There's a new busiest train station in London after 16 years

The busiest railway station in the UK has been announced, and the previous record holder has been knocked off its pedestal thanks to the Elizabeth line.

For the last 16 years, London’s Waterloo has been the busiest railway in the UK, with 86.9 million entries and exits in 2019/2020. This year, though, the station only saw 57.8 million.

Instead, Liverpool Street took the top spot with 80.4 million passengers — that’s 50 million more than last year.

This is down to the popularity of the new Elizabeth line, which was opened in May 2022 and soon became one of the busiest rail routes in the capital.

In fact, less than a year after opening, the Lizzie line had already been used by half of all Londoners. 

It’s likely the same reason why Paddington, another hub the the Elizabeth line, was the second busiest in the UK, with 59.2 million people passing through it. 

Not just that, two other Elizabeth line stations made the top then: Tottenham Court Road was the seventh busiest, while Farringdon climbed 29 places to number nine. 

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All 10 of the UK’s busiest stations were in London, including London Bridge, London Victoria and Stratford.

London Euston was at number 10, with 30.1 million passengers over the course of 12 months. 

Outside of London, Birmingham New Street was the busiest with 30.7 million exits and entries, followed by Leeds, Manchester Piccadilly, Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley. 

At least we know which stations to avoid this Christmas. 

The 10 busiest train stations in London (and the UK)

1. London Liverpool Street
2. London Paddington
3. London Waterloo
4. London Bridge
5. London Victoria
6. Stratford (London)
7. Tottenham Court Road
8. London St Pancras International
9. Farringdon
10. London Euston

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