Ivo
Established Member
The recently-decommissioned Network Rail plan to modernise ten stations, such as Luton and Liverpool Central, featured ten stations found to be "Category 'B'" stations. It would appear that there are 60-70 of these stations.
But having found a list of such stations, the categories are horrendously inaccurate. Stations are listed as such (approximately only):
A: Major interchange with 2M+ journeys a year and £20M+ revenue; e.g. Leeds.
B: Regional hub or interchange with 2M+ journeys a year and £20M+ revenue; e.g. Preston.
C1: Major local or feeder station with 500K - 2M journeys a year and £2M - £20M revenue, central stations and junctions only; e.g. Durham.
C2: Major local or feeder station with 500K - 2M journeys a year and £2M - £20M revenue, other notable railheads; e.g. Fareham.
D: Mainly urban or commuter use with 250K - 500K journeys a year and £1M - £2M revenue; e.g. Exmouth.
E: Local little-staffed station with less than 250K journeys a year and less than £1M in revenue; e.g. Bookham.
F1: Unstaffed with 100K - 250K journeys a year and less than £1M in revenue; e.g. Avonmouth.
F2: Unstaffed with less than 100K journeys a year and less than £1M revenue a year, i.e. absolute basic; e.g. Dumpton Park.
Now, barring a few discrepancies with sizes (e.g. Exmouth), the examples I've given a perfectly feasible. But then let me examine the nine stations back home in Southend-on-Sea, in alphabetical order.
Chalkwell: Estimated class, D, possibly C2 owing to its size; actual class, C2.
Leigh-on-Sea: Estimated class, C2; actual class, C2.
Prittlewell: Estimated class, E; actual class, E.
Southend Central: Estimated class, B; actual class, C1.
Southend East : Estimated class, C2; actual class, D.
Southend Victoria: Estimated class, C1; actual class, C1.
Shoeburyness: Estimated class, D, possibly C2 on grounds of being the terminus; actual class, E.
Thorpe Bay: Estimated class, D; actual class D.
Seems a bit odd, doesn't it? How is Chalkwell ahead of Southend East, for instance? And then let me finish off the list:
Westcliff: Estimated class, D, possibly C2 owing to size; actual class, F1.
I'm sorry; F? You're telling me that a fully-staffed 1M+ station is in the seventh category of eight? Where every station is unstaffed and few exceed 250K passengers?
Southend isn't the only area where the whole thing makes no sense. For instance, Brighton, East Croydon and Reading are only a B, yet so are Ebbsfleet International, Richmond and Sevenoaks; similarly, Southport, Tottenham Hale and Westbury are only a D, yet so are Otford, Pewsey and Frome. To give an extreme example, how a village station such as Winchfield D is ahead of Chafford Hundred E is beyond me!
Anyway, rant over; any comments?
But having found a list of such stations, the categories are horrendously inaccurate. Stations are listed as such (approximately only):
A: Major interchange with 2M+ journeys a year and £20M+ revenue; e.g. Leeds.
B: Regional hub or interchange with 2M+ journeys a year and £20M+ revenue; e.g. Preston.
C1: Major local or feeder station with 500K - 2M journeys a year and £2M - £20M revenue, central stations and junctions only; e.g. Durham.
C2: Major local or feeder station with 500K - 2M journeys a year and £2M - £20M revenue, other notable railheads; e.g. Fareham.
D: Mainly urban or commuter use with 250K - 500K journeys a year and £1M - £2M revenue; e.g. Exmouth.
E: Local little-staffed station with less than 250K journeys a year and less than £1M in revenue; e.g. Bookham.
F1: Unstaffed with 100K - 250K journeys a year and less than £1M in revenue; e.g. Avonmouth.
F2: Unstaffed with less than 100K journeys a year and less than £1M revenue a year, i.e. absolute basic; e.g. Dumpton Park.
Now, barring a few discrepancies with sizes (e.g. Exmouth), the examples I've given a perfectly feasible. But then let me examine the nine stations back home in Southend-on-Sea, in alphabetical order.
Chalkwell: Estimated class, D, possibly C2 owing to its size; actual class, C2.
Leigh-on-Sea: Estimated class, C2; actual class, C2.
Prittlewell: Estimated class, E; actual class, E.
Southend Central: Estimated class, B; actual class, C1.
Southend East : Estimated class, C2; actual class, D.
Southend Victoria: Estimated class, C1; actual class, C1.
Shoeburyness: Estimated class, D, possibly C2 on grounds of being the terminus; actual class, E.
Thorpe Bay: Estimated class, D; actual class D.
Seems a bit odd, doesn't it? How is Chalkwell ahead of Southend East, for instance? And then let me finish off the list:
Westcliff: Estimated class, D, possibly C2 owing to size; actual class, F1.
I'm sorry; F? You're telling me that a fully-staffed 1M+ station is in the seventh category of eight? Where every station is unstaffed and few exceed 250K passengers?
Southend isn't the only area where the whole thing makes no sense. For instance, Brighton, East Croydon and Reading are only a B, yet so are Ebbsfleet International, Richmond and Sevenoaks; similarly, Southport, Tottenham Hale and Westbury are only a D, yet so are Otford, Pewsey and Frome. To give an extreme example, how a village station such as Winchfield D is ahead of Chafford Hundred E is beyond me!
Anyway, rant over; any comments?
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