An interchange station (in the UK, most Commonwealth countries, Hong Kong and Ireland) or a transfer station (in Canada and the USA) is a train station for more than one railway route in a public transport system, and allows passengers to change from one route to another.
Transfer may occur within the same mode, or between rail modes, or to buses (for stations with bus termini attached). Such stations usually have more platforms than single route stations. They may be required to pay extra fare for the interchange if they leave a paid area.
In most rapid transit, an interchange station is a stop at which a passenger can change from one line to another without incurring another full fare or having to leave the station proper.
Some interchange stations offer only transfer between routes and do not have the ability for passengers to enter or exit the network, for instance Cornbrook on the Manchester Metrolink light rail system (although passenger entrances and exits for the station were established in 2005). Manhattan Transfer (PRR station) on the Pennsylvania Railroad was located outside Newark, New Jersey.
Sometimes cross-platform interchange is offered between mainline railways and city metro systems, such as Barking station and Stratford station in London, England, United Kingdom, and Nam Cheong Station in New Kowloon, Hong Kong.
In some cases, no dedicated underground passage or footbridge is provided, and therefore passengers have to transfer between two parts of a station through city streets. Examples include Kuramae Station of Toei in Tokyo, Japan, Lexington Avenue / 59th Street and Lexington Avenue – 63rd Street stations in New York, New York, United States, and Xizhimen, Fuxingmen, Jianguomen and Dongzhimen stations in Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Famous quotes containing the words interchange and/or station:
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—François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680)
“To act the part of a true friend requires more conscientious feeling than to fill with credit and complacency any other station or capacity in social life.”
—Sarah Ellis (1812–1872)