• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

When is station road not station road

Status
Not open for further replies.

Graham H

Member
Joined
16 Apr 2018
Messages
321
Too much time on my hands and whilst normally the sighting of 'Station Road' can bring the site of a railway or ex railway I have come across a few oddballs where Station Road doesnt lead to a station. Swanwick station (Hampshire) is on Duncan Road, there is a Station Road in the town but that doesnt go directly to the station. Worthing (Sussex) has a station Road thats nowhere near the station but in that case its because they moved the station westwards albeit 150+ years ago but never bothered renaming the road. The weirdest I know of is in Loxwood (West Sussex) which has a Station Road about 500 yds long before it changes name but as far as I know never had any proposed railway although it does head to Bucks Green which then, via a couple of other roads, does eventually get to Rudgewick (about 5 miles away) which did have a railway station. Any other examples of spurious Station Roads and specifically does anyone know why there is a short stretch in Loxwood called Station Road. I suppose a few developments based on the promise of a railway back in the 19th century may have lead to some optimistic Station Roads so I wonder if there are any other examples ?
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

swt_passenger

Veteran Member
Joined
7 Apr 2010
Messages
31,276
Station Road, just north of Copner Bridge, Portsmouth, it’s about half way between Fratton and Hilsea and was built in anticipation of a station that was never built.
 

Graham H

Member
Joined
16 Apr 2018
Messages
321
Station Road, just north of Copner Bridge, Portsmouth, it’s about half way between Fratton and Hilsea and was built in anticipation of a station that was never built.
Yes I forgot that one and thats actually the closest to me......I think !
 

Gloster

Established Member
Joined
4 Sep 2020
Messages
8,290
Location
Up the creek
There is a Station Road in Chobham, but the village has never had a railway. I believe that they did have a building intended to be the station for a late nineteenth/early twentieth century project.
 

Mcr Warrior

Veteran Member
Joined
8 Jan 2009
Messages
11,651
Probable that Station Road, Loxwood is so named because it's on the road to the former Rudgwick (Station).

An alternative explanation is that it was maybe named after the nearby Onslow Arms pumping station in Loxwood used by Thames Water?
 

thenorthern

Established Member
Joined
27 May 2013
Messages
4,103
Station Road in Marchington leads to the old Station in the village that closed in 1958.

There are 11521 "Station Roads" in the United Kingdom and 2566 stations so there will be hundreds of examples.
 

Graham H

Member
Joined
16 Apr 2018
Messages
321
Station Road in Marchington leads to the old Station in the village that closed in 1958.

There are 11521 "Station Roads" in the United Kingdom and 2566 stations so there will be hundreds of examples.
I think you missed the point. Yes there are thousands of Station Roads, I was pondering over how many dont/didnt actually lead to a station rather than ones that are now leading to closed stations but retain their name
 

simonw

Member
Joined
7 Dec 2009
Messages
757
There is a Station Road in Chobham, but the village has never had a railway. I believe that they did have a building intended to be the station for a late nineteenth/early twentieth century project.
Oddly Chobham had a station building but no railway. It became a pub and was recently demolished. There were plans to build a tramway from Woking, but it came to nothing.
 

swt_passenger

Veteran Member
Joined
7 Apr 2010
Messages
31,276
In old OS maps from 1909 and 1910 Station Road in Park Gate extends round the corner towards the Railway Hotel and the obvious station approach ramp. So it might be that renaming it as the through Botley Rd came later, and it did originally lead to the railway.

PS - there was a similar thread in 2017:
 

75A

Established Member
Joined
31 Mar 2021
Messages
1,357
Location
Ireland (ex Brighton 75A)
Station Road in Earl Shilton Leicestershire has never had a station or even a railway line within a couple of miles. The nearest station is Hinckley on the line between Leicester & Nuneaton.
 

61653 HTAFC

Veteran Member
Joined
18 Dec 2012
Messages
17,624
Location
Another planet...
Ormskirk is unique I believe in having one station, but four different roads named for it: Railway Approach; Railway Road; Station Approach; and Station Road. The station itself is on Station Approach, making Station Road vaguely relevant to this thread.
 
Last edited:

Silver Cobra

Member
Joined
4 Jun 2015
Messages
866
Location
Bedfordshire
The village of Langford in Bedfordshire has a Station Road running through the southern side of the village, but AFAIW has never had an actual railway station; the two nearest stations being Biggleswade to the north and Arlesey to the south.
 

cool110

Member
Joined
12 Dec 2014
Messages
362
Location
Preston
Ormskirk is unique I believe in having one station, but four different roads named for it: Railway Approach; Railway Road; Station Approach; and Station Road. The station itself is on Station Approach, making Station Road vaguely relevant to this thread.
Railway Approach does at least lead to the disused half of the station, Station Road would have as well before New Court Way was built.
 

papageno

Member
Joined
31 Mar 2019
Messages
6
The word "station" existed long before the railways and was used to describe a variety of features, such as military posts, stopping places for stage coaches, and so on. See https://www.etymonline.com/word/station. So it would seem very plausible that some Station Roads take their name from one of these other types of station.
 

Gloster

Established Member
Joined
4 Sep 2020
Messages
8,290
Location
Up the creek
Bath has a 'Westmoreland Station Road' but never had a Westmoreland station.
I think it led up to the Westmoreland Road Goods Station (other names were used) and would have differentiated it from Westmoreland Road itself.
 

Ken H

On Moderation
Joined
11 Nov 2018
Messages
6,272
Location
N Yorks
Station Road in Settle goes past Settle station but ends in Giggleswick at a mini roundabout. The straight on, Brackenber Lane, goes to Giggleswick Station. I am told Station Road was named for Giggleswick Station before Settle station opened.
 

61653 HTAFC

Veteran Member
Joined
18 Dec 2012
Messages
17,624
Location
Another planet...
Maybe some of the Station Roads lead to police stations, fire stations, bus stations &c
I'm sure there are examples of this, but it strikes me as utterly backwards. If someone asks for directions to "the station" it literally would never occur to me to ask if they meant the police station... and if they meant one of the others but just said station they must be from an even more distant planet than I am!
 

The exile

Established Member
Joined
31 Mar 2010
Messages
2,601
Location
Somerset
I'm sure there are examples of this, but it strikes me as utterly backwards. If someone asks for directions to "the station" it literally would never occur to me to ask if they meant the police station... and if they meant one of the others but just said station they must be from an even more distant planet than I am!
Though if someone wearing a uniform with POLICE on it said "I must ask you to accompany me to the station..." I wouldn't be expecting to catch a train!
 

61653 HTAFC

Veteran Member
Joined
18 Dec 2012
Messages
17,624
Location
Another planet...
Though if someone wearing a uniform with POLICE on it said "I must ask you to accompany me to the station..." I wouldn't be expecting to catch a train!
Well no, because the context is pretty obvious (unless they're BTP I suppose). But in general conversation "Station" means railway station unless a premodifier is included. Likewise in French, a bus or coach station is gare routiere, and in German is Busbahnhof (literally "Bustrainstation")!
 

zwk500

Veteran Member
Joined
20 Jan 2020
Messages
13,243
Location
Bristol
Well no, because the context is pretty obvious (unless they're BTP I suppose). But in general conversation "Station" means railway station unless a premodifier is included. Likewise in French, a bus or coach station is gare routiere, and in German is Busbahnhof (literally "Bustrainstation")!
To be pedantic, the literal translation of Bahnhof is 'road courtyard', bahn just meaning road (Railway being Eisenbahn or Iron road) and train being Zug.
 

MotCO

Established Member
Joined
25 Aug 2014
Messages
4,086
Orpington is slightly strage in that, yes, there is a station road, but the nearest roads to access the station are Station Approach (platforms 5 - 8) or Crofton Road (platforms 1 -2) (other platforms are accessible from either side).
 

PeterC

Established Member
Joined
29 Sep 2014
Messages
4,073
Station Road in Billericay runs parallel to the railway and was part of a small development at the turn of the last century although much of the land seems to have remained vacant until after the Southend branch was electrified. From a property sales point of view it is certainly more "convenient for the railway" than "convenient for the station".
 

Graham H

Member
Joined
16 Apr 2018
Messages
321
Mystery of my original post solved thanks to a very helpful Loxwood local. It would appear that Station Road did in fact relate to the road to the station despite the quite substantial distance to the nearest railway. However it was the station at Baynards it referred to rather than Rudgwick even though todays road network would suggest Rudgwick would have been the more logical. Station Road is short because the rest of the route was along a Drovers Road which has largely disappeared. Originally called Pancake Lane, changed mid 19C presumably when the Horsham to Guildford line was built. Still a house called Pancake Cottage on the road and that brings about a whole different discussion (for another site) on why it was named Pancake in the first place.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top