Trivia: What are the quirkiest railway stations in Britain?

[DelW]

Following on from the above, are there any other stations that share Surbiton's quirk of having different numbers of up and down lines passing through?

The south-western mainline section of Clapham Junction has three up roads (platforms 7 8 & 10) and two down roads (9 & 11). Platform 8 isn't used for calls, but has lots of through trains.

Overall CLJ is more complicated to count because of depot tracks and Overground routes terminating there.

 

[John Griffiths]

Twickenham has two 'up' platforms and one down, although as that handles Kingston loop trains as well as the Reading and Windsor line services it could be considered half of an up platform.

 

[Class15]

I would say that Bedford only has one down platform, Platform 4, down fast. The up fast has no platform, and Platforms 1-3 are all reversible and all three are used by terminating Thameslinks, calling up EMR services, and I think also freight services in both directions. This can get horribly tangled and can’t help thinking a simple four-track four-platform layout with a bay for some terminating Thameslink services would be operationally simpler. Maybe it will be improved for EWR. Or just made more complicated.


Also Platform 1A (the Bletchley bay) has a completely separate face from Platform 1.

I think we’re less looking for stations with terminating platforms, and rather stations which are fully through platforms. Good point about the Bletchley bay however. Stratford might be 1 of 2 then!

Maybe another example of the uneven platforms could be Northampton? Two down platforms, one up platform and an up non-platform track. There are also bays, but just counting through platforms…

 

[Shimbleshanks]

Brockenhurst used to have a little moving platform thing, apparently it was used for the school trains.
The equipment is still there but long out of use.


Brockenhurst Station, image of moving platform.

Not sure about school trains; I think its main use was to allow luggage and mail to be transferred to the other platforms without having to use the footbridge.

 

[D6130]

Not sure about school trains; I think its main use was to allow luggage and mail to be transferred to the other platforms without having to use the footbridge.

Malton also had a similar device back in the day when it still had its island platform.

 

[BeijingDave]

I think we’re less looking for stations with terminating platforms, and rather stations which are fully through platforms. Good point about the Bletchley bay however. Stratford might be 1 of 2 then!

Maybe another example of the uneven platforms could be Northampton? Two down platforms, one up platform and an up non-platform track. There are also bays, but just counting through platforms…

Acton Bridge has three platform faces, although I can't remember if it's 2 on the up or 2 on the down.

 

[Kite159]

Shawford, 1 up line and 2 down lines.

 

[Falcon1200]

Dunbar for a while just had one platform, on a bi-directional loop on the Up side. It now has a platform on the Down main line, but still nothing on the Up main.

 

[BeijingDave]

If it was still in existence (or reinstated in full), Ditton, which was the first station to close post-privatisation.

5 platforms (giving it a bigger footprint than Runcorn, Widnes or Warrington Central - much more important nearby stations) but very sparse services.

 

[norbitonflyer]

Lincoln has five through roads, with one platform on the eastbound and two on the west bound (although they are now all signalled bidirectionally). The two bays face the wrong way for most of the traffic now on offer ("up" was originally eastward, when London was reached via Boston or Grantham)

 

[Purple Train]

Chathill deserves a mention. The only station in the UK where every calling train starts or terminates but they still have non stop through passenger trains. Also possibly the only mainline station in the UK to have a platform where you can only board and a platform where you can only alight.

Will the same be true of Aberdare when the new platform opens there?

 

[aliceh]

Not sure about school trains; I think its main use was to allow luggage and mail to be transferred to the other platforms without having to use the footbridge.

I think that was the original use, but when I was at Brockenhurst College in 2004-6, it was used fairly often for students arriving by train - although by no means every single morning. The footbridge and stairway to platform 1 & 2 (now replaced) was very narrow and steep, and not all that pleasant when you're in the crowd that just stepped off a 12-car train!

 

[Falcon1200]

Chathill deserves a mention. ..... Also possibly the only mainline station in the UK to have a platform where you can only board and a platform where you can only alight.

Depends perhaps what is meant by main line, but Neilston has two platforms, one for arrivals and one for departures.

 

[Parallel]

Depends perhaps what is meant by main line, but Neilston has two platforms, one for arrivals and one for departures.

Paignton has a platform where you can only alight from terminating trains, although the other platform allows both terminating and departing trains.

 

[Deepgreen]

Hinchley Wood, Surrey has up and down platforms distant from each other as the tracks diverge to join the SWML at Hampton Court Junction. Epsom has pairs of up and down lines which cross at the London end, giving cross-platform interchange. Gomshall (now my local station) has a ramp and stairs footbridge whose bulk is possibly greater than the whole of the rest of the station!

 

[TheRightTrack]

Kenilworth feels quite weird, a small, non gated station having 2 footbridges spanning a single track line, both serving exactly the same function at the moment, which is enabling non rail users to cross over! It's not as if the older footbridge is especially attractive or historic looking.

View attachment 175666View attachment 175667

This really is an interesting one! When did they put up the second bridge?

 

[Topological]

Hinchley Wood, Surrey has up and down platforms distant from each other as the tracks diverge to join the SWML at Hampton Court Junction. Epsom has pairs of up and down lines which cross at the London end, giving cross-platform interchange. Gomshall (now my local station) has a ramp and stairs footbridge whose bulk is possibly greater than the whole of the rest of the station!

This caused me to google Hinchley Wood. It looks like a normal island platform from one end and then becomes a huge V. That is a large junction arrangement that has been constructed to join the SWML.

I cannot think there would be many stations like that where the diverging lines were not separate branches.

 

[lxfe_mxtterz]

This caused me to google Hinchley Wood. It looks like a normal island platform from one end and then becomes a huge V. That is a large junction arrangement that has been constructed to join the SWML.

I cannot think there would be many stations like that where the diverging lines were not separate branches.

Nearby Raynes Park is of a similar layout, albeit with four platforms as opposed to two.

 

[RailWonderer]

This caused me to google Hinchley Wood. It looks like a normal island platform from one end and then becomes a huge V. That is a large junction arrangement that has been constructed to join the SWML.

I cannot think there would be many stations like that where the diverging lines were not separate branches.

Virginia Water and Pitsea have a similar V shaped layout and I'm sure Lewes as well.

 

[Topological]

Do they?

In both cases the lines genuinely diverge rather than both being to/from the same place.

Nearby Raynes Park is of a similar layout, albeit with four platforms as opposed to two.

Raynes park is definitely a case of two lines splitting.

Virginia Water and Pitsea have a similar V shaped layout and I'm sure Lewes as well.

Virigina Water has the split between the line towards Chertsey and the line towards Ascot.

So that leaves Hinchley Wood as still being unique because the dividing lines genuinely do go to/from the same place (the SWML)

 

[RailWonderer]

Virigina Water has the split between the line towards Chertsey and the line towards Ascot.

So that leaves Hinchley Wood as still being unique because the dividing lines genuinely do go to/from the same place (the SWML)

Pitsea branches rejoin the main at Upminster and Barking so I think that one is valid.

 

[Topological]

Pitsea branches rejoin the main at Upminster and Barking so I think that one is valid.

That is pushing a bit, but good point. One route is slightly more direct than the other.

Before anyone says, Cheadle Hulme does not count because although Avanti have London Euston trains passing both platforms, there are many destinations that can only be reached from 1 of the 2 routes (e.g. the Marches line from Crewe requires taking the split towards Wilmslow)

 

[Mikey C]

This really is an interesting one! When did they put up the second bridge?

Kenilworth station reopened in 2018. The second footbridge provides lift access as well, which the older one doesn't. I assume they weren't able to adapt the older one to add lift access, and it was cheaper to leave it in place than remove it!

 

[BeijingDave]

Manchester Piccadilly is fairly quirky. 12 terminus platforms and 2 incredibly busy through platforms.

Always seemed strange to me that it was decided that so many services would be concentrated through there, and Victoria half-demolished. In retrospect, an unwise decision, which has been unwound slightly now.

 

[dtin]

Polesworth, it only has one platform and trains only stop there heading north, I don't know how many services today but in the Silverlink/Central Trains days there was one London Euston to Crewe service that stopped there per day and nothing in the southbound direction.

 

[frodshamfella]

Acton Bridge has three platform faces, although I can't remember if it's 2 on the up or 2 on the down.

2 Birmingham bound, 1 Liverpool bound.

I think Bromley North and Sundridge Park are quite quirky. Little short branch line in SE London. Haven't been to Bromley North for years and years, but I recall it had a big terminus feel, but mainly 2 carriage units operating. I thinking back to the early - mid 80s, don't know what it's like now.

 

[Kite159]

2 Birmingham bound, 1 Liverpool bound.

I think Bromley North and Sundridge Park are quite quirky. Little short branch line in SE London. Have been to Bromley North for years and years, but I recall it had a big terminus feel, but mainly 2 carriage units operating. I thinking back to the early - mid 80s, don't know what it's like now.

Still got the big terminus feel but now with 4 coach trains.

 

[Dr_Paul]

Following on from Kenilworth and its footbridges, the footbridge at Kew Gardens is unusual as it is external to the station, with the foot of the steps on both sides outwith the station buildings. There is also a subway, but one needs to go through the ticket barriers to gain access to it. I believe that the footbridge was one of the first examples of the use of concrete on such a structure; it is certainly unusual in appearance, I've not seen one quite like it elsewhere. At Twickenham, there is a footbridge that crosses the station without giving access to the platforms, connecting two roads, Mary's Terrace and Cole Park Road.

 

[Akela]

Butetown station once it’s open will be slightly unique in that it’ll have a tram-style level crossing between platforms despite technically being a heavy rail station. Actually the whole branch line will be unique in that it’ll be a line built to heavy rail standards that’s operationally run as a line-of-sight tramway.

 

[Acey]

Shout out for Elmstead Woods,surrounded by suburbia but has the feel of a country station,you can barely see another building from most of it's environs and of course the splendid gardens !