Stockade station - HMP Walton

This from a Mr Mallins...

Welcome to Walton.

The closing of the station to facilitate ticket barriers, on both sides in this case, is an horrendous sight.



Looks just like a prison.

UPDATE: This from King Henry...

What I don't understand about horrors like the barricades at Walton is that the project must have involved dozens of people and a budget decision.

And yet not one single manager had the sense to say, "stop, this is utterly incompatible with our efforts to welcome passengers".

Railway Garden Competition - Basingstoke

This from the Ninja...

Day of the Triffids recreated in the old bay at Basingstoke.


Bearing in mind the void into which the unaware might drop, this is perhaps one location where platform fencing would offer a real safety benefit...

Stockade station - Birmingham International

This from D0260...

Further to Eye's piece on the Coucher Memorial Fences at Stockport, welcome to Birmingham International, or should that be HMP Elmdon?

About a month ago each and every platform end, north and south, was fenced at the top of the platform end ramp.

These photographs are the north end of Birmingham International station, taken from Platform 4, nearest the NEC.


A similar thing has happened at Coventry, but as the platforms there are narrower, the fencing is not quite so intrusive.

At Birmingham International the sides of the fencing, usually finished in triangular wood, now sports a sort of giant egg-box of shredded rubber tyres.


How much did this lot cost?

Indeed!

Eye was pleased to see that Nigel Harris over at RAIL has also taken up the cudgels against the apparent relentless march of these costly genuflections to the Elf''n'Safety Taliban (see Stop & Examine in the latest issue).

Perhaps ORR readers can advise whether this really offers a value for money solution to a percieved safety risk?

Welcome to Stockade station

This from Biggles...

Any idea who, or what, is responsible for the rash of platform-end fencing that is going up at West Coast stations?


Is it reaction to a real issue, or has someone just decided to waste money.

After all, we've managed without for 170 years!

UPDATE: This from a Mr Tilly...

Noticed metal railings and level crossing trespass grids poorly installed at stations Coventry to New Street on Monday.

Definitely further extravagant spending of taxpayers money and as suggested never been needed before.

And my spies in LNW tell me they've left the SPT the wrong side of the fence at Stockport - another own goal!

UPDATE: This from the Master...

It's not just the West Coast - these useless monstrosities are marring many an attractive station in the Thames valley too.

They're a classic example of being seen to be doing something - only in this case its expensive vandalism.

Eye hopes that David Young will come down hard on this sort of expensive nonsense as part of his Health & Safety Review.

UPDATE: This from Anon...

They are required to be considered for deterring unauthorised access from platform ends a la Railway Group Standard RIS-7700-INS (sections 11.2 & 11.3).

Does David Young have remit over Group Standards? Perhaps he ought?