A railway station in Essex is home to the nation’s longest platform, which takes around 10 minutes to walk across from end to end. According to British train operating company Cross Country Trains‘ website, the platform at Colchester Railway Station extends a massive 620 metres.
The typical walking speed for a human is around 5km/h, meaning it would take between eight and 10 minutes to make it from one end to the other. According to Greater Anglia, the station has a Victorian Ticket Office that’s been given a makeover with a modern interior, while the other half of the station has a ticket hall built in the 1970s.
It has six platforms, including two bay platforms, as well as a stabling yard, an area some stations have where trains are parked when they’re not in operation.
The station is mainly served by Greater Anglia, which connects Norwich to Colchester and London to Colchester.
However, railway aficionados will be aware that, because it is split into two sections, Colchester can’t claim to have the longest uninterrupted platform in the UK.
That title is held by Gloucester railway station, which has a whopping 602m of unbroken platform beside the track. Its length is said to be equivalent to around 32 carriages.
However, trains in the UK tend to have fewer than 12 cars, meaning Gloucester’s platform could comfortably fit two trains back-to-back.
The platform was extended in 1977 as part of a rebuild by British Rail, with a view to accommodating two InterCity 125 trains simultaneously.
But the station itself is comparatively small compared to the nation’s top transport hubs, with three rail lines, a car park and a cafe. The station is mainly served by GWR, CrossCountry and Transport for Wales trains, according to TheTrainLine.
