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Trivia - stations with too many platforms

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aliceh

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I don't think Shawford needs that third platform - no stabling overnight there as far as I know, and certainly not enough services calling there to have both platform 2 and 3 in use together.
 
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Class800

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You've obviously not been at Exeter late of an evening when all the space for overnight stabling is needed - you will find DMUs in bay platform 2 and New Yard Full.
Yes and if there is any disruption on the Dawlish line, platforms 2 and 6 end up being used for originating northbound XC services
 

AJW12

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I can't help feeling Inverness can lose a couple, given platform 1 has the sleeper in it for most of the day and platform 7 sees a handful of trains a week.
Do any passenger services actually use Platform 7 at all? I've never seen a train there; other than the odd freight.

And +1 for Perth. It's a fascinating station; if I could pick to see station back in its heyday it would be it. Feels so abandoned and vast now; 2-3 times bigger than it needs to be.
 

507020

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Is 6 at Southport too many? All see regular use but during COVID there was only ever 2 in use at once.
 

LowLevel

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Skegness only has 3 platforms in use these days (platforms 2 to 4) numbers 5-7 are long term out of use and network changes have been out at various times for their removal.

Skegness platform 5 is available for use. 6 and 7 are disused. 2 is contingency only due to the poor surface and lack of lighting. 3 and 4 are the main platforms though 4 is preferred. 5 is available but daytime only due to lack of lighting. 6 and 7 have been out of use for years.
Lincoln's remaining bay platforms see little use. It used to have eight - four east-facing bays and four through platforms, but now has five, of which two are bays. These see little use these days, as they face east but nearly all terminating trains come from the west (Nottingham, Sheffield, London) and return the same way. Services to/from the east included the direct Grantham line (for connections for London),which went in 1966, and the extensive network of branch lines in Lincolnshire which mainly disappeared in 1970. Conversely, services from London, Newark and Nottingham which used to use St Marks station have all added to those entering and leaving at the west end.

Lincoln's bays are however well used for stabling and they do have some services use them.
 

gazr

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Do any passenger services actually use Platform 7 at all? I've never seen a train there; other than the odd freight.

And +1 for Perth. It's a fascinating station; if I could pick to see station back in its heyday it would be it. Feels so abandoned and vast now; 2-3 times bigger than it needs to be.

P7 @ Inverness has one booked train on a Sunday. Huntingdon P1 is not used, and NR are going to remove the crossover used for shunting from the UM @ South Junction.
 

WatcherZero

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Southport 6? Could probably manage with 4 or 5.

At one point it had 13 platforms.
 

rower40

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Platforms 10, 11 and 12 at Newcastle don't have much traffic. Similarly 3 and 4 at Rock Ferry, which are really just stabling sidings.
 

plugwash

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Cambridge got some big new through platforms a while back which afaict were needed to allow more through trains and to accomodate longer trains, but this has left the bay platforms seeing relatively little use.
 

Scotrail314209

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Perth seems to have quite a few, many of them are very long too. You could definitely close at least one platform, possibly another without affecting services too much.

Taunton seems to have quite a few for the amount of services that call there. I know some trains do terminate there but again, it could probably get by with fewer.
I’d say you could get away with shortening some of Platform 4 and maybe Platform 3 entirely. I do believe some units stable in the station overnight, so there may big be much of a loss.
 

HamworthyGoods

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I’d say you could get away with shortening some of Platform 4 and maybe Platform 3 entirely. I do believe some units stable in the station overnight, so there may big be much of a loss.

This seems to be a point many are missing here - the platforms might not see huge amounts of use in the day but at night time trains stop running and they need to go somewhere to stable overnight....
 

Kite159

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Does anything use P1 at Huntingdon any more?

Seem to recall there was a FCC service that started from there once upon a time. I imagine Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth also fit into the category of overprovision of platforms especially outside the summer months.

I don't believe anything uses it anymore. Used to be see use on a Saturday morning with a Huntingdon starter but that went a couple years ago (May 2018 springs to mind)

I'm sure I read in an edition of Branch Line News a couple months ago it was going to be removed as it's no longer in use.
 

roversfan2001

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Preston doesn’t really need 10 platforms. Though I suppose RES and P7 are out of use so it only really has 8. One of 3c/4c could go too if we really wanted to cut back.
 

Watershed

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Preston doesn’t really need 10 platforms. Though I suppose RES and P7 are out of use so it only really has 8. One of 3c/4c could go too if we really wanted to cut back.
Again, when there's engineering work or disruption happen, those platforms come in very handy. Plus it doesn't have any through lines.

It's probably got about the right amount.
 

plugwash

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I'd argue that the space at preston should be used to run splitter trains to relive the castlefield corridor.
 

507020

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Preston doesn’t really need 10 platforms. Though I suppose RES and P7 are out of use so it only really has 8. One of 3c/4c could go too if we really wanted to cut back.
3C and 4C are both going at Preston as part of HS2 works
 

D365

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I don't believe anything uses it anymore. Used to be see use on a Saturday morning with a Huntingdon starter but that went a couple years ago (May 2018 springs to mind)

I'm sure I read in an edition of Branch Line News a couple months ago it was going to be removed as it's no longer in use.
Branch Line News? That’s ironic :D

Pity, I always enjoyed seeing the odd Cl90 stabled there!
 

jamesst

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Platforms 10, 11 and 12 at Newcastle don't have much traffic. Similarly 3 and 4 at Rock Ferry, which are really just stabling sidings.

Rock Ferry are used regularly as stabling points , indeed it would be a real struggle to store units without these. Also extremely handy for engineering work and during disruption.
Similarly the 3 platforms merseyrail use at Southport are a great help for flexibility and a godsend for stabling and during disruption.
 

Deafdoggie

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Do the two spare at Hooton count? I know one of them isn't electrified and is only used by the Royal Train when HM visits, which isn't that often!
 

paddy1

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Nuneaton. Used to manage with five but had two extra platforms added for Leicester- Birmingham trains when the Coventry to Nottingham service could no longer operate beyond Nuneaton from the Coventry line due to removal of crossovers to Platfrom 5.
 

30907

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I don't think Shawford needs that third platform - no stabling overnight there as far as I know, and certainly not enough services calling there to have both platform 2 and 3 in use together.
Even if you could safely close 3 (which seems to be the less used now, unlike when it was built in 1967 IIRC), you couldn't remove the track it serves.

Penrith Down Loop doesn't get much passenger use, but the same applies there.
 

vlad

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Do the two spare at Hooton count? I know one of them isn't electrified and is only used by the Royal Train when HM visits, which isn't that often!

Platform 1 (the electrified bay) is used by Ellesmere Port shuttles at times it isn't deemed appropriate to have trains from there running up the Wirral. I know it was in use when the Liverpool Loop was shut a while back.
 

snookertam

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Wouldnt a lot of the stations with supposedly too many platforms get used for stabling purposes overnight, meaning they are actually needed after all? Stirling and Perth particularly come to mind here.
And as alluded to above, removing supposedly surplus platforms can come back to haunt at a later date.
 

trainmania100

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I guess platform 1 at Preston park is a bit pointless. It's used for turnback of west coast way units into lovers walk, but as a passenger platform it's not really important. Everything goes north from platform 1 and 2 and the timetable doesn't seem too tight to get away with just platform 2 north and 3 south.

I think at one point many years ago preston park actually had 4 platforms, 2 up and 2 down. I guess the second up platform was retained for units going north from the west coast way, but with a bit of fiddling with the timetable I'm sure you could do with 2 plats like Hassocks and the rest of the station's up to HHE
 

MedwayValiant

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Am I allowed to say Kyle of Lochalsh and Mallaig?

Kyle has two platforms, but Platform 2 is not normally used. Does Mallaig actually have three?
 

Scotrail314209

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Am I allowed to say Kyle of Lochalsh and Mallaig?

Kyle has two platforms, but Platform 2 is not normally used. Does Mallaig actually have three?

Mallaig only has 2.

Getting rid of P2 at Mallaig would be an operational headache, as several times throughout the day in summer, both platforms are occupied. One by the Scotrail service from Glasgow, and the other by the Jacobite.
 
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