Campaign for Better Transport has launched an interactive map that charts railway station usage since 1997 to reveal a massive growth in passenger numbers in many areas, but with huge regional disparities.
The map, which shows 17 years’ worth of entrances and exits at more than 2,500 railway stations in England, Scotland and Wales, reveals that:
- In 2014/15, an estimated 2.75 billion entries and exits were recorded across the rail network - 1.45 billion more than in 1997/98
- There are now 686 stations which attract over one million entries and exits each year, compared with 215 in 1997/98
- Last year 85 stations attracted over five million journeys, compared with 22 in 1997/98.
Whilst passenger growth has been huge in many areas, the map also reveals the growth has been very uneven. Growth in London and the South East has been particularly strong for example, with London Waterloo seeing over 40 million more entries and exits than in 1997, whilst other areas, like Humberside, have been much weaker. Many regional cities have also seen a huge increase in passengers with Leeds station experiencing 18 million more entries and exits than in 1997 and Birmingham New Street experiencing 25 million more.
The map also shows a number of lightly used stations, for example Gainsborough Central in Lincolnshire, which attracted 1,500 journeys in 2014/15 but only has services on Saturdays. Highlighting the potential of such stations the map reveals a number of similarly lightly used stations in 1997 are now thriving, including Needham Market in Suffolk, which has seen 13-fold increases in passengers, and Gowerton in Wales which has seen a 17-fold increase.
Andrew Allen, Policy Analyst at Campaign for Better Transport, said: “Overall the railways have grown very strongly in the last 20 years, but this map reveals just how uneven that growth has been. Investment has tended to focus on relieving overcrowding in south east England, while leaving other parts of the country in a time warp.
"Our mapping shows areas which are strong candidates for growth and where targeted investment in better services and even new stations could make a real difference. The government needs to be braver both in anticipating the potential for growth and in getting more places onto the network.”
You can view the map here.
Source: BetterTransport