Trivia: Stations where passengers headed for a completely different destination end up on a regular basis

[318259]

The PIS discussion is an interesting one.

At Glasgow Central, trains to Neilston are shown as <Neilston> so they don’t get confused for Newton.

Trains to Edinburgh Waverley on the Helensburgh line just show the destination as “Edinburgh”. The automatic announcement system just says “Edinburgh” as well. No “Waverley”.

 

[Ken H]

There was a TV advert long ago for Tunes. Bloke with blocked nose trying to get a ticket to Dorridge but sold one to Norwich. Sucked a Tune and all became clear.

 

[DelayRepay]

I live near Milton Keynes and told a visiting friend I'd pick him up from Wolverton. We could not find each other. Unfortunately he had gone to Wolverhampton. I'm sure he's not the first and won't be the last.

I should have seen this coming as when I lived in St Albans, the same friend ended up in Bury St Edmonds. I still have absolutely no idea how that happened.

 

[greyman42]

It has been mentioned on the forum in the past, that foreign tourists at Norwich have ended up on the Liverpool Lime St. services when wanting to travel back to London Liverpool St.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

There was a TV advert long ago for Tunes. Bloke with blocked nose trying to get a ticket to Dorridge but sold one to Norwich. Sucked a Tune and all became clear.

Thought the confusion in the Tunes ad was between Nottingham and Dottingham.

 

[Basil Jet]

I live near Milton Keynes and told a visiting friend I'd pick him up from Wolverton. We could not find each other. Unfortunately he had gone to Wolverhampton. I'm sure he's not the first and won't be the last.

I should have seen this coming as when I lived in St Albans, the same friend ended up in Bury St Edmonds. I still have absolutely no idea how that happened.

Just don't tell him to meet you in the UK, he might end up in a war zone.

 

[nw12398]

I'm sure some people have travelled to Exeter Central, thinking it was (logically) the main station in Exeter, only to find Exeter St Davids is !

To be honest I don't think that's a massive issue. Central is very, well, central whereas there is very little for which St Davids is more convenient (they're about even for the uni unless you don't like hills, in which case Central is better). Trains are pretty frequent between St David's and Central (5tph from the May timetable change: 2tph to Exmouth, 1tph to Waterloo, 1tph from Barnstaple to Central, 1tph from Okehampton to Central) and the difference between a St Davids and Central ticket is usually very small (< £1).

 

[A S Leib]

To be honest I don't think that's a massive issue. Central is very, well, central whereas there is very little for which St Davids is more convenient (they're about even for the uni unless you don't like hills, in which case Central is better). Trains are pretty frequent between St David's and Central (5tph from the May timetable change: 2tph to Exmouth, 1tph to Waterloo, 1tph from Barnstaple to Central, 1tph from Okehampton to Central) and the difference between a St Davids and Central ticket is usually very small (< £1).

And hopefully nobody gets to Central ten minutes before the train they have an advance ticket for leaves from St. Davids, having not noticed the station on the ticket.

 

[billio]

or Knottingley

The problem with Knottingley is that at Leeds the trains to Knottingley share the same platform as trains to Nottingham, sometimes both services being on the same platform at the same time. As I found out one day!

 

[miklcct]

Trains to Edinburgh Waverley on the Helensburgh line just show the destination as “Edinburgh”. The automatic announcement system just says “Edinburgh” as well. No “Waverley”.

Isn't the official name of EDB just "Edinburgh" without any other words?

 

[KT550]

I was at Ashurst (in Kent) earlier this year and went for a walkabout.

When I returned an hour later there were still a couple of passengers hanging around, who had alighted from the same train as me.
Possibly they were waiting for their onward transport.

They didn't have much English but turns out they wanted to be at Ashurst New Forest.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I live near Milton Keynes and told a visiting friend I'd pick him up from Wolverton. We could not find each other. Unfortunately he had gone to Wolverhampton. I'm sure he's not the first and won't be the last.

I should have seen this coming as when I lived in St Albans, the same friend ended up in Bury St Edmonds. I still have absolutely no idea how that happened.

A local bus company incorrectly ordered destination blinds with "Wolverhampton" instead of "Wolverton". They "fixed" it by colouring "hamp" in with marker pen.

 

[jonnyfan]

I recently had a passenger who boarded my service at Sheffield (having travelled from Newcastle) with a ticket to Reddish North, all seemed well, our service did indeed stop there. It was only when she asked me to help with directions to the hotel she had booked that it became apparent she actually needed to go to Redditch! Unfortunately for her no one had picked this up as she had purchased the ticket herself online. Thankfully it was only mid-afternoon so she was able to get to Redditch, but did need to pay some more for her journey.

 

[WesternBiker]

Leeds (W. Yorks) asking where the castle is is, I believe, quite common, often in an American accent.

I came across that with a very nice French woman in the ticket office in Kings Cross. Fortunately the misunderstanding was revealed before she had actually bought the ticket.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

The problem with Knottingley is that at Leeds the trains to Knottingley share the same platform as trains to Nottingham, sometimes both services being on the same platform at the same time. As I found out one day!

Simple solution: start pronouncing the 'K' in "Knottingley"...

 

[Cedric S]

It is a bit off piste but I once had to attend a conference in Santiago, Chile with a colleague. I was surprised to see we were on different flights and even more surprised to see he was booked to San Diego, in California.

All was clear when he tried to say Santiago. He was American and it came out as Sandiego. Tomato, tomayto...

 

[mmh]

Lots of tall stories on this thread. As I've said in the past, I find it unlikely that many people end up hundreds of miles from where they intended. More so that people end up in a different country. There are loads of places with the same name. Which San Jose is it that you know the way to? (Having worked in the Californian one I can say I didn't come across a single person who thought they were somewhere else. That someone could take a flight to the wrong country is stretching credulity a little)

 

[DorkingMain]

Passengers wanting Ashford International ending up at Ashford (Middlesex) were common.

Also passengers going to Alton, Hampshire for Alton Towers (in Staffordshire, of course)

 

[mmh]

Passengers wanting Ashford International ending up at Ashford (Middlesex) were common.

Also passengers going to Alton, Hampshire for Alton Towers (in Staffordshire, of course)

I find this very difficult to believe, I'm afraid. Why would this happen? It just feels like a myth. How many times have people ended up at the wrong Tal y Bont? There's loads of them.

 

[DorkingMain]

I find this very difficult to believe, I'm afraid. Why would this happen? It just feels like a myth. How many times have people ended up at the wrong Tal y Bont? There's loads of them.

I was a guard on SWR - it happened to me several times.

But believe what you like

 

[mmh]

I was a guard on SWR - it happened to me several times.

But believe what you like

Well in that case surely you have some anecdotes to share?

 

[DorkingMain]

Well in that case surely you have some anecdotes to share?

I don't have any interest in engaging with a thread if every post is met with "I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" so pass.

 

[uglymonkey]

Off Topic, but in Plymouth there is a bus route marked "Decoy" - which I'm sure has caused some confusion!!

 

[Dr Hoo]

Here in the Hope Valley we have various villages with namesakes - Castleton, Hope, Bradwell and Bamford for a start. Strangely enough I have never yet come across anyone who has arrived at the 'wrong one'. This is despite me apparently having an 'Ask me' face (a rictus left over from my Station Manager days) that leads to people constantly asking me for directions or assistance in any social context.

However, I have been asked several times "Where are the lakes?". (Derbyshire's limestone country has very little natural surface water for geological reasons and I am not talking about artificial reservoirs or flooded quarries.) It then becomes obvious that people have driven all day to get the Peak District under the false impression that it is synonymous with the Lake District.

 

[Killingworth]

Here in the Hope Valley we have various villages with namesakes - Castleton, Hope, Bradwell and Bamford for a start. Strangely enough I have never yet come across anyone who has arrived at the 'wrong one'. This is despite me apparently having an 'Ask me' face (a rictus left over from my Station Manager days) that leads to people constantly asking me for directions or assistance in any social context.

However, I have been asked several times "Where are the lakes?". (Derbyshire's limestone country has very little natural surface water for geological reasons and I am not talking about artificial reservoirs or flooded quarries.) It then becomes obvious that people have driven all day to get the Peak District under the false impression that it is synonymous with the Lake District.

Some are indeed heading for the Derwent Reservoirs. Apparently views from places like Bamford Edge feature highly in Chinese social media! There's some Chinese signage now at Bamford station reflecting that interest. The 3 big reservoirs certainly look like lakes - as do Thirlmere and Haweswater.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Some are indeed heading for the Derwent Reservoirs. Apparently views from places like Bamford Edge feature highly in Chinese social media! There's some Chinese signage now at Bamford station reflecting that interest. The 3 big reservoirs certainly look like lakes - as do Thirlmere and Haweswater.

In any case there's only one lake in the Lake District - Bassenthwaite Lake. All the rest are waters, meres, tarns etc.



To all intents and purposes the Peak District reservoirs are lakes (which can be man-made). They look and quack like lakes, as it were. If someone asked me where the lake was it wouldn't occur to me to question it.

 

[Gloster]

However, I have been asked several times "Where are the lakes?". (Derbyshire's limestone country has very little natural surface water for geological reasons and I am not talking about artificial reservoirs or flooded quarries.) It then becomes obvious that people have driven all day to get the Peak District under the false impression that it is synonymous with the Lake District.

You would have thought that the presence of the word Peak and the absence of the word Lake in the title might be a small clue. But people nowadays... I am sometimes surprised that we don’t see people turning up between Sandown and Shanklin expecting to see large areas of fresh water...which is at the other end of the island.

 

[Howardh]

In any case there's only one lake in the Lake District - Bassenthwaite Lake. All the rest are waters, meres, tarns etc.



To all intents and purposes the Peak District reservoirs are lakes (which can be man-made). They look and quack like lakes, as it were. If someone asked me where the lake was it wouldn't occur to me to question it.

Used to be in the geography o-level syllabus, "name and explain all the different types of lakes". When does a pond become a lake then..?!
As for the Peak District, it's pushing it saying it has 'peaks' while it's lovely, it's hardly mountainous!
As for rail stations confusion, notice here Adlington is usually followed by "Lancs" so would it be helpful if similar named stations were followed by their county?
Which begs....which county, the new ones or the proper ones from pre74?
Dons helmet and ducks.

 

[Bletchleyite]

The Peak District is named after a tribe that used to live there and isn't related to the (non-)existence of peaks. That's why the shortening of it is "The Peak", not "The Peaks".

The other Adlington is Adlington (Cheshire), so they do!

Being picky with tourists about reservoirs when asked where the lakes are in the Peak is a bit like this old adage and rather unhelpful and passive aggressive. It is funny to joke about it but really a bit out of order to be actually unhelpful to tourists whose first language isn't English in that way.

"Is this snake poisonous?"
"No"
<person is bitten and lying on the floor writhing in agony>
"It is venomous, though"

 

[Some guy]

Every time I pick up the 15:41 from Preston to Glasgow there’s always one passenger who wants to alight at Lancaster despite a million announcements saying it doesn’t stop there