A railway platform is a section of pathway, alongside rail tracks at a train station, metro station or tram stop, at which passengers may board or alight from trains or trams. Almost all stations for rail transport have some form of platforms, with larger stations having multiple platforms. The term platform is most commonly used for designated areas where trains stop (Platform 1, 2, 3, etc.). Technically speaking, the term platform actually refers to physical continuous sections of platform area. So such a physical platform may contain several "designated" platforms. Railroad or railway tracks are used on railways, which, together with railroad switches (points), guide trains without the need for steering. ... Passengers bustle around the typical grand edifice of Londons Broad Street station in 1865. ... Exterior open entrance to a metro station (Tribunal station in Madrid) A metro station is a railway station for a metro. ... A tram stop in Gothenburg, Sweden. ...

Characteristics

Station showing high and low level platforms, viewed through cab of train

A most basic form of platform consists of an area at the same level as the track, usually resulting in a fairly large height difference between the 'platform' and the train floor. This would often not be considered a true platform. The more traditional platform is situated at an elevated level relative to the track, but often lower than the train floor, although ideally the platform should be at the same level as the train floor. Occasionally the platform is at a higher level than the train floor. This may be the case when a train with a low floor level serves a station built for trains with a higher floor level, for example at the Dutch stations of the DB Regionalbahn Westfalen (see Enschede). Likewise, on the London Underground some stations are served by both District Line and Piccadilly Line trains, and the Piccadilly trains have lower floors. Download high resolution version (2032x1524, 832 KB)High and low level platforms on RijnGouweLijn. ... Download high resolution version (2032x1524, 832 KB)High and low level platforms on RijnGouweLijn. ... There are various types of trains designed for particular purposes, see rail transport operations. ... Enschede is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands, in the province of Overijssel, in the Twente region. ... Slight modifications to the famous London Underground roundel indicate the name of each station on platform and some outdoor signs. ... The District Line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. ... The Piccadilly Line is a line of the London Underground, coloured dark blue on the Tube map. ...

A tram stop is often in the middle of the street; usually it has as a platform a refuge area of a similar height to that of the sidewalk (eg. 10 cm), and sometimes has no platform at all. The latter requires extra care for the boarding and unboarding passengers and for the other traffic to avoid accidents. Both types of tram stops can be seen in the tram network of Melbourne. Sometimes a tram stop is served by ordinary trams (with rather low floors) as well as metro-like light rail vehicles with higher floors, and the tram stop is provided with a dual height platform. An example can be found in Amstelveen, Netherlands. Similarly a train station may be served by heavy-rail and light-rail vehicles (with lower floors) and also have a dual height platform. This applies for example on the RijnGouweLijn, Netherlands. Street cars in New Orleans A modern tram in the Töölö district of Helsinki, Finland For modern innovations aimed at increasing the capacity and speed of tramway systems, see light rail. ... A centimetre (American spelling: centimeter, symbol: cm) is an SI unit of length. ... The City of Melbournes coat of arms Melbourne is the capital and largest city of the state of Victoria, and the second largest city in Australia (after Sydney), with a population of 3,600,650 in the Melbourne metropolitan area (June 2004) and 61,670 in the City of... This page refers to urban rail mass transit systems. ... This article is about light rail systems in general. ... Amstelveen is a town in the north-western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. ... Light rail train The RijnGouweLijn or RGL is a light rail project in South Holland, Netherlands. ...

Facilities

Platforms may have shelters, such as at this island platform at Sasebo Station, Sasebo, Nagasaki, Japan.

Part of the station facilities are usually on the platforms. Where the platforms are not situated within a station building, often some form of shelter or waiting room is provided. The protection offered by such varies greatly – some being little more than a roof with open sides, others being a closed room with heating or air-conditioning (the roof also provides shade; this may be a disadvantage in colder climates). Also there may be benches, lighting, garbage boxes and static timetables or dynamic displays with information about the next train, delays, etc. There are often loudspeakers as part of a public address system. The PA system is often found where dynamic timetables or electronic displays are not present. A variety of information is presented, usually pertaining to departures, but often arrivals also. This concerns destinations and times (for all trains, or only the more important long-distance trains), delays, cancellations, platform changes, changes in routes and destinations, the fact that for a train a supplemental fee or a reservation is required, etc.
Train station Railway platform Sasebo Station West Japan Railway Company Sasebo, Nagasaki Nagasaki Prefecture Kyushu Japan. ... Train station Railway platform Sasebo Station West Japan Railway Company Sasebo, Nagasaki Nagasaki Prefecture Kyushu Japan. ... Shelter can refer to several things: A place that protects, to a larger or smaller extent, against some or all of the following: the weather (precipitation, wind, heat, cold) intruding humans and animals, etc. ... Queue at US Air Force station in Iraq, for food at a birthday celebration. Queue areas are areas in which people queue (first in, first out), that is they wait in line for something. ... Shade is the blocking of sunlight (in particular direct sunshine) by any object, and also the shadow created by that object. ... Wikimedia Commons has more media related to: Benches Bench may refer to several things: A long backless seat, typically used for sitting at an outdoor table for casual eating. ... Architect lamps Dark lighting in a concert hall allow laser effects to be visible In the 2005 Classical Spectacular performance, a state of the art lighting system was used to accompany the music Lighting refers to the devices or techniques used for illumination, usually referring to artificial light sources such... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... A timetable is an organized list or schedule, usually set out in tabular form, providing information about a series of arranged events: in particular, the time at which it is planned these events will take place. ... Closeup of a loudspeaker driver A loudspeaker is a device which converts an electrical signal into sound. ... A public address system, abbreviated PA system, is an electronic amplification system used as a communication system in public areas. ...

Types of platform

This diagram illustrates different types of platform. Platform 1 is a "bay" platform, while platforms 2, 3 and 4 are "through" platforms. The physical platform accommodating 3 and 4 is an "island" platform, and can only be accessed via a footbridge or tunnel

There are at least three distinct types of platform, the bay platform, through platform and island platform. A bay platform is one at which the tracks terminate, i.e. a dead-end or siding. Trains serving a bay platform must reverse in or out. A through platform, conversely, is the more usual type of platform, located alongside tracks where the train may simply pull into the platform from one end, and leave passing the other end. Finally, an island platform has designated through platforms on both sides; it may be indented on one or both ends, with bay platforms. For passengers to reach an island platform, there may be a bridge, a tunnel, or a level crossing. The climb up to the bridge or down to the tunnel may use stairs, ramps, escalators, lifts, or a combination of the above. Self-created diagram illustrating types of railway platform. ... An island platform on a railway is one in which a single platform is provided for two tracks, usually on the same line but in opposite directions. ... This article is about the house covering. ... A log bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a gorge, valley, road, railroad track, river, body of water, or any other physical obstacle. ... A disused railway tunnel now converted to pedestrian and bicycle use, near Houyet, Belgium A tunnel is an underground passage. ... A level crossing at Chertsey, England, as the barriers rise The term level crossing (also called: railroad crossing or grade crossing) is a crossing on one level (or at grade) - without recourse to a bridge or tunnel - used to describe the crossing of a railway line by a road, path...

Some stations, such as Limerick Junction, in County Tipperary, Ireland, consist solely of an island platform hosting all platform numbers, as well as the station building entirely surrounded by track. Limerick Junction, actually situated in County Tipperary and formerly named Tipperary Junction, is a railway station in Ireland. ... County Tipperary (Tiobraid Árann in Irish) is a traditional county in the Republic of Ireland, in the province of Munster. ...

Usually "platform" numbering is actually a numbering of the boarding/alightment areas in the station (hence one island platform, for example, may have several numbered "platforms"). In some cases, tracks without platform access, used for through traffic, also have a number.

Platform safety

Warning sign for passing high-speed trains, advising to keep sufficient distance to the edge, on Nieuw Vennep station

Platforms usually have some form of warnings or measures to keep passengers away from the tracks and moving trains. The simplest measure is markings near the edge of the platform to demarkate the distance back from the platform edge that passengers should remain. Often a special tiled surface is used as well as a painted line, to help blind people using a walking aid, and aid in preventing wheelchairs from accidentally rolling too near the platform edge. A dangerous practice that sometimes occurs is sitting on the edge of the platform, which requires being fast enough in withdrawing the legs when a train arrives. Warning sign showing that intercity trains pass the platform at high speed. ... Warning sign showing that intercity trains pass the platform at high speed. ... Haarlemmermeer (population: 127,750 in 2004) is a municipality in the north-western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. ...

Some metro stations have screens with doors between the platforms and the tracks. They provide more safety; also they allow the heating or air conditioning on the station and the ventilation in the tunnel to be separated, thus being more efficient and effective. They have been installed in most stations of the Singapore MRT and the Hong Kong MTR, as shown in the photos below, and the newer stations forming the Jubilee Line Extension in London. The front door of a house is often decorated to appear inviting. ... A C651 train approaching Jurong East MRT Station Logo of Public Transport System The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) is a rapid transit system which forms the backbone of the railway system in Singapore, serving more than a quarter of Singapores population of four million with a network spanning the... Logo of the MTR corporation Causeway Bay station on the Island Line. ... Canary Wharf tube station The Jubilee Line Extension is the extension of the London Underground Jubilee Line into southern and eastern London. ... St. ...

Curvature

A common sign at curved platforms on the London Underground

Ideally platforms should be straight or slightly convex, so that the guard can see the whole train as he prepares to close the doors. Platforms that have great curvature have blind spots that create a safety hazard. Mirrors or closed-circuit cameras may be used in these cases to view the whole platform. Also passenger carriages are straight, and so doors will not always open directly onto a curved platform – often a gap is present. (Usually such platforms will have warning signs, possibly auditory, such as "Mind the gap"). In some cases, sections within the platform may be movable, so as to cover any gap; moving away again to allow the train to leave.
Mind the Gap File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Mind the Gap File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Slight modifications to the famous London Underground roundel indicate the name of each station on platform and some outdoor signs. ... The two-year-old Jamie Bulger being led away by his killers, recorded on shopping centre CCTV. Closed-circuit television (CCTV), as a collection of surveillance cameras doing video surveillance, is the use of television cameras for surveillance. ... Some station platforms on the London Underground railway are curved. ...

Queue lines may be printed on tiles on platforms to let passengers line up for the trains. In this photo, the yellow arrow area is left for people on the train to alight onto the platform.

Platform screendoors are installed in most MTR stations to prevent people from falling into the rails. They also allow substantial energy savings on station air-conditioning and tunnel ventilation.

Queue lines for people to queue up for train File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Queue lines for people to queue up for train File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (1280x960, 258 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1280x960, 258 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

Length

The longest railway platform in the world (833 metres) is at Kharagpur, West Bengal. The longest in the UK is at Gloucester railway station. Kharagpur is a town in India. ... West Bengal (পশ্চিম বঙ্গ, Pościm Bôngo) is a state in the eastern region of India. ... Gloucester railway station (formerly known as Gloucester Central station) serves the city of Gloucester. ...

See also

• Rail transport
• Rail terminology
• Mind the gap

Trains can travel at very high speed, are heavy, are unable to deviate from the track and require a great distance to stop. ... Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. ... Some station platforms on the London Underground railway are curved. ...

External links

• Schematic maps of all tracks, switches and platforms in the Netherlands: http://www.sporenplan.nl/html_nl/sporenplan/ns/ns_normaal/start.html (point at an area and open detail map in a new window)