Train operators in public ownership have shared details of the stations on their networks seeing strong passenger growth according to the most recent ORR station usage figures.
For Southeastern, Thanet Parkway in Kent, which opened its doors in 2023 has become the operator’s fastest growing station. Passenger entries and exits more than doubled in the last year, rising by 116% to over 123,000. The exceptional passenger growth supports the aims of the station investment, to connect more people to new housing, new business and job opportunities as well as the local leisure and tourism industry.
West Horndon in Essex, c2c’s fastest growing station, grew by 36% year-on-year. Towards the end of 2024, West Horndon joined c2c’s network of contactless ticketing enabled stations as part of Government plans to expand pay-as-you-go areas. Contactless ticketing is available across the operator’s entire route and has been popular with customers. The station is also strategically located near the housing growth area of Thurrock and has easy access to the M25.
Another station which is undergoing major improvements and saw a marked passenger increase was Darlington, managed by LNER. The station in North East England was the operator’s fastest growing station, recording a 20% increase in passenger entries and exits, rising from 2.35 million to 2.83 million.
In December, Network Rail confirmed the £140 million Darlington station development is expected to open in Spring 2026. The station transformation project is a collaboration between LNER, Network Rail, Tees Valley Combined Authority, Darlington Council, and majority funder the Department for Transport and will turn the station into a modern transport hub that improves reliability, capacity and the facilities for passengers.
SWR’s Woolston station in Southampton was the operator’s fastest growing station, recording over 180,000 passenger entries and exits, a 74% year-on-year increase.
TransPennine Express’ fastest growing station was Malton in North Yorkshire, rising from 293,000 to 376,000, a 28% increase.
Meanwhile, Northern recorded notable growth at stations such as Deansgate, 62% and Hindley in Wigan which also grew by 62% from 148,000 to 240,000 entries and exits.
From February this year, £6.5million will be invested in Hindley station to upgrade facilities and improve accessibility for passengers. The improvement works are a collaborative effort between Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), Northern and Network Rail, with funding provided by the government and Greater Manchester Combined Authority.
Greater Anglia saw significant growth at Colchester Town station, which increased from 644,000 to over 1 million passenger entries and exits, a 57% increase.
Alicia Andrews, Southeastern’s commercial director said: “The strong growth we’re seeing across the network is hugely encouraging. Thanet Parkway’s extraordinary performance and the continued recovery at smaller stations illustrate the positive impact of our investment in new trains, updated stations and better services.
“Our focus is on delivering great journeys for every customer, whether they’re commuting, studying or travelling for leisure, and we’ll keep investing to make our railway even better.”
Kerry Peters, Northern’s director of stations, said: “We manage more than 460 stations across the North of England and work round the clock to run services for tens of millions of passengers.
“Throughout the year, we closely monitor passenger numbers so we can meet demand and work with partners to maintain and upgrade stations whenever there is an opportunity to do so.”
*Figures taken from ORR station usage publications, comparing passenger entries and exits at stations currently managed by publicly owned operators between March 2024 and March 2025.
Estimates of Data Usage – ORR Data Portal: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/usage/estimates-of-station-usage
Image credit: Southeastern