Unusual Station Layouts

[marks87]

I was thinking about all the different station layouts in the country today, and there are some odd ones. Please add to this list and comment if I have missed any. What is the most unusually layed out station in the country that you have come across? :P

"X" Layout - 2 pairs of platforms on lines at different levels at roughly 90 degrees to each other
Shotton
Smethwick Galton Bridge
Lichfield Trent Valley
Tamworth
Retford
Willesden Junction

"A Bit On The Side" Layout - Stations where one or two platforms are in a completely different place to the main platforms (not counting LUL/Merseyrail/etc.)
Liskeard
Glasgow Queen Street
Glasgow Central
Manchester Piccadilly
Wrexham General (former Wrexham Exchange platform)

Wouldn't Glasgow Central and Queen Street be better described as "X" layout, because the low-level platforms at both run perpendicular to the main lines above. Or do they fall into both categories, because of the remoteness of platforms 14/15 at Central, and 1 at Queen Street?

Carlisle is also "back-to-back" - platforms 7 and 8 from the north and platforms 2, 5 and 6 from the south.

 

[philjo]

Southport is a "2 in 1" Layout station.

 

[4SRKT]

Where is SprinterMan? He has a lot of updating to do!

 

[SprinterMan]

Where is SprinterMan? He has a lot of updating to do!

I was in bed
Back now and just about to update :P

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Am I the only one who thinks half of these aren't unusual - there's nothing really special about stations on flat junctions. I'd be tempted to call Limerick Jn or Cambridge pre-p 7 / 8 unusual, but not Kidsgrove or Earlestown! As for those with bays at both ends and through lines, how on earth is that unusual?

 

[SprinterMan]

Am I the only one who thinks half of these aren't unusual - there's nothing really special about stations on flat junctions. I'd be tempted to call Limerick Jn or Cambridge pre-p 7 / 8 unusual, but not Kidsgrove or Earlestown! As for those with bays at both ends and through lines, how on earth is that unusual?

Earlestown is very unusual, and is one of only two stations in the country with that layout.
Adam :P

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Earlestown is very unusual, and is one of only two stations in the country with that layout.
Adam :P

And what's so unusual about the rest of them? Stations with bays at both ends and through platforms? There's plenty. Stations on flat junctions (which you call Y-junctions)? As has been posted there's loads again. I would even argue the layouts at Tamworth, Lichfield TV, Glasgow Central / Queen St etc aren't that odd!

 

[SprinterMan]

And what's so unusual about the rest of them? Stations with bays at both ends and through platforms? There's plenty. Stations on flat junctions (which you call Y-junctions)? As has been posted there's loads again. I would even argue the layouts at Tamworth, Lichfield TV, Glasgow Central / Queen St etc aren't that odd!

They aren't your generic railway stations, they all have little quirks. This thread might be useful for passengers travelling to one of these stations is they know they layout beforehand. Besides, it's an interesting thread. :P

Adam

 

[WatcherZero]

If you think of the Wigan grouping stations as one station then they are two sides forming a Y station after an X track junction with the platforms on the branches after the lines diverge again.

 

[iphone76]

What about Marks Tey in the Y shaped category? (Sudbury platform).

 

[SprinterMan]

What about Marks Tey in the Y shaped category? (Sudbury platform).

I was thinking about Marks Tey, as I have used it alot, and I'm not really sure about it. It could be considered a lop-sided "Y", but the SUY platform doesn't really extend down the branch very far. I'm not sure tbh. I will put it in, but im not 100% convinced :P

Adam

 

[irongecko]

Barrow-in-Furness is a half bi-directional because all of the TP trains call at platform 1, even when coming from the depot.

 

[LE Greys]

What about 'one-sided' stations with all the platforms on one side of the line, through historical accident or weird design. Darlington is the biggest I know of, and used to be double-ended until the north-facing bays became the car park. It badly needs a platform on the up side, so that up trains don't have to cross the down main twice, as happened at Swindon (which only became one-sided because they decided stupidly to close all the down platforms). Cambridge used to be the classic, but that's now solved. Reading was originally one-sided. The worst for one-sided with no facilities is Dunbar, with a single platform and nowhere to put another on the other side.

Other former back-to-backs would include Aberdeen, but again the north-facing bays are now a car park. Also, would King's Cross count as a 'bit-on-the-side' up until last year?

 

[Essexman]

Penryn - single platform for both directions - down trains stop at one end, up at the other.

Liskeard - Looe platform at right angle to two mainline platforms.

 

[Kentish Paul]

Although a conventional platform layout (apart from Eurostar plats 3 and 4), Ashford International has a triple junction layout at the west end (Tonbridge, Maidstone and HS1) and a Quadruple layout to the east (Canterbury, HS1, Dover and Hastings) as well as the through HS1 lines (tunnel to viaduct) on the north side.

Does any other station have 7 regular passenger lines converging on it within 1/2 mile of the platform ends?

 

[4SRKT]

Although a conventional platform layout (apart from Eurostar plats 3 and 4), Ashford International has a triple junction layout at the west end (Tonbridge, Maidstone and HS1) and a Quadruple layout to the east (Canterbury, HS1, Dover and Hastings) as well as the through HS1 lines (tunnel to viaduct) on the north side.

Does any other station have 7 regular passenger lines converging on it within 1/2 mile of the platform ends?

Extend to a mile and I'll give you Leeds: York, Harrogate, Triangle, Bradford, Huddersfield, Wakefield, and Castleford.

 

[Mojo]

Someone else mentioned it, but not sure it's been picked up on. I don't know what category it goes into, but Denham has both platforms on the north side of the tracks they relate to, so the doors open on the left hand side going in to Marylebone, and the right hand side going out: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/sjp/DNM/plan.html

Harringay station is laid out in a similar manner with the platforms both facing the same way: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/sjp/HGY/plan.html

Thirsk has a single platform sandwiched between two running lines, but the platforms face the other way.

 

[marks87]

...Bradford...

Speaking of which, Bradford Interchange is a "false terminus".

 

[CC 72100]

Not really sure whether this one fits the thread, but what about Gloucester? The majority of services reverse at Gloucester, and it has the longest platform in the uk - Numbers 1 and 2. It also has an avoiding line!

 

[4SRKT]

Speaking of which, Bradford Interchange is a "false terminus".

Not quite: on Sunday mornings there is an 08:31 Bradford > York working.

 

[IanD]

Plus Grand Central trains to/from London.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

In order for something to be an 'artificial terminus' (as per the list in the OP), does the station require no trains at all to terminate in order to quality? Quite a few stations noted do have terminating trains, such as Colchester Town, Bourne End, Eastbourne, Swansea and Carmarthen.

 

[Kentish Paul]

4SRKT, I thought some of those Yorkshire stations might qualify if the distance was extended. At Ashford you could see everything from the platform ends if it wasn't for the track curvature to the west. Even then you only miss by 100 yards or so.

Also looking at your list, as a southern softie (Cornish), where is Triangle?

 

[Lampshade]

Also the current Blackpool - York service used to terminate at Bradford.

 

[LE Greys]

Has anyone mentioned Ormskirk?

 

[jopsuk]

Raynes Park is pretty odd- junction station on a 4-track mainline. Four platforms, but none on the Fast lines. The slow line platforms are almost entirely not opposite each other, and meet with the branch platforms towards the city end, where the lines then merge.

 

[chefchenko]

Has anyone mentioned Hadfield ?? single line terminus which used to be part of the woodhead route

 

[gnolife]

Has anyone mentioned Hadfield ?? single line terminus which used to be part of the woodhead route

What's odd about that?
You've also got Rose Hill, Glossop, Barton-on-Humber, Wick, Thurso, Kyle, Merthyr Tydfil, Rhymney, Maesteg, Milford Haven and so on as single line termini. The fact that it was on the Woodhead line has nothing to do with layout really.

 

[Kentish Paul]

What's odd about that?
You've also got Rose Hill, Glossop, Barton-on-Humber, Wick, Thurso, Kyle, Merthyr Tydfil, Rhymney, Maesteg, Milford Haven and so on as single line termini. The fact that it was on the Woodhead line has nothing to do with layout really.

Surely these are real Termini. If you went any further at Kyle or Milford Haven you would be in the sea! Hadfield was part of the Woodhead route and thus a through route in its heyday.

 

[6Gman]

Rhyl was built oddly. Through lines for non-stopping trains (though relatively few passenger trains didn't stop). Two down platforms, but only one up platform. Prestatyn had more platforms even though it had far fewer passengers.