Burton-on-Trent station "ugliest in the entire country"

[thenorthern]

Just seen this in the Burton Mail.

Burton Railway Station dubbed ugliest in the entire country

A CAMPAIGN has been launched to spruce up Burton Railway Station – after the town's MP described it as the 'ugliest' in the country.

Burton MP Andrew Griffiths made the claim after Business Minister Anna Soubry slammed the state of the station following a visit to the town.

The parliamentarian is now spearheading a bid to tidy up and improve the site, a move backed by heritage and council bosses in the area.

However, station operators East Midlands Trains said while it welcomed feedback, no plans for improvement works were in the pipeline.

Mr Griffiths said: "When you have the Business Minister commenting on how poor the station is, then it is about time to improve facilities.

"Fairly recently we have seen a lick of paint and some cosmetic works, but, in my opinion, Burton Railway Station is the ugliest and least welcoming in the country.

"If the station is the gateway to our town then it leaves a poor impression.

"I have long been of the view we need to do something to really improve facilities."

Ms Soubry's comment has now sparked a debate over whether the station, which hundreds of people use every day, is in need of a spruce-up.

Valerie Burton, president of the Burton Civic Society, an organisation which aims to make the town a 'pleasant and interesting' place to live, has offered her personal opinion on the situation.

She said: "It is difficult to see what more could be done.

"For me, the one thing that puts you off is the garden area on the platform, it looks like a mess – a jungle."

Council chiefs from East Staffordshire Borough Council have also backed calls to improve the station.

Councillor Jacqui Jones, deputy leader for regulatory services, said: "We will continue to review the standard of the railway stations in East Staffordshire."

An East Midlands Trains spokesperson said: "Over the summer we have made improvements for customers using the station.

"There are currently no firm plans for further improvements going forward although we welcome thoughts from the local community on how we can improve the station further."

http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/Burton-...liest-entire/story-28122479-detail/story.html

Clearly Andrew Griffiths has never been to Wigan North Western Station or Coventry.

No doubt that Burton-on-Trent station is rather ugly and the concrete is going a funny colour however given that its managed by East Midlands Trains but only served by CrossCountry and located in the West Midlands its not really a top priority to refurbish Burton-on-Trent station.

 

[Senex]

No doubt that Burton-on-Trent station is rather ugly and the concrete is going a funny colour however given that its managed by East Midlands Trains but only served by CrossCountry and located in the West Midlands its not really a top priority to refurbish Burton-on-Trent station.

Abolish it and straighten out the lines to get rid of this 50-mph blip in what should be continuous 125-mph railway.

 

[thenorthern]

Abolish it and straighten out the lines to get rid of this 50-mph blip in what should be continuous 125-mph railway.

I don't think getting rid of the station entirely is a good idea although the loops at the side of the station should be upgraded so the hourly Reading to Newcastle and the 2 hourly Plymouth the Glasgow Central trains that don't stop can pass through faster.

 

[TheNewNo2]

Burton is awful and ugly and boring as ****.

I kind of agree with the "demolish it and start again" idea. Build the platforms at the side of the track rather than an island.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I can only assume that whoever dubbed Burton the ugliest in the country has never visited Leeds...

 

[cjmillsnun]

Not the ugliest by any means. Catford, West Norbury and Sunbury are all uglier.

 

[yorksrob]

Not the prettiest station of them all but by no means the ugliest. The buildings are rather utilitarian and could perhaps do with a rebuild.

 

[bluenoxid]

I can only assume that whoever dubbed Burton the ugliest in the country has never visited Leeds...

Or Bradford (the city)

 

[RichmondCommu]

Does it really matter if a station is ugly?

 

[richieb1971]

The main platforms should be repaved and someone should be tasked with the upkeep of the garden area. So put a small investment in place to get the over grown bits out of the way, tart it up a bit and get some volunteers to sort it out.

Who does Leamington Spas flowers and such? Is it volunteers or paid staff?

Perhaps some similar arrangement can be met at Burton.

 

[jrh2254]

Never mind the station itself, the people are brilliant. That makes all the difference.

 

[wellwhatitis]

Really? I think a visit to Walsall is called for!

 

[thenorthern]

Really? I think a visit to Walsall is called for!

The man who made the comment (Andrew Griffiths MP) is from Dudley so he may have seen Walsall and for that matter Wolverhampton & Sandwell and Dudley.

With Burton-on-Trent the station is ugly but as its managed by East Midlands Trains, located in the West Midlands and only served by CrossCountry there isn't really a pressing need for East Midlands Trains to operate or improve the station more than they are contractually required to.

 

[The Planner]

Burton, West Mids? Really?

 

[thenorthern]

Burton, West Mids? Really?

Burton upon Trent is in the West Midlands region (not the county) as its part of Staffordshire although given its location close to the border East Staffordshire is often considered part of the East Midlands.

 

[HowardGWR]

Burton upon Trent is in the West Midlands region (not the county) as its part of Staffordshire although given its location close to the border East Staffordshire is often considered part of the East Midlands.

This comes about from the Regions having whole counties shoved into them. For instance we have the ludicrous situation of Bournemouth and Christchurch being the the SW (!) and that's only because both got shoved into Dorset, back along. On topic, I am surprised that DfT just don't step in and transfer funding and responsibility to XC for Burton maintenance. The MP, instead of just moaning, could lobby for that.

 

[Kettledrum]

This comes about from the Regions having whole counties shoved into them. For instance we have the ludicrous situation of Bournemouth and Christchurch being the the SW (!) and that's only because both got shoved into Dorset, back along. On topic, I am surprised that DfT just don't step in and transfer funding and responsibility to XC for Burton maintenance. The MP, instead of just moaning, could lobby for that.

XC trains don't have any stations that they are responsible for. They have no property maintenance contracts in place and no station staff.

In theory, East Midlands trains maintain other stations nearby, so should have some staff and contracts to carry out maintenance at Burton - after all it's really not that far from Derby.

I'm not really sure whether there's any incentive for EMT to invest in a station that none of their trains stop at. They do though have an incentive for pushing up their car parking prices at the station to really rip off and extract as much money as possible out of XC customers. (although having just checked the prices on their web site, the prices at Burton are not out of line with their other car parks.)

I'm not sure what the other options for managing the station are. I'm tempted to say why not hand the management and maintenance of Burton station to a major retailor like Tesco or WH Smith? At least they might have more incentive in improving the facilities and attracting passengers to use the station.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

Burton is too small a station for a town of it's size, with a lack of facilities. That's what I noted when Fleetwood played football there. I don't consider it ugly, if it's ugly so are two thirds of all stations.

 

[thenorthern]

XC trains don't have any stations that they are responsible for. They have no property maintenance contracts in place and no station staff.

In theory, East Midlands trains maintain other stations nearby, so should have some staff and contracts to carry out maintenance at Burton - after all it's really not that far from Derby.

I'm not really sure whether there's any incentive for EMT to invest in a station that none of their trains stop at. They do though have an incentive for pushing up their car parking prices at the station to really rip off and extract as much money as possible out of XC customers. (although having just checked the prices on their web site, the prices at Burton are not out of line with their other car parks.)

I'm not sure what the other options for managing the station are. I'm tempted to say why not hand the management and maintenance of Burton station to a major retailor like Tesco or WH Smith? At least they might have more incentive in improving the facilities and attracting passengers to use the station.

East Staffordshire Borough Council I think would manage the station if they were given the chance although given that the council is a public body there isn't the same incentive to improve facilities as there would be with a private company.

Given that all the CrossCountry only stations are now within a 25 miles of each other and within 30 miles of Birmingham New Street maybe its time for the DfT to transfer station management to CrossCountry from East Midlands Trains and London Midland.

 

[6Gman]

Does it really matter if a station is ugly?

And what does "ugly" even mean in this context?

 

[fgwrich]

XC trains don't have any stations that they are responsible for. They have no property maintenance contracts in place and no station staff.

In theory, East Midlands trains maintain other stations nearby, so should have some staff and contracts to carry out maintenance at Burton - after all it's really not that far from Derby.

I'm not really sure whether there's any incentive for EMT to invest in a station that none of their trains stop at. They do though have an incentive for pushing up their car parking prices at the station to really rip off and extract as much money as possible out of XC customers. (although having just checked the prices on their web site, the prices at Burton are not out of line with their other car parks.)

I'm not sure what the other options for managing the station are. I'm tempted to say why not hand the management and maintenance of Burton station to a major retailor like Tesco or WH Smith? At least they might have more incentive in improving the facilities and attracting passengers to use the station.

Continuing this theme for a moment - How will Kenilworth be managed if an when that does open? Will XC Take that one on or will be another London Midland operated XC Served station similar to Water Orton and Coleshill Parkway?

 

[thenorthern]

Continuing this theme for a moment - How will Kenilworth be managed if an when that does open? Will XC Take that one on or will be another London Midland operated XC Served station similar to Water Orton and Coleshill Parkway?

London Midland, I think there will be an additional Coventry to Leamington Spa service operated by London Midland to supplement the hourly CrossCountry service.

 

[fgwrich]

London Midland, I think there will be an additional Coventry to Leamington Spa service operated by London Midland to supplement the hourly CrossCountry service.

I thought so. Thanks!

I hope LM will have learnt by the time Kenilworth is actually ready in how to open a station after the current fiasco on the Coventry line (partially not their fault as I understand but), although in this case at least XC will be able to call.

How is Burton set up - I'm guessing it's staffed by EMT? Can't say it's one of the ugliest stations I've seen on the network for a while - some of BRs 1960-1980s Network SouthEast stations can seem a little grimmer than Burtons! However nice it is to see Regional Railways still make an appearance in 2015!

 

[southern442]

Not the ugliest by any means. Catford, West Norbury and Sunbury are all uglier.

Where is this mysterious station located?

 

[thenorthern]

I thought so. Thanks!

I hope LM will have learnt by the time Kenilworth is actually ready in how to open a station after the current fiasco on the Coventry line (partially not their fault as I understand but), although in this case at least XC will be able to call.

How is Burton set up - I'm guessing it's staffed by EMT? Can't say it's one of the ugliest stations I've seen on the network for a while - some of BRs 1960-1980s Network SouthEast stations can seem a little grimmer than Burtons! However nice it is to see Regional Railways still make an appearance in 2015!

I think they are going to electrify the Coventry to Leamington Spa line.

At Burton-on-Trent the staff are employed by East Midlands Trains, the name boards & information signs are in East Midlands Trains style and the railing are painted in East Midlands Trains colours. Its an East Midlands Trains station in everything except services.

 

[The Planner]

I hope LM will have learnt by the time Kenilworth is actually ready in how to open a station after the current fiasco on the Coventry line (partially not their fault as I understand but), although in this case at least XC will be able to call.

Able to, yes, actually call, no, they have no interest.

 

[Mugby]

Lets not forget that Burton-on-Trent station used to be a very grand affair until the whole lot was demolished and replaced with what is there now.

 

[nw1]

This comes about from the Regions having whole counties shoved into them. For instance we have the ludicrous situation of Bournemouth and Christchurch being the the SW (!) and that's only because both got shoved into Dorset, back along. .

That said, the SW is slightly more sensible than the SE for Bournemouth arguably. I've always thought of Bournemouth as Dorset probably because I was well under 5 years old in 1974 (?) when they changed them. But then Hampshire, being part of Wessex, is itself as much the SW as the SE arguably. The big problem round here is that the "central South" has become unfashionable, so Hampshire is seen as being in the same part of the country as Kent and Wiltshire the same part as Cornwall.

I don't know Burton on Trent at all but I've always thought of it as being near Derby and therefore E Midlands. But I agree about the whole county thing... the Dark Peak, Kinder Scout, Edale and the like seems to naturally belong much more in the North of England than the Midlands.
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I think they are going to electrify the Coventry to Leamington Spa line.

At Burton-on-Trent the staff are employed by East Midlands Trains, the name boards & information signs are in East Midlands Trains style and the railing are painted in East Midlands Trains colours. Its an East Midlands Trains station in everything except services.

Sounds like Mottisfont and Dunbridge, and Dean - both of those seem to be in FGW style but IIRC all trains that call are SWT.

In fact I think in Dean there's the situation where the signs are FGW-ified NSE style so evidence of 3 generations there! The lighting is also IIRC a "Southern Region" style too.

 

[wimbledonpete]

Haven't been to Burton often enough to be able to comment on the smaller details but as an infrequent passenger it had a shop, plenty of seats, a waiting room (I think, didn't use it) and a big canopy for shelter. Assuming it also has working toilets, I'd say it was fine. That's not to say that it couldn't do with a spruce-up but it didn't strike me as needing massive change. I quite liked the overgrown garden bit - good for wildlife!

 

[swt_passenger]

Sounds like Mottisfont and Dunbridge, and Dean - both of those seem to be in FGW style but IIRC all trains that call are SWT.

The above stations (and Romsey) are still GW managed, but were supposed to transfer to SWT in about 2013 after the abandoned GW franchise renewal had gone through. The subject of transfer seems to have been forgotten in subsequent franchise specs.