Have you ever stood on a platform waiting for a train, completely alone save for a fox and some falling leaves, and thought to yourself, ‘this must be the most dead train station in the country’?
Some stations are always packed so full that any journey feels like a fight for survival (looking at you, Euston). Others are less intense. In fact, some are so barren that they see less than 100 people through their gates each year.
It may surprise you to find out that the emptiest stations in the country aren’t actually hidden at the very top of the highlands, or in a rural village somewhere deep in Yorkshire. Britain’s least used train station is actually in Denton, a suburb of Manchester.
In a one-year period between April 2022 and March 2023, according to research done by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) only 34 people set foot in the station, at least that we know of. That’s barely enough to fill a primary school class.
But why? Is the station haunted? Is it guarded by an angry riddle-prone troll? Does it only present itself to those it deems worthy? Unfortunately, the real explanation is much less exciting than that.
Denton is only served by two trains heading to and from Manchester a week, one in each direction on a Saturday morning. That means there’s just over 100 which pass through annually.
People of Denton, we call upon you to make the most of those precious two journeys a week. They’re better than nothing, right?
Technically one station – Teeside airport – was used less than Denton according to ORR data, but it closed in May, one month into the recorded period. In that month, only two people used its hallowed platform, so it was still considerably empty, but given that it wasn’t open the entire year it doesn’t really count.
The most used station was much more predictable, with the title going to London Liverpool Street. Over the same period, ’Pool Street, the east London hub had a whopping 30.7 million entries and exits.
So in honour of the spooky season coming to end why not travel to Denton – it is, after all, the nation’s official ghost station.
Time Out and the UK’s train stations
We Brits love moaning about this country’s rail services (and with fares set to increase, who can blame us?) but it isn’t all bad. This tiny northern train station (sadly, not Denton) has been named the best in the UK for 2024 – plus, check out Time Out’s top 12 train stations in the UK.
Here's the updated Foreign Office ‘Do Not Travel’ list.
Plus: This surprising UK city is the most dangerous for cyclists.
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