Rating the 12 Football League stadiums in London

I am at a bit of a loose end at the moment. Other than being a transport enthusiast, I am also a massive fan of following live sport, especially football. Both of these have been majorly impacted by the outbreak of COVID-19. Live sport around the world has been postponed or cancelled, and non-essential use of public transport has been restricted. I will continue to blog about public transport to keep my sanity, but right now it is important only those who really need to use public transport are the only passengers.

Similar to my goal of visiting all 270 London Underground stations (currently at 242), I also want to watch football at as many football stadiums as possible, or 'doing the 92'. There are 12 football league stadiums in London, and I have been to all bar one. So I am going to rank them in terms of facilities, atmosphere, charm and ease of visiting. 

12) Kingsmeadow

I start my review of the 12 football league stadiums in London at the only stadium I have not visited. With a seating capacity of over 2,250 people, Kingsmeadow is the home to League One AFC Wimbledon and Chelsea FC Women. Kingsmeadow has four stands, the two behind the goals are both terraces. The Paul Strank Stand is the largest stand with over 1,250 seats and houses the changing rooms, offices and bars.

Kingsmeadow is one of the more difficult stadiums to visit from central London. The nearest station is Norbiton with South  Western Railway services to Waterloo. AFC Wimbledon was founded in 2002 by supporters of Wimbledon FC. The owners of Wimbledon FC moved the club over 60 miles away to Milton Keynes. Kingsmeadow, however, is over 5 miles away from Wimbledon FC's former home stadium of Plough Lane. I look forward to visiting Kingsmeadow soon either for a AFC Wimbledon game or to watch Chelsea FC Women. 

11) Griffin Park

Next is a stadium that will not be around for much longer, Griffin Park, the home of Brentford. The ground has a capacity of 12,300, with the stands behind both goals housing terrace sections. Griffin Park is famous for being the only football league club in England to have a pub in every corner of the ground. The Griffin pub was used as film location in Green Street as the Abbey, the watering hole of the Green Street Elite. The Griffin also featured briefly in the biopic Bohemian Rhapsody as a crowded pub watched Live Aid.

Griffin Park is also not the easiest stadium to get to from central London. The closest station is Brentford which has South Western Railway services to Waterloo and South Ealing on the Piccadilly line, a one mile walk from the ground, provides services to the West End and King's Cross. The atmosphere at Girffin Park is not the most intense in London, but with an old school style, it is definitely worth a visit. The Bees are due to move into 18,500 all-seater Brentford Community Stadium at Kew Bridge at the start of the next season. 

10) Brisbane Road

Brisbane Road is home to the lowest ranked football league club in London, Leyton Orient. The stadium has been home to Leyton Orient since 1937 and has an all-seater capacity of 9,271. There are flats located in each of the four corners of the ground, giving residents a great view of the O's in action. The ground has a friendly atmosphere with the Leyton Orient Supporters Club bar open before and after the game for both sets of fans and a rather unique concourse in the Tommy Johnston South Stand.

Brisbane Road is easy to get to with a short walk away from Leyton station on the Central line and plenty of pubs in the area. Although football is currently suspended, Leyton Orient have been doing their bit to continue to entertain football fans. Leyton Orient have created and hosted the virtual 'Ultimate Quaran-Team' FIFA tournament. 128 clubs from all over the world have taken part and Orient have raised over £50,000 in the process. The O's have also announced they will give NHS staff 100 free tickets to every home game next season. A club in E10 have been doing their best to entertain fans all across the globe.

9) London Stadium

Just down the road from Brisbane Road is the 66,000 seater London Stadium, the new home of West Ham United. Venue for the opening and closing ceremonies and athletics at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Hammers moved to the Stratford stadium in 2016. Since the Olympics, the stadium has also hosted games for the 2015 Rugby Union World Cup, the 2017 World Athletics championship and a Major League Baseball series between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.

London Stadium, however, has a poor reputation amongst football fans. Unlike the other stadiums in the list, the seats are far from the pitch and subsequently does not have half the atmosphere of West Ham's former home at the Boleyn Ground. The views from large parts of the stadium are not great and despite currently being a Premier League stadium, it is the least familiar or traditional in this list. The queue for transport services at Stratford station after an event can be horrendous.

8) Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium

Another stadium with poor views is Loftus Road at the other end of the Central line. The 18,500 all-seater stadium in White City has been home to Queens Park Rangers since 1917. The stadium was renamed to Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium for the start of the 2019/20 season in honour of a former youth team member who was fatally stabbed in 2006.

There is a somewhat old school charm about the ground, however, on all four of visits to the ground I have found my views shocking. From the away end where you cannot see the goal line to being stuck behind a roof support along the side of the pitch, perhaps I need some QPR fans advice for where to sit next time I visit? 

7) The Den

The home of Championship side Millwall has a bit of a reputation. Whilst I am no doubt this part of South London is an area you would not want to get lost in, do not believe the movies or wanna-be football hooligans. Millwall regularly receive EFL Family Excellence status and won the Nickelodeon Family Club of the Year in 2017. The 20,000 all-seater stadium opened in 1993 and has a modern feel with all four stands featuring two tiers. 

The away end is a short walk to South Bermondsey station with plenty of services to and from London Bridge. With pubs aplenty and Borough market at London Bridge, and a well policed walk from the away end to the station, The Den makes a great experience for away fans. Millwall have recently revealed plans to massively redevelop The Den into a 34,000 seater stadium, but when the club currently average just over 13,000, this does seem bizarre. 

6) The Valley

The Valley has been home to Charlton Athletic since 1919, although the Addicks controversially ground shared with rivals Crystal Palace from 1985 to 1991. Charlton returned to The Valley in 1992 and into highly renovated stadium. The ground is modern with three stands usually occupied by home fans dominating the pitch. The away fans are housed behind the goal in the Jimmy Seed Stand, the only part of the ground to survive Charlton's move in the 80s. 

The ground is a short walk from Charlton railway station which has Thames Link services and London Cannon Street. I used this section of railway to travel between Woolwich Arsenal and Lewisham when I attempted to visit all 45 DLR stations as quickly as possible in February 2020. Alternatively there are plenty of bus services from North Greenwich. 

5) Selhurst Park

Often regarded as having the best home atmosphere in the Premier League, next on the list is Selhurst Park. The 25,000 seater stadium has been the home of Crystal Palace since 1924, but has also been the home of Charlton Athletic and Wimbledon FC. Selhurst, Norwood Junction and Thornton Heath stations are all a 10-15 walk from the ground and have services to and from London Victoria, with the later also having services to London Bridge. Norwood Junction also has London Overground services connecting fans to east London. 

Although there is a great atmosphere at Selhurst Park, the ground is massively in need of an upgrade. The view from Arthur Wait stand, which houses the away fans, is infamous for being one of the worst away ends views in English football. Although, some fans often enjoy the open air concourse for the away contingent. Crystal Palace plan to upgrade the stadium and the plans look spectacular, and yes the plans will finally see improvements to the away end. 

4) The Emirates

Opening in 2006, The Emirates is the home to Arsenal. With 60,000 seats, three tiers and premium hospitality, The Emirates is a fantastic place to be entertained, but it goes against the charm of being a football fan. The atmosphere at The Emirates is regularly ridiculed by opposition fans, not helped by the home upper and lower tiers being dissected by a middle tier exclusively comprised of hospitality bars, suites and boxes. 

As a student I often worked in one of the hospitality bars at The Emirates, and I thoroughly enjoyed this job. The stadium is impressive and I doubt there is a bad seat in the house, but on my three visits in the stands I have questioned if I am watching an Arsenal home game or an Arsenal game at neutral venue? However, with 60,000 fans potentially in attendance it is a good job there is plenty of transport options when leaving the game, but Caledonian Road, the closest station to The Emirates is closed before and after the game. 

3) Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Tottenham find themselves in an almost similar situation to north London rivals Arsenal. Tottenham have recently moved into their new 62,000 seater stadium on the site of their previous home, White Hart Lane. The stadium is incredibly impressive, with a dominating single-tiered 17,500 stand behind one of the goals. Similarly with The Emirates, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is designed like a bowl but unlike the Gunners' home, Spurs' ground still has four distinct stands. 

I have only visited the ground once, and I thought the atmosphere was alright, but certainly better than The Emirates. The ground, in my opinion, similar with the London Stadium and The Emirates, are not football stadiums, they are entertainment venues. Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has an onsite brewery, bakery and a cheese room, and from the outside it looks like a mix-mash between an airport and a shopping centre. 

2) Craven Cottage

Once existing Putney Bridge station, football fans walk through Bishops Park along the banks of the river Thames before being greeted with the Cottage Pavillion and the old school facade of the Johnny Haynes stand. The walk I described is not just one of the best approaches to a stadium in London, it is arguably the best out of the entire Football League. The stadium opened in 1896 and is the answer to many a classic pub quiz question. There is a tree in the corner of the Putney End, which is the only tree to be found in a British senior football stadium. 

Also in the Putney End, there is no segregation from the away end and the 'neutral end', making this the only football league club in Britain to have this arrangement. Fulham are currently redeveloping the Riverside Stand. During construction, Craven Cottage's temporary capacity is 19,000. This redevelopment will increase the capacity at Craven Cottage, improved hospitality areas and allow a public walkway across the bank of the river Thames. 

1) Stamford Bridge

Stamford Bridge is the home of the only team in London to win the Champions League, Chelsea. Chelsea were formed in 1905, however, the stadium was opened in 1877 and has been used for many different sports. Throughout its history Stamford Bridge has hosted athletics, baseball, greyhound racing and rugby union. The ground also hosted the FA Cup final three times and was the venue for the famous Chelsea V Dynamo Moscow friendly just ten weeks after the end of World War Two in 1945, over 100,000 people attended. 

Stamford Bridge is the closest stadium to central London and is perhaps the easiest to visit. Fulham Broadway on the District line is a stones throw away from the ground, and Earl's Court, West Brompton and Imperial Wharf stations provide plenty of options for when over 41,000 spectators leave at full time. Some parts of the stadium back to the 1970s, where as the most recent stand to be constructed, the West Stand opened in 2001. This gives a unique sense of charm and tradition of having four separate stands, however, the stadium still feels modern.

I cannot do a post about football in London and not mention the national home of football, Wembley! Opening in 2007, Wembley Stadium is the second largest in stadium in Europe, behind Camp Nou in Barcelona. The 90,000 seater stadium is home to the FA Cup final, EFL Cup final and football league play off finals. The stadium has also hosted other sporting events including Rugby League and Union, American Football and Boxing. Wembley has also hosted many concerts, houses a university and will host the semi-final and final of the next European Football Championship that was due to take place this summer.

There would not have been a 90,000 seater stadium, the Wembley Arena, the home of national football, a university or a box park (that opened in December 2018) in north-west London if it was not for Sir Edward Watkin and the Metropolitan Railway. Watkin was the chairman of the Metropolitan Railway and eight other railway companies, and he wanted to increase passenger numbers by giving people a reason to travel by railway, so he created Wembley Park. Wembley Park was a pleasure garden with lake, cricket pitches and waterfalls. The park opened in 1894 and attracted over 100,000 visitors within the first three months. Wembley Park station officially opened in 1894, however, it received a Saturday only service from October 1893 so people could access the sports facilities. 

However, a park was not ambitious enough for Watkin. Inspired by major engineering project involving steel such as Tower Bridge, Blackpool Tower, Crystal Palace and the Eiffel Tower, Watkins lead the construction of Watkins Tower. This octagonal tower was designed to be 370m tall and to rival the Eiffel Tower. Due to costs instead of having eight legs as originally planned, it was to have four. However, by September 1894 Watkin retired due to ill health and due to the tower having fewer legs than originally planned, the structure started sinking. By 1899 the company financing the project goes into liquidation and by 1902 it was deemed unsafe and by 1907 the tower was completely demolished. But it is not all bad news, the park continued to thrive, with the addition of more facilities and even a golf course in 1912. After World War One, the British Empire wanted to host an exhibition about the empire, they decided to pick Wembley as the host, which lead to the construction of the Empire Stadium. The stadium had a capacity of 127,000, was iconic for the twin towers and was on the site of the demolished tower. The stadium opened in 1923 but was later renamed to Wembley Stadium and has hosted numerous events such as being the home of the FA Cup final, the 1948 Olympics, 1966 World Cup Final, Euro 96 Final and Live Aid. 

Do you agree with my rankings of the 12 Football League stadiums in London? What are you favourite memories of watching football in London? Join the conservation below or on Twitter or Instagram where my account is @TubeSpottingDan and my DMs are always open for a chat. Take care and I cannot wait to be back at a football stadium as soon as it is safe to do so. 

What have I been up to since lockdown?

It has been a while since I last made an update to the blog. How is everyone doing? These are incredibly strange times. At the turn of the year when I wrote my review of transport in London in the 2010s and looked forward to what is to come this decade, the situation we are facing was unimaginable. It does not feel right for me to blog about unnecessary use of public transport at the moment. It is really important that only those who absolutely have to use public transport are the only passengers.

For somebody who enjoys travelling to different parts of London and the country, watches some form of live sport at least once a fortnight and enjoys savoring a pint or two in a pub, staying in at weekends has been strange. I have managed to set up a routine for Monday to Friday now. A cup of tea before stating working from home, a lunch time away from the PC and getting changed into comfy clothes once the laptop lid has shut are all ways I have created some form of normality. But what have I been doing keep myself entertained in evenings and at weekends?

Revisiting childhood hobbies 

Something lockdown has allowed be to do is revisit a hobby I have not done in nearly a decade, scale models. I ordered myself an Airfix starter kit for the Easter weekend, a RAF Red Arrows Gnat. I was born in Lincolnshire, the Red Arrows are an icon of the county being based at RAF Scampton since the 80s. I was pretty happy with my first attempt, although I made some mistakes. I have since ordered double kit that contains a Spitfire Mkla and a Messerschmitt Bf109E-4. I am particularity looking forward to giving the Messerschmitt a go because even as a child, I have only ever made RAF aircraft scale models. If you have any top tips please let me know.

Rainbow - brightening up the area

Whether it is on social media, watching TV or partaking in your daily exercise, in the UK you WILL have seen more rainbows now than in February and we had a go in our garden. With garden centers closed we created our flowers to create a rainbow next to another DIY project - a flat pack windmill that was in a box for months. Our local pub created a social-distant Easter egg hunt with letters all around the area that spelled out a message. We took part with the letter L in our garden.

Whilst talking about brightening up the area, somebody in my childhood village in Lincolnshire came up with a genius way to show all the walks in the local area - creating a tube styled map of all the footpaths, bridlepaths and byways in the area. I am gutted I did not think of this idea.

Blogging

Although it has been a couple of months since my last post, I have drafted a few that I will begin to release over the next couple of weeks. One of my last railway adventures before lockdown was visiting the North Wales Coast Line and Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. Next month marks a couple of anniversaries relating transport in London; 150 years of Blackfriars, Embankment and Temple stations, and 20 years of the Tramlink. I was also going to write a post about the District line to Putney Bridge, one of my favourite branches of the London Underground, which opened 140 years ago last month. I have plenty of posts on their way with photos from previous travels.

Cycling

In the UK we are fortunate to be able to leave the house for one form of daily exercise. Since lockdown I have been on a few evening strolls and at the weekends been on nice bike rides. Although I cycle fairly regularly in London (3 or 4 times a week at least), I have not been on leisurely rides for sometime, so it has been nice to get back on the saddle. Across the country our roads have never been quieter from motor vehicles, now is a great time to experience what a low-traffic future could feel like or to find out new cycle routes without intense volumes of motor traffic.

Virtual Pub Quiz

If you follow me on Twitter, if not it is @TubespottingDan and you should follow me, it will come as no surprise that I have been enjoying virtual pub quizzes. Before lockdown I got my dates massively mixed up and organised a pub quiz for a night that the pub does not run their web quiz, the next rearranged date was 24th March. Day 2 of lockdown, we improvised and continued with a pub quiz but virtually. I have regularly posted some of my favourite questions on Twitter and over the week we have had our knowledge tested on many subjects including of course the London Underground, fishing and even a round dedicated to the colour yellow. 

Times are strange, but I am thankful I have been able to keep myself occupied at home since lockdown. If you are doing something exciting to occupy yourself please comment below, and please do share your Airfix tips. Also, if anybody ever wants to chat about the tube, or London, or life in general, my DMs on Twitter and Instagram (@TubespottingDan) are always open.

Northern line extension update

Transport for London yesterday released pictures of the fit out at Battersea Power Station. Battersea Power Station and Nine Elms will be part of the northern line extension that is due to open in autumn 2021 and will take the number of London Underground stations up to 272. But what is the northern line extension?

The northern line is one of the more complicated lines, with different branches and trains terminating at various locations. There are currently 50 stations on the line, but an extension is currently being constructed from Kennington, where some trains terminate, to Battersea Power Station. This extension will link up with the redevelopment of the former coal-fired power station in Wandsworth. An icon of London was decommissioned in the 1970s and 80s and is now, controversial, being redeveloped into housing. Although, there were many plans for the iconic building and towers including a theme park, an eco dome, and Chelsea FC considered building a stadium at the site, with a stand being built in the building of the former power station.

Nine Elms station is being constructed on Wandsworth Road close to the junction with Pascal Street. The new station is being constructed close to the former site of Nine Elms railway station, which closed to passengers in the 1840s, after just a decade of being in service. The new northern line station will serve the emerging Nine Elms area, the New Covent Garden Market and the new US embassy. Only trains from and via. the Charing Cross branch will utilise the new branch out to Battersea Power Station. 16 trains an hour are expected to travel to Nine Elms and onto the new terminus. Therefore, to travel via. the Bank branch, passengers will need to change at Kennington. 

24 trains an hour currently terminate at Kennington from the Charing Cross branch. As 16 trains will continue on the new track, 8 trains will still terminate at Kennington. This means tube enthusiasts will still be able to use the infamous 'Kennington Loop'. When a train 'terminates' at Kennington, it goes round a loop of track from the southbound platforms and re-enters service on the north bound platforms. This is because there is no depot at Kennington. However, you are not actually allowed to stay on the train at Kennington and ride this loop. 

There are already plans for an additional extension from Battersea Power Station to Clapham Junction. These works are subject to Crossrail 2 getting the green light. There is also plans in south London to extend the Bakerloo line from Elephant & Castle to New Cross Gate, with two intermediate stations on Old Kent Road. I end this post with a question to you as I need to point out that throughout this article I may have made a grammar blunder. A station is being called Battersea Power Station, so I should probably refer to the station is Battersea Power Station station? 

Visiting all 45 DLR stations

This weekend I embarked upon the challenge to visit all 45 stations on the Docklands Light Railway. Opening in 1987, the DLR was originally built to serve the redevelopment in the Docklands area, predominantly centered around the Isle of Dogs. Since then, the DLR has grown across East London to reach Stratford, Lewisham, Beckton and Woolwich Arsenal. Now with 45 stations I decided it was time to visit every station in one challenge.

Although this challenge was inspired by a recent Geoff Marshall video, I have always been fascinated by the DLR and wanted to complete this challenge for a while. Geoff completed his challenge 2 hours, 3 minutes and 8 seconds, could I better his time?

Where to start the East London adventure? 

I actually live 5 minutes away from a DLR station, however, I could not factor in a route that could incorporate starting or finishing here without seriously double backing on myself. To avoid double backing on my myself too much, it was obvious I needed to start at a terminating station; Bank, Tower Gateway, Stratford, Stratford International, Lewisham, Beckton or Woolwich Arsenal. As I will discuss, to complete this challenge as quickly as possible, other forms of public transport between branches needs to be considered.

My options between branches were; south eastern railway between Woolwich Arsenal and Lewisham, the 474 bus between King George V and Bectkon or Tower Gateway to Bank via. DLR or District Line from Tower Gateway. As the 474 bus required going back on myself and factored in traffic levels, I decided to try using south eastern. The plan was to start at Tower Gateway to tick off the two city stations; Tower Gateway and Bank, then head all the way to Woolwich Arsenal.

Circle and District line chaos

In hindsight, it was a mistake to attempt this challenge on a weekend when the Circle and District lines are closed. Starting at Tower Gateway, I traveled east to Shadwell before changing back on myself towards Bank. If the District line was working I would have started at Shadwell, traveled to Tower Gateway to get the District line at Tower Hill one stop to Monument, then get the DLR at Bank. It took 18 minutes to complete the first section of my journey, I suspect the alternative of using the tube would have been quicker.

Once on the train at Bank, I could stay on the train until the terminus at Woolwich Arsenal. This section took just under half an hour. This section was important as I ticked off the two stations of Blackwall and East India which are between Poplar and Canning Town. I knew I had to travel through Poplar and Canning Town twice, so it was good I did not need to back on myself to travel to Blackwall and East India.

Southeastern - precision timing required

To complete this challenge in a respectable time, it was important to time arriving on the DLR at Woolwich Arsenal with the Southeastern train from the national rail platforms. Southeastern trains are every half an hour towards Lewisham. My DLR train arrived 12 minutes before the Southeastern train. I could have got a DLR train that arrived at Woolwich Arsenal 8 minutes or 2 minutes before the Southeastern train. Another lesson learnt here, I do not believe I had enough time to make the train by arriving with just 2 minutes, but 8 minutes would have been ample time. 

Arriving on time, I boarded the 14:00 Southeastern train and arrived at Lewisham in just 13 minutes, 3 minutes earlier than timetabled. I missed a DLR train at Lewisham by seconds, however, as I arrived early I did not plan to use the missed train. I had planned to board the 14:23 train at Lewisham, but due to arriving early I boarded the 14:18. At this stage I was a train up on my schedule.

The heart of the DLR

Why do I love the DLR so much? Is it because of the driver less trains and you can pretend you are driving the train? Or how important it is as a transport link in East London? And being above ground for the majority of the network? It is all of these reasons. Boarding the train at Lewisham it was the first time I was fortunate to sit at the front of the train, perfect for the spectacular views on the Isle of Dogs, winding in and out of sky scrappers and high rise flats. 

By the time I got to Island Gardens, I was travelling on the heart of the DLR. When the DLR opened in 1987, there were just 15 stations, the majority on the section of the journey I just started. If I was trying to beat the record time of visiting all DLR stations, 1hr 53 mins 53 secs, I would not have completed this challenge during off-peak timetables. Because I embarked upon this challenge on a Saturday afternoon, I had to change trains at Canary Wharf, this could be avoidable as during peak times the DLR operates a train from Lewisham all the way to Stratford. It cost me 3 minutes by having to change trains. 

The most awkward station in the challenge

With any railway challenge there is always one slightly awkward station. On the tube it is Kensington (Olympia), the Overground it is Battersea Park, and on the DLR it is West India Quay. Most trains on the DLR stop at West India Quay, except trains from Bank to Lewisham. Therefore when planning my route I had to factor this potentially tricky station in. West India Quay is a station I have used many times. It is close to the new Crossrail Place, the Elizabeth line station and retail/leisure complex with an amazing roof garden. I also enjoy the restaurants and bars by the North Dock. No time for a drink, it was onto Stratford via my second visit to Poplar.

All down hill from here

I arrived at Poplar for the second time after 91 minutes. By this stage I have already established I did not need the 12 minute wait at Woolwich Arsenal, should have complete the challenge during peak times to avoid changing at Canary Wharf, and I should have waited a few weekends to avoid the Circle and District line closures, in order to achieve a respectable time, I did not need any other setbacks. Especially the emergency breaks coming on just after Bow Church. 

My schedule saw me arrive at Stratford just 3 minutes before a train to Stratford International. Although I was one train up as I arrived into Lewisham ahead of schedule, it did not help as trains from Stratford to Stratford International are every 10 minutes, and I actually had to wait 6 minutes for a train. I then arrived at Stratford International and had to wait 2 minutes for the train towards Woolwich Arsenal. This begged the question, could I have walked from the DLR platforms at Stratford, through the station and under the railway and tube tracks, and then around Westfield to Straford International in a quicker time than waiting for the 2 trains? I suspect yes. Although, boarding the train at Stratford International I knew I just need two more trains to complete the challenge.

The end was in sight

I visited Canning Town for the second time after ticking off the stations from Stratford International via. West Ham. This section of the DLR opened in time for the Olympic Games in 2011. My final train towards Beckton was a case of waiting for if my attempt was a respectable time. By the time I left Royal Victoria I knew I had not beaten Geoff's time, and I had another 7 stations to go. Travelling through Beckton Park, Cyprus and Gallions Reach I was watching the clock, hoping to beat the 2 and a half hour mark. I arrived at Beckton after visiting all 45 stations in 2 hours, 20 minutes and 33 seconds. A respectable time, but a time I know I can beat.

Lessons learnt

After spending an afternoon on the DLR, I actually forgot to take a photo at Beckton. The schedule I created should have seen me complete the challenge in 2 hours and 17 minutes, so I knew all along I was not going to beat Geoff's time or feature in the top 25 according to explorerticket.co.uk, however, I learnt a lot of lessons. Well mainly four:

1. Why did I decide to complete this without the tube between Tower Gateway/Tower Hill and Bank?
2. 8 minutes would have been enough at North Greenwich
3. Take advantage of the peak service between Lewisham and Stratford
4. Wasted too much time at Straford and Stratford International 

It is also worth pointing out that there are different routes that could be used to complete this challenge, would hoping between King George V to Beckton on the 474 bus been quicker? Perhaps there is less control with timetables compared to getting Southeastern, but it may save time? I will complete this challenge again, but for now, it was off to West India Quay to enjoy the bars by the North Dock. 

Tubespotting Dan's 8 tips for cheaper rail fares

The cost of rail travel in the UK is some of the most expensive in Europe. With some on the day return tickets costing over £200 to some season tickets per mile costing three times more than in France, travelling by train can be very expensive, however, I have some top tips that could save you some money.

1) Book in advance

Most train tickets go on sale 12 weeks in advance. If you are visiting London for a show, or Manchester for a concert or flying from Stanstead, an event/journey you know months ahead you need to travel by rail booking 12 weeks in advance is key. For example, purchasing a single from London to Glasgow today would cost £150.10, but I can book a train on Monday 20 April (in 12 weeks time) for £39.00 To make sure you do not forget when your tickets go on sale, you can set up a ticket alert on the Trainline.com

2) Always book in advance

The cheap super advanced tickets that go on sale 12 weeks in advance can be taken up really quickly. If you do not have the luxury of knowing you need to take a train 12 weeks in advance, do not feel like you have missed out on cheap tickets. Up until 18:00 the day before (some operators it is 23:59), you can still get advanced tickets. Sticking with London to Glasgow which today would cost £150.10, I am writing this at 17:30 and I can purchase a ticket for tomorrow for £67.50

3) Do not use the trainline.com

My third tip will not save you as much as the previous two, however, every penny saved is worth it. Although in my first tip I recommend setting up a ticket alert on the Trainline.com, do not book the super advance tickets through their website. You will pay a small booking fee when purchasing tickets on the Trainline.com and if you use a credit card you will need to pay an additional fee. I always suggest booking directly through the operator as most do not charge a booking fee, however, if they also charge a booking fee I suggest using LNER; no booking fee, no credit card fee and you can purchase most national rail ticket on their website. Some operators also operate a reward scheme for tickets on their services, for example gaining Nectar Points with Avanti West Coast or LNER.

4) Railcard

If you are eligible to get a railcard I highly recommend purchasing one. With a railcard you can get up to 1/3 off some rail services. There are many types of railcards available (bold = no peak hour restrictions):

• 16-25 Railcard
• 26-30 Railcard 
• Senior Railcard (60+) (Off-peak restrictions in London and the South East)
• Disabled Railcard
• Two Together Railcard
• Family and Friends Railcard
• Network Railcard (Applies to London and the South East, min £13 spend on off-peak)
• HM Forces Railcard
• Local/region Railcard (e.g. Heart of Wales Railcard or Devon & Cornwall Railcard) 

There are different terms and conditions with the different railcards, but they are a great way of saving your journey. Going back to the London to Glasgow example, using a railcard and booking in advance, that £150.10 journey would cost just £26.00 

The two together railcard does not apply to just couples. If you travel by train a lot with a friend or family member, for example travelling by train with your friend for football, purchasing a two together railcard would cut down some of your costs. Another top top is if you are under 25, purchase a three year 16-25 Railcard just a few days before you turn 24 and you can still get 1/3 off all rail fares until you are 27. 

5) Gold card

If you are based in London and the South East and you have an annual season ticket, you can use your 'Gold Card' and apply for off off-peak travel discount for yourself and up to three adults. If you travel a lot by rail off-peak but none of the above railcards apply to you, it maybe cheaper to purchase an annual season ticket between two close stations to get your gold card. For example an annual season ticket between Lapworth and Hatton is £172.00

6) Split ticketing

One of the best tricks to get cheaper rail fare is split ticketing, this is the act of splitting your train journey into segments, however, still sitting on the same train. The classic example is London to Penzance which on the day costs £161.00, however this train stops at Plymouth, a London to Plymouth ticket costs £93.30 and then Plymouth to Penzance costs £4.75 A journey I have taken advantage of is London to Manchester - £185.00 (London to Stoke £84.50 and Stoke to Manchester £9.50). It is also possible to beat the off-peak system. If your train leaves during peak-hours, your entire journey will be classed as off peak. If, however, you are on a long journey, book the on-peak ticket until your train reaches a station when off-peak kicks in, and then pay off-peak for the rest of your journey. 

7) Pink oyster readers

Transport for London often say Oyster and Contactless are the same fare, and you may think it is hard to get cheaper tube fares, however, you could be wrong. Whilst there are some faults in the system where Oyster and Contactless are not always the same fare, that is for another day, if you avoid zone 1 you could make a saving. If you are travelling across London from a zone 2 station to another zone 2 station, TfL may think you traveled through zone 1 and you may have to pay a higher fare. Pink oyster card readers help TfL know you avoided zone 1 and will charge you a cheaper fare. You may have never noticed a pink reader, and that could be because they are only at 16 stations. One example where this may save you money is if you live in the student flats at Tottenham Hale but study at Queen Mary, at Mile End. Take the Victoria line to Highbury & Islington, hop onto the London Overground, switch to the District line at Whitechapel and touch the pink reader, you avoid zone 1 and will be a cheaper fare. 

8) Claim for delays

Unfortunately sometimes when travelling by train you will face delays and cancellations. Thankfully, this could be an opportunity to recoup some or all of the fare for your journey. By law, rail operators must give you some money back for delays over half an hour. Most operators will give 50% of your fare back if you are delayed by half an hour, or 100% if you are delayed by more than hour. Some operators, such as Abellio Great Anglia, will give 25% back for a 15 minute delay. Some operators give you the choice to donate all or some of your compensation to charities such as the Samaritans. 

Railway station usage 2018-19

Today, Tuesday 14 January 2020, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) announced their estimates for passenger usage for every railway station in Great Britain. The announcement of this data is always exciting with some interesting patterns and stories. All of the data in this blog is from the period of April 2018 to March 2019. The data released does not include London Underground figures.

London's top 10 busiest rail stations 2018/19

1. Waterloo (94m)
2. Victoria (75m)
3. London Liverpool Street (69m)
4. London Bridge (61m)
5. Euston (46m)
6. Stratford (41m)
7. Paddington (38m)
8. St Pancras (36m)
9. King's Cross (35m)
10. Highbury & Islington (30m)

There has been no change in the most used station in London, and the whole of the country, with Waterloo. The top 10 most used stations in the capital have not changed since last year's figures. London Bridge has seen a significant increase in passengers of 13 million from last year, this is largely due to the completion of must needed upgrades. 

Across the country, only four other railway stations saw usage figures in excess of 30 million:

• Birmingham New Street (48m)
• Glasgow Central (33m)
• Leeds (31m)
• Manchester Piccadilly (30m)

With 33 million passengers, the busiest station in Scotland was Glasgow Central. The busiest station in Wales was Cardiff Central with over 10 million passengers. When it comes to these statistics, some of the most exciting are the lesser used stations.

London's least busiest rail stations 2018/19

1. South Greenford (28,100)
2. Drayton Green (29,200)
3. Angel Road (32,900)
4. Sudbury & Harrow Road (42,300)
5. Morden South (67,500)
6. Sudbury Hill Harrow (79,600)
7. Castle Bar Park (79,900)
8. South Merton (115,000)
9. Birkbeck (137,000)
10. Crews Hill (139,000)

South Greenford retains its status as the least used rail station in London. Angel Road closed in May 2019, so still appears in this edition of the ORR figures, but as the third least used station in London. As this data is for the period of March 2018 to April 2019, it does not include London's newest station, Meridian Water, nor Warrington West and Robroyston. 

If 28,100 passengers a year seems small, within the context of London it is, the least used station(s) in the country had just 46 passengers - Denton and Stanlow & Thornton. This means Redcar British Steel is no longer the country's least used station, but instead saw an increase in passengers of over 800% to become the 25th least used station in the country. 

Visiting a least or lowly used station is an experience I recommend every transport enthusiast does this year. Two visits that spring to mind for me is visiting Angel Road and Elton & Orston. With 164 passengers, Elton & Orston is the least used station in Nottinghamshire and the 6th least used in the country. A highlight of 2019 for me was visiting Angel Road on its final day in service. I was one of over 30 people to board the final service from one of London's most intriguing stations.