Worst Railway Journeys in the UK

[Mzzzs]

Wimbledon loop never felt safe.
Also much of southeasterns stopping services doesn’t feel safe day or night.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

St Pancras Int to Stratford Int.

I'd go further with St Pancras Internation to (near) Ebbsfleet

From a Sarf/Sarf-east London point of view; any train in or out of London metropolis on a Friday/Saturday night

And need I say Voyagers - at any time of the day....?

 

[Doctor Fegg]

Wolverhampton–Birmingham is interesting if you're into industrial archaeology – spotting the various canals (navigable and derelict), former works, etc. It's not classically scenic but I enjoy it. But I enjoy it more from a boat, to be honest.

The first few miles out of London's southern terminals are always interesting but the relentless suburbia after that is crushingly boring. Waterloo–Reading is definitely a textbook example of that.

 

[Jamiescott1]

Liz line. Paddington to Hayes.
Slow, nothing to see, inwards facing seats

 

[warwickshire]

Even with the 345's on the Shenfield run & the service frequency?


How could anyone dislike the people movers?


This is one of my local routes & yes I agree it's in direct need of upgrade. The saving grace is three coach 158's & some of the platform roofs at Atherton and Swinton etc. aren't too bad.

Yes for me the 345s can be believeably overpacked. Victim of its own success.
Plus has lost its appeal to me now the old 315 321 360 317, mk3s are gone.
Just not the same. Plus a lot of platforms are now only accessible to Elizabeth line only. Not like the good old days before Elizabeth line, when they was. Times have changed on that stretch.

 

[pokemonsuper9]

Salford Crescent to Wigan North Western/Wallgate via Hag Fold

I disagree, I may be a bit biased. (also odd choice of listing Hag Fold as the via point)
The line is fine: fields, housing, the cutting approaching Salford and is a well fitting commuting line (Although there's a lot of fly tipping near Moorside/Swinton)

 

[warwickshire]

Birmingham to wolves is indeed dire

Agreed, also can certainly be said either way or any way, via Dudley Port, Bescot Stadium, Aston , Or the diversionary dire and dull.
Same can be said for The Birmingham to Stourbridge lines as well.

 

[yorksrob]

I disagree, I may be a bit biased. (also odd choice of listing Hag Fold as the via point)
The line is fine: fields, housing, the cutting approaching Salford and is a well fitting commuting line (Although there's a lot of fly tipping near Moorside/Swinton)

Yes, indeed. Perfectly decent route to go down IMO.

 

[Whistler40145]

Glasgow Central to Motherwell isn’t very exciting

 

[brad465]

Victoria-Bromley South, both stopping and fast and both via Herne Hill and Catford, not particularly interesting out of the window, on fasts often stuck behind a stopper eventually, and very tedious. Make sure you've got someone fun to talk to when doing this journey.

A former worst journey was Higham-Strood before the 2004 tunnel repairs, travelling at no more than 20mph along a relatively long distance almost entirely in tunnel while concerns regarding chalk stability existed. Once it was reinforced with concrete and raised to 70mph this ceased to be a tedious stretch.

 

[Johnny Lewis]

Norwich to Peterborough
Always busy, clapped out rolling stock, no First Class, no catering, poor luggage space, need I go on?

 

[xotGD]

Birmingham to wolves is indeed dire

I used to love it with a Roarer screaming away on the front of the train.

 

[basfordlad]

I used to love it with a Roarer screaming away on the front of the train.

Only ever did it in the 1990s on 323 or Virgin XC

 

[dk1]

I had a teacher think that around 2010!

Certainly brings reality to life lol

That is always assuming you’re not crammed in the vestibule!

Of course but sometimes it’s just one of those things. Rather get going.

 

[W-on-Sea]

I don't know about now, but 30+ years ago it would have to have been the North London line
The combination of vandalised stock along with continuous urban dereliction along the whole line combined with generalised squalor and decay turned the whole trip into a third world survival exercise. It felt like you were taking your life in your hands every time you walked into one of the stations

Changed beyond all recognition, and almost entirely, and vastly, for the better since then: stations, trains, service levels, and most of the neighbourhoods served.

I'd defend Birmingham - Wolves as being an interesting trip through post-industrial Britain, with the canal for company for much of the way too. And while indeed a lot of the railway scenery around Brum is far from conventionally beautiful, there is a sense on several of the lines of cutting through a living (and changing) city in a way that is not found to the same extent elsewhere in the UK.

Have to agree about the tedium of most of the suburban approaches into London termini: perhaps the exceptions being the Great Northern into Kings Cross (as you get to pass the grand view of Ally Pally, and then the Arsenal stadium too), and the line into Fenchurch Street from Barking or West Ham in (on a viaduct for the last few miles, the changing faces of Docklands within sight for miles).

Probably dull suburban stretches on the South side of London are going to get my anti-vote overall, although it's difficult to single out any particular stretch as more "boring" than any other. Maybe the Eltham line. Or back north of the river, where the Midland Main Line stretch in Greater London has accompanying the M1 as its highlight.

 

[Dave W]

My favourite French band wouldn't agree with you. They've played a show at Claptrap, Stourbridge both this year and last, and the caption to this photo was "Back on our favourite micro-train...Claptrap here we come!"

You tell these upstarts best mile of line on the planet!!!

 

[Parallel]

The worst for me is Wolverhampton to Birmingham New Street. Some of the lines out of Glasgow aren’t great either though.

 

[occone]

Bristol Temple Meads to Birmingham New St in a CrossCountry Voyager - horrific!

Absolutely agree, it's dreadful, but I think this is trumped by Birmingham New Street - Stockport because you have so much industrial decline, it's usually hoaching, it's a Voyager, often louder in the north than the south, and it's a Voyager!

 

[dk1]

I quite like going through the depressing areas of decay, decline & depression. Makes me so appreciate where I live & makes a refreshing change for me.

 

[Bill57p9]

Only ever did it in the 1990s on 323 or Virgin XC

At one time in the 1990's Virgin XC had a Deltic rostered to run the route at least every Saturday.

Personally I find the Argyle Line quite unpleasant: stations cramped, smelly and in a poor state of repair, tired rolling stock and of course no natural light.

 

[D6130]

Wakefield Kirkgate-Pontefract-Knottingley-Goole must be a good contender....especially now that Ferrybridge power station has been demolished and Eggborough is about to be.

 

[Sir Felix Pole]

Queen Victoria used to draw the blind between Birmingham and Wolverhampton on her progress north. From an industrial archeological point of view it is extremely interesting - the canal, the rail / canal transfer shed, the candle works, the crumbling M5 viaduct... I used to like the neat row of 1930s semis amongst the utter dereliction near Sandwell & Dudley - are they still there, haven't been that way for a while?

 

[142blue]

Maryport to Carlisle.... Drags on for ages
Wolves to Birmingham Intl especially around Stechford
Birmingham to Walsall
Piccadilly to Romiley via Brinnington
Lime St to Manchester via chat moss
Shrewsbury to Newport

 

[59CosG95]

Southern ECML, wherever it's flat. Basically Hitchin to Peterborough; at least the section from Langley Jn to Ally Pally has plenty of varied terrain.
The Hertford Loop is a painfully slow round-the-houses affair too.
The Peterboro' - March - Ely route is as soporific as they come.

 

[Peter0124]

81 replies in four hours must be up there as a record high for this site. Especially considering this thread isn't disruption related.

 

[Pit_buzzer]

Wakefield Kirkgate-Pontefract-Knottingley-Goole must be a good contender....especially now that Ferrybridge power station has been demolished and Eggborough is about to be.

I have bad news for you, Eggborough has been gone for quite a few months now sadly

 

[D6130]

Shrewsbury to Newport

I would have to strongly disagree with you there. The Marches Line - one of my favourite lines in England and Wales has beautiful and varied scenery and lots of railway interest....especially the mechanical signalling and signalboxes between Shrewsbury and Little Mill. There are the castles at Shrewsbury, Stokesay and Ludlow; the rugged hills around Church Stretton and Abergavenny; the River Wye just outside Hereford, with distant views of that city's cathedral....and numerous other points of interest.

 

[billio]

Middlesbrough to Redcar Central passing all the old industry… very very dismal

It was even worse a few years ago when you travelled in a Pacer on a cold, wet winter's morning. At least now there are some relatively decent trains and the industrial wasteland is being cleared away.

 

[yorksrob]

Wakefield Kirkgate-Pontefract-Knottingley-Goole must be a good contender....especially now that Ferrybridge power station has been demolished and Eggborough is about to be.

Ooh, I enjoyed that one. Possibly novelty factor

 

[potentially]

Going to have to agree with all those saying Waterloo-Reading via Staines. Lost my mind on that journey many times