New Street tops list as busiest station outside capital
Birmingham’s main railway station remains the busiest outside London, according to figures released by the government’s Office for Road and Rail this month.
In total, 36,623,678 passengers passed through the entry and exit barriers at New Street between April 2024 and March 2025 – almost 10m more than the next busiest station at Manchester Piccadilly.
Over 7m people passed through Birmingham’s Moor Street, with the city’s University and Snow Hill stations also clocking up more than 3m barrier entries.
Elsewhere in the Midlands, more than 8m people passed through Nottingham station, 5.2m through Wolverhampton and 4.1m passengers headed through Derby.
Elton and Orston in Nottinghamshire was Great Britain’s least used station, with just 68 recorded entries and exits. It was also the least used station in the year April 2021 to March 2022.
However according to the statistics, the nation’s ten busiest stations are all inside London, with Liverpool Street seeing 98m passengers during the period.
Feras Alshaker, director of planning and performance at the Office of Rail and Road, said the statistics at London stations has been affected by the Crossrail project, also known as the Elizabeth Line – which became fully operational in 2023.
“This year’s statistics show rail usage continuing to grow around the country, and we’re also seeing the sustained impact of major investment, particularly the Elizabeth line,” he said.
“These insights are vital in understanding how travel patterns are changing and in planning a network that meets passenger needs.”
