Calls for change as Denton comes top (or bottom) of rail usage league
IT IS official. Denton has something no place in the UK has, the quietest railway station.
Just 34 journeys were logged from the facility between April 2022 and March this year by the Office of Rail and Road, making it the least used of anywhere.
Take into account the amount of full fare-paying travellers getting on or off and the figures are even more paltry.
Just 16 people were logged at Denton, fewer than one person every three weeks!
Even compared to other stations in Tameside, Denton’s figures stand out. The second quietest in the borough, nearby Fairfield in Audenshaw, sees 16,572 journeys – or 487 people for every one at Denton.
The busiest is Stalybridge, whose 619,346 mean that for every person getting on or off at Denton, a mind boggling 18,216 do so there.
Denton’s drop to the bottom – 2,574th place on the latest ladder – comes as little surprise considering there is just one train a week, the parliamentary service between Stalybridge and Stockport, serving there.
It’s out of town location, on Manchester Road North close to the Sainsbury’s supermarket, makes it difficult to access and there is a distinct lack of facilities.
However, the town’s MP, Andrew Gwynne, believes the quietest station in the country could in fact be an opportunity to develop the transport infrastructure.
And there is a chance Metrolink services may run along the line in future.
He told the Correspondent: “These statistics are hardly surprising given we have just one train a week between Stockport and Stalybridge, which is the preserve in the main of train enthusiasts wishing to ride on our so-called ghost train.
“Our line, however, is also an opportunity for better public transport.
“It’s the only direct link between communities in south-eastern Greater Manchester and Manchester Victoria, which is why I’ve been working closely with Mayor Andy Burnham, Transport for Greater Manchester, Stockport and Tameside Councils and both the Friends of Reddish South and Denton Stations to look at how we maximise the potential of this line.
“We secured Department for Transport funding under the Government’s Restore Your Railways initiative to scope options.
“And in the longer term the line is identified in TfGM’s Transport 2040 as being ideal for orbital tram-trains, which would possibly bring Metrolink services along the line.”