Trivia: Less obvious stations on a through route where passenger services terminate/start

PTR 444 · 17 Jan 2020

Every weekday, there is a SWR service that arrives in Branksome at 09:02am, only to terminate there. 13 minutes later, another service starts from that station heading in the opposite direction. That may seem normal to you but the point I am trying to make is that Branksome is not an obvious place to terminate a passenger service given that it is sandwiched between two larger and much more important towns (Bournemouth and Poole). The traincare depot nearby could have something to do with it though.

It’s not just Branksome though. St James’s Park in Exeter now has the Barnstaple trains terminating there (they used to continue to Exmouth before that line gained an additional train to Paignton), yet it would make more sense to terminate them at Exeter Central until the time comes to extend it properly to Axminster. I can’t imagine an awful lot of people are willing to travel between these two stations while those that do already have the half-hourly Exmouth service at hand.

Are there any other stations like these across the country? I mean one on a through route that is inferior to another nearby station in terms of size and passenger numbers, yet has services terminating there.

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iantherev · 17 Jan 2020

There’s no stabling facilities at Exeter Central so the Barnstaple trains have to travel to Exmouth Junction to stable and then return. They would be passing through SJP in any case.

StarCrossing · 17 Jan 2020

On weekday afternoons, a train does Oban-Dalmally-Oban. I believe the service exists primarily for local school children. While there isn't a big alternative station in the area, it's an interesting one none-the-less.

tbtc · 17 Jan 2020

If you don't mind a shameless self-plug, I started a thread a few months ago about some of the stations with a small number (but not zero) of services that terminated there:

https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...-of-terminating-services-but-not-zero.186087/

Some of the entries will now be out of date as we've had a timetable change since then (e.g. Halifax is now a regular terminus for the "new" Northern service to Hull), but there may be some new entries too - I appreciate that the OP on this thread was looking specifically for minor stations in between larger stations, so not everything in the older thread will be relevant to this newer thread.

Peter0124 · 17 Jan 2020

Garscadden?

Aictos · 17 Jan 2020

What about West Hampstead TL? I’m sure there’s a few peak ex Rainhams that only go as far as there instead of Luton.

Lewlew · 17 Jan 2020

Another one on SWR is Winchester. Some trains from the Southampton direction terminate there. During late night engineering works some trains from London have also terminated there

Always been a bit odd to me as there is no train/crew depot there.

superjohn · 17 Jan 2020

On the East Suffolk line (Ipswich to Lowestoft) there is an 0620 SSX service from Ipswich which terminates roughly halfway up the line at Saxmundham. It then sits for 46 minutes and starts off again as a new service in the same direction towards Lowestoft. I suspect this is to allow an enhanced morning peak service to pass the single line sections in the other direction.

This is the only service that doesn’t run the full length of the line as a though journey.

Failed Unit · 17 Jan 2020

The once per week Newark - Market Rasen service.

Mcr Warrior · 17 Jan 2020

Millom, on the Barrow to Carlisle line, has a handful of services from Barrow that terminate there.

Skipton on the Lancaster to Leeds line, last service of the day from Lancaster terminates there, except Sundays.

PTR 444 · 17 Jan 2020

tbtc said:
If you don't mind a shameless self-plug, I started a thread a few months ago about some of the stations with a small number (but not zero) of services that terminated there:

https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...-of-terminating-services-but-not-zero.186087/

Some of the entries will now be out of date as we've had a timetable change since then (e.g. Halifax is now a regular terminus for the "new" Northern service to Hull), but there may be some new entries too - I appreciate that the OP on this thread was looking specifically for minor stations in between larger stations, so not everything in the older thread will be relevant to this newer thread.

Yes, I was specifically looking for minor stations, unlike the other thread which was specifically looking for stations with a very small amount of terminating services. Minor stations with a regular terminating service however are valid in this thread, therefore I would include Bedwyn and Chathill as they are both on a through route.

route101 · 17 Jan 2020

What about Danby on the line to Whitby?

Used to Queen st to Croy or Lenzie .

Used to be a Busby terminator on the EK line.

Esker-pades · 17 Jan 2020

route101 said:
What about Danby on the line to Whitby?

That's now shifted to Castleton Moor.

Iskra · 17 Jan 2020

Hazel Grove (just seems a random place, but obviously it's where the OHLE ends), Ribblehead (very random, only because the run round loop is just after it), Barnsley (only a very small number of services), Adwick (again a very random place).

alangla · 17 Jan 2020

Dumbarton Central has only recently started to get terminating trains after years of everything finishing at Dalmuir or Balloch/Helensburgh.
Still get Partick terminators on a Sunday as well. The various Hyndland, Garscadden and Bathgate starts/ends are really just because they’re convenient for depots

Parallel · 17 Jan 2020

I find Clarbeston Road quite odd (some Fishguard services) seeing as it is usually a request stop but I guess it's just an extra service offered where passengers can change for onward connections, and better than the train just sitting at Fishguard Harbour for extended time.

geoffk · 17 Jan 2020

Iskra said:
Hazel Grove (just seems a random place, but obviously it's where the OHLE ends), Ribblehead (very random, only because the run round loop is just after it), Barnsley (only a very small number of services), Adwick (again a very random place).

Adwick is the last station in South Yorkshire, coming from Doncaster. Also there's a cross-over beyond and I believe the train waits on the Stainforth line.

Mag_seven · 17 Jan 2020

Not a terminating service as such but Swindon now has a service to London Paddington at 08.45 which actually starts there - all other services to London from Swindon start from Bristol/Swansea/Cardiff or Cheltenham.

Bath Spa has a small number of trains which start/terminate there.

MadMac · 17 Jan 2020

route101 said:
What about Danby on the line to Whitby?

Used to be Queen St to Croy or Lenzie .

Used to be a Busby terminator on the EK line.

There used to be an evening peak Queen St - Bishopbriggs terminator to take pressure off other services.

Marton · 17 Jan 2020

FelixtheCat said:
That's now shifted to Castleton Moor.

And there is a Battersby terminator too.

Battersby being, to those who don’t know it, a metropolis on the edge of the N Yorks Moors with a population of something like 100 a long way from the station.

Esker-pades · 17 Jan 2020

Marton said:
And there is a Battersby terminator too.

Battersby being, to those who don’t know it, a metropolis on the edge of the N Yorks Moors with a population of something like 100 a long way from the station.

I did that on once. It's doubly weird because of how long it sits at Nunthorpe for. It gets in almost 15 minutes before the southbound Whitby does.

Mag_seven · 17 Jan 2020

If the departure boards at Paddington are to be believed, some services from there terminate at Twyford or Cholsey.

dan4291 · 17 Jan 2020

The Teesside Airport parliamentary service starts at Hartlepool, having terminated there from Darlington previously. Only train I know of terminating at Hartlepool.

BarryD · 17 Jan 2020

Ore - one stop east of Hastings, where the 3rd rail ends.

swt_passenger · 17 Jan 2020

Lewlew said:
Another one on SWR is Winchester. Some trains from the Southampton direction terminate there. During late night engineering works some trains from London have also terminated there

Always been a bit odd to me as there is no train/crew depot there.

The few planned starters and terminating services either arrive or depart ECS, the crew will stay with the train so there’s nothing about them particularly that justifies another depot.

thenorthern · 17 Jan 2020

Ambergate.

30907 · 17 Jan 2020

BarryD said:
Ore - one stop east of Hastings, where the 3rd rail ends.

A hangover from when there was an EMU shed there.

swt_passenger said:
The few planned starters and terminating services either arrive or depart ECS, the crew will stay with the train so there’s nothing about them particularly that justifies another depot.

Winchester is a fairly natural terminus for Southampton commuters, with only one remote station in the next 18 miles north. From 1957 to about 1962 a Hampshire DEMU terminated there every hour.

snookertam · 17 Jan 2020

Quite a few in Scotland.

New Cumnock has one daily terminating service (0912 from Glasgow Central). It doesn't even return from there, instead running ECS back to Auchinleck to start from there.

Irvine gets one daily terminating service (1604 from Glasgow Central). It used to be that case that all XX:04 departures on that route terminated at Irvine, but all except this one now continue to Ayr. Irvine is quite a big town, and there are likely operational reasons to bring the train back towards Glasgow Central sooner, but it's pretty random nonetheless.

The Monday to Friday 1611 Oban to Dalmally is worth a mention here too - school train.

The last service on the Shotts route from Glasgow Central used to terminate at Livingston South. That practice was discontinued and all trains continue to Edinburgh now.

Select morning peak services from the Tweedbank continue through Edinburgh and Haymarket to terminate at South Gyle - provides a through service to the far west of Edinburgh.

One train per day runs from Glasgow Queen Street to Markinch, 1733 dep - only train to terminate there these days. The corresponding morning service starts Kirkcaldy.

gingertom · 17 Jan 2020

snookertam said:
Quite a few in Scotland.

New Cumnock has one daily terminating service (0912 from Glasgow Central). It doesn't even return from there, instead running ECS back to Auchinleck to start from there.

Irvine gets one daily terminating service (1604 from Glasgow Central). It used to be that case that all XX:04 departures on that route terminated at Irvine, but all except this one now continue to Ayr. Irvine is quite a big town, and there are likely operational reasons to bring the train back towards Glasgow Central sooner, but it's pretty random nonetheless.

The Monday to Friday 1611 Oban to Dalmally is worth a mention here too - school train.

The last service on the Shotts route from Glasgow Central used to terminate at Livingston South. That practice was discontinued and all trains continue to Edinburgh now.

Select morning peak services from the Tweedbank continue through Edinburgh and Haymarket to terminate at South Gyle - provides a through service to the far west of Edinburgh.

One train per day runs from Glasgow Queen Street to Markinch, 1733 dep - only train to terminate there these days. The corresponding morning service starts Kirkcaldy.

ISTR a few terminating at Anderston, one stop west from Glasgow Central. There's a convenient turnback siding east of Exhibition Centre.

snookertam · 17 Jan 2020

gingertom said:
ISTR a few terminating at Anderston, one stop west from Glasgow Central. There's a convenient turnback siding east of Exhibition Centre.

That's right. A couple start from there now. During autumn I noticed a service terminating at Exhibition Centre, I think to keep it away from the Partick/Hyndland corridor.

Trivia: Less obvious stations on a through route where passenger services terminate/start

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