Teesside Airport railway station is in the borough of Darlington in County Durham, England. It is almost a walk from Teesside International Airport; only one train per week calls here and bus links to the airport and other destinations were withdrawn many years ago. Consequently, the station has become one of Britain's least-used, with an estimated 206 passenger entries/exits in 2018/19. In 2012/13 and 2013/14 it was the least used station in the country, with just eight passengers a year in both periods. The station has two platforms, each long enough for a four-car train; however, since December 2017, only one is in use.
History
The station is on the original route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, from Darlington South Junction; it was opened by British Rail on 3 October 1971. The airport itself changed its name to Durham Tees Valley Airport in 2004 but reverted to Teesside International Airport in 2019; the station's name was never updated to reflect either change. In 2007, the train operating companyNorthern erected new signs reading "Teesside Airport", replacing previous signs which had used a hyphen in "Tees-side". National Rail now also lists the station as "Teesside Airport". In December 2017 it was announced by Durham Tees Valley Airport that the footbridge and eastbound platform would be closed to save DTVA having to spend £6 million on maintenance of the station up until 2022. The once-weekly train from stops on the platform nearer to the airport.
Services
Located on the Tees Valley Line and operated by Northern, the station sees only one train call per week, on a Sunday, travelling westbound from Hartlepool to Darlington. The eastbound service was withdrawn in the December 2017 timetable change because of concerns over the weak footbridge. Other services use this line, but pass the station without stopping. The airport is approximately 15-minute walk from the station and accessibility issues are a major factor in its lack of usage. The station did have a more frequent service in the past, but since the early 1990s it has received only a bare minimum "parliamentary" service to avoid the need for formal closure proceedings. On 24 October 2009, a group of 26 people travelled to and from the station on the only scheduled service, to highlight the station's existence and its limited service, and to try to persuade railway authorities to move it 500 metres closer to the airport terminal. The station was featured in October 2010 on the BBC Radio 4 programme "The Ghost Trains of Old England", which mentioned the campaign and the fact that the station has a working payphone. It was also suggested that a large proportion of the tickets sold for the station are bought by collectors who wish to own tickets with rare or unusual destinations, and do not necessarily travel.
Transport links
Previously, other public transport access was frequent, with the airport being served by the "Sky Express" bus service from Middlesbrough and Darlington. In 2011 the links with Middlesbrough were lost as Stockton borough council withdrew funding, but services to Darlington and Hurworth remained. By 2012, passenger numbers had decreased so much that all journeys to and from the airport were withdrawn.
