The busiest train route in England and Wales revealed where there are more passengers standing than seated

Picture this: you’re lasting connected the platform, waiting for your morning bid to work.

It pulls in, and past you realise that it’s packed to the rafters with different hardly awake office workers, each clutching their morning coffees in unison.

But if you were convinced that your regular commute is the astir chaotic, you mightiness yet beryllium proven incorrect – arsenic now, the busiest bid way successful England and Wales has been revealed.

Any guesses? It’s the 7.33am work from Bedford (in Bedfordshire, naturally) to Three Bridges successful Sussex, ticking disconnected Luton Airport, cardinal London and Gatwick on the way.

As per the latest figures from the Department for Transport, successful autumn 2023, this peculiar work had much passengers lasting than seated successful the agelong approaching St Pancras International (with a maximum load origin of a whopping 204%). Cosy, hey?

The maximum load origin was calculated by dividing the rider load of the carriages (excluding first-class) by the full capacity.

As such, Govia Thameslink was forced to summation this peculiar work to run with 12 coaches, allowing abstraction for an other 618 passengers successful total.

Now, this commuter bid has an mean of 187 lasting passengers – which is simply a maximum load origin of 129%, though the emblematic fig of commuters utilizing this work has subsequently jumped up somewhat to 835.

Notably, this enactment includes a full of 16 stops, including Blackfriars, St Pancras International, Croydon, and of course, St Albans.

This Hertfordshire metropolis was crowned the best commuter spot of 2024 by OnTheMarket, hailed for its transport links, adjacent schools, and adjacent proximity to the capital, being conscionable 20 minutes (or 26 miles north) by train.

So, it’s small astonishment that a work that passes consecutive done it has been named the busiest – though, as per statistics released successful March, 63% of trains stopping astatine St Albans specifically were delayed (despite the information that a yearly play summons volition outgo you much than £4,300 if you’re successful the bureau 4 days a week oregon more).

Elsewhere, the 7.46am work from Prince’s Risborough successful Buckinghamshire to London Marylebone was ranked the 2nd busiest work with a maximum load origin of 165%.

However, Chiltern Railways has noted that it’s doing ‘everything possible’ to present much trains to the web and upgrade the existing ones with newer models.

And, successful 3rd spot was the lone way not connecting into London with the 2.57pm work from Gloucester to Maesteg successful Wales – which is astatine its busiest betwixt Cardiff and Bridgend.

So, the adjacent clip you find yourself rolling your eyes astatine a mildly packed train, spare a thought for the commuters connected the busiest.

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