Fears as East Lancashire railway stations could be turned into ‘request stops’

9:35am Tuesday 31st January 2012 in Huncoat Photograph of the Author By Peter Magill, Chief reporter

'REQUEST' Pleasington station 'REQUEST' Pleasington station

RAIL campaigners fear passengers could be left in the lurch when plans to make four East Lancashire stations into ‘request stops’ arrive later this year.

The Lancashire Telegraph can reveal that Pleasington, Hapton, Huncoat and Burnley Barracks stations will enter the system from May 14.

But rail users are concerned about how easy it will be to alert train guards about request stops – especially on packed trains or late at nights.

Bosses at Northern Rail said trains would stop automatically at stations where people were waiting to board.

Often guards are seen infrequently on later running services – emerging from train cabs only to operate doors at stations.

Rail users group Passenger Focus said the move was rare, especially in built-up areas.

Stephen Martin, chairman of STELLA (Save the East Lancashire Line Association), said: “There will have to a be a lot more publicity before they introduce this.

“Guards will have to go through the trains all the time because at the moment some of them don’t even check tickets.

“Otherwise the trains are just going to go through these stations and there will be nothing people can do about it.”

Bosses at train operator Northern Rail say the move has been introduced because footfall at the four stations, on the Colne to Blackpool line, is low.

A Northern Rail spokesman said: “This means that customers travelling to these stations just need to let the conductor on the train know where they want to get off and he will arrange for the driver to stop.

The train will automatically stop at those stations where passengers are waiting to board.

“These changes are one of a number of options we have been looking at to make the Blackpool South to Colne services more punctual and efficient for passengers.

“These stations have a very small number of passengers using them and often services are stopping with no one getting on or off, so by introducing request stops we can help improve the reliability for passengers along the whole route.”

Currently the only request stop in East Lancashire is on the Clitheroe to Manchester line at the isolated hamlet of Entwistle, near Darwen.

Comments(20)

happycyclist says...
9:41am Tue 31 Jan 12

Requests stops are no problem if you speak to the driver before you get on the train, and note which end of the train the conductor is so that you can tell him/her if possible.
Don't just get on the train and expect the conductor to approach you.

What's the point of stopping at a station where nobody wants to get on or off?

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happycyclist says...
9:42am Tue 31 Jan 12

And to stop a train at a request stop, you just put your hand out as the train approaches. It's pretty easy.

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thequietone says...
10:22am Tue 31 Jan 12

Was left stranded at Entwistle once as train which was timetabled as request stop sailed through at 40 mph. Driver had pre-determined that he/she wasn't going to stop even if customers were waiting.

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happycyclist says...
10:48am Tue 31 Jan 12

thequietone wrote:
Was left stranded at Entwistle once as train which was timetabled as request stop sailed through at 40 mph. Driver had pre-determined that he/she wasn't going to stop even if customers were waiting.
Ah, one problem with that line (and it's happened to me at Entwistle, too) is that the train isn't scheduled to stop EVERY time at Entwistle. There are odd gaps in the timetable where it isn't a request stop.

I don't know why that is, and is maybe the reason for the hostility to the idea. The solution seems simple enough to me though: just make it a request stop all the time.

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jack daniels says...
12:27pm Tue 31 Jan 12

since when has it become normal for a service to start dictating to the customer. Its just one more example of the substandard service provided by the public transport in this country.

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expat pop says...
12:33pm Tue 31 Jan 12

To stop/start cost money.
How can the lines make a profit if passengers keep stopping the trains willy nilly.

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rhodie110961 says...
12:56pm Tue 31 Jan 12

I cant see what the problem stopping at these stations as they do now .IO could understand if it was a major route with high speed trains etc. but it isn`t .The problem is sometimes people catch this train for just a 5 minute journey,if the guard isn`t around then the odds are your going to miss the stop.What worries me is my daughter sometimes has to catch the train later on in the evening and if she is taken past the stop its miles to get back .If they want to implement this sort of thing then they should put a bell on the train like they have on the buses.

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ToffeeGuy says...
2:42pm Tue 31 Jan 12

Hasn't this been tried before a few years ago when these stops were missed out altogether on some early moring services?

The best way to increase punctuality would be to double track the line all the way to Colne.

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sean_brfc says...
5:52pm Tue 31 Jan 12

Request stops are a joke. If I lived in Edgworth I wouldn't want to use the train; it's stressful enough without having to panic about speaking to the conductor. I doubt that missing Entwistle saves much time anyway. Pointless.

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Blurta says...
7:38pm Tue 31 Jan 12

"The best way to increase punctuality would be to double track the line all the way to Colne."
Not a chance, shortly after the new Burnley Manchester Road station and the Todmorden curve are opened, the line between Burnley and Colne will close. The trains will run from Blackpool or Preston to Manchester via Blackburn, Accrington and Burnley.

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HarwoodBiker says...
7:56pm Tue 31 Jan 12

So, yeah, why not have a bell system? SOunds like a bloody good idea to me.

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burnleyglentoran says...
8:26pm Tue 31 Jan 12

Looking at the practicalities, a train needs a decent distance to be able to stop. If a passenger is on the platform and the driver isn't anticipating to have to stop, how quickly will he be able to bring the train to a halt. I can see a lot of excuses on the way-" sorry we didn't see you!" will be the reply to many angry passengers who are left stranded. Particularly when a train has been attempting to make up time. Fewer and fewer will be able to trust the service and ultimately the stations will shut. So much for getting people out of polluting cars and into public transport!!!


Posters on here who are in favour of this either haven't thought it through or are simply being selfish as it doesn't affect them

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outofyourmind says...
7:54am Wed 1 Feb 12

I dont no what all screming is about, the people that use that stop are muppits.(could say something stronger! ) They can wait and put their arm out can't they?.(bl**dy rich allways need someone to wipe their bottoms) Now if they where turning Blackburn centurial station in to a flyingstop that would be mental.

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Girlinabag says...
10:39am Wed 1 Feb 12

outofyourmind wrote:
I dont no what all screming is about, the people that use that stop are muppits.(could say something stronger! ) They can wait and put their arm out can't they?.(bl**dy rich allways need someone to wipe their bottoms) Now if they where turning Blackburn centurial station in to a flyingstop that would be mental.
To start with not everyone that gets on and off at Pleasington live there!! I normally get the train from Blackburn going there for work and yes the bell would work for getting off but what about when it comes to 9:30 and me and my colleague are waiting in the dark for the the train to get home. The amount of times that this is delayed is unbelievable to anyway, sometimes it doesn't even turn up and to get a taxi from pleasington to my house isn't cheap!! Plus like "burnleyglentoran" said the train needs time to be able to stop, I can't just brake all of sudden can it, so if your going Preston or blackpool get on the train 20 mins early and that will get you there faster and then you won't have to stop at every station which some people need.

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Noiticer says...
11:53am Wed 1 Feb 12

The request stop idea has been in operation on the Cumbrian Coast Line for years and works with very few problems. As long as those wishing to get off tell the guard when boarding and those wishing to board at request stops know to signal the driver then the system works as well as it does at bus stops. Of course, if more people in the villages concerned used their local stations then they would revert to required stops.

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danieljames says...
10:11pm Wed 1 Feb 12

Stop worrying about whether the driver will slow down - if there is any doubt the driver will slow down obviously. Do you ever catch buses? Do you see how the driver sometimes slows down if there is a corner before a stop and he can't see where anyone's waiting?

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outofyourmind says...
5:38am Thu 2 Feb 12

Girlinabag wrote:
outofyourmind wrote: I dont no what all screming is about, the people that use that stop are muppits.(could say something stronger! ) They can wait and put their arm out can't they?.(bl**dy rich allways need someone to wipe their bottoms) Now if they where turning Blackburn centurial station in to a flyingstop that would be mental.
To start with not everyone that gets on and off at Pleasington live there!! I normally get the train from Blackburn going there for work and yes the bell would work for getting off but what about when it comes to 9:30 and me and my colleague are waiting in the dark for the the train to get home. The amount of times that this is delayed is unbelievable to anyway, sometimes it doesn't even turn up and to get a taxi from pleasington to my house isn't cheap!! Plus like "burnleyglentor
an" said the train needs time to be able to stop, I can't just brake all of sudden can it, so if your going Preston or blackpool get on the train 20 mins early and that will get you there faster and then you won't have to stop at every station which some people need.
I do see your point,"but"(theres aways but, lol) if you think about it, the reason your trains might be late. Is because there haveing to stop, when the stations empty!. Then at the next stop, 10 people get on(extra loading time)then it as to stop again at an empty stop. By the time the train gets too you?, it can be 15 to 20 mins late. So as far as that gose's it dosent floot. Now if you take away, the pointless stops. t]
The driver can do is job. (chooseing when to stop!, an wait around a minuet or three extra. keeping to the time tablels, by leaveing righ away to pick you up.) This will speed things up. Now! for stopping the train, that is rearly hard task. but i do have an idear. Its called a LED stop sign.? AT the station where you just press the button (wow!) and the train stops. Now! the real hard bit, is to get the railways to do it . No! i cann't help you their,"sorry." And for those who think the kids will start messin about. Maybe your right?, but most stations if not all have CCTV. And the control center as contact with driver, over the radio. might be net conection?. That would fix it.. unfortunly the rail companys, only employ morons. They dont ask question, do they. they Just get on with the job.(to be fair its not just rail company, its all business employers lke it thatway too?. might help might not????.( or just an intercom connected to control.. )

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phil8715 says...
6:10pm Sun 5 Feb 12

Noiticer wrote:
The request stop idea has been in operation on the Cumbrian Coast Line for years and works with very few problems. As long as those wishing to get off tell the guard when boarding and those wishing to board at request stops know to signal the driver then the system works as well as it does at bus stops. Of course, if more people in the villages concerned used their local stations then they would revert to required stops.
This is correct. I can't see this working. I suppose it would speed the service up not having to stop at all stations. However I can't help thinking this just another excuse to shut the route at a later date, if nobody uses the stations because they don't know whether the driver can be bothered to stop if the train is running late.

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Rebekah_e says...
10:53pm Wed 8 Feb 12

It is going to cause problems as if the train driver doesn't see the passenger waiting to get on the train for one reason or another then the passenger will have to wait another half and hour or so and could end up being late. For example I use one of the stops that they are on about turning into a request stop to get to college at least 3 or 4 times a week, if the driver doesn't see me or something I will be late and it affects things at college. Also what if the driver only sees you at last minute and doesn't have time to stop as it take a reasonable amount of time for a train to stop. It isn't as bad on my way home as i would be on the train as I get on at a busy station. Personally, I find the trains run ok on the Colne to Blackpool line and should carry on as they are.

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hairy mary says...
6:49pm Wed 15 Feb 12

so will the puff puff stop if i stick my arm out

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