waterloo East. Tap in/out with the same card at either end of Southwark and there is no charge/you are allowed through.

Ah - thanks for that. Good to know that the Underground station barriers are set to "cancel" one another if you just go in and out to use as a Waterloo East access. I'd assumed there would be some Oyster card complexity to need to unravel afterwards!

Though is there no way of setting out the gatelines to avoid the need to go through barriers at all if not using the tube there?

 

[Cakestall]

At Knaresborough the subway near the level crossing which acts as the link between the platforms is divided by Victorian looking railings down the centre as it also acts as a public through route from Kirkgate to Water Bag Bank.

 

[Silver Cobra]

Arlesey station is regularly used as a through-route for pedestrians, crossing the railway via the foot bridge connecting the two platforms. While there is also the main A507 road bridge over the station, reaching this involves a fairly long additional walk, so it's not surprising that the station foot bridge is preferred. Dog walkers in particular use the station foot bridge to access either the Etonbury Green Wheel footpath or Henlow Bridge Lakes.

 

[WesternLancer]

Thet "walkway" through Nottingham station is a Public Right of Way. A few years back there were plans to stop up ( close) the public footpath over/thgrough the station, but this was denied and it was ordered that the right of way be kept open for people to pass and repass without let or hindrance - this means that they can not install any ticket barriers or stop people to check for tickets etc

Quite correct - on the street at each end there are the familiar green footpath right of way signs (and with the council offices on the other side of the street no doubt someone to keep an eye on them!) - it is shown on OS maps with the relevant green dotted line too.

I don't recall the evidence that was used to confirm it as a right of way (and eg had it dated back as a route used by people even before the railway was built?) but this website seems to list a lot of the relevant documentation

Footpath 28: Nottingham Midland railway station

Ticket enforcement checks when carried out thus have to be on the stairs (usually the bottom) that go down to each platform.

 

[Bishopstone]

I walk through Bishopstone station to get to the beach, as do dozens of other locals each day. Unstaffed, so easy, though I’m generally carrying a season ticket valid on the branch.

 

[Mikey C]

East Finchley on the Underground has a very convenient passageway under the platforms, that is divided in half to allow non passengers to use it as well as people inside the ticket barriers, as it's a convenient way to get from one side to the other!

 

[ijmad]

The footbridge at Custom House and Prince Regent are both open to the public as they are also entrances into ExCeL

Actually a lot of the DLR stations lack ticket barriers so I suppose they can technically be used to cross the railway line too in various places, but Custom House Elizabeth Line will have ticket barriers at the top of the stairs (I think) so I reckon it counts!