Facilities Required at Railway Stations

Facilities Required at Railway Stations

The passenger station is the gateway through which people find their way into a town or community. A first impression is a lasting one and, hence, a well designed station building with well-maintained surroundings is important. Whilst service is the main consideration, the type and finish of a station building should be, as far as practicable, in keeping with the best standards of civic amenities available in that area. A large passenger station should provide for facilities corresponding to the anticipated demands of at least the first 20 years of its life, with provisions for future expansion. The facilities required at stations are broadly classified into the following main groups.

Passenger requirements

This includes waiting rooms and retiring rooms, refreshment rooms and tea stalls, enquiry and reservation offices, bathrooms and toilets, drinking water supply, platform and platform sheds, and approach roads.

Traffic requirements

This includes goods sheds and platforms, station buildings, station master's office and other offices, signal and signal cabins, reception and departure lines and sidings, arrangements for dealing with broken down trains, and station equipment.

Locomotive, carriage, and wagon requirements

This includes the locomotive shed, watering or fuelling facilities, turntable, inspection pits, ashpits, ashtrays, etc.

Staff requirements

This includes rest houses for officers and staff, running rooms for guards and drivers, staff canteens, etc.