Stations with roads inside

[edwin_m]

Best seen in this clip from film The Fourth Protocol starring Michael Caine:

Seems they went to the trouble of bringing in a 312 (or maybe a 310) which has never operated into St Pancras and couldn't get there under its own power!

Correct - and it was quite a wide road - plenty of space to have loads of trolleys of mailbags all over the place as the vans came in and out.

Euston had a road on the east side, so you could drive directly in from the road adjacent to the station and go up the road alongside the track (maybe there was one track between the road and the station wall, so the road could feed two platforms - I forget). The access was sometimes used to drive royals directly to the door of their royal train.

Not sure if you're referring to the 1960s rebuild, but that had an entire "parcel deck" above the station accessed by ramps each side. I visited a few years ago when various projects were being run from offices in portable buildings up there, and there were still considerable traces of the parcels traffic that was presumably transferred between road and rail in this area. There is/was also a vehicle entrance either side, a little north of the barrier line, which allowed access to high and low numbered platforms and also to the parcel deck. Some of this may have been demolished as part of the HS2 works.

 

[Sun Chariot]

Seems they went to the trouble of bringing in a 312 (or maybe a 310) which has never operated into St Pancras and couldn't get there under its own power!

You beat me to it! It's a 312 as, from the film's date, the 310s windscreens were still wraparound glass.
I bet a filthy 127 DMU wasn't appealing...

The Rover SD1 takes me back; my first car was a 1986 2300, in Targa Red (an optimistic name for BL rouge!)

 

[Elecman]

Seems they went to the trouble of bringing in a 312 (or maybe a 310) which has never operated into St Pancras and couldn't get there under its own power!

Not sure if you're referring to the 1960s rebuild, but that had an entire "parcel deck" above the station accessed by ramps each side. I visited a few years ago when various projects were being run from offices in portable buildings up there, and there were still considerable traces of the parcels traffic that was presumably transferred between road and rail in this area. There is/was also a vehicle entrance either side, a little north of the barrier line, which allowed access to high and low numbered platforms and also to the parcel deck. Some of this may have been demolished as part of the HS2 works.

The Melton Street side ramp has now gone as part of the HS2 works but the one off Barmby Street Off Eversholt Street still exists

 

[Ken H]

Another historical one when Leeds North Concourse (Part of the LMS 1930's rebuild that included the Queens Hotel ) was used as a car park. Grade 2 listed

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D8ur0K3XkAUE3fy?format=jpg&name=small

 

[SussexSeagull]

The road in Brighton Station has had a second lease of life as a holding pen for fans getting to Brighton and Hove Albion home matches at Falmer. After matches they just leave the gates open and you can either go into Brighton or join a queue for a Coastway West or London service.

 

[pwharley]

Llandudno still has a road between platforms 2 & 3. Nowadays, only Network Rail vehicles use it.

 

[PeterC]

Nobody’s mentioned London Liverpool St yet? Between platforms 10 and 11 there is a loading bay for deliveries which leads to a ramp on Primrose St. Does York count?

That is the stub of the old cab road.IIRC it was originally intended as the main taxi rank but the IRA put paid to that.

 

[noddingdonkey]

Is Shipley cheating?

 

[Deafdoggie]

Llandudno still has a road between platforms 2 & 3. Nowadays, only Network Rail vehicles use it.

Although there's no access to it since they built the station entrance.

 

[Millisle]

That parking area is for service vehicles only as the gates at the bottom of the ramp are normally kept locked. I've seen Network Rail, Police dogs, station contractors and delivery vehicles there since it was refurbished last year.

The Carlisle ramp used to be the access for the heavy postal traffic and also motorail vehicles. In the postal days the gates were always open.

Edited for clarity.

 

[faltskog36abba]

Although the question is about today, a lot of people have added insight into the recent past, so I thought I'd add that the space between platforms 10 and 11 at Manchester Piccadilly used to be a road. It was used to load the various parcels trains which used to use platform 11 (as well as Mayfield station) and it was a useful station exit/entrance if you didn't want to go through the barrier line for some reason which only extended as far as platform 10. Platform 12 wasn't really used at the time (1970s) and indeed subsequently lost its track until the up-turn in rail usage caused both platforms to be brought back into use.

I remember the road at Piccadilly in the 80s - It used to have the old BR yellow vans parked up. I also remember a cab road at the old Manchester exchange station in the 80s

 

[Mat17]

Would Leicester count at all - with the car park and taxi rank underneath the station canopy?

View attachment 145729

Reminds me of Sheffield before the refurb.

 

[Ken H]

Would Leicester count at all - with the car park and taxi rank underneath the station canopy?

View attachment 145729

Nottingham would have been like that till they made it into a concourse

This is a Porte-Cochere, or carriage porch.

Imagine the ladies and gents in their finery descending from their carriage and 4 horses to get to their first class railway carriage to London in the 1890's.

 

[Ken H]

1936 map of Leeds station before the 1938 LMS rebuild. The huge glass roof covering New Station St must count.

 

[urpert]

Nottingham would have been like that till they made it into a concourse

This is a Porte-Cochere, or carriage porch.

Imagine the ladies and gents in their finery descending from their carriage and 4 horses to get to their first class railway carriage to London in the 1890's.

Indeed - and the MML does seem particularly blessed with good examples (Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield), very skilfully converted in the case of Nottingham.

 

[Rescars]

Indeed - and the MML does seem particularly blessed with good examples (Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield), very skilfully converted in the case of Nottingham.

And St Pancras had its own porte-cochere as well, just for the patrons of the Midland Grand Hotel.

 

[duffield]

Nottingham would have been like that till they made it into a concourse

This is a Porte-Cochere, or carriage porch.

Imagine the ladies and gents in their finery descending from their carriage and 4 horses to get to their first class railway carriage to London in the 1890's.

The current Leicester station redevelopment, (which has already started with the closure for demolition of the Parcel Yard pub) involves a similar plan to Nottingham, i.e. removal of all vehicles from the Porte-Cochere.

This Leicester Mercury article ahead of planning permission grant has some illustrative pictures, and also says

The £22 million project will transform the covered entrance hall area of the station in London Road – known as a port cochère – into an new plaza for shopping, food and drinks.

The existing taxi ranks will be moved to nearby Station Street, where the facade of the station will be restored., turning it into the new main entrance- as it was when it was originally built.

 

[Buzby]

Glasgow Central has a spiral ramp in Hope Street which took vehicles up to platform and passenger levels once through the Caledonian Railway coat of arms ramp exit, (taxis usually) turned left to run behind the old destination boards building to exit through an exit arch further up the street - directly opposite Waterloo Street. If instead of turning left, you went right, this was an ultra-wide platform between 11 & 12 that doubled as the station car park and Mail van traffic. This was eventually modified, initially to create Platform 11a which was outside the station canopy and a long walk away. Whilst the undercroft was opened up to allow a descending ramp that vehicles could exit to Oswald Street and head off or access the NCP car park.

All this was updated with the most recent revision, where the wide roadway platform, 11a and ramp was completely removed, with tracks to service the intended Glasgow Airport Rail Link (GARL). This changed the platform numbering from 11-14 at the upper level, and no vehicle access.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I wonder if Brighton is the only station to have both a road and a wooden platform?

Well...

Does any station with a level crossing between two staggered platforms count?

If so, then Streethouse near Wakefield has wooden platforms and a road crossing between the staggered platforms.

 

[Rescars]

Well...

If so, then Streethouse near Wakefield has wooden platforms and a road crossing between the staggered platforms.

Sadly Halesworth no longer has a level crossing in the middle of its platforms.

 

[QueensCurve]

Which stations still have road vehicles within the station concourse?

Carlise has a road connecting Victoria Viaduct to the down side platforms. This used to be a useful shortcut if walking to the station from the City but it is now sealed with a gate.

Euston used to have an underground taxi rank but I think this has moved outside?

Another way in which the amenities at Euston have been degraded from the original design. Worst of all the Tube is no longer accessible from the concourse without going outide. There is a seemingly pointless glass partition now obstructing access.

Best seen in this clip from film The Fourth Protocol starring Michael Caine:

Also seen in the Prisoner and Escort (1974) the Pilot for Porridge. This serves as a reminder of how grimy St Pancras was in the 1970s

 

[AlbertBeale]

Carlise has a road connecting Victoria Viaduct to the down side platforms. This used to be a useful shortcut if walking to the station from the City but it is now sealed with a gate.

Another way in which the amenities at Euston have been degraded from the original design. Worst of all the Tube is no longer accessible from the concourse without going outide. There is a seemingly pointless glass partition now obstructing access.


Also seen in the Prisoner and Escort (1974) the Pilot for Porridge. This serves as a reminder of how grimy St Pancras was in the 1970s

For "grimy", read "charming, characterful, bustling, interesting, ...".

 

[Mcr Warrior]

For "grimy", read "charming, characterful, bustling, interesting, ...".

Nah. I just read grimy.

 

[Intercity110]

I don’t know if it would don’t, but Northampton has a road leading to the DB freight yard alongside it. Euston also has a ramp on one of the lower numbered platforms.

 

[Howardh]

Bolton used to when we had 4 platforms, the road and car park adjacent took you to platform 4 via a small gate, underneath the canopies if I remember correctly, however that has been cut back substantially now we have p5.
In those days I reckoned there was sufficient room there for a bus/ rail interchange (indeed Rail replacement buses waited there, alight directly off the platform).