A rail station is no longer just a station, and a station manager’s role is not easy

Getting passengers to stay at rail stations for as long as possible but making the experience more or less stress-free was a key message from Transit’s 2008 Rail Stations conference. But it’s not just the station itself that requires focus - it’s also the station manager, whose role has expanded hugely.

Retail outlets mean big business, but this is yet another strand which the station manager has to manage, says Neil Micklethwaite (left)

Retail outlets mean big business, but this is yet another strand which the station manager has to manage, says Neil Micklethwaite (left)

A new shelter built at Avoncliff station was a small, low value improvement but the benefit to the local communtity was ‘astronomical’

A new shelter built at Avoncliff station was a small, low value improvement but the benefit to the local communtity was ‘astronomical’

There is no doubt that the role of the railway station and the emphasis placed on it is changing in the eyes of the rail industry. Yes, its primary and most basic function is for passengers to get on and off trains, but for many of the speakers at the Transit UK Rail Stations 2008 conference last week, the station is or should be much more than that:? a gateway to a city, to a community; a retail hub; a stress-free environment where people want to linger, meet, and shop - in a move that...