A great station upgrade; now sort the trains and fares.

Thursday 23rd November 2023

After three years of intensive work it’s very welcome to see the £250 million upgrade to Gatwick Airport’s railway station finally finished and opened for passengers on Tuesday.

Congratulations to all involved in such a complex construction project on a confined site over a working railway with almost 60,000 passengers using the busy station each day.

Main feature of the upgrade is a large new (almost aircraft hanger size) concourse for passengers arriving at the airport by train. It’s been constructed over the tracks above platforms 5, 6 and 7 together with five new lifts, eight new escalators and four new stairways while the original concourse has been given a makeover with a new layout and is now primarily for passengers departing by train.

A new separate building for staff accommodation has also been constructed resulting in the overall area now devoted to passengers doubling in size.

Platforms 5 and 6 have also been completely reconstructed with the eastern flank (platform 6) made wider to give more room for waiting passengers and there’s now much more room on platform 7 including new escalators and lifts..

Whereas the previous standard arrangement was for all southbound trains to use platform 7 and northbound trains used platforms 4, 5 or 6 including the half hourly terminating Gatwick Express journeys on the latter, now, platforms 6 and 7 are used for southbound trains and platforms 4 and 5 for northbound giving new flexibility for pathing, but as I’ll explain shortly, potential confusion for passengers.

There’s no doubt the extra space, escalators and lifts will be much welcomed and appreciated by the growing number of passengers using the station.

Indeed, the aim of the project has been to “relieve crowding, improve accessibility and reduce delays for commuters and leisure travellers across the South East”. As far as the experience in what is now a two concourse station that objective has definitely been achieved.

You just have to marvel at the wide open spaces that have been created. Using the station on its opening day on Tuesday I found the whole atmosphere had changed to a more leisurely travel experience rather than a frenetic crush.

As well as all the extra facilities and space I particularly like the many large way-finding signs that are now displayed in the airport’s bright corporate yellow and black colours.

There can be no mistaking which way to go for each platform or the terminal building itself.

The next train departure signs are also very clear to read.

There’s a new exit from the arrivals concourse on the eastern side (opposite the exit for the terminal building on the western side) which takes you out to the car parks and stops for coaches.

The gate line has been extended and gates are almost all to the wide size for passengers with luggage in the departure concourse…

… and in the two corridors from the new arrivals concourse into the airport terminal building…

… although the left hand corridor has one slim line gate presumably as there isn’t room for a wide one (see photo below).

I noticed there were far more ticket gates in the original concourse area, which does still have three gates at the far end for passengers arriving even though all the signs point you to the new arrivals concourse…

… there’s also much more room on that concourse, not least to allow for queues for the ticket machines when needed at busy times.

However, on Tuesday morning there was the usual long queue at around 09:20…

… but an hour later, a lull in plane arrivals meant I’ve never seen the ticket machines looking so devoid of passengers which made a pleasant change.

The relaxed atmosphere in the departure concourse even extends to a few sofas and a potted plant…

… and best of all there’s a fantastic exhibition showing the history of Gatwick Airport railway station…

… which adorns the corner beyond the lifts and escalator for platforms 5 and 6 and is well worth a visit.

While I was there on Tuesday I had the pleasure of meeting the three people responsible for putting this fascinating exhibition together – local historian Bruce Healey, Sharon Gray, Community Rail Development Officer and Rowena Taylor, Arun Valley and Sussex Coast Line Officer for the CRP.

The story of Gatwick Airport railway station from its early beginnings serving the racecourse, then construction of a new station called Tinsley Green before being renamed, through to this latest upgrade is told with the help of some wonderful old photographs, maps and diagrams, and explanations.

I have no doubt this latest investment in expanding the railway station at Gatwick Airport will be much welcomed by passengers.

There was no official ribbon cutting opening ceremony on Tuesday which was probably just as well as there are some obvious snagging items yet to be addressed, for example, platform 7 doesn’t look finished…

… and the untouched platforms 3 and 4 could really do with the escalator being repaired …

… and in fact I’m a bit surprised improvements weren’t incorporated into these escalators and stairways as part of the upgrade particularly as the stairways are very narrow making it awkward to pass passengers going in the other direction.

And I also wondered why the sign indicating for platform 7 (as seen in above photo) from platforms 3 and 4 hasn’t been changed so that it makes it clear you can actually access all the other platforms via this exit (as well as the airport terminal via the original – now departure – concourse) rather than was the case when platform 7 was first constructed in 2013 and it was the only access point to it.

Meanwhile one of the lifts on platforms 3 and 4 was out of action giving rise to the auto announcement at stations all along the Brighton Main Line on Tuesday “some of the lifts at Gatwick Airport are not working, please ask a member of staff if you require assistance” completely ignoring the fact eight new lifts had just opened that morning!

And it looked as though this hoarding was covering up a decommissioned lift towards the southern end of platforms 3 and 4..

Platforms 1 and 2 are the quietest platforms, seeing departures and arrivals on the slow line to/from Redhill (including the hourly GWR to Reading) as well as the half hourly trains from Horsham and the Arun Valley Line towards Victoria, and these are also untouched in the upgrade. I was pleased to see Gatwick Airport station’s best kept secret – the only toilets on the station are still in situ at the southern end of platform 1 …

… with a baby change room …

… and accessible toilet at the northern end both looking in need of a refresh…

… and an enclosed waiting room conveniently located right at the foot of the escalators from the departure concourse.

The lift repair department really does need to pay a visit as one of the original lifts from platforms 1 and 2 was also out of action.

I also noticed the one and only coffee booth left on the station is located in another enclosed waiting area at the northern end of platforms 1 and 2. It’s now closed, presumably as so few people use those platforms. It’s a surprise the upgrade hasn’t incorporated more retail in the additional space as there’s a distinct lack of that essential ingredient for any train journey for most passengers these days – the ability to buy coffee.

Platforms 1 and 2 have enjoyed much wider access from the original concourse with three escalators (albeit one was out of action on Tuesday)…

… and opposite those on the platform, (the other side of that enclosed waiting booth) and taking you towards the new (arrivals) concourse there’s a lovely wide staircase in the middle of two escalators…

… but now platforms 5 and 6 as well as 7 are all greatly improved…

… it does make platforms 3 and 4 stick out as the poor relation, which brings me to some of the other issues that need to be addressed.

Firstly, the number of trains between Gatwick Airport and Victoria is inadequate leading to gross overcrowding at times. Back in May 2020 GTR reduced the service frequency between Gatwick Airport and Victoria by two trains an hour to allow for platform 6 to be taken out of service while the rebuilding took place. This was achieved by reducing Gatwick Express to just half hourly through journeys from/to Brighton with the half hourly shorts between the Airport and Victoria withdrawn. The implication back in 2020 was these journeys would be reinstated once the station upgrade work was completed.

They haven’t been and there’s no sign of them returning.

I suspect the DfT would block such a move in its cost cutting mode and in any event GTR currently don’t have the trains (the Class 313s were withdrawn without any replacements so Gatwick Express trains are to be found on Coastway routes).

The consequence is we’ve now got a nice new shiny upgraded station but a less than satisfactory passenger experience down on the platforms.

For example, there are eight trains an hour between Gatwick Airport and Victoria.

Trains from Ore and/or Eastbourne to Victoria are timetabled at 02 and 32 minutes past each hour and use the sparkly new platform 5.

Next up, eight minutes later, from platform 5 are the two Gatwick Express branded trains originating in Brighton at 10 and 40 minutes past the hour.

Just three minutes later are trains from the Arun Valley (Bognor Regis/Southampton/Portsmouth & Southsea) and Horsham at 13 and 43 minutes past each hour, but as already explained these use Platforms 1 or 2 and observations show few passengers use these from Gatwick and aren’t really part of the combined frequency. Indeed, platform 2 sees very little else (just the hourly Readings).

There’s then a crucial 16 minute gap (after the Gatwick Express) until the Littlehampton originators arrive at 26 and 56 minutes past each hour but oddly these depart from platform 4 rather than 5.

What happens is that after the Gatwick Express has left platform 5 at either 10 or 40 minutes past the hour passengers come pouring down from the departure concourse to platform 4 during the 16 minute gap with numbers soon building up on the narrow platform and despite dispatchers’ best efforts encouraging passengers to use the full length of the platform …

… they continue to congregate in the middle by the escalator from the concourse just where an eight coach train pulls up with its first class seating at the ends of coaches 4 and 5 adding to the congestion these passengers create when boarding an already crowded train as shown in the photographs above and below, taken at 09:26 on Tuesday morning.

There’s also completely inadequate facilities for luggage – no room at all for the large suitcases so many passengers now trundle around with which end up blocking the doorways and aisles on the train.

After that packed train has left there’s just a six minute gap before the Ore/Eastbourne arrives again followed eight minutes later by the Gatwick Express from Brighton. So it’s not an even frequency by any means.

As a short term fix, it would help passengers if the Littlehampton originators also used platform 5 instead of 4 giving that platform six trains an hour, leaving platform 4 for the Thameslink northbound trains to Bedford and Cambridge. Longer term (eg from May 2024), the Gatwick Express shorts urgently need reinstating (before next summer) and these could stand on platform 5 and fill up with passengers during the layover/stand time meaning the already busy Littlehamptons arriving back on platform 4 don’t get so deluged with passengers.

In the southbound direction, platform 7 is used by Thameslink trains to Brighton (four per hour) and the half hourly Ore/Eastbourne while the half hourly Littlehampton, and also the Bognor Regis/Southampton/Portsmouth & Southsea and the half hourly Brighton on the Gatwick Express use platform 6. That means passengers for Brighton or Haywards Heath (or Hassocks) need to have their wits about them to know whether to go to platform 6 or 7, especially when platforms are altered at the very last minute as in “this is a platform alteration” announcement.

I was on a Brighton bound Thameslink train the other day which used the newly extended platform 6 and was gobsmacked to hear the auto-announcement telling those of us in the rearmost carriage of the 12 coach train “the rear doors will not open in this coach and passengers should move forward to the next coach”. I couldn’t understand how a newly constructed platform had not been designed to take a 12 coach train. In the event the rearmost doors were just in the platform when we stopped but I guess a vigilant risk management approach has deemed it to be too risky.

The other issue which needs urgent attention, as covered in previous blogs, is the station upgrade has done away with the ticket office. This is just crazy for an airport station used by millions of passengers each year many of whom are unfamiliar with Britain’s Byzantine rail ticketing system as well as having to negotiate the intricacies of the differences between Gatwick Express, Southern and Thameslink.

I checked out one of the 17 Ticket Vending Machines on the departure concourse to buy a single ticket from the Airport to Victoria which must be the most popular destination for passengers from Gatwick.

Unsurprisingly it’s the first “Quick Ticket Selection for popular stations” button displayed on the opening screen, LONDON VICTORIA, so I’m sure most passengers just press that.

But, it’s for the most expensive “Any Permitted” price of £21.90 which includes the rip off premium priced Gatwick Express trains (even though at the time of purchase most passengers would have no idea what times those branded trains run).

You have to look further down the screen to spot a LONDON TERMINALS option for £19.40 or even a LONDON THAMESLINK price at the bottom for just £13.70. Who, having just flown in from abroad is going to know the difference between those three options? (Answer: no-one).

So, assuming passengers press the LONDON VICTORIA button at the top you then get a screen confirming the journey details and price and it’s only passengers who know what they’re doing would think to press the button marked “Change” to the right of the “Ticket Type” button shown as “Anytime Single”. And indeed, why would you? That’s the ticket you want – a single ticket. Confusingly there are no “Off-Peak” Singles from Gatwick Airport to Victoria for Standard Class – there are for First Class.

Note it doesn’t let you “change” the ANY PERMITTED shown on the screen for “Route” to avoid Gatwick Express. That’s all part of the rip off.

However, passengers in the know would go ahead and press the “Change” button for “Ticket type” and then get this screen…

… which shows a saving of £2.50 (11%) by selecting the “NOT VALID BY GATWICK EXPRESS” as the first option on the left at £19.40 which is of course valid on the six Southern trains an hour but technically not the two an hour Gatwick Express trains which you wouldn’t know the times of. And in any event, the former are timetabled to take just three minutes longer then the latter but in practice all trains take about the same time. This screen clearly shows “London Victoria” rather than “London Terminals” as shown on the first screen.

But, here’s the thing, if you really know your tickets, and want to save even more money – over a third of the ticket price – instead of choosing LONDON VICTORIA on that very first screen showing the “Quick ticket selection for popular destinations” you’d choose CROYDON STATIONS…

… (ie, to East Croydon as you can’t travel direct to West Croydon from Gatwick Airport) and buy a £6.20 single, add it to your basket, then go back to the home screen and select the “Tickets from other stations” button in the bottom left hand corner …

… and on the next screen enter the origin station as EAST CROYDON and buy a single from there to LONDON VICTORIA which amazingly costs £7.40…

… making for an overall price for your Gatwick Airport to London Victoria journey of £13.60 albeit you’d have to get one of the six Southern trains as Gatwick Express doesn’t stop at your split ticket station of East Croydon. But as explained above, Southern are the most frequent trains.

That trick gives you a whopping saving of £8.30 (38%) compared to the rip off price the machine will try and sell you first off.

No wonder there’s an auto-announcement playing out in the ticket buying area on the departure concourse every five minutes encouraging passenger to just touch in and out with a bankcard or Oyster as that will ensure passengers are charged the higher rip off fare rather than if there was a ticket office where staff would be obliged to sell you the cheapest fare, if asked, including that split ticket option.

A human being in a ticket office might also point out if you’re a visitor and just want to get to London it might be best to buy that mysterious “London Thameslink” ticket and take a train to London Bridge, or one of the convenient stations in the “core” to St Pancras for £13.70, or at the weekend, just £11.30 – almost half of what you pay on Gatwick Express.

On Sundays the timetable is very fluid with different arrangements virtually every week, but suffice to say there are simply not enough trains for the number of passengers travelling.

TICKET UODATE: thanks to Paul who’s reminded me passengers using PAYG Oyster or Contactless pay £9.50 from Gatwick Airport to Victoria in the off-peak. BUT that only works if you travel on a Southern train not arriving in platforms 13/14 at VIC (those are the GatEx platforms) and there’s confusion over what times off-peak applies.

Network Rail and GTR are understandably trumpeting the huge growth in passengers using Gatwick Airport over the last decade and more, displaying a graph showing numbers rising from around 14 million in 2010 to 21 million in 2019…

… and it’s great to see the station upgrade completed ensuring there is capacity for continued growth over the next decade and more, but let’s now have the train service frequency and sensible (and honest) pricing to cater for that growth which passengers also deserve.

Roger French

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