Proposed new stations

[MidnightFlyer]

The Lancaster University station thread got me thinking about all those potential stations that have been discussed over the years but never actually got anywhere - Haxby between York and Malton, an East Gloucestershire Parkway on the CrossCountry route through the county...

Anyone got anymore, and what's the latest on Reading Green Park and all of those that were so near being built?

 

[WestCoast]

Is this for strictly new stations or re-openings on existing sites?

Rushden Parkway, Kirkstall Forge (Leeds), Blackburn South and Vauxhall (Merseyside), no idea what's happening.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Any.

I can remember proposals for a Blackburn East station at Daisyfield Junction way, way back, as well as Wixams, just south of Bedford on the MML, and Inverness Airport on the Inverness-Aberdeen line.

 

[Max]

A report was conducted into a station at Hull Royal Infirmary/the KC Stadium, but it was concluded that it would be too costly considering how close Hull Paragon is.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

As with the Ricoh Arena at Coventry (Coventry-Nuneaton) and the Madejski Stadium at Reading (Reading-Basingstoke), I always wonder how much a basic platform for matchdays would help get fans to matches, similar to the KC, which, along with the Madejski, has rugby too. The Ricoh is hosting Olympic Football too, so there's an oppertunity missed

 

[Cherry_Picker]

Warwickshire County Council would quite like a park and ride station for Stratford Upon Avon. (link)

I think Stratford Upon Avon would need a few more trains to make the new station worth it though. If the council just want the park and ride there for people visiting Stratford then using frequent buses would be a much better idea.
Considering how 'touristy' the town is, its chronically under served by rail, only 1tph to Birmingham and 1tp2h (or so) to Leamington Spa and/or London. Yes, the main reason is that Stratford is kinda out on its own at the end of branch line, but it really ought to have a better train service than it currently has. Two trains an hour to Birmingham, one via Shirley and one via Dorridge (either stopping at or avoiding Hatton) would be a start.

 

[lm321412]

Warwickshire County Council would quite like a park and ride station for Stratford Upon Avon. (link)

I think Stratford Upon Avon would need a few more trains to make the new station worth it though. If the council just want the park and ride there for people visiting Stratford then using frequent buses would be a much better idea.
Considering how 'touristy' the town is, its chronically under served by rail, only 1tph to Birmingham and 1tp2h (or so) to Leamington Spa and/or London. Yes, the main reason is that Stratford is kinda out on its own at the end of branch line, but it really ought to have a better train service than it currently has. Two trains an hour to Birmingham, one via Shirley and one via Dorridge (either stopping at or avoiding Hatton) would be a start.

Yes, the Summer Saturday extra train from Stratford-Upon-Avon to Birmingham was a success last year, and meant 2tph between the two areas was reinstated. Is their plans to do the same this year?

Cannot really see the point of a new station in Stratford though...

 

[tbtc]

One often suggest here is Millhouses/Heeley on the line south of Sheffield Midland. There's a big Tesco on one side of the tracks and a big Sainsburys on the other side (at one point), so it could be a busy station.

However, my reservation with such plans is that they often end up delaying fast services by having "stoppers" holding up the "main line".

 

[Cherry_Picker]

Yes, the Summer Saturday extra train from Stratford-Upon-Avon to Birmingham was a success last year, and meant 2tph between the two areas was reinstated. Is their plans to do the same this year?

Cannot really see the point of a new station in Stratford though...

I dont know what the roads are like around Stratford in the rush hour so I couldnt comment. I'll bet you they are extremely busy, hence the council wanting a new station there.

Stratford upon Avon is a very busy station considering the number of trains it gets though. I'm not sure how many trains a day actually call there (but its not very many at all) and still some 650k people use the station every year. It gets very busy in the summer with tourists, summer Saturdays always seem to be busy whenever I am there and bizarrely the station is unstaffed at that point because the booking office closes early. I always think of that as a shame because a lot of the people who use the station are foreign tourists who would really appreciate a friendly face and a bit of advice considering a lot of them will probably be changing trains at some point on their journey out of town.

As an aside, what other stations get decent passenger numbers despite having a relatively poor/infrequent train service? Stratford has to be up there, and yes, I think a park and ride station for the town is probably pointless unless a few more trains are sent to serve it.

 

[Smudger105e]

Long Eaton and Ilkeston arew supposed to be reopening.

Long Eaton as it now exists was apperently called Sawley Junction or something like that, and was renamed when the original Long Eaton station closed.

 

[Drsatan]

There have been plans for a new station at Haxby near York to serve a new housing estate, but these appear to have been on ice for quite some time.

More generally, I think the reason why few new stations have been built in recent years (compared with BR days) is that there are far more stakeholders involved in the funding, construction and planning stages. If BR wanted to build a new station, BR would have needed to consult the area's county council, the local district or town council, and (where there was one) the area's PTE. Nowadays any plans for a new station have to be discussed between Network Rail, the Department for Transport, any TOCs whose trains will serve the proposed station, the TOC which will manage the station, along with local and county councils. Having to consult all of these bodies means that funding becomes significantly more complicated and that overall decision making takes a lot longer. Costs also increase due to consultants being hired and multiple layers of management.

 

[Jollycam]

Warwickshire County Council would quite like a park and ride station for Stratford Upon Avon. (link)

If the council just want the park and ride there for people visiting Stratford then using frequent buses would be a much better idea.

The station would be located to allow people to catch the train to destinations away from Stratford without having to drive into the congested town centre. There is already a bus Park and Ride service running in Stratford at a similar location to where the Parkway station is planned and operates every 10mins.

 

[bluenoxid]

Does this little project help?

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl...155,-1.933594&spn=15.024788,39.506836&t=h&z=5

 

[Jordeh]

Long Eaton and Ilkeston arew supposed to be reopening.

Long Eaton as it now exists was apperently called Sawley Junction or something like that, and was renamed when the original Long Eaton station closed.

Ilkeston definitely needs reopening, one of the largest towns I believe without a railway station but I very much doubt the original Long Eaton station will reopen, no passenger trains pass through that section of the Erewash Valley Line.

 

[VideozVideoz]

There was talk about 20 years ago of a 3rd station in New Mills. At present there is New Mills Newtown on the Buxton-Manchester line and New Mills Central on the Sheffield-Manchester line (via Marple and Romiley). The FAST TPE and EMT services fork off just before New Mills Central and head down towards the Hazel Grove chord after passing through Disley tunnel. I remember there were discussions around providing a station for New Mills for these fast services. It came to nothing however.

 

[telstarbox]

I always wonder how much a basic platform for matchdays would help get fans to matches, similar to the KC, which, along with the Madejski, has rugby too.

I was reading about Beauly station earlier. It's about the most basic station you can imagine - a (very short) platform with shelter on a single line, apparently built at £250,000.

 

[Bonemaster]

Add to the list Kenilworth, and Bermuda Park on NUCKLE line, Chesterton station in Cambridge and Fort Parkway in Birmingham

 

[william]

Peterlee! Obviously would be located in Horden. Public transport to Teesside and Ttyneside are poor, slow and infrequent. Current bus journeys to Sunderland are painfully slow. With a station Sunderland would be 15-20 minutes, Hartleppol in 10 and Tyneside and Teesside well under the hour. Not to mention providing the wealth of the towns industry with links to the national network.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Does this little project help?

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl...155,-1.933594&spn=15.024788,39.506836&t=h&z=5

I note that Low Moor is shown as one of the stations on this link.

Are there not definate moves to actually reopen this station now?

 

[dickdarlington]

I'd say that Peterlee would be a benefit to the town. But it would be in the same ilk as the X10 bus (Boro to Newc). There would be an hourly service at best, and the railway line is on the far east of the town (where the bus stops at the far west of the town). Any station (presumably reopening Hordon) would need a specific bus link to the town centre. And I don't think Durham CC are up to speed on integration.

James Cook hospital is strongly rumoured on the Esk Valley line. But I think this will only happen if the proposed Tees Valley Metro occurs. If it does, we'll see a new Durham-Tees Valley/Teesside/Middleton St George Airport station too.

 

[DarloRich]

Well there was a proposal to build, in essence, a second station along side Darlington Bank Top for the Teeside Metro Services. As they have been killed off by the government this seems to be dead.

It doesnt help solve the conflicting move problem for Teeseide - Bishop trains accross the ECML at Darlington south junction

 

[pemma]

Middlewich, Rudheath (Gadbrook Park), Knutsford (Parkgate Industrial Estate), Cheadle and Baguley are all suggestions/proposals that I've heard.

I've also heard a proposal for a light rail station at Liverpool Airport with a tram-train running from near the Albert Dock to Liverpool Airport via Liverpool South Parkway.

But don't mention the rejected new Crewe station which would mean Crewe could finish up with a mainline and a local station like Stourbridge.

 

[dickdarlington]

Well there was a proposal to build, in essence, a second station along side Darlington Bank Top for the Teeside Metro Services. As they have been killed off by the government this seems to be dead.

It doesnt help solve the conflicting move problem for Teeseide - Bishop trains accross the ECML at Darlington south junction

As discussed in other threads, the Tees Valley metro plans fall to pieces once it reaches Darlington.

The proposed extension to the station would segregate main line and regional services. There are two options in my opinion...both thwarted.

One is to build a flyover onto the island platforms (which would be financially unrealistic), and I am unsure of the space to do it south of the station. Also, it wouldn't get approval due to the houses on either side of the railway having sunlight blocked and so on.

The other option (which won't ever happen due to English heritage and the scary level of money it would cost) is to completely remodel Darlington station. Move the whole station eastwards. Have the avoider tracks as they are, but then have two platforms either side for north and southbound mainline trains. After that, have two more platforms to the east of these for Boro trains. Then north of the station, have the flyover. There are no houses by the railway, just industry and then the colleges. The line can then pass over to Bish, with a grade separated junction for the local trains northbound. Of course, you'd then be left with an empty shed of a station that can't be demolished due to it being listed. But I am fairly certain that you could build offices inside the shell and provide an attractive and unique office space with phenominal transport links.

Just an idea.

Thinking about it more (and having looked at bing maps), you'd lose the car park on the eastern side of the tracks. So, you could still house the main facilities of the station in the existing shed (revamped of course), and then have a car park under the roof, and still have significant space for offices and so on.

 

[DarloRich]

or just build some through platroms on the avoiders

 

[PaulLothian]

Does this little project help?

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl...155,-1.933594&spn=15.024788,39.506836&t=h&z=5

Very good! It doesn't include Winchburgh on the Edinburgh to Glasgow via Falkirk High route, which is identified as a growth area for housing developments; West Lothian Council has a commitment to a railway station there as part of any development deal.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Newburgh in Fife is another one on the cards, though it is quite a way from the loop I think...

 

[tbtc]

Newburgh in Fife is another one on the cards, though it is quite a way from the loop I think...

Its a decent sized area not to have a station, but until recently there was no clockface service along that line (just the irregular Edinburgh - Kirkcaldy - Inverness services).

One of the problems with some suggestions is that, whilst a place may be big enough to justify a station, there's not a good enough service on the line (or, the service that there is is too busy, like Ilkeston passengers fighting for space on the busy Norwich - Liverpool service).

However, now Edinburgh - Perth is a regular service, I can see merit in a Newburgh station. The next problem is ensuring that the single track section north of Ladybank isn't occupied for too long to allow the next service to enter it (more loops required!)

 

[HYPODERMIC]

There was talk about 20 years ago of a 3rd station in New Mills. At present there is New Mills Newtown on the Buxton-Manchester line and New Mills Central on the Sheffield-Manchester line (via Marple and Romiley). The FAST TPE and EMT services fork off just before New Mills Central and head down towards the Hazel Grove chord after passing through Disley tunnel. I remember there were discussions around providing a station for New Mills for these fast services. It came to nothing however.

Blimey, a third New Mills station!? It sounds absolutely bonkers until you hear the operational logic behind it. But even so...!

If New Mills did ever get that third station, would that make it the place with the highest density of stations relative to its population? I mean, three whole stations for a mere 10000 people, in terms of ratio and distribution relative to settlement size, that'd surely be the strongest concentration of frequent-service stations you'd find in the UK?

It must sound like a huge conurbation to those who've never been there! Use "New Mills Central" for the bustling city centre, "New Mills Newtown" for the furthest reaches of the sprawling modern suburbs... they'd really have to give the new station a similarly illusive name. How about "New Mills International (...for trains to Manchester Airport!)"

 

[GNERman]

Apperley Bridge and Kirkstall Forge are two proposed between Leeds and Shipley (if not already mentioned.) Whilst I currently have no problems with them, I will if Skipton services stop there and increase journey times, especially on my xx18 SKI-LDS, which, in at xx59, gives perfect connections for TPE Scarborough and Liverpool, XC North and South, EC London and NR Knottingley...

Mini rant over...

 

[PR1Berske]

The forum talks about this a lot, and the same issues are always stumbling blocks :

1) There are too many stakeholders these days (see above)
2) It costs too much (see elsewhere)


My own county of Lancashire has woeful connections to the railways. There's gaps everywhere.

I'd throw in my usual two for this thread - Cottam/Preston Sports Arena, and Coppull.