Can new housing developments close to a station automatically lead to increased station footfall?

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Over the years that I have been a contributor to this website, I have come across postings that put forward this supposition in posting debates. Every time I travel to York from Manchester Airport, I see that in recent times, Church Fenton has new housing built there. At that station, did the new housing lead to a noticeable footfall increase?

 

[Ianno87]

Annual usage seems to have been fairly static in the 70,000 range until a couple of years ago, when it increased from 93,000 then to 120,000. However, ORR attributes this to the increase in the number of service to/from York calling at the station since May 2019.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Over the years that I have been a contributor to this website, I have come across postings that put forward this supposition in posting debates. Every time I travel to York from Manchester Airport, I see that in recent times, Church Fenton has new housing built there. At that station, did the new housing lead to a noticeable footfall increase?

I would say a qualified yes - if the railway provides a good service to the places the homeowners are likely to want to go, then the usage at the station will increase.

If the service is poor (infrequent, poorly timed or not going to where people want to go) then it won't.

For (slightly extreme) instance, building houses near Polesworth station would pretty certainly not increase usage, partly because the service is useless, but even if it was hourly the increase would be small as the main destination from round there is Birmingham and the railway can't really offer that.

 

[pdeaves]

Can new housing developments close to a station automatically lead to increased station footfall? Yes
Will new housing developments close to a station automatically lead to increased station footfall? Maybe

Having a good source of custom is important for the success of a station but the product on offer also has to be suitable.

 

[30907]

Having a good source of custom is important for the success of a station but the product on offer also has to be suitable.

And that is much easier when there is a dominant centre (maybe 2 or 3) with a good density of jobs/school places/leisure facilities to go to (I'm thinking Leeds/Bradford from Airedale here).
Where patterns of employment (etc) are more geographically diverse the effect may be more limited - I would expect rail usage per head of population to be lower, and that would apply to new housing as well.
Before retiring I lived in Great Harwood (East Lancs) for some years, which has significant ongoing housing growth. It has no station, but neighbouring Clitheroe and Whalley are likewise expanding.
The local centres would be Accrington, Burnley, Skipton, Blackburn, Preston, Manchester - and BAE Samlesbury which is not rail-connected - but only Blackburn and Manchester are sensible by rail. So the uplift in rail use would, I assume, be more limited than at (say) Steeton and Silsden.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Before retiring I lived in Great Harwood (East Lancs) for some years, which has significant ongoing housing growth. It has no station, but neighbouring Clitheroe and Whalley are likewise expanding.
The local centres would be Accrington, Burnley, Skipton, Blackburn, Preston, Manchester - and BAE Samlesbury which is not rail-connected - but only Blackburn and Manchester are sensible by rail. So the uplift in rail use would, I assume, be more limited than at (say) Steeton and Silsden.

O for the good old days when the loop line via Great Harwood, Simonstone and Padiham served those communities.

 

[30907]

O for the good old days when the loop line via Great Harwood, Simonstone and Padiham served those communities.

Remembered fondly by those who used it once a year when they were kids
(Apologies to any real Arroders here - I know of one.)

 

[NoRoute]

An example which springs to mind was the Metropolitan railway, building its network outward from London and in its case having land holdings which were developed into housing estates and suburbs, Metroland, creating communities with many commuters then using its services into London.

 

[edwin_m]

Some cities have policies of "Transit-Oriented Development", where the areas around stations are zoned for larger numbers of smaller dwellings. As well as putting more people within walking distance of the station, those people are more likely not to have cars. The station may also generate enough footfall to support some shops.

 

[Bald Rick]

A good example is Shifnal, Shropshire. Loads of new housing built there in the last 5 years, train service is essentially the same as 1970, numbers up a third in that time.

 

[David Goddard]

I think that Manea is a great example of this. The Fenland village has seen lots of new development over the last decade, which has driven increased services to the station which have in turn driven usage to increase by 460% in this time.

The station had for years seen a token service of two trains each way per day, served on request by the two Cross Country services.
From the winter 2013-14 timetable, Greater Anglia added calls on Saturdays, again by request, into its bi-hourly Ipswich to Peterborough service, and from 19 May 2014 these became full calls on all GA trains Monday to Saturday with the Cross Country calls becoming the same from December 2014.
Sunday services returned to Manea from the May 2020 timetable, but clearly the events of the last year will have impacted the success.

 

[Purple Orange]

Are there many recent cases of new housing developments affecting the service provision at a station, or leading to new stations being built?

On my line, there is a lot of planned development and even talk of a new station between Cheadle Hulme & Handforth. Many people are complaining that the increase in population will put strain on already congested roads, school places and GP practices, yet rail can help ease at least one of those factors. Increased frequency would be needed too.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Are there many recent cases of new housing developments affecting the service provision at a station, or leading to new stations being built?

On my line, there is a lot of planned development and even talk of a new station between Cheadle Hulme & Handforth. Many people are complaining that the increase in population will put strain on already congested roads, school places and GP practices, yet rail can help ease at least one of those factors. Increased frequency would be needed too.

The original Cheadle Hulme station was some distance away from the current junction station and was on the Crewe line. There is the large development planned on the other side of the A34, but that road does give a good addition to the roads in the area.

 

[Wolfie]

A good example is Shifnal, Shropshire. Loads of new housing built there in the last 5 years, train service is essentially the same as 1970, numbers up a third in that time.

Commuter-land for Wolvo, Brum, Telford and Salop.

 

[L401CJF]

Are there many recent cases of new housing developments affecting the service provision at a station, or leading to new stations being built?

On my line, there is a lot of planned development and even talk of a new station between Cheadle Hulme & Handforth. Many people are complaining that the increase in population will put strain on already congested roads, school places and GP practices, yet rail can help ease at least one of those factors. Increased frequency would be needed too.

A good one would be Maghull North, Merseyside. A new build station with parking facilities, accessed via a new build housing estate (a Persimmon Homes one I believe). Only been there once and if I remember rightly you have to drive into the new estate to access the station car park.

 

[Purple Orange]

The original Cheadle Hulme station was some distance away from the current junction station and was on the Crewe line. There is the large development planned on the other side of the A34, but that road does give a good addition to the roads in the area.

Yeah that’s the development I’m referring to by Handforth Dean. There is also a lot of new housing planned the other side of Handforth too. I believe the proposed new station would be close to Stanley Green, I.e. walking distance from the new development you refer to and many homes in south cheadle Hulme, as well as parts of Heald Green. Therefore it is reasonable to assume service improvement could come as a result of those new houses.

 

[telstarbox]

Beaulieu Park in Chelmsford (when it happens) is partly developer funded.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Are there many recent cases of new housing developments affecting the service provision at a station, or leading to new stations being built?

On my line, there is a lot of planned development and even talk of a new station between Cheadle Hulme & Handforth. Many people are complaining that the increase in population will put strain on already congested roads, school places and GP practices, yet rail can help ease at least one of those factors. Increased frequency would be needed too.

Not done yet, but East West Rail will be accompanied by large housing developments, not least around the Marston Vale stations.