Stations that fell from grace- stations still in use today that once were significantly more impressive.

[Phil from Mon]

Pontypool Road on the Marches Line, now Pontypool and New Inn. Very busy junction with a large MPD and huge marshalling yard, now a single island platform devoid of buildings.

 

[yorksrob]

Inspired by the photograph of Bradford Exchange posted in the grubbiest stations thread, I wonder which of our active stations has seen the biggest decline? The kind of places that a young traveller today wouldn't believe were once impressive.

I'll start off with Stockton.

View attachment 129780

That's a beautiful station and a sad loss.

Crowhurst used to be an important junction station for Bexhill West, with good buildings, canopies, bay platforms and through roads. Now just a halt.

Polegate is also somewhat reduced from its two island platform heyday.

 

[Mat17]

Guide Bridge - lost a few platforms and buildings.

 

[Ken H]

Harrogate. Lost its overall roof and long distance services via Ripon to the North East. And some local routes.

 

[Snow1964]

Crystal Palace once had impressive buildings, for many years was sparce, but did get some improvements when Overground was extended.

Kew Bridge had 4 platforms and huge building facing the bridge.
Now just 2 rather bare platforms (although they have been extended)

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Crewe always seems lost without the P12 island (former P1/2 and bays) in heavy use.
Maybe this will return when HS2 arrives.

 

[Rescars]

Most locations which used to be significant junctions but aren't any more (like Christs Hospital mentioned previously) have some claim to be added to this list. Ashchurch and Kingham are a couple of examples which spring to mind.

 

[trebor79]

Bishop Auckland. Three platform triangular junction station reduced to a single platform.

 

[Gloster]

Ryde Pier Head.

 

[zwk500]

Most locations which used to be significant junctions but aren't any more (like Christs Hospital mentioned previously) have some claim to be added to this list. Ashchurch and Kingham are a couple of examples which spring to mind.

You're being rather kind to Christ's Hospital. It was massively overbuilt even for the standards of the time and started losing platforms within 20 years because there was never any serious junction traffic.

East Grinstead is more a fallen glory, going from a 6-platform bi-level station to a horrible CLASP station with only 1 platform in use for much of the day, although it has since recovered a bit with a newer modular station building and an improved service requiring both platforms. However there is almost no trace of the high level station.

 

[Steve Harris]

Great Yarmouth (or should I say Yarmouth Vauxhall?). A town which once bosted 3 stations and yards. Now just 1 station survives, which is smaller than it once was.

 

[SCDR_WMR]

Birmingham Snow Hill with both the original building and roof! Such a travesty to not only remove the beautiful building, but to place a car park where the glass roof was....

 

[yorksrob]

Birmingham Snow Hill with both the original building and roof! Such a travesty to not only remove the beautiful building, but to place a car park where the glass roof was....

Agreed. That would have been a 'cathedral' station for Birmingham, had it survived.

 

[D6130]

Agree about Perth; still a busy place but the most used platforms (the Dundee route) are the least impressive! The whole place needs replacing by a new station south of the junction.

Very true....but the existing station is a listed building, so it would still have to be maintained - unlike now, it would appear - with trains running through non-stop.

I'll start off with Stockton.

I'm just old enough to remember the station like this - brings back happy memories of a young childhood. But it wasn't long before it deteriorated rapidly.

I'm probably a bit older than you and remember it well from steam days. My maternal grandparents lived on the outskirts of Stockton and I was a frequent visitor and occasional traveller in my childhood and teenage years. A lot of the deterioration of the overall roof was doubtless caused by the blast from steam locos although - unlike its big sister at Darlington - Stockton received precious little in the way of painting or repairs in the latter days. Had the overall roof survived a few years longer it would probably have been listed. As well as the two full-length through platforms, it had three long-ish bays at the North end - two on the Up side and one on the Down, for local services to Durham via Ferryhill, Sunderland via Wingate and Port Clarence.

I note both of you mention Bridlington. The last time I was there, it was still quite nicely done out with flower beds etc. Has it declined in the last couple of years?

When I first visited Bridlington on a summer Sunday in 1972, it had nine platforms (5 through and 4 full length bays) and - as well as the hourly Hull-Scarborough DMU service (mainly Botanic Gardens-based class 105 Cravens units in formations of up to 8 cars) - there was a constant procession of excursion trains arriving from the South, hauled by class 31, 37, 40, 46 and 47 locos.

 

[Jack Hay]

Crewe always seems lost without the P12 island (former P1/2 and bays) in heavy use.
Maybe this will return when HS2 arrives.

P12 sees quite a lot of use actually. There's some timetabled use but in times of disruption, which are frequent, it is the only spare through platform capacity and so it sees frequent use by 'platform alterations'. NR's plans to make the station ready for HS2 (which look inadequate to me) do bring the P12 island into more use as you say.

 

[randyrippley]

Morecambe has been mentioned several times, but it's worth pointing out that the current two platforms replace three stations: Promenade, Euston Rd, Northumberland St, all needed to handle the holiday traffic

 

[steamybrian]

Eridge has fallen less far than some others in the area - Uckfield isn't too bad, but East Grinstead is almost impossible to guess it once had a further 4 platforms above the current station. There's also Tunbridge Wells West, of course.

Eridge still has all the station buildings (including the original ticket office) in use. It has lost just one platform as there are two platforms available to use for Spa Valley Railway trains.
Uckfield has a smaller station (with one platform) which opened in 1992 on the opposite of the road from the original which had two platforms plus goods yard.

 

[Dstock7080]

Gunnersbury
South Kensington

 

[satisnek]

I'm not sure if Birmingham Snow Hill qualifies because it was a new build and new opening in the 1980s, the original station and tracks having been completely razed some years prior to this. (OK, so it has lost one platform since opening...)

 

[William3000]

It really has to be a strong contender. It was still the 'old' Manors last time i was there, but it must be difficult to imagine what it once was today, from the descriptions given. Even the view of Newcastle Central from the Keep is but a shadow of its former self.

Has anyone mentioned Pontypridd? I was shocked to see what an impressive layout it once was when I first trundled up the valley in about 1996.

Could the reopening of the Ashington line to passenger services see a mini revival of Manors? Or does the timetable prevent more trains stopping there?

I'm just old enough to remember the station like this - brings back happy memories of a young childhood. But it wasn't long before it deteriorated rapidly.



I note both of you mention Bridlington. The last time I was there, it was still quite nicely done out with flower beds etc. Has it declined in the last couple of years?

It’s a pretty station but I believe it once had 7 platforms; now reduced to 3!

 

[70014IronDuke]

Inspired by the photograph of Bradford Exchange posted in the grubbiest stations thread, I wonder which of our active stations has seen the biggest decline? The kind of places that a young traveller today wouldn't believe were once impressive.

I'll start off with Stockton.

View attachment 129780

Wow! I spent a Saturday afternoon spottin' here in the summer of ... 63 I think. I knew it had an overall roof, but really - c'est magnifique - I'd forgotten how it was. Is this heading in the up direction? IS it a Sunday diversion?

 

[d9009alycidon]

Rutherglen, actually beats Manors as it originally had 12 platforms, 5 on the main line, 2 on each side of the triangle and 3 bays. Now only one island platform remains

 

[507 001]

Oban, Fort William, Connel Ferry.

Out of those three Connel is probably the biggest transformation.

 

[steamybrian]

Newmarket ..

once an impressive station with long platforms and extensive sidings.

Now an unstaffed "halt" with a shortened platform on a plain single line

 

[Jack Hay]

Oban, Fort William, Connel Ferry.

Out of those three Connel is probably the biggest transformation.

Although Fort William is actually a replacement station on a different site, built after the line was shortened by a quarter mile or so

 

[507 001]

Although Fort William is actually a replacement station on a different site, built after the line was shortened by a quarter mile or so

Yes I know.

 

[midland1]

Bit puzzled why Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street are on the list there bigger and busier then ever.

 

[PGAT]

New Cross Gate - once had fast trains to East Croydon, Gatwick Airport and beyond, much better frequencies into London Bridge, and for a very brief time Thameslink services to Peterborough. At least it still has the Overground

 

[Fazaar1889]

London Euston

Oh boy, I wonder how grand it would've looked today. It's desecration reminds me off Penn station over the pond in NYC

 

[AlbertBeale]

Eridge has fallen less far than some others in the area - Uckfield isn't too bad, but East Grinstead is almost impossible to guess it once had a further 4 platforms above the current station. There's also Tunbridge Wells West, of course.

No coincidence, I guess, that the road to the east of East Grinstead station, where the line from Three Bridges to East Grinstead would have carried on eastwards after going over the remaining line, is called Beeching Way.